Bone Cleaver, Hand Forged Heavy Spine with Hickory Handle

A bone cleaver is the heavy version of the kitchen cleaver. The blade is taller and longer than the standard pattern and the spine is left thick and squared, so more mass sits behind the edge. It is built for heavy chopping work. This one is an 8 inch blade in 5160 spring steel, 13.5 inches overall, with American hickory scales on a full tang and a hand tooled leather cover.

Specification

The blade

The steel is 5160 spring steel, chosen because it takes a hard impact without chipping. The flat is left dark gray from the forge with hammer marks right across it, and the wide bevel polished mirror bright against that darker face. The spine is thick and squared rather than tapered, and the blade stands about 4.5 inches tall, so the weight sits high and out over the work. A hanging hole is punched near the top rear corner. Like all carbon steel it darkens with use and wants drying.

The handle

Hickory is what American axe and hammer handles have been made from for a long time, for one reason. It absorbs shock. On a blade this heavy that is the point, because every chop sends the load back into your hand. The scales are pale blonde with a straight close grain, held by three large brass pins, and a lanyard hole runs through the butt. The tang is full length and shows as a line all round the handle.

What it is for

This is a heavy chopping tool for the kitchen and the game room. It suits portioning and the coarse work at the start of breaking something down, where the weight does the job and you only guide it. Let it fall and stay out of its way. It does not suit fine work, since it is too heavy for trimming or any cut that wants a point.

The leather

Cleavers get a broad blade cover rather than a sheath, cut to the outline of this blade, which is wider than the others here. The leather is vegetable tanned. A welt is sewn into the edge so the stitching stays clear of the steel, the seam is closed with cream thread by hand, a belt loop is stitched to the back, and a snap strap holds it shut. The face is hand tooled with a carved cross hatch inside a stamped border, cut and shaded into damp leather.

Who it suits

This is the one people buy when the lighter cleaver on the rail is not doing what they want. The hickory and brass make it look like a working tool, because it is one.

• Hunters processing their own game at home
• Cooks who want the heaviest cleaver in the rack
• Smallholders and homesteaders
• Anyone who prefers a wood handle that soaks up shock

What comes in the box

• The 5160 bone cleaver
• The tooled leather blade cover
• A care card

Every piece is different

Each cleaver is forged, ground and finished by hand, so runs stay small and no two come out the same. The hammer marks, the grain of the hickory and the depth of the tooling all vary from the photographs.

Looking after it

Hand wash it in warm water and dry it straight away. Never leave it in the sink and never put it in a dishwasher. 5160 is carbon steel, so the gray patina that builds with use is normal. Wipe on a light coat of food safe mineral oil before storage, sharpen on a stone following the existing bevel, and use wood or plastic boards. More in our knife care and sharpening page.

Put a name on it

Laser engraving is 20 dollars per piece and you add it here on the product page. Around 30 characters fits on the blade or the handle, and clean line art engraves better than a photograph. We send a proof image before the laser runs, and it adds 3 to 5 business days. See the engraving page.

Questions buyers ask

Why is the spine on this cleaver so thick? It is left thick and squared so more mass sits behind the edge, for heavy chopping work.

What is the difference between a meat cleaver and a bone cleaver? The bone cleaver is heavier, with a taller blade and a thicker squared spine.

Why 5160 spring steel? It takes a hard impact without chipping.

What does full tang mean? The steel runs the whole length of the handle and shows all round it.

Can it go in the dishwasher? No. Hand wash it and dry it straight away.

What board should I use? Wood or plastic. Glass and stone will dull the edge quickly.

For a lighter cleaver there is the meat cleaver in rosewood, and in Damascus the meat cleaver in olive wood. More sits in cleavers and butcher knives, in kitchen knives, and in gifts for him.