Binell Brothers Keeps Dearborn on the Cutting Edge

Longtime Dearborn residents may recall a rather unusual trade that was available streetside in neighborhoods: knife sharpening. A little red cart, pushed by a gentleman ringing a bell, summoned residents to gather their knives and bring them curbside to make them shiny and new again.

This memory comes rushing back when talking with Bob Ramsay, a fourth-generation knife sharpener and one of the family owners of Binell Brothers Cutlery in Dearborn. 

Binell Brothers might be new to the Dearborn Farmers and Artisans Market this season, but they are bringing with them a rich heritage each week, using a homemade grinder wheel.

“This wheel was made by my grandfather and we still use it today to sharpen knives when we go to a location like this market," Ramsay said. "Originally, the knife-sharpening business was performed at the customer’s location and my grandfather would arrive with the grinder in the back of a truck and sharpen knives right there.”

Today, the skilled practice is the same, though the method of working with clients is a bit different.

This family-operated business mostly serves commercial clientele such as restaurants and hotels. Binell Brothers picks up a set to be sharpened, delivering a complete replacement set at the same time, so the customer is never without their knives.  The sets to be sharpened are brought back to Binell Brothers, given a crisp, new cutting edge and returned to the customer, where the cycle repeats itself.

“We serve the whole metro Detroit area," Ramsay said. "Our customers range from Monroe in the south and as far west as Lansing.”

It is a specific trade that most people probably do not even consider when sitting down to dinner in a favorite restaurant and looking at the perfectly julienned vegetables.

Nearly all knife sharpeners in the United States trace their roots to a region in Northern Italy–most notably three small towns. One of these towns is Pinzolo, where members of the Binell family originated.

“Knife sharpening has fed my family for 100 years and yet only in the past few decades has it been passed from father to son," Ramsay shared. "A trade that was once considered similar to begging, it was only fit for the son-in-law to join the business, so he could beg for customers, but now it includes the whole family.” 

There are a only a handful of sharpening businesses in metro Detroit and Ramsay says that even if only as distant cousins, they are all somehow related. It is likely that the man with the little red cart shared a family member in this tightly knit group of tradesmen as well.

In the Farmer’s Market each week, Binell Brothers sharpens knives for $2 per blade. They also bring an assortment of new knives available for purchase, ranging from $3 to $15.

Established in 1948, the store is located at 7621 Barrie in Dearborn and can be reached by calling 313-584-3219.

Also at the Market

• presents Twenty-First Century Planning.
• will provide a nutritional review.
• will continue at the market.
• Strawberries will be the main attraction at this week's market. Share your recipes with us and have your berry-filled treat featured on Dearborn Patch!