He built a better shucker

I like it when someone examines an old tool and figures out how to make a better one. Toronto seafood restaurateur Patrick McMurray has done just that with the oyster knife.

A four-time Canadian oyster shucking champion, 2004 North American champion, 2002 World Champion, and holder of the Guinness world record for the most oysters shucked in a minute (38), McMurray shucks a lot of oysters. He found that the typical oyster knife, with the handle as an extension of the blade, provides insufficient grip and leverage. This makes opening oysters difficult.

McMurray spent three years experimenting and making prototypes, culminating in his new Shucker Paddy knife. Its biggest difference is that the handle meets the blade at an angle, providing sort of a pistol grip. That grip and the angle provide leverage, enabling oysters to be opened with less force and more safety. The moulded grip incorporates a finger guard.

This isn’t high technology, but is innovative human technology. Having struggled with many recalcitrant oysters, I welcome the news of a better opener.