Switched from a boning knife to a breaking knife for beef primals and my hand stopped hurting after 2 weeks

I've been breaking down subprimals for about 8 years now, mostly at a small shop in Des Moines. Always used a 6 inch curved boning knife for everything, even stripping beef loins and ribs. After a 12 hour shift my wrist and knuckles would ache for days. Tried taking breaks, stretching, nothing helped. Then a old timer at a trade show told me to try a 10 inch breaking knife for the bigger cuts. Picked up a Victorinox one for like 35 bucks. First week I felt clumsy, kept going back to my boner. But I forced myself to stick with it. After about 2 weeks, no more hand pain at the end of the day. The longer blade just lets you cut with less effort, especially on those thick fat caps. Anyone else switch knives later in their career and notice a big difference in fatigue?

2 comments

2 Comments

charles_price7d ago

My first week with a 10 inch breaking knife I felt the same way, kept grabbing for my old 6 inch out of habit. But yeah, that extra leverage on the fat caps is a game changer for the hands.

anthony4267d ago

Man that habit is hard to break, but once you get used to the bigger blade it really saves your hands on those long shifts. Made a world of difference for my wrist pain.