# First Look ~ New SpitJack 11" Brisket Knife



## thirdeye (Mar 11, 2021)

Called a "BBQ Competition-Chef Series Knife" in my email last week which contained an offer that sounded too good to be true. The details were: List price $40, Every day price $27, and SpitJack Club Member (one time) price of $20 with free returns. So I pulled the trigger.








I'm not a flavor-of-the month kind of guy, I do have a collection of knives, both sporting and kitchen styles, and I shoot from the hip when it comes to likes and dis-likes of any product. Clearly it's too soon for a full review.... but here are my "First Look" observations.
1. $20 - That's hard to ignore, but will it be worth the regular price which seems reasonable.
2. The box is really nice, it has a padded cut-out that swallows the knife, it's heavy duty, and has a magnetic closure on the front flap.
3. The design and lines are sharp it has a full tang, there is good fit and finish work on the triple rivets, handle and pommel. Other than a reverse pommel angle, the SpitJack kinda sorta resembles some Dalstrong models of carving knives.
4. The grip fits my hand well, the knife feels hefty, yet amazingly balanced to me.
5. The blade is very sharp out of the box and passes the paper test all the way to the rounded point with no problem at all. I'm guessing it has a blade angle between 14° and 17°.
6. I would call the blade semi-flexible, meaning flexible enough to follow contours of something like a bone-in ham, but stout enough for very straight cuts on something deep like a prime rib.

Technically a Granton edge slicing/carving knife here is how it compares to my current favorite carving knife which is a 14" Victorinox brand:






7. The SpitJack is 29 grams heavier than the Victorinox.
8. The Victorinox has a textured Fibrox handle which is more generous in width and it curls at the butt to reduce slippage. It too is very well balanced. It's cost was around $45.
9. The SpitJack has wider grooves and they are farther up on the cheek.
10. The Victorinox has a higher blade height for more cutting board clearance which may seem trivial.... but it comes into play if you are wearing a hot glove under a Nitrile glove.
11. I have not seen a county of origin or detailed description of the steel on the SpitJack. My Victorinox is Swss made.
12. The sheer size of the Victorinox is great for showing off, and I can get a true one-stroke cut everytime.... but I have to store mine on a magnetic knife holder and it's a pain to wrap up when transporting to an event.

Bottom line, I'm stoked to field test my new SpitJack slicer. I'm very particular about lightly honing all my knives regularly so I'm not the best when it comes to commenting on the life of an edge. Biggest take-away: With the free return option, I should have tried to order 3 or 4 on my special offer, these may have been nice for Christmas presents.... BUT it's only March, so if I like it $27 is not out of the question.
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## Big Grouch (Mar 11, 2021)

That looks very  much like mine. Mairico  brand,  which I'd never heard of.  Same box with magnetic closure. Not positive it's full tang, but it feels like it. I've seen cheapo knives that have the handle rivets but they are only decoration. Mine is used for prime rib and brisket only. Then it gets a few strokes on the whetstone and back in the box. If yours is as good as mine you'll be very happy. I think I paid $40 a few years ago.


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## MJB05615 (Mar 11, 2021)

Looks like a great deal and knife.  How often would you think it will need to be sharpened?  I've only used very low priced knives, like low enough that when they get dull, I throw them away, lol.  But have been in the market for something like this, especially for trimming Whole Briskets for prep before smoking.  The low priced knives slip a lot and after a few minutes, my  hand starts to hurt.


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## chopsaw (Mar 11, 2021)

I like that .


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## Big Grouch (Mar 11, 2021)

MJB05615 said:


> Looks like a great deal and knife.  How often would you think it will need to be sharpened?  I've only used very low priced knives, like low enough that when they get dull, I throw them away, lol.  But have been in the market for something like this, especially for trimming Whole Briskets for prep before smoking.  The low priced knives slip a lot and after a few minutes, my  hand starts to hurt.


Consider a breaking knife for trimming brisket. They are curved, like a scimitar,  good for the tight places. Mine is a Mercer, about $25 at a restaurant supply.


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## civilsmoker (Mar 11, 2021)

It certainly looks like a nice knife for the price.  I couldn't even buy the materials to make a knife that size for that price.....


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## thirdeye (Mar 11, 2021)

MJB05615 said:


> Looks like a great deal and knife.  How often would you think it will need to be sharpened?  I've only used very low priced knives, like low enough that when they get dull, I throw them away, lol.  But have been in the market for something like this, especially for trimming Whole Briskets for prep before smoking.  The low priced knives slip a lot and after a few minutes, my  hand starts to hurt.


Slicers have a more delicate edge than a fillet knife, I don't think it would be a good choice for trimming a brisket unless you wanted to take off perfect 1/16" slices from the fat side.

As far as sharpening, it's more of a honing with a ceramic rod, a steel or a carbide hone. A couple of very light strokes. You probably dull the blade more from the cutting board than you would slicing a ham, or roast beef.  I use this style of inexpensive guides on my hone. You just hold the rod vertical, match the angle of the guide, and draw the knife toward you.  The range for kitchen knives is 15° to 20°, maybe 25° if you want hunting knife angle.  It's tough to pick 15°, 17° or 20° freehand unless you are using and honing knives all day long.


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## thirdeye (Mar 11, 2021)

Big Grouch said:


> That looks very  much like mine. Mairico  brand,  which I'd never heard of.  Same box with magnetic closure. Not positive it's full tang, but it feels like it. I've seen cheapo knives that have the handle rivets but they are only decoration. Mine is used for prime rib and brisket only. Then it gets a few strokes on the whetstone and back in the box. If yours is as good as mine you'll be very happy. I think I paid $40 a few years ago.


Blade wise, it looks very similar doesn't it?  I think I can see the tang coming around the rear of the handle, a knife maker would  have to go out of their way to fake that.


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## MJB05615 (Mar 11, 2021)

Big Grouch said:


> Consider a breaking knife for trimming brisket. They are curved, like a scimitar,  good for the tight places. Mine is a Mercer, about $25 at a restaurant supply.


I'll look at those.  I usually use a Santoku? knife.  8" very cheap.  Very sharp.  Lasts about 6 months.
My complaint is slippage and handle comfort.  Thanks for the info, gonna check it out.


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## thirdeye (Mar 11, 2021)

Big Grouch said:


> That looks very much like mine. Mairico brand, which I'd never heard of. Same box with magnetic closure.


I cruised around Amazon and found a Mairico with a dark handle also with the same box.  It's on sale for $25.   Try these search terms:   MAIRICO Ultra Sharp Premium 11-inch Stainless Steel Carving Knife


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## MJB05615 (Mar 11, 2021)

Big Grouch said:


> Consider a breaking knife for trimming brisket. They are curved, like a scimitar,  good for the tight places. Mine is a Mercer, about $25 at a restaurant supply.


Something like this?


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## SmokinEdge (Mar 11, 2021)

Nice little slicer there.


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## TNJAKE (Mar 11, 2021)

Looks like a great knife


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## Big Grouch (Mar 11, 2021)

MJB05615 said:


> Something like this?


This exact knife. $17 from Webstaurant. I'm not bashful about spending money on a chefs knife, but with some specialty knives I use what the guys at my local butcher shop use.  I don't use them every day, no one uses them but me, they never see the dishwasher and I've gotten reasonably good with a whetstone.


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## MJB05615 (Mar 11, 2021)

Looks pretty good.  I'll check it out.
Thanks


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## jcam222 (Mar 11, 2021)

Very nice! I finally got a granton edged knife for Christmas. My brother got me a 14” Mercer for Christmas. I used it finally a couple weeks ago when I did the pastrami smoke. Could not believe what a difference it made in slicing the brisket.


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