The knife manufacturer Burgvogel from the German city of blades and their fantastic kitchen knives.
On our trips to the best knife manufacturers in Europe, the first way led us to the town of blades, Solingen.
Made in Solingen is a worldwide quality guarantee for kitchen knives from Germany. The nickname Blade City is based on the history of the knife metropolis.
As early as the Middle Ages, the city made a name for itself for swords, knives, kitchen knives, bread knives and blades of all kinds.
Cuttersmiths and grinders worked in small manufactories, the so-called “Kotten”. The houses lined up along the mill streams, canals and creeks. The hammer mills and grindstones were powered by water.
In terms of technology and design, the manufacture of kitchen knives is changing.
Industrialization came with the steam engine in the 19th century. More power and independence from the location made large workshops with more machines possible.
The knife blanks were drop-forged with drop hammers. Grindstones of various sizes and grains ran in a row over transmission systems.
Homeworkers traditionally did the fine work, the deduction or the finishing touches in their huts. This division of labor was very successful.
In this way, the big competitor England with its cutlery could be squeezed out of the European knife market. The “Made in Germany” intended as a deterrent to inferior products becomes a quality brand.
The city of blades, Solingen, protected geographical origin.
The indication of origin is protected by law. A knife made in Solingen really has to be made there. It also has to meet the quality requirements for Solingen kitchen knives.
This is necessary to give the customer protection against inferior knives from abroad. The name of the Karl Bahns company also stands for quality from Solingen.
You can find several articles on the subject of inferior cutlery from Asia in our blog.
Olive wood, the Mediterranean handle material of the Oliva Line kitchen knives
The Oliva Line is characterized by beautifully grained olive wood handles. The Mediterranean olive wood used is very hard and water-resistant.
The yellow-brown tint brings its warm and natural charm to the kitchen. In the hand, the wood is cuddly and comfortable.
Olive wood is a natural product and needs a bit of care every now and then. A thin rub with olive oil makes the wood supple, water-repellent and durable in everyday kitchen use.
Juglans Line, top-class kitchen knife with local walnut wood
All handles in the Juglans Line series from Burgvogel are made of high-quality walnut.
Juglans is the generic name of the walnut family. The real walnut is a deciduous tree that only grows in Europe. It is the darkest native hardwood.
Since walnut is not cultivated and used in forestry, it is a rare and therefore expensive precious wood. The beautiful grain and fine texture make the wood very attractive. A perfect gift.
It is noble, smooth and very dense. This makes it an ideal material for a knife handle. It is relatively water resistant, but like any real wood, it could use some maintenance.
Wooden kitchen knife handles need maintenance. It all depends on the right oil.
Oiling is good for the wood. It makes it water-repellent and suitable for use in the kitchen. But not every oil is suitable for walnut. All oils used in the kitchen must be food safe.
They must not contain any harmful substances. Linseed oil is often recommended. This is often confused with the linseed oil varnish offered in hardware stores. This is not suitable where food is handled. Varnish contains a heavy metal compound that accelerates drying.
Olive oil is good for olive wood, but can smell rancid after a long time if too much is applied. We recommend oils that are specially designed for cutting boards, wooden bowls and knife handles. We work with the classic Ballistol.
Laser engraving by TYPEMYKNIFE
The beautiful knives from our manufactories can of course also be designed with our 3D laser engraving technique.
You can personalize all blades with text, images and graphics according to your ideas. Or design your own personal kitchen knife. Everything is possible.
You will find the kitchen knives in our shop under the Manufacturers section.
More news about the manufactory in our first blog post.
The Burgvogel knife manufactory Solingen T.1
