There is no call centre and no queue here. Messages land in the same inbox that Callum checks between heats, which means you usually get a reply inside one working day and sometimes inside an hour if the forge is cold and he is at the bench with a coffee. Rangi reads the sharpening and rehandle questions on Fridays.
If you already know what you want built, put the blade length, the steel you are leaning towards and what you cook most in the message. That single sentence saves a round trip. If you are not sure yet, say that too and we will work it out from what you already use at home, or from the profiles you like on the line at work.
If you are dropping a knife off for sharpening, ring first. If nobody answers, we are out the back at the grinder with the door closed and will call you back the same day.
The workshop is in the light industrial block off Kahikatea Drive, a five minute drive south of the Hamilton CBD and about ten minutes from the Te Rapa straight. Look for the roller door with the anvil stencil on it. There is parking right outside and along the kerb, and the door is open during working hours unless the forge is running.
If you are coming on the bus, the route 9 stops on Kahikatea Drive near the Waikato River end, and it is a four minute walk from there. Coming from the airport it is a twenty minute drive.
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Bring a knife you already enjoy using and we will measure the handle length, the blade height and where the balance sits in your hand. Half an hour at the bench with a cardboard mock-up settles more questions than a week of emailing, and it costs nothing.
How the workshop runs
Both the Damascus and the powder steel knives are on the bench, so you can compare the weight, the pattern and the finish with your own hands. Most people come in leaning one way and leave ordering the other, and that is fine. Pricing for both lines is laid out on the price page, and the two knives themselves are described on the Damascus Steel Chef Knife and Powder Steel Chef Knife pages.
Bring in a knife for sharpening or a rehandle and we will tell you on the spot what it needs. Standard chef knives are NZ$45, over 240mm is NZ$70.
If we are running a batch when you arrive, you get to watch a blade go into the quench. It is not an experience product, it is just what we are doing that day.
When you write or ring, you are getting one of us rather than a shared inbox. That is deliberate. It means the person who answers is the person who will actually do the work, and the answer you get is the honest one rather than the sales one.
Ask about blade profiles, steel choice, lead times and full custom builds. If it involves a forge or a temperature, it comes to me. Ring during working hours and you will usually get me directly.
Send me the sharpening, chip repair and rehandle questions, ideally with a photo. I run the service bench on Fridays and can usually give you a turnaround window straight away.
You do not need one to drop off a knife for sharpening or to have a quick look, as long as it is between 8:00 and 17:30 on a weekday. If you want an hour at the bench to work through a commission properly, ring ahead on +64 7 849 3027 so we clear the time and are not in the middle of a heat.
One working day is the honest answer, and most replies go out faster than that. If the forge is running a big batch, it can stretch to two days. If it has been three days, ring us, because something has gone wrong with the email and we have not seen it.
Yes, and plenty of people do, including a few from the South Island. Wrap the blade in cardboard, tape it, and include a note with your return address and what you want done. Return courier inside New Zealand is NZ$18, rural NZ$26. We will text or email you once the knife is finished and the payment has gone through.
We do, from NZ$100 upwards, and they can go towards a commission or a sharpening job. Send a message through the form with the amount and who it is for, and we will email you a voucher with a code on it. The terms around vouchers and refunds are covered in the Terms and Conditions and the Refund Policy.
Read this before you ask for a specific pattern in your email. It explains what we can actually control when the billet gets folded and what comes out of the forge on the day.
If you are messaging us about a chipped or rolled edge, this will usually tell you how it happened and whether it is worth fixing or replacing.
BladeFoundry sits at 181 Kahikatea Drive in Melville, Hamilton 3206. Weekdays 8:00 to 17:30, Saturdays 9:00 to 14:00 by appointment, closed Sundays and public holidays. Ring +64 7 849 3027 or email bladefoundry@gmail.com before you turn up if you want someone at the bench rather than out the back at the quench tank. Everything about how we handle your enquiry is set out in the Legal Information page.
