The “forced notch” mechanism is an evolution of the traditional slipjoint system, and often found on French knives such as Laguioles, Saint-Martin or Thiers for instance.
It’s somewhere between a classic flat slipjoint and a lockback.
The blade has a little notch where a part of the backspring comes to lock. Unlike a lockback, it’s rounded and will slip when pushing on the blade to fold the knife. It’s an added safety to prevent the knife from closing involuntarily.
The lock must be “broken” before the blade can be folded slowly in the handle.
The Pradel knife is one of the few French knives that doesn’t have a city for name.
It gets its name from its inventor: Etienne Pradel, who created the type in 1867.
It is in fact inspired by English knives, from Sheffield, hence the large kick on the blade.
The success wasn’t great around Thiers where it was manufactured but it finally found interest in Normandy and Brittany with farmers and fishermen, especially those going on fishing campaigns around Newfoundland.
It was so popular that the pattern originally called “English style” finally adopted the name of its creator and that other manufacturers used the Pradel name for theirs, generating countless lawsuits.
The knife is simple, a spear blade, generally with a half-stop and a slightly trapezoidal, flat, handle with usually black horn covers and 4, 5 or 6 pins for extra sturdiness and a short bolster on top.
It was later developed in a multiblade version and countless sizes.
Sauvagnat-Grimaud was a cutlery in Thiers, created in 1860, and that no longer exist.
Eric Keller, from Thiers-Issard, came across an old stock of Sauvagnat-Grimaud’s blades from the 1930’s.
The history behind those blades is a bit unclear, but they are what remains of a big production run.
The blades still bear the SG mark with the cuirassier helmet, that represents the helmet of the Napoleonic imperial guard’s cuirassier cavalry.
Blade stamp
Cuirassier
The blades were made of forged Holtzer cast carbon steel, a steel really famous back in the days to make straight blade razors for example.
Credit Frank Pitelet
The original design of the handle is unknown, and Eric created a design matching what it could have been at the time, with an easy pull notch since the blades don’t have a nail nick.
He made 2 different patterns:
A classic 2 pins friction folder with a plain full handle.
And a slipjoint shadow pattern with a fileworked backspring.
On the 2 patterns, the blade is riveted using NOS rosettes to give an authentic feel.
Do you know the Douk-Douk? Do you know the Vendetta?
If not check my previous articles!
Do you know Fred Perrin?
Now take all that, mix it (shaken, not stirred…) and you get the Vendedouk.
Everything started during an evening party in Corsica when Laurent Bellini, Julien Moroselli, Elsa Fantino and the famous Fred Perrin, all knifemakers, were discussing knifemaking and souvenirs from Corsica.
Too much Asian made stuff, not enough made in France. They wanted something genuine, affordable and really made in France…
Vendetta
That’s when Pierre Cognet came into the game. He is at the head of the Cognet manufacture, which makes the famous Douk-Douk and all its offspring.
They came to an agreement and decided to make a Vendetta, based on the Douk-Douk. The Vendedouk was born.
The filiation with the Douk-Douk is obvious: ferro-blackened steel handle, carbon steel etched blade, slipjoint with the spring nestled in the handle…
However, the blade shape isn’t the Turkish clip anymore, but more like a needle point, that reminds the dagger that inspired the Vendetta, the etching has its own style of arabesque with a “Corsica” inscription. The handle gets the characteristic recess and is stamped with a stylized silhouette of Corsica
Corsican island
The knife keeps all the advantages of the Douk-Douk: flat, good construction, strong spring, excellent carbon steel blade, affordable price… with a different style.
Definitely a nice variation of the Douk-Douk… Unless it is a variation of the Vendetta?
All the wood handled friction folders, like Opinel, Capucin or even Nontron might have the blade stuck in the handle.
Vintage Opinel No7Vintage Capucin
Wood is a living material and change in humidity or temperature might make it swell, or even dirt can be stuck in the mechanism.
Nontron No25 with clog handleMontpellier knife
The “coup du savoyard” or Savoyard’s hit or tap is a simple technic to get it free, it is mainly used for Opinels (hence the Savoyard name) and it is even part of the quality checks at the end of manufacturing.
It is a technic known since the first Opinel (maybe before?) and the best way to get the blade free without damaging the knife like by trying to pry on the nail nick.
-For a recent Opinel, make sure that the lock ring is open (!!!)
-Hold the knife by the axis side
-Tap the other end on a hard surface. The best would be a wooden table, avoid any uneven or hard surface that would damage the handle, like concrete for example. Avoid also fragile surface like a glass table of course.
The blade should move a little, enough to be able to open it.
After the tapWorks with any wood handled knife
If it is still stuck, you can apply a bit of oil on the axis.
Now, the best way to avoid using that Savoyard’s tap is to take good care of the knife, always wipe the blade after use and store it in a dry place.
As seen in a previous post, Thiers has been the French knife making capital for centuries.
Cutlers from the city and its surrounding were so famous and efficient that they ended up manufacturing the so called “regional knives”, the knives from different regions and cities of France like the Aurillac, the Laguiole, the Rouennais, the Yssingeaux etc.
All those knives have specific design and style originally elaborated in those regions.
However, Thiers, filled with cutleries and making all those different knives, never had its own knife style. This was solved in 1994, when several cutleries from Thiers created a guild to define a design for a knife belonging to Thiers.
The design is registered with a distinctive double wave and opposite oblique ends on each side of the handle giving a timeless and true to French tradition design.
More than a detailed design, it is a set of rules and guidelines, giving some room for each cutler’s interpretation.
Banned designs
But to be validated and receive the distinctive T logo, symbol of authenticity, each cutler has to follow the guild rules.:
Having at least 5 years of experience as a cutler
The cutler must be accepted as part of the guild and registered
The design proposed has to be accepted by the guild
The knife has to be marked with the T logo and “Le Thiers par…” including the name of the manufacturer.
The cutler will never have any part of the manufacturing done outside of Thiers and its surrounding.
The parts and raw materials used must be of quality and approved by the guild.
This origin control is important to protect the knife from Asian copies, something that, for instance, the Laguiole knife was lacking, reason why you can find countless cheap copies of this great knife.
What started as a project from a handful of passionate knife-makers turned into a real success with almost 60 manufacturers and independents making their version of the knife.
Le Thiers by Coursolle with brass sides
Le Thiers by Claude Dozorme
Le thiers by Arbalete
Le Thiers by Robert David
Le Thiers by Jean Dubost
Le Thiers by Fernando Ramos
Le Thiers by Cognet
If you are looking for French elegance and controlled quality and origin, look for the T logo!
Soanen Mondanel was a big name in knife making in Thiers, the French capital, if not European, of knife making. It was famous in the 18th and 19th century for its brass handled motif knives representing artists or political figures
One of those knives was embossed with Napoleon, standing with, as usual, his hand in his waistcoat, with his seal and the French Imperial eagle, probably to celebrate his coronation as emperor in 1804.
After Napoleon was deposed and exiled to Saint Helena in 1815, the Bourbons were reinstated as royal family and Louis XVIII declared king. One of his acts to gain back control and erase Napoleon’s influence was to ban all the Napoleonic symbols.
Soanen Mondanel had to stop manufacturing their Napoleon knives but didn’t want to destroy the molds, maybe hoping that the emperor would be back. After all, he already came back from his first exile in Elba. The molds were buried next to the shop.
But Saint-Helena was probably remote enough and Napoleon never came back, the molds were forgotten.
In 1902, Antoine Cognet purchased the manufacture and gave it his name.
Today it is Pierre Cognet, his grand-son, who is running the factory. In 2005 the factory underwent renovations and the molds were discovered. After restoration, the molds were ready for a knife re-edition.
It is where enters a second knife maker, Couperier-Coursolle, who is still today the specialist of the brass handles and figurative knives.
Figurative brass handled navette by Coursolle
The knife is an alliance of those two manufacturers, Couperier-Coursolle making the handle and Cognet the XC75 carbon steel blade.
To symbolize this collaboration, the blade is marked with the two emblems, Cognet’s hare and Coursolle’s adjustable wrench.
Last reference to the past, the production was limited to 1815 pieces, in reference to the year when Napoleon was, for the second time and definitely, deposed, and all his symbols banned.
When you have to abdicate and you know that your knife re-edition will be limited to 1815 pieces
