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Types and characteristics of national Uzbek knives pchak. How to make Uzbek pchak Make a pchak knife with your own hands

Depending on national traditions, geographic location and culinary preferences, each nation and nationality has its own knife, different from others. Uzbek, Finnish, Tajik, Indian - each of them is different. A Russian knife implies its use: on a hunt, on a camping trip, in close combat, for self-defense. The Japanese knife is associated with the samurai sword, the sharpness of which has no equal blades in the world. French cleavers resemble a saber with a handle. Knives are especially popular among Central Asian peoples.

Uzbek knife - pchak

According to various sources, the pchak knife appeared among the peoples of Central Asia in the 14th-15th century. To this day, its form has not changed. The name of the blade comes from a similar word in the Uzbek language “pechak”. Literally translated as “knife”. Such forms of knife are used throughout Central Asian territory with minor changes regarding proportions and special decorations.

The width of the blade is within 5 centimeters, while its length is no more than 22 centimeters. The wedge-shaped cross-section gradually decreases from the butt to the blade. The thickness of the knife, which is up to five millimeters near the handle, decreases closer to the tip of the blade. Excellent cutting qualities of the knife are achieved through bevels of different shapes: from straight to curved. The Uzbek knife pchak, the photo perfectly emphasizes its beauty, has excellent balance.

Uzbek knives in the 20-21 centuries

In the 20th century, a handmade Uzbek knife on European territory could only be seen in the private collections of connoisseurs of Central Asian art. Very often they were brought home or to close friends after a tourist trip as a beautiful souvenir. Uzbek knives (the photo illustrates the beauty and large selection) were industrially manufactured only in the city of Chust, which is located in Uzbekistan.

Today, Uzbek knives are made almost by hand. The city of Shahrikhan, which is located in the Andijan region, is famous for the craftsmen who make the Uzbek knife pchak. There is an area in this city where several generations of blacksmiths and cutlers live and work. There are also knife makers in other parts of the country, but their work is not as well known. Designer knives are signed with branded emblems with the obligatory addition of stars and a crescent to emphasize the Islamic religion.

Types of pchak knives

The Uzbek knife is used in household life, as well as in the kitchen. Considering the different design options for the sharp end, there are several forms of pchak knives:

“kaike” blade - the tip is raised to a height of up to eight millimeters - traditional handmade Uzbek knives;
“tugri” blade - the end of the blade is sharp, the back of the knife is straight;
“tolbarga” blade - another name for willow leaf, the blade of the knife is slightly lowered, which is practical when cutting up animal carcasses;

“Kazakh” blade - there is a depression on the blade, not far from its sharp part, and the sharp end of the knife is above the butt line; a knife is used to work with fish;
“Kushmalak” blade - a distinctive feature is the presence of a double fuller along the spine.

The sizes of an Uzbek knife are:

small (chirchik) - less than fourteen centimeters;
ordinary (sharkhon) - up to seventeen centimeters;
large (cow cutter) - up to twenty-five centimeters.

Finishing and design of Uzbek knives

Uzbek handmade knives are masterpieces of the craftsman. Each knife is made in a single copy. It goes through all stages: steel processing, hardening, finishing and sharpening. The craftsman applies ornaments to the handle and blade. Expensive knives are decorated not only with national designs. Here they add a family sign, add their own inscriptions, the “islimi” floral ornament, etc. The more carefully each part of the applied ornament is made, the more valuable the Uzbek knife turns out to be.

The handle is made of apricot, plane tree, plexiglass, and parts of bones and horns are added. Often the handle is made from soldered sheet metal. The shank of the blade coincides with the shape of the handle and, expanding at the bottom, ends with a bend in the idea of a hook. If the handle is made of wood or bone, then it is not decorated. If plexiglass was used, then it is supplemented with colored inclusions and wire. The handle, made of horn, is decorated with rhinestones and mother-of-pearl. The metal handle is decorated with engraving and rhinestones against a background of floral patterns.

The curve at the bottom of the knife, or pommel, completes its design. It is made in the shape of a hook to make it comfortable to hold the handle of an Uzbek knife. There is always a recess on the bottom of the handle for convenient placement of the little finger. The pommel is made of hollow horn or special metal inserts.

Sheath for Uzbek knife

For an Uzbek knife, the sheath is considered a mandatory element. The craftsmen used leather or thick fabric. The knife is located deep in the sheath, which does not require an additional lock. Inside the scabbard there are wooden inserts that protect them from being cut from the inside. National Uzbek knives are worn on the left side of the belt. To do this, add a wide loop to the sheath.

If the case is made of fabric, then it is decorated with national embroidery. The leather sheath was decorated with brass and copper inserts. On black leather, craftsmen place a multi-colored pattern in a traditional style. It is not uncommon to see wooden cases.

Storage and care rules

The blade of the Uzbek knife was forged from carbon steel. Previously, until the twentieth century, weapons that had fallen into disrepair or imported pieces of iron from other countries were used for this purpose. The hardness of the blade should be from 50 to 56 Rockwell units. Given the low hardness of the material, the owner of the knife always sharpens the blade. To do this, it is not necessary to use special sharpening stones. The soft material can be easily sharpened using a stone or the back of a bowl.

There are general rules for knife care:

Sharpening of steel must be carried out from the butt to zero. The use of this type of blade sharpening allows you to cut very thin slices of food.
It is important to remember that mild steel sharpens well when using ceramic, and may bend or become dull when cutting hard foods or bones.
Carbon steel is quite porous. After use, the knife must be immediately rinsed and wiped dry.
If rust appears on the blade of an Uzbek knife, you can get rid of it using mild cleaning agents or sand.

Uzbek knives should be stored, after wiping them, on a wooden knife stand. Their location in a suspended state is also welcome.

Uzbek kitchen knives

To work in the kitchen you need to have several types of Uzbek knives. Small ones are convenient for peeling fruits and vegetables. A medium-sized one will easily cut and finely chop vegetables. Large Uzbek kitchen knives are used to work with meat. The thin curved blade can be used to cut fish perfectly.

The Uzbek knife pchak can serve not only in the kitchen, but also be a wonderful gift. They believe that such a gift from your best friend can protect you from ill-wishers. A knife placed under a baby's pillow protects the health of the baby and mother, attracts wealth and prosperity. The image of an Uzbek knife in embroidered items, on forged items, and on ceramic items protects owners from all kinds of misfortunes and troubles.

PCHAK and KORD

Uzbek, Uyghur, Tajik

With all the abundance of information, there is apparently no exact answer to the question of what is considered the “correct” pchak or cord. It is not even clear how pchak differs from cord and whether it differs at all... (after all, both of them, translated from the national language, simply mean “KNIFE”). But there is also an Iranian card...

Let's start with something simple. These photographs depict a knife that anyone who is at least somehow interested in knives or has been to Central Asia will call “PCHAK”, or, in Uzbek, “PICHOK”. The appearance of the pchak is unique and easily recognizable.

This is the most common pchak with a “kaike” blade. Such a blade involves raising the tip above the butt line by 3-8 mm. More advanced and inquisitive people will say that this is the “Andijan Pchak”. Someone else will add: “Charchon.”

The pchak blade itself is traditionally forged from carbon steel (in ancient times, broken weapons or iron ingots from India were used, from the 19th-20th centuries car springs, bearing races and other available materials were used; nowadays, factory-made steel rods of the ShH type are most often used -15, U12, 65G or cheap reinforcement from St3). In Uzbekistan they still say: “A carbon fiber tip is for work, a stainless steel tip is for decoration!”

If the blade is made of high-carbon tool (U12) or bearing (ShKh15) steels (which makes it possible to obtain a higher quality product), then St3 shanks are usually welded to it, which is noticeable in the form of a triangle near the handle of the pchak.

By the way, many Japanese and Russian masters do the same, for example, G.K. Prokopenkov. This is due to the fact that U12 and ShKh15 have low impact strength and strength, and if the blade and shank are forged from a single piece of steel, there is a high probability of the blade breaking in the neck area, for example, when dropped.

The length of the blade is usually 16-22 cm, the thickness always decreases wedge-shaped from the handle to the tip, and at the handle it can be 4-5 mm. In cross-section, the pchak blade also tapers wedge-shaped from the butt to the blade. The slopes are usually straight, rarely convex or concave lens-shaped. The blade width can be up to 50 mm. All this together gives a good knife geometry and ensures effective cutting of any food product.

As already mentioned, carbon steel is used on pchak, from what is at hand, hardening (as a rule, zone - only at the cutting edge) is usually carried out to 50-52 Rockwell units, less often to 54-56, and then only in Lately. On the one hand, a hardness of 50-54 units does not provide long-term retention of the sharpness of the cutting edge, but it allows you to edit such a knife on anything (usually the bottom of a ceramic bowl is used, but there are also special traditionally shaped stones for straightening chaps and scissors), which, Of course, this is a big plus. But in this case, the knife quickly wears down and turns almost into an awl, so you have to buy a new one. Although the cost of pchaks (not souvenirs) has always been small.

Recently, blades made of ShKh-15 steel have become increasingly common, which can be hardened to 60 Rockwell units, which is what we see on some blades. Such hard blades are made specifically for the Russian and Ukrainian markets in order to compete with Japanese kitchen knives. From my point of view, such hardness is not very justified, because pchaks have a very fine blade and working with such knives requires certain skills and special equipment, otherwise the blade will chip and break (similar to Japanese kitchen knives). On the other hand, heat the ShKh-15 to 50- 52 units (the norm for pchak) does not make much sense - just a translation of good material.

The surface of carbon steel blades is usually oxidized (blended) by immersing it in a solution of naukat clay (traditionally), ferrous sulfate or ferric chloride, due to which the blade acquires a dark gray color with a blue or yellow tint, and is decorated with a dol (“komalak”, moreover if there is only one dol, then it will definitely be on the tamga side), embossed with a stamp (“tamga”) or engraved. The knocked-out recesses are filled with brass. On carbon blades, a hardening zone is often noticeable.

The names of the parts of the pchak are presented below:

“GULBAND”, or bolster, is cast from low-melting tin or tin-lead alloys, soldered from sheet brass or cupronickel and filled with tin or its alloy. I note that using lead in cooking is not good, and it is advisable not to use knives with lead (or at least varnish them). You can distinguish lead by trying it with a soldering iron (lead melts worse), it oxidizes strongly, acquiring a dark gray tint, and gets dirty (like newsprint). It seems to me personally that the use of lead and alloys is a cost of the easy availability of old car batteries and babbitts from bearings.

The gulband is decorated with engraving (traditionally with the Uzbek floral ornament “islimi”), often with filling in the recesses with enamel paint (black, red, green), as well as inserts made of mother-of-pearl (“sadaf”), turquoise or rhinestones.

“BRINCH” is a strip of sheet brass or cupronickel, up to one millimeter thick, soldered around the perimeter of the shank during surface mounting of the handle (“dosta erma”). Handles are riveted onto the brinch and decorated with engraving and decorative oxidation. I note that usually the brinch protrudes beyond the shank by 1-2 mm, and there is an air gap between the pads and the shank.

The meaning of this action is not very clear, except perhaps to save the material of the linings when expensive material is used (for example, ivory). Perhaps this design makes it possible to dampen stress in the handle, because the same installation is traditionally used in the handles of Central Asian sabers (filling the air cavities with mastic).

"CHAKMOK" or pommel.

A specially made and decorated pommel is used on expensive pchaks for overhead mounting (“erma dosta”), in the form of metal pritins, or mounted mounting of handles (“sukma dosta”) made of hollow horn, in this case it is made by soldering from cupronickel or brass.

Decorated with engraving, sadaf, rhinestones.

On inexpensive chakmoks, chakmok is designated by changing the cross-section of the handle (from round to rectangular) and/or the presence of a beak-like protrusion.

“DOSTA” - black, handle.

For production they use local wood (apricot, plane tree), textolite, plexiglass, bones, antlers, soldered from sheet metal (nickel silver, brass)

Wood, textolite and bone are usually not decorated, colored “eyes” and wire are inserted into plexiglass, the horn is decorated with decorative carnations, sadaf inserts or rhinestones, engraving is applied to metal handles, usually in the form of a plant, floral (“chilmikh guli”) ornament with adding rhinestones.

Handle handle with surface mounting (“erma dosta”) usually has the same thickness in both gulband and chakmok, less often it thickens towards chakmok. Often the thickness of such a handle exceeds its width - this is convenient for traditional cutting of vegetables when preparing Uzbek dishes: pilaf, “chuchuk” or “shakarob” salads

"TAMGA" - brand

As a rule, every craftsman (“usto”) who produces any product (especially knives) applies a workshop mark (tamga).

For Uzbek craftsmen, a crescent moon (as a symbol of faith) is common in the center of the tamga, stars are often used (it is said that their number used to indicate the number of children-heirs or students who became masters) and a symbol of cotton.

On modern stamps, anything can appear - even an image of a car.

It should be noted that at present it is impossible to completely rely on tamga to identify the master. I have seen tamga used by at least four different masters(although maybe one does it, but different people sell on their own behalf).

As with any household knife, the pchak comes with a sheath. As a rule, they are not distinguished by high-quality materials and workmanship. Today, it is usually leatherette with cardboard inserts, sometimes decorated with appliqué and imitation beads.

More expensive pchaks may have a leather sheath, decorated with embossing or braided leather cord.

Metal scabbards (nickel silver, brass) with engraving or combined ones (leather, wood, metal) are rarely found.

To conclude the review of the Andijan pchak, I will quote from O. Zubov’s article “The Sign of the Master” (Around the World magazine No. 11, 1979):

“...Wide, ringing with a black-violet tint, inlaid with red, green, blue and white speckled stones, three stars and a moon shine on the blade - the ancient mark of the Abdullaevs.

This knife is an indispensable assistant at a meal with friends, an integral part of Uzbek cuisine.“You can cut bread, you can peel potatoes, or you can hang it on the carpet and watch - you can do anything!” - said the master. And, after being silent for a while, he smiled: “But the best thing is to cut a melon!”

Looking at the Uzbek pchaks, you willy-nilly wonder what led to the appearance of this particular blade shape. The fact is that this form is suitable exclusively for cooking, while the neighboring peoples had a typical knife, which could somehow be used for defense and used for other (non-cooking) needs, that is, they were in use all over the world more versatile knives. The Uzbeks also had such knives, but... only until the 14th century. The exact reason for the emergence of this form is not known, but if we remember that the 14th century is the century of the empire of Timur (Tamerlane), an empire with centralized power and strict laws, then we can assume that Timur’s officials, or he himself, were somewhat concerned about the subjugation of the conquered peoples , and, in order to prevent the people from acquiring edged weapons, they took all the gunsmiths to the Shah’s forges, to the capital of the empire, Samarkand, and for the civilian population they forced the craftsmen to make knives with the tip raised up. It is almost impossible to inflict puncture wounds with such a knife and, therefore, the danger of an uprising and other “terrorist attacks” is reduced. Let us remember that during the time of another empire, already close to us in time, pchaks were also not classified as edged weapons precisely because of the shape of the blade, and for their production they were not sent to places not so distant. Although there may be other versions. In any case, the result was a very convenient knife for cooking, which quickly gained popularity in Central Asia. If it weren't convenient, it wouldn't be so popular!

In addition to pchaks with a “kaike” blade, there are pchaks with a “tugri” blade, that is, with a straight spine.

Let's compare two types of blades: in the photo below you can clearly see the difference between the “tugri” blade (above) and the “kaike” blade (below)

The “tugri” blade has a constant or decreasing width towards the tip. Convenient for slicing meat, usually included in a butcher's kit (“kassob-pichok”).

In addition to the already mentioned “Andijan” pchak, you can find the names “Old Bukhara” and “Old Kokand”.

In the “Old Bukhara” blade, the blade evenly tapers towards the tip, the rise is less pronounced, but the entire blade is often arched, the blade is more specialized for working with meat - skinning, deboning.

It is interesting that to this day narrow Bukhara rivets are often called “Afghan”, although there is a difference between rivets from Bukhara and Afghanistan - on “Bukhara” rivets are in one row, and on “Afghan” - in a half-envelope.

Also traditionally, Bukhara pchaks have a sheath with a ball or leaf at the end.

“Old Kokandsky” - the blade of this pchak is small in width and is most likely used as an auxiliary blade for deboning or peeling vegetables.

You can also find the names “tolbargi” (willow leaf) and “Kazakhcha”. These are functional, highly specialized knives designed to perform a specific job.

"Tolbargi" - a butcher knife for cutting animal carcasses,

“Kazakhcha” - for cutting fish.

Pchak "Kazakhcha" were distributed mostly among the inhabitants (fishermen) of the Aral Sea coast, mainly Kazakhs.

The line of the “Kazakhcha” butt, approximately one third to the tip, forms a smooth notch, again rising to the tip, located on the butt-handle line. The notch is sharpened on one or both sides. With a blade of this shape, turning the knife over, it is easy to clean and gut the fish.

The handles of “tolbargi” and “Kazakhcha” are usually made of wood and, as a rule, are not decorated (only the presence of a colored ornament on the gulband is allowed).

Here are photos of knives by master Mamurjon Makhmudov from Kokand:

"Tolbargi"

Well, and more photos of knives from Tashkent

Photo from the Museum of Applied Arts of Uzbekistan, the selection is called “Tashkent 1985”

“Uyghur pchaks” deserve special mention. These are knives from the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China. Sometimes the name Yangisar knives is found - the name is attached to the center of production - the city of Yangisar. They also have the “Old Bukharan type-Afghan” and the “Old Kokand” type, but if you look at the photographs, you can see the differences. What is striking is the higher quality (and beautiful) manufacture of the handles and the absence of a cast tin gulband (bolster), the shanks of the blades are almost always open, and brinch is not used. But the blades are often roughly processed, or not sharpened at all, because... The production of Uyghur knives with sharpened blades longer than 200 mm is prohibited by Chinese laws!

Starobukharsky. Uyghur masters

Afghan. Uyghur masters.

Old Kokandsky. Uyghur masters.

If Uzbek pchaks are more specialized for cooking, then Tajik KORDS are more versatile knives.

Cords come in three typical sizes. The most common(most working) has a length of 14-17 cm, a large knife “Gov Kushi” (“cow cutter”) is used for slaughtering livestock and has a length of 18-25 cm, and the smallest knives (less than 14 cm) are for women.

The blades of traditional cords are powerful, up to 4 mm thick at the guard (note that if the thickness of a knife blade is more than 2.4 mm, then it can already be considered as a bladed weapon and is prohibited for free circulation), lens-shaped slopes from the butt or the middle of the blade width, less often straight (in Uzbek pchak, as a rule, it’s the other way around). The cutting edge is displayed on each knife depending on its purpose. The butt of the cord blade, usually machined from a finished strip of metal, is straight and parallel, and not wedge-shaped, like that of a pchak. The blade is usually ground fuller one or two on each side, or two on the right and one on the left.

Installation depends on the location of manufacture. In the southeastern mountainous regions, preference is given to mounted mounting, and in the western and northern regions, which are closer to Uzbekistan, to overhead mounting. Moreover, the overhead installation of the cord is somewhat different from that of the pchak: a soldered brinch is not used, and the entire shank is filled around the perimeter with a tin alloy, so the handle on the pchak is lighter, but on the cord it is stronger! In general, the cord device is only cast, made of tin and its alloys (or silver), the ornament is only engraved and more geometric, radially symmetrical, in contrast to the complex plant-based Uzbek “islimi”. The ornament is individual for each master and can replace a mark (cords are not traditionally branded, at least on the blade; on the guard - a specific ornament or mark)

The overhead handles of cords are always wider than those of pchaks, widen towards the pommel and have a characteristic recess for the little finger.

The handle of the cord is horn, bone, wood, plastic. When mounted or mounted, the shank of the cord blade is always full along the entire length of the handle (with the exception of small knives for women in the kitchen).

Photo from the Museum of Applied Arts of Uzbekistan, the selection is called “Khorezm, Khiva.1958”

I would like to dwell once again on the terminology - pchak, pichok, bychak, cord, card.

The fact is that some time ago a knife from somewhere in the 17th-18th century fell into my hands

Length 310mm, blade length 185mm, spine width 30mm, spine thickness (3.5-2.5-1.5)mm. The purpose of the groove on the butt is unclear to me, except perhaps to increase the thickness of the butt, which increases slightly when the groove is embossed. The yellow metal in the ornament is gold. Hardness about 52 units. I was amazed by the structure of the blade (as the famous cutler Gennady Prokopenkov put it, “simply aerobatics!”):- a wedge from the butt with a concave lens, and turning into a drop-shaped form a few millimeters (from 3 to 5) from the cutting edge. Of course, this is all tenths of a millimeter, but everything is visible and palpable. After some persuasion, G.K. Prokopenkov agreed to make me a modern copy, preserving as much as possible the entire structure of the blade.

The result is a knife like this:

It turned out that when working in the kitchen, it surpasses almost all the knives I have - both in terms of cut quality and ease of use. Well, it’s easy to edit with anything (be it musta, even ceramics). Although if you chop vegetables for a long time, that is, on the fly, a good chef will apparently be more convenient. But for home...

In addition, its design allows you to cut/plane the stick and protect yourself from any evil.

That is, we got an excellent all-rounder.

Naturally, the question arose about the type of knife. There were two options - card or pchak. The cord was not considered based on obvious signs. Based on materials from the Internet and, in particular, the RusKnife conference, the Bukhara knife turned out to be the closest.

Knife from Bukhara. Museum of Artillery, Engineers and Signal Corps. Exhibition “Weapons of the East 16-19 centuries”

I note that the “museum” exhibit is simply named -"Knife from Bukhara"

Further searches led to the following photographs:

Pchak is old. Bukhara

Pchak. Bukhara.

Bukhara card

Pchak Bukhara with turquoise

Pchak Afghanistan

Persian card

Note that in the last photo the knife (Persian card) has an armor-piercing thickening on the tip.

Thus, it is apparently not possible to determine exactly the type of my knife.

From the point of view of collectors and connoisseurs of edged weapons, a card is a knife created primarily for military purposes: in appearance it is more similar to a stiletto and its tip, as a rule, is strengthened.

So I think I have a problem. Tugri-pchak is most likely made in Bukhara.

However, I am most impressed by the position of Marat Suleymanov, who claims that card, cord and pchak are not brands at all, but simply the names of one product - a knife - in different languages (“pechak” - in Tatar, “pichok” - in Tatar). Uzbek, "pshakh" - in Azerbaijani, "kord" - in Tajik, "kard" - in Persian. Kard and kord are similar in sound, since Tajiks and Persians (Iranians) belong to the same language group, Uzbeks, Tatars, Azerbaijanis - to another, Turkic)

There is also a “bychak” - a Karachay knife (see the article “Bychak - the knife of every Karachay” on this site), but the Karachais and their closest relatives - the Balkars, as is known, are also Turkic-speaking peoples.

There are also Turkmen Saryk knives (photo from Rusknife)

Thus, without touching on military topics, it is apparently most correct to say:

National Uzbek knife (pichok, or pchak)

National Tajik knife (cord)

National Uyghur knife (pchak)

National Karachay knife (bychak)

Here are some more photos from the “Turkestan Album” 1871-1872

Samarkand, Pichak-bazaar(By the way, the original says “Pisyak-bazaar”)

In previous years, Uzbek pchaks came to the European part of the USSR in the form of single specimens; most often they were brought from expeditions in Central Asia. As a rule, their quality was not at a high level.

Since the late 90s of the last century, the Soyuzspetsosnashenie company began regular deliveries of Uzbek pchaks to Russia, and it became possible to purchase them at the company’s office or in retail. Currently, they can be purchased in many knife stores and oriental culinary stores, including online stores (in particular, in “Dukan Vostoka”, “Handmade Pchak Knives”, etc.).

At first, suppliers bought pchaks in bulk at bazaars in Uzbekistan, so it was impossible to find out either the name of the craftsman or the place of manufacture from the sellers. As the market became saturated, trade began to “civilize”, and now you can purchase a pchak made by a specific craftsman (especially from those sellers who purchase products directly from the craftsmen), and choose the type, style and materials of the blade and handle.

During the Soviet Union, the most popular were pchaks from the city of Chust, where there was the only knife factory in Uzbekistan.

Photo from the Museum of Applied Arts of Uzbekistan, the selection is called “Chust 1987”

At the present time, the bulk of Uzbek pchaks are produced in the city of Shakhrikhon, Andijan region of Uzbekistan, where there is an entire urban district (“mahalla”) of knifemakers (“pichokchi”), in which entire family dynasties of blacksmiths and mechanics-collectors of pchaks work.

Photo from the Museum of Applied Arts of Uzbekistan, the selection is called “Shakhrikhon 1999”

Thus, the famous master Komiljon Yusupov, who devoted more than 50 years of his life to his craft, and was elected elder of the mahalla pichokchi of Shakhrikhon, passed on his art to his sons and now the brothers can make, if they wish, very good products.

Usto Bakhrom Yusupov

Individual craftsmen (“usto”) and Pichakchi families also live and work in other regions of Uzbekistan, but their products are much less common. For example, the Abdullaev family, living and working in Bukhara, also makes pchak, but their true specialty is hand-forged scissors for various purposes, famous throughout Uzbekistan.

Tajik knives (“cords”), related to the Uzbek pchak, are mainly produced in the city of Istaravshan (formerly Ura-Tube).

Also stands with pchak and cords are always present at various knife exhibitions: “Blade”, “Arsenal”, “Hunting and Fishing” and others...

Usto Abduvahob and his knives:

Director of the “Dukan of the East” store Bakhriddin Nasyrov with Uzbek “usto” masters: usto Ulugbek, usto Abdurashid, usto Abduvahob.

Usto Ulugbek

Usto Abdurashid

Both pchaks and cords are made by hand, and it is safe to say that each such knife carries a piece of the master’s soul.

Already from an external examination one can judge the level of quality of the knife:

Good structure and processing of the blade, a pronounced hardening line and a thin cutting edge allow you to count on a good and long-lasting cut;

A well-soldered or cast from pure tin (light and shiny) gulband allows you to use pchak or cord in the kitchen without the risk of lead poisoning;

A clear and long ringing after clicking the blade, the absence of a shat at the mounted handle indicates a high-quality assembly;

The absence of gaps between the device and the handle, or cracks in the handle handle, prevents the proliferation of microorganisms in them;

If possible, the pchak and cord, like any other tool for work, should be selected “by touch” so that it becomes a “natural extension of the hand.”

The only (today) pchaks that you can’t find fault with are the pchaks of Mamirzhon Saidakhunov

The blade is 140x4mm at the butt, tapering evenly to the nose. Reduced to zero, the double-sided lens is light, sharpened perfectly. Powder steel DI-90, heat-treated in the oven, hardened to 61 somewhere. Handle 110mm, walrus ivory. Gulband is a tin-based hard alloy. He brutally cuts food, whittles dry wood, and cheerfully butchers chicken. Sheath: leather 3mm, impregnated against water

True, there is a small nuance - the master lives and works in Ukraine and the price for this knife is quite high (compared to other pchaks)

Today in Russia there are knives from more than 30 craftsmen from Shakhrikhon, Samarkand, Tashkent and so on...

In addition, such knives could not help but interest Russian manufacturers.

This is how they make pchaks at the request of their customers:

Gennady Prokopenkov

We can see this knife almost every weekend on the NTV channel in the hands of Stalik Khankishiev. Fiber composite based on 40X13, hardening to 52-54

Dmitry Pogorelov

Steel CPM 3V, HRC - about 60. Length 280 mm, blade length 150 mm, width 33 mm, thickness (3.5-2.5-1.5) mm, weight 135g. Cocobolo handle Zero reduction, excellent cutting

Mezhov's workshop

Knife by S. Kutergin and M. Nesterov

Steel X12MF, silver, rosewood, rosewood, bone. Knife length 280mm, blade 160mm, width 40mm, thickness 4mm, HRC 57-59

But even from the photograph it is clear that the mixing is by no means “Pchakian”

Zlatoust gunsmiths

Steel 95X18, HRC 58, length 292 mm, blade 160 mm, width 35 mm, thickness (2.2-2.0-1.8) mm, weight 120 g. The reduction is about 0.3 mm. The handle is walnut. Despite the small thickness and good cutting, the cut of this knife leaves much to be desired.

Gunsmith

Damascus, gilding. Length 260 mm, blade 160 mm, width 35 mm, thickness (4.0-3.5-2.0) mm, weight 140g. HRC approximately 56. Convergence approximately 0.2-0.3 mm.

Despite the various decorations, the cut is significantly better than the previous A&R.

A little testing showed predictable results - first Prokopenkov with Pogorelov, then Oruzheynik and then A&R by a wide margin.

It is interesting that an ordinary pchak (see photo) showed itself to be slightly worse than the pchak of our eminent masters (in terms of cut quality), but better than the Gunsmith, but not by much.

In the middle of the last century, knives similar to pchak were made by the German company Herder, but I was unable to find out its specialization

Of course, a pchak, even a good one, is difficult to compare in terms of manufacturability and hygiene with a European chef, and in modern food production it will be less convenient, but in a home kitchen and especially somewhere in nature, this knife can give you a lot of pleasure!

For a more complete picture of the work of a pchak, I recommend reading Roman Dmitriev’s review “Pchak in real life” on this site.

Marat Suleymanov, Roman Dmitriev and the RusKnife forum provided great assistance in writing the article.

Special thanks to Bakhriddin Nasyrov ("Dukan of the East") and Alexander Mordvin ("Pchak - handmade knives") for providing photographs

P.S. Roman Dmitriev's review of "Pchaks in real life" will appear soon

Each nation, depending on the characteristic geographical, climatic and socio-cultural conditions of life, adopted and received the greatest use of its own type of knife, which has distinctive features from similar tools of other nationalities. Among them is national Uzbek knife “pchak”. Appearing, according to various sources, among the Central Asian peoples at the turn of the 14th-15th centuries, it has retained its form almost unchanged to this day.

General description of the Uzbek knife “pchak”

The name of the product comes from the Uzbek word “pechak”, which literally means “knife”. Pchak knives distributed throughout Central Asia with minor differences in proportions and decoration. Their characteristic features are a wide straight blade with one-sided sharpening and a thin (narrower than a blade) handle, which is attached flush with the butt.

The knife blade can be up to 50 mm wide. Its length is usually 16-22 cm. The cross-section of the metal part is wedge-shaped, tapering from the butt to the blade. From the handle to the tip, the thickness of the knife gradually decreases: from 4-5 mm to zero. The slopes are most often straight, less often convex or concave. This geometry provides the product with excellent cutting properties.

Traditionally, carbon steel is used to make the blade. As a result of bluing with iron sulfate, ferric chloride, or local varieties of clay, the metal surface acquires a specific dark color with a bluish or yellowish tint. Blades are often hardened and decorated with engraving or stamped marks. It does Uzbek knife not only a necessary element of everyday life, but also distinguishes it as an object that characterizes the culture and life of an entire people.

The history of the distribution of “pchak” knives since the times of the USSR

During the Soviet Union Uzbek knives pchak could be found in the European part of the country in single copies, brought as souvenirs from tourist trips or expeditions in Central Asia. The most common products were the products of the only knife factory in Uzbekistan in the city of Chust. To date pchak knives are manufactured in semi-handicraft industries. The bulk of them are produced by craftsmen from the city of Shahrikhan, Andijan region. There is a whole craft district where dynasties of blacksmiths and cutlers work.

Regular deliveries national uzbek knives began to occur in Russia by the end of the 90s of the last century. There is an opportunity to purchase them in retail: in specialized stores and oriental culinary shops. At the same time, specialized online stores, guided by increased demand, began to offer for sale pchak knives: their photo have been added to many electronic catalogues. Nowadays, it is not factory stamped products that are in special demand, but the products of specific craftsmen. Author's works are marked with engraved emblems of the manufacturer who produced DIY pchak knife, featuring stars and crescents in Islamic tradition.

Popular varieties of pchak knives: charhon and old Bukhara

On practice Uzbek knife pchak Designed for household needs: cutting meat products, cleaning and cutting vegetables. Depending on the type of operations performed, knives of various shapes are used. Therefore, to complete the collection, it makes sense to purchase the main types of Uzbek knives most common forms:

kaike - with the tip of the blade raised upward;
tugri - with a straight blade and an even spine;
kushkamalak - with a double fuller along the butt.

The most versatile in use are samples with a blade length of over 14 cm. Such models are called “charhon”. They are very convenient for professional cutting of various products: without knocking on a cutting board, but in a push-cut manner, as on video culinary forums.

Along with the most popular Chust and the most common Andijan (Shakhrikhan) bees, you can find varieties called “Old Bukhara” in online catalogs. Their characteristic feature is an arched blade, evenly tapering towards the tip. Their second frequently used name is “Afghan women”.

National traditions of decorating gift samples “pchak”

For souvenirs and collectibles, it is preferable to choose from one-piece items from famous artists. Everyone is like that pchak knife, photo which can be seen on thematic websites and forums, is a masterpiece of a particular master. At the same time, knives made individually undergo all the necessary stages of hardening and sharpening, allowing them to be used in practice.

In addition to providing practical functions, gift items are decorated in the best traditions of oriental flavor. To a large extent, this relates to the decoration of the handle, which Uzbek knives rather narrow in cross-section, with a characteristic beak-shaped bend at the end. Valuable specimens are made from various types of wood, ungulate horns or metal. They are often inlaid with mother-of-pearl or semi-precious stones.

Sharpening knives and care rules

The craftsman sharpens the DIY Uzbek knife pchak on a corundum circle. The end of sharpening is determined by the tone of the sound it makes. pchak knife, A video the Internet can clearly demonstrate this. You can adjust the sharpness of the blade from time to time simply by touching the bottom of a ceramic plate.

Subject to corrosion, the metal of the blade requires careful handling. Knives should not be left wet after use. They should be stored hanging or on a stand and wiped dry.

Talking about Uzbekistan, I cannot help but talk about the Uzbek national knife - pchak. Pchak or Pechak (Uzbek Pichoq - “knife”) is the national knife of the Central Asian peoples - Uzbeks and Uyghurs. Traditionally, it has a straight, wide carbon steel blade of wedge-shaped cross-section with one-sided sharpening, sometimes with a narrow fuller along the butt. A thin, round handle is attached at the level of the butt, slightly widens towards the head, and sometimes ends in a beak-shaped pommel. It can be made of horn, bone or wood, or inlaid with colored stone. The pchak is worn in a wide, straight leather sheath. Distributed throughout Central Asia with slight differences in ornamentation and proportions.

In Uzbekistan, they are made mainly in the eastern and central parts of the country - in Khiva there were no such knives anymore, only imported ones. In Bukhara, in the very center of the city, there are several workshops where pchaks are made, but the prices here are somehow prohibitive, apparently calculated for tourists who come for the day.

Tools in the workshop

The main blank for a knife is a car valve, but it is also made from some cheap stainless steel, but it is carbon steel knives that are most valued. There is better steel, there is Damascus, but the prices for such knives are appropriate.

After forging, the knives receive a handle made of fiberglass, plexiglass, metal, horn, bone, and then are roughly sharpened on a sharpening wheel

After polishing, designs or inscriptions are often applied to them.

I still don’t understand why the knife is covered with a thin layer of hot paraffin (?)

Let him cool down

Apparently, so that later a sketch is drawn with a special brush, which in the future will be a drawing or an inscription

The final sharpening is done on such a sharpening stone

Sometimes, at the request of the client, a dedicatory inscription is applied

Workshop

Well, the knives themselves

I bought myself this one at the market in Tashkent - an excellent knife to use on the farm! Sharpened by a fork

Someone else will add: “Charchon.”

In Uzbekistan they still say: “A carbon fiber tip is for work, a stainless steel tip is for decoration!”

By the way, many Japanese and Russian masters do the same, for example, G.K. Prokopenkov. This is due to the fact that U12 and ShKh15 have low impact strength and strength, and if the blade and shank are forged from a single piece of steel, there is a high probability of the blade breaking in the neck area, for example, when dropped.

Recently, blades made of ShKh-15 steel have become increasingly common, which can be hardened to 60 Rockwell units, which is what we see on some blades.

Such hard blades are made specifically for the Russian and Ukrainian markets in order to compete with Japanese kitchen knives. From my point of view, such hardness is not very justified, because pchaks have a very fine blade and working with such knives requires certain skills and special equipment, otherwise the blade will chip and break (similar to Japanese kitchen knives).

On the other hand, there is no particular point in upgrading the ShKh-15 to 50-52 units (the norm for a pchak) - it’s just a translation of good quality material.

The names of the parts of the pchak are presented below:

“GULBAND”, or bolster, is cast from low-melting tin or tin-lead alloys, soldered from sheet brass or cupronickel and filled with tin or its alloy. I note that using lead in cooking is not good, and it is advisable not to use knives with lead (or at least varnish them). You can distinguish lead by trying it with a soldering iron (lead melts worse), it oxidizes strongly, acquiring a dark gray tint, and gets dirty (like newsprint). I personally think that the use of lead and alloys is a cost of the easy availability of old car batteries and babbitts from bearings.

"CHAKMOK" or pommel.

Decorated with engraving, sadaf, rhinestones.

On inexpensive chakmoks, chakmok is designated by changing the cross-section of the handle (from round to rectangular) and/or the presence of a beak-like protrusion.

"DOSTA" - black, handle.

For production they use local wood (apricot, plane tree), textolite, plexiglass, bones, antlers, soldered from sheet metal (nickel silver, brass)

"TAMGA" - brand

As a rule, every craftsman (“usto”) who produces any product (especially knives) applies a workshop mark (tamga).

On modern stamps, anything can appear - even an image of a car.

It should be noted that at present it is impossible to completely rely on tamga to identify the master. I have seen tamga, which is used by at least four different masters (although maybe one does it, but different people sell it on their own behalf).

More expensive pchaks may have a leather sheath, decorated with embossing or braided leather cord.

Metal scabbards (nickel silver, brass) with engraving or combined ones (leather, wood, metal) are rarely found.

To conclude the review of the Andijan pchak, I will quote from O. Zubov’s article “The Sign of the Master” (Around the World magazine No. 11, 1979):

“...Wide, ringing with a black-violet tint, inlaid with red, green, blue and white stones - specks, three stars and a moon shine on the blade - the ancient mark of the Abdullayevs.

This knife is an indispensable assistant during a meal with friends, an integral part of Uzbek cuisine. “You can cut bread, you can peel potatoes, or you can hang it on the carpet and watch - you can do everything!” - said the master. And, after being silent for a while, he smiled: “But the best thing is to cut a melon!”

Looking at the Uzbek pchaks, you willy-nilly wonder what led to the appearance of this particular blade shape.

The fact is that this form is suitable exclusively for cooking, while the neighboring peoples had a typical knife, which could somehow be used for defense and used for other (non-cooking) needs, that is, they were in use all over the world more versatile knives. The Uzbeks also had such knives, but... only until the 14th century. The exact reason for the emergence of this form is not known, but if we remember that the 14th century is the century of the empire of Timur (Tamerlane), an empire with centralized power and strict laws, then we can assume that Timur’s officials, or he himself, were somewhat concerned about the subjugation of the conquered peoples , and, in order to prevent the people from acquiring edged weapons, they took all the gunsmiths to the Shah’s forges, to the capital of the empire, Samarkand, and for the civilian population they forced the craftsmen to make knives with the tip raised up.

It is almost impossible to inflict puncture wounds with such a knife and, therefore, the danger of an uprising and other “terrorist attacks” is reduced.

Let us remember that during the time of another empire, already close to us in time, pchaks were also not classified as edged weapons precisely because of the shape of the blade, and for their production they were not sent to places not so distant. Although there may be other versions. In any case, the result was a very convenient knife for cooking, which quickly gained popularity in Central Asia. If it had not been convenient, it would not have received such distribution!

In addition to pchaks with a “kaike” blade, there are pchaks with a “tugri” blade, that is, with a straight spine.

Let's compare two types of blades: in the photo below you can clearly see the difference between the “tugri” blade (above) and the “kaike” blade (below)

The “tugri” blade has a constant or decreasing width towards the tip. Convenient for slicing meat, usually included in a butcher's kit (“kassob-pichok”).

In addition to the already mentioned “Andijan” pchak, you can find the names “Old Bukhara” and “Old Kokand”.

In the “Old Bukhara” blade, the blade tapers evenly towards the tip, the rise is less pronounced, but the entire blade is often arched, the blade is more specialized for working with meat - skinning, deboning.

Also traditionally, Bukhara pchaks have a sheath with a ball or leaf at the end.

“Old Kokandsky” - the blade of this pchak is small in width and is most likely used as an auxiliary blade for deboning or peeling vegetables.

You can also find the names “tolbargi” (willow leaf) and “Kazakhcha”. These are functional, highly specialized knives designed to perform a specific job.

"Tolbargi" - a butcher knife for cutting animal carcasses,

“Kazakhcha” - for cutting fish.

Pchak "Kazakhcha" were distributed mostly among the inhabitants (fishermen) of the Aral Sea coast, mainly Kazakhs.

The handles of “tolbargi” and “Kazakhcha” are usually made of wood and, as a rule, are not decorated (only the presence of a colored ornament on the gulband is allowed).

Here are photos of knives by master Mamurjon Makhmudov from Kokand:

"Tolbargi"

Well, and more photos of knives from Tashkent

Photo from the Museum of Applied Arts of Uzbekistan, the selection is called “Tashkent 1985”

“Uyghur pchaks” deserve special mention.

These are knives from the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China. Sometimes the name Yangisar knives is found - the name is attached to the center of production - the city of Yangisar. They also have the “Old Bukharan type-Afghan” and the “Old Kokand” type, but if you look at the photographs, you can see the differences. What is striking is the higher quality (and beautiful) manufacture of the handles and the absence of a cast tin gulband (bolster), the shanks of the blades are almost always open, and brinch is not used. But the blades are often roughly processed, or not sharpened at all, because... The production of Uyghur knives with sharpened blades longer than 200 mm is prohibited by Chinese laws!

Starobukharsky. Uyghur masters

Afghan. Uyghur masters.

Old Kokandsky. Uyghur masters.

If Uzbek pchaks are more specialized for cooking, then Tajik KORDS are more versatile knives.

Cords come in three typical sizes. The most common (most working) has a length of 14-17 cm, the large knife “Gov Kushi” (“cow cutter”) is used for slaughtering livestock and has a length of 18-25 cm, and the smallest knives (less than 14 cm) are for women.

The blades of traditional cords are powerful, up to 4 mm thick at the guard (note that if the thickness of a knife blade is more than 2.4 mm, then it can already be considered as a bladed weapon and is prohibited for free circulation), lens-shaped slopes from the butt or the middle of the blade width, less often straight (in Uzbek pchak, as a rule, it’s the other way around). The cutting edge is displayed on each knife depending on its purpose. The butt of a cord blade, usually machined from a finished strip of metal, is straight and parallel, and not wedge-shaped, like that of a pchak. The blade is usually machined with fullers, one or two on each side, or two on the right and one on the left.

Installation depends on the location of manufacture. In the south-eastern mountainous regions, preference is given to mounted mounting, and in the western and northern regions, which are closer to Uzbekistan, to overhead mounting. Moreover, the overhead installation of the cord is somewhat different from that of the pchak: a soldered brinch is not used, and the entire shank is filled around the perimeter with a tin alloy, so the handle on the pchak is lighter, and on the cord it is stronger! In general, the cord device is only cast, made of tin and its alloys (or silver), the ornament is only engraved and more geometric, radially symmetrical, in contrast to the complex plant-based Uzbek “islimi”. The ornament is individual for each master and can replace a mark (cords are not traditionally branded, at least on the blade; on the guard there is a specific ornament or mark)

The overhead handles of cords are always wider than those of pchaks, widen towards the pommel and have a characteristic recess for the little finger.

Photo from the Museum of Applied Arts of Uzbekistan, the selection is called “Khorezm, Khiva.1958”

I would like to dwell once again on the terminology - pchak, pichok, bychak, cord, card.

The fact is that some time ago a knife from somewhere in the 17th-18th century fell into my hands

Length 310mm, blade length 185mm, spine width 30mm, spine thickness (3.5-2.5-1.5)mm. The purpose of the groove on the butt is unclear to me, except perhaps to increase the thickness of the butt, which increases slightly when the groove is embossed. The yellow metal in the ornament is gold. Hardness about 52 units. I was struck by the structure of the blade (as the famous cutler Gennady Prokopenkov put it, “simply aerobatics!”): - a wedge from the butt with a concave lens, and turning into a teardrop shape a few millimeters (from 3 to 5) from the cutting edge. Of course, this is all tenths of a millimeter, but everything is visible and palpable. After some persuasion, G.K. Prokopenkov agreed to make me a modern copy, preserving as much as possible the entire structure of the blade.

The result is a knife like this:

In addition, its design allows you to cut/plane the stick and protect yourself from any evil.

That is, we got an excellent all-rounder.

Knife from Bukhara. Museum of Artillery, Engineers and Signal Corps. Exhibition “Weapons of the East 16-19 centuries”

I note that the “museum” exhibit is simply named – “Knife from Bukhara”

Further searches led to the following photographs:

Pchak is old. Bukhara

Pchak. Bukhara.

Bukhara card

Pchak Bukhara with turquoise

Pchak Afghanistan

Persian card

Note that in the last photo the knife (Persian card) has an armor-piercing thickening on the tip.

Thus, it is apparently not possible to determine exactly the type of my knife.

So I think that I have a pchak. Tugri-pchak is most likely made in Bukhara.

There is also a “bychak” - a Karachai knife (see the article “Bychak - the knife of every Karachai” on this site), but the Karachais and their closest relatives - the Balkars, as is known, are also Turkic-speaking peoples.

There are also Turkmen Saryk knives (photo from Rusknife)

Thus, without touching on military topics, it is apparently most correct to say:

National Uzbek knife (pichok, or pchak)

National Tajik knife (cord)

National Uyghur knife (pchak)

National Karachay knife (bychak)

Here are some more photos from the “Turkestan Album” 1871-1872

Samarkand, Pichak-bazaar (By the way, in the original it is written “Pisyak-bazaar”)

During the Soviet Union, the most popular were pchaks from the city of Chust, where there was the only knife factory in Uzbekistan.

Photo from the Museum of Applied Arts of Uzbekistan, the selection is called “Chust 1987”

Photo from the Museum of Applied Arts of Uzbekistan, the selection is called “Shakhrikhon 1999”

Usto Bakhrom Yusupov

Tajik knives (“cords”), related to the Uzbek pchak, are mainly produced in the city of Istaravshan (formerly Ura-Tube).

Also, stands with pchak and cords are always present at various knife exhibitions: “Blade”, “Arsenal”, “Hunting and Fishing” and others...

Usto Abduvahob and his knives:

Director of the “Dukan of the East” store Bakhriddin Nasyrov with Uzbek “usto” masters: usto Ulugbek, usto Abdurashid, usto Abduvahob.

Usto Ulugbek

Usto Abdurashid

Both pchaks and cords are made by hand, and it is safe to say that each such knife carries a piece of the master’s soul.

Already from an external examination one can judge the level of quality of the knife:

— good structure and processing of the blade, a pronounced hardening line and a thin cutting edge allow you to count on a good and long-lasting cut;

- a well-soldered or cast from pure tin (light and shiny) gulband allows you to use pchak or cord in the kitchen without the risk of lead poisoning;

— a clear and long ringing after clicking the blade, the absence of a shat at the mounted handle indicates high-quality assembly;

— the absence of gaps between the device and the handle, or cracks in the handle handle, prevents the proliferation of microorganisms in them;

If possible, the pchak and cord, like any other tool for work, should be selected “by touch” so that it becomes a “natural extension of the hand.”

The only (today) pchaks that you can’t find fault with are the pchaks of Mamirzhon Saidakhunov

True, there is a small nuance - the master lives and works in Ukraine and the price for this knife is quite high (compared to other pchaks)

Today in Russia there are knives from more than 30 craftsmen from Shakhrikhon, Samarkand, Tashkent and so on...

In addition, such knives could not help but interest Russian manufacturers.

This is how they make pchaks at the request of their customers:

Gennady Prokopenkov

We can see this knife almost every weekend on the NTV channel in the hands of Stalik Khankishiev. Fiber composite based on 40X13, hardening to 52-54

Dmitry Pogorelov

Steel CPM 3V, HRC - about 60. Length 280 mm, blade length 150 mm, width 33 mm, thickness (3.5-2.5-1.5) mm, weight 135g. Cocobolo handle Zero reduction, excellent cutting

Mezhov's workshop

Knife by S. Kutergin and M. Nesterov

Steel X12MF, silver, rosewood, rosewood, bone. Knife length 280mm, blade 160mm, width 40mm, thickness 4mm, HRC 57-59

But even from the photograph it is clear that the mixing is by no means “Pchakian”

Zlatoust gunsmiths

Steel 95Х18, HRC 58, length 292 mm, blade 160 mm, width 35 mm, thickness (2.2-2.0-1.8) mm, weight 120 g. The reduction is about 0.3 mm. The handle is walnut. Despite the small thickness and good cutting, the cut of this knife leaves much to be desired.

Gunsmith

Damascus, gilding. Length 260 mm, blade 160 mm, width 35 mm, thickness (4.0-3.5-2.0) mm, weight 140g. HRC approximately 56. Convergence approximately 0.2-0.3 mm.

Despite the various decorations, the cut is significantly better than the previous A&R.

A little testing showed predictable results - first Prokopenkov with Pogorelov, then Oruzheynik and then A&R by a wide margin.

It is interesting that an ordinary pchak (see photo) showed itself to be slightly worse than the pchak of our eminent masters (in terms of cut quality), but better than the Gunsmith, but not by much.

In the middle of the last century, knives similar to pchak were made by the German company Herder, but I was unable to find out its specialization

For a more complete picture of the work of a pchak, I recommend reading Roman Dmitriev’s review “Pchak in real life” on this site.

Marat Suleymanov, Roman Dmitriev and the RusKnife forum provided great assistance in writing the article.

Special thanks for providing photographs to Bakhriddin Nasyrov (“Dukan of the East”) and Alexander Mordvin (“Pchak-handmade knives”)

Taken from CookingKnife.ru

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