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| ===Glowing Hot Knife=== | | ===Glowing Hot Knife=== |
| # A knife that is heated till it glows (incandescent) may not be used, as the heat from the sides of the blade burns the simanim before the blade finishes severing them, resulting in a piercing instead of a shechitah. The meat would be prohibited on a Torah level. Some are lenient bediavad if the shochet was aware and maneuvered the knife in a way that avoids the sides touching the simanim, but the halacha follows the strict view. Some say the minimum temperature of the metal is Yad Soledet Bo.<ref>Simla Chadasha 9:1</ref> | | # A knife that is heated till it glows (incandescent) may not be used, as the heat from the sides of the blade burns the simanim before the blade finishes severing them, resulting in a piercing instead of a shechitah. The meat would be prohibited on a Torah level. Some are lenient bediavad if the shochet was aware and maneuvered the knife in a way that avoids the sides touching the simanim, but the halacha follows the strict view. Some say the minimum temperature of the metal is Yad Soledet Bo.<ref>Simla Chadasha 9:1</ref> |
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| ==Crafting a Shechitah Knife==
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| Modern day shechitah knives are commonly rectangularly shaped to facilitate shechitah without issues of chaladah and derasa and made with easy to sharpen steel that maintains its edge to minimize pegimot.
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| [[File:Bluebonecalef2 5000x.jpg|alt=Chalef with Blue Bone Handle, image courtesy of Laevi Sussman, JewishKnives.com|thumb|[https://jewishknives.com/collections/chalefim/products/chalef-with-blue-bone-handle Chalef with Blue Bone Handle], image courtesy of Laevi Sussman, [http://JewishKnives.com JewishKnives.com]]]
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| # One should use a knife that ends in a right angle, not a sharp point, in order to avoid chaladah. In pressing circumstances, can can cover the tip with something light and then shecht (a hard tip cover could lead to derasa).<ref>Simla Chadasha 6:4</ref>
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| # Some say the top of the knife should also be void of pegimot,<ref>Simla Chadasha 6:4</ref> in case one ends up cutting with the top, while others note how the rectangular knives we use today avoid this issue.<ref>Mateh Asher 6:5</ref>
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| [[File:Chalefimsizes1 lys 5000x.jpg|alt=Examples of the different size shechitah knives for gasot, dakot, and ofot.
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| # The ideal shechitah knife is twice as long as the neck of the target category;<ref>See Simla Chadasha 8:2 and [The Shechitah Process] for more details.</ref> therefore, bird (ofos) knives are usually about five inches long, sheep (dakos) knives are usually nine inches long, and cattle (gasos) knives are usually about sixteen inches long.<ref>See [https://www.yutorah.org/lectures/lecture.cfm/1062724 IBC Experiential Halacha: Chicken Shechita]</ref>
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| # The instrument used to shecht should preferably be as smooth as possible on both sides. Therefore, although engravings in the blade far from the edge do not render the shechitah invalid, but one should ideally use a knife free of any engravings. Anything sticking out of the side would be a problem even bediavad despite being far from the edge.<ref>Simla Chadasha 9:2</ref>
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| Stainless Steel Chalefim in Select Sizes, image courtesy of Laevi Sussman, JewishKnives.com|thumb|[https://jewishknives.com/collections/chalefim/products/stainless-steel-chalefim-in-select-sizes Stainless Steel Chalefim in Select Sizes], image courtesy of Laevi Sussman, [http://JewishKnives.com JewishKnives.com]]]
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| ==Sharpening a Shechitah Knife== | | ==Sharpening a Shechitah Knife== |
