Welcome Home...THANK YOU FOR BEING A PART OF OUR COMMUNITY

iKnife Collector

The online community of knife collectors, A Knife Family Forged in Steel

Ah Shucks

Well the last thing I needed to do is find another odd ball knife to collect but that's just what I did.

I'm sure plenty of people will tell me they're not odd at all. While they aren't really a fishing knife they are used by lovers of a particular type of of seafood -- I'm talking about the oyster shucker.

Surprisingly they come in a variety of shapes and sizes which means I will undoubtedly end up with more than one in the collection. I'm not goign to pretend to tell you what makes a good shucker. I'll leave that to someone who actually has shucked oysters. Heck, I've never even eaten one! One I can tell you was written at the R. Murphy Web Page. They've been making Shuckers for over a 100 years.

I suppose I could've bought the cheap-oh $5 shucker by South Bend but I decided to go for broke and bought a USA made one by R. Murphy. To top it off, rather than getting their cheapest model I went for the most expensive in their line; The Carolina Shucker.

Here is what they had to say:

Charleston Oyster Knife with 2-2/8 inch x 11/16 inch high carbon stainless steel (420HC) blade. This knife is perfect for southern oyster roasts. There is a high carbon stainless steel guard to protect your hand when breaking apart the clumps of naturally growing Southern oysters. The Bolivian Rosewood handle is turned, detailed & oiled to create a unique, beautiful design.

I've already got three other styles from other companies on order, all are less expensive than this one.

However, you have to admit this one is a true beauty!

4 members like this

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Jan Carter on May 1, 2017 at 21:31

That not only is a beauty but it is built for use! Very few oyster knives these days have guards and take from someone that has done it, many many folks have sliced open hands shucking oysters with a bad knife.

Permalink Reply by J.J. Smith III on May 1, 2017 at 21:43

Could have used one this past weekend.

That's a fine looking shucker.

Permalink Reply by J.J. Smith III on May 1, 2017 at 21:49

Hey Jan, I see a new project in Donnie's future...

Permalink Reply by Tobias Gibson on May 2, 2017 at 5:35

Apparently Carolina shuckers have guards. Many other ones do not. How sharp are the blades on shuckers. This one is pretty dull. But it is a really great little poker.

Permalink Reply by J.J. Smith III on May 2, 2017 at 8:03

Guards aren't to protect you from the blade, they're there to protect you from the oyster shells.
Shuckers don't have to be very sharp, just need to be tapered enough to separate the shells.

https://youtu.be/97T1Pp4-zyE

Permalink Reply by Tobias Gibson on May 2, 2017 at 8:33

Thanks J. J. I kind of had a suspicion that was the case. I had watched a few you tubbes on how to shuck an oyster and saw the real danger appears to be getting stab in the hand holding the oyster and not slipping up on the blade.

Apparently, New England oysters are not as problematic as the Carolina oysters which explains the guard; again to protect the hand from the oyster not the blade.

I was really curious about blade sharpness as once the oyster is open you still need to cut the flesh from the shell.

Permalink Reply by J.J. Smith III on May 2, 2017 at 9:25

They can be quite dangerous if you slip during shucking...