“Misen” uses 3D printing to prototype the perfect kitchen knife. Their Kickstarter hit full funding in an hour and closed with over $1 million.

Knives can be expensive. Whether you buy the cheapo brand at your local superstore or the high quality, expensive set from a traditional retailer, they are never cheap. Worst of all, they’re a product that is so simple and necessary that you are often left wondering how in the world it can be so expensive.

That’s what inspired two Brooklyn chefs, with the help of an industrial designer, to create their amazing $65 kitchen knife, “Misen.” They spent eighteen months testing and prototyping. Of course, being a small start-up, funding countless prototypes was no walk in the park. After sketching and CAD modeling, they spoke with their local 3D hubs to work out how they might create their knives via 3D printing. The result was an incredible, affordable product.

The real goal of the knife is not to do anything hi-tech or world-changing in terms of design. The goal is to give consumers something affordable and great. The blade itself combines the style of German and Japanese knives, allowing for all kinds of cooking. It is also incredibly sharp, and carefully balanced. The creators behind Misen are very proud of their creation, and happy to share positive feedback from those in the food industry.

Misen’s Hub helper Dano Wall shared some insight on his prototypes with 3D Hubs:

After trial and error, I eventually settled on a PET and polyester mix, printed on a slightly warm bed at very slow speed. This yielded high definition and extremely durable results that I was happy to pass on to Omar for further testing.

Their incredible Kickstarter campaign has recently finished, and it was far from disappointing. Their $25,000 goal was hit in a little over an hour after the campaign began. Their grand total of $1,083,344 should be more than enough to make the Misen become a reality. After being asked countless times, the team finally explained the meaning behind the name “Misen,” and it’s incredibly appropriate. It comes from Mise en place, a French phrase describing how everything in the kitchen is put in its proper place. In their own words: “We hope that our Chef’s Knife, and whatever else may one day come, will be part of your mise en place.”

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/misenkitchen/misen-cook-sharp/description