Ontario Knife - Old Hickory 7-7 7" Carbon Steel Butcher / Kitchen Knife

I bought the Ontario Knife - Old Hickory 7-7 7" Carbon Steel Butcher / Kitchen Knife back in November and have been using it for several months now, and I have to say, it's my go-to for everything that requires slicing or carving. It chops vegetables with ease, and makes quick work of processing pork, chicken, and fish. Knife gets some patina from cutting acidic things, but that's to be expected from a carbon steel knife. It came quite sharp out of the box and it keeps a decent edge. I was cutting paper pretty easily.Given that it is carbon steel, you should hand-wash this knife and dry it thoroughly after use, and if you really love your knives, lightly rub down the blade with mineral oil or vegetable oil to add some extra protection. DO NOT PUT THIS KNIFE IN THE DISH WASHER OR LET IT SOAK. It will rust if you do that because it will be in a moist environment for a prolonged period of time (and it's not good for the wooden handle, either). This is a no-frills knife, but that doesn't mean you should treat it like a beater.Anyway, as I said, I use this knife for most everything in the kitchen anymore and am extremely pleased with my purchase. The only complaint I have is that the rivets seem to be loosening. At some point, I may pop them off and epoxy the handle together, but until then, it's not really an issue.

Just a note for all the critics who scream "IT RUSTED!" Yes, that's the carbon steel aspect of it; dry off any water, apply a thin coat of oil. This knife is a throwback to a time when all knives were high-carbon steel and would rust if not looked after. Rather than being a mark of junky steel, actually it's a mark of good knifemaking steel, it's just not modern "don't worry about it" stainless.Mine was pretty dull out of the package, but it sharpened up nicely. If you want a knife that's 100% straight out of the package and ready to cape a bear...not the knife for you. This knife harkens back to a time when the knife owner would hone the knife to the profile they wanted for the work they intended. As such, it's not a hair popping razor out of the box; you have to log a little time with it and get to know it while you make it exactly what you want. It's an almost perfectly blank slate you can make in to whatever you need.If anything happens to mine, I'll probably order two more...I might order two more even if nothing happens to mine. I like that it's basically the same knife my great grandma would have used daily, that my grandpa would have borrowed when it was time to process a hog or deer. It's tough to find a knife that's basically letting you step into a time capsule like that.

I have Wusthofs, Henckels, Anolons, and Chicago. The Hickories are the knife I prefer. They can take a good deal of abuse and still do the job. As has been noted, these are carbon steel knives. Yes, they dull quickly … they also sharpen quickly. Yes, they can rust …so, if it bothers you brush the rust off and apply a little oil. These are not the knives you will be likely to see on a gourmet cooking show. You are watching the wrong channel. Instead turn to a homesteading show where a hog is being butchered. As has been noted, these are like the knives your great grandparents used. These are high quality, reliable, unpretentious knives.

TL;DR This is a great knife, but will require some work from you to allow it to achieve its potential.This is a great knife for the money. 1095 carbon steel isn't exactly premium top-tier steel, but it holds a mighty fine edge and is easy enough to fix. I expected it to come rough, and it met those expectations (it's a $15 knife, and they spent $15 worth of time on it). Be aware that the handle scales were larger than the tang, which will create hot spots. This is easily remedied by a belt sander, or even by very carefully whittling most of the excess material away with a knife and hand sanding the rest. The spine will come mostly unfinished. Again, 2 minutes on a belt sander and a steady hand is the best solution. The edge profile wasn't extremely consistent the whole way to the tip, but that can be fixed with a Work Sharp sharpener (which is expensive) or repeated sharpening sessions on a set of stones.All in all, this knife is well worth the money, but don't expect a perfect product out of the box. That's kind of a benefit, though, because you can customize it to fit your own hand or needs without worrying about destroying an expensive knife.

Just buy it!Seriously, for the money, this thing is the best knife on the planet. Keep it clean, oiled, and sharpened and it will truly last a lifetime. When it comes in, you may want to lightly sand the wood. Very fine grit. Oil both the handle and blade. (Even olive oil will do to protect it) Wash by hand and reapply. Sharpen as needed.

Blade was very sharp at first use, but after first wash in dishwasher it was significantly rusted and the “Old Hickory brand” (not a true heat brand?) was 50% removed. Warning to purchasers: this is a simple carbon steel knife, not stainless steel. It WIlL rust on first use. It should likely be treated more like a cast iron skillet…hand wash and immediately dry ONLY, maybe could use some vegetable oil on both the blade and handle to prevent rusting and pitting. The lack of clarity by the seller on the Amazon item page seems irresponsible. I’m going to try to rescue this knife, but it shouldn’t be that complicated to select steel that won’t rust so easily. Knife care warning(s) should be front and back center on the product’s Amazon page.

This is the best butcher knife I've ever owned along side my Dexter Russell 9 inch cleaver. This knife is carbon steel so it needs to be wiped down with cooking oil after washing it. Also don't leave in in the sink water.