I know a general chef knife but what else? I'm selling them in a block. If 3 is too little what number of knives would be sufficient ?

If you are not sure I would go to a few of the nicest restaurants in your area and explain that you are making knives and are not sure what chefs need. Better chefs at nicer places. May even get an order or two if you have nice examples of your work.
Good luck
smith

Chef
Paring
Fillet

Chef
Paring
Fillet

Yup. I think you've hit the nail on the head.

Certainly a chef and paring knife at the very least. But I think a fillet knife is probably the best option for the third knife.
All the best

Thanks. Any guidelines for price or how I should determine price with materials vs labor?

Also I know that filet knives are thinner. What flat stock should I use?

A bit of research in the field would do you a bit of good , however SS or Surgical is good, Carbon is not what many folks will want in the Chef world A Blue Steel is the best as it is Extremely Sharp NOT Blued as in (coated bluing) but a (Blue Steel ) Robert Irvine a world renown Chef uses this type of knives .

Good luck

Sam

I'd recruit a chef to work with you since this seems to be a new area for you. Once you get a set he will brag about then you will have a feeling about what works and why and start thinking of variations.

I would agree with what was said above... an 8" to 10" Chef knife, A Flexible 8" fillet knife and a good utility/parring knife.
As a side note, The santuko style Chef knife is very versatile, easier to use for most folks and
the hard point is not really needed. Other good additions are a 10" to 12" slicer and a semi stout boning knife.
If you would like I can forward you some info and/or places to research pro knives to get a better feel.
Best of luck with the project

Agree with a boning knife, have done a few hospitality courses and they like you to have at least a chefs knife, paring knife, filleting knife and a boning knife.
Used the boning knife a lot, chicken carcases etc...

I would agree with what was said above... an 8" to 10" Chef knife, A Flexible 8" fillet knife and a good utility/parring knife.
As a side note, The santuko style Chef knife is very versatile, easier to use for most folks and
the hard point is not really needed. Other good additions are a 10" to 12" slicer and a semi stout boning knife.
If you would like I can forward you some info and/or places to research pro knives to get a better feel.
Best of luck with the project

That would be great if you could send me info

The knives I use most are my santuko and boning knife. That said a 9" or so gyuto is a nice addition or replacement to the santuko. My large 10" french knife I only use for breaking up chickens. A carving knife and utility or paring knife would be the next two. And yeah I'm a chef.

Go to CHOW.com and search knives in the forums. There is a leeeengthy thread on what knives do you use the most. I pretty much use one, an 8" one that my Dad made for my Mom.It does everything from peeling to chopping for me. Some of the CHOW knife knerds get pretty deep into knives, so be warned. They get talking about very high 3 point carbon steels, micro bevels, handles, balance, Japanese wizardry,and other voodoo.

Some prefer the Japanese shapes, others European. Knives are very personal to a cook, so making a set that everyone will want is futile. I have yet to use a fillet knife, and I have done a lot of fishing,and even more cooking.

Personally I would say skip the production set, foucus on learning how to make a good knife, then sell custom knives to cooks. If you want to see what knives NOT to make , go to a large thrift store, and look at the piles of knives donated.

A good fine cutting knife with a smallish blade (3 to 4 inches), for sure a large Santoku style knife for chopping/dicing, and a variable for a fillet knife for a cook in fine work or a large butcher type knife with a thicker back to chop thick cuts. My .02 cents

I'd suggest a different direction which is thick end grain cutting board pared with a cleaver. It's strange to me that folks will use a french chef knife to cut up food, then they futz around trying to get it picked up off a thin cutting board and into the pot or whatever. I've seen lots of people pick up the board and swipe the food off into the pot. Neither one is as fast as using an asian cleaver as a paddle to scoop everything up. Plus a cleaver gets your knuckles off the board which is a frustrating thing about most cheap culinary knives. I think this is the reason the Santoku has become so popular.

Bread knives are commonly made with no drop to the blade which results in the tip getting more use than the body. A few cutlery firms are making serrated bread knives with a dropped offset to get the knuckles off the board. Speaking of serrations, the common concave serrations are more prone to snagging and tearing than convex serrations. I've even seen large carving knives made with them as they can create a very smooth cut when properly done.

Make 1 or2 of each to show off to customers. Then offer to make custom for them slightly longer taller different handle etc. Chefs use magnetic strips on walls not blocks. Damp knives don't go in blocks and blocks won't make it with health inspectors. Now a custom carry box for transporting knives from home to work are a good seller for career butchers and chefs. I make custom boxes for butchers here in Chattanooga. Message me and I'll send a photo.

Make 1 or2 of each to show off to customers. Then offer to make custom for them slightly longer taller different handle etc. Chefs use magnetic strips on walls not blocks. Damp knives don't go in blocks and blocks won't make it with health inspectors. Now a custom carry box for transporting knives from home to work are a good seller for career butchers and chefs. I make custom boxes for butchers here in Chattanooga. Message me and I'll send a photo.

Oops