Muneishi Santoku Damascus 165mm (6.5″)

Muneishi Santoku Damascus 165mm is a multi-purpose Japanese kitchen knife suitable for preparation of meat, fish and vegetables. The theme of this knife is tradition, improved:

• santoku shape – the original Japanese all-around knife (san means “three”, hence “knife of three virtues”),
• high-carbon Aogami #2 steel with improved corrosion resistance,
• comfortable oval handle, made out of rosewood, with improved durability compared to traditional magnolia handles.

BLADE SHAPE:
Santoku knife is a versatile kitchen knife that will shine through all kinds of chopping and cutting on the kitchen board. Meat lovers will only miss a bit of length with larger pieces of meat. Its distinguishing shape makes santoku easy to identify: the cutting edge is fairly straight (giving santoku a limited rocking motion), while the spine of the blade curves towards the tip continuously at an approximately 60-degree angle, making it resemble a sheep’s foot.

STEEL:
Aogami #2 is a very popular steel in Japanese knifemaking and one of the finest high-carbon steels, meaning the knives forged from it will have excellent edge retention and also sharpen very easily. At the same time, it is less resistant to corrosion, meaning the blade will develop a patina, while longer exposure to water or other corrosives could also lead to rusting. This is improved to some extent with the addition of chromium and tungsten, but it’s still a high-carbon steel that should be maintained accordingly (⚠️ read more about knife maintenance here). Aogami #2 steel is composed of carbon (C) 1.1 %, chromium (Cr) 0.5 %, manganese (Mn) 0.3%, and tungsten (W) 1.5%.

LAMINATION:
High-carbon steel is hard, but brittle for this same reason. This makes the blades more prone to breakage and chipping. To prevent that, blacksmiths “sandwich” the blade’s core, made from Aogami #2 steel, between two layers of softer steel. This improves the blade’s flexibility and toughness.

GEOMETRY:
It has a double bevel (symmetrical) blade.

BLADE FINISH:
The damascus pattern has only been treated on the lower part of the blade, and there is a clear line separating it from the upper, polished part of the blade. Kanji has been hand-chiseled onto the blade.

HANDLE:
Traditional (Wa) oval rosewood handle will insure comfortable chopping for right- and left-handed users.

BLACKSMITH:
Muneishi smithy was founded in 1955. Hirotaka Muneishi, the second-generation knife smith, is renowned for manufacturing forestry knives such as axes and machetes for the local woodsmen. Kosuke Muneishi, the third-generation blacksmith and now the head of the company, has since branched out to making kitchen knives. He mostly uses Aogami Super steel and performs all the steps himself: tempering, forging, hammering and sharpening knives. His knives have very nice grinds, good profile, and are very affordable.