Gyuto knife, Aogami 1, forge welded damascus series - Naoki Mazaki

Naoki Mazaki san is a very young blacksmith working out of Sanjo. Unusually he works on his own and completes every task himself including doing final blades adjustments on sharpening stones which is incredible rare. A real labour of love, everything is done in house, by him. Unbelievable. 

SHAPE: Gyuto. Japan's answer to the chef's knife with a thinner profile. Gyuto translates to cow sword.

STEEL: Aogami (blue paper) 1 steel. This is very similar to white paper steel but with tungsten and chromium added to it which helps with edge retention and slows down rusting. The difference between blue 1 and 2 is the amount of carbon present with 1 being the highest. Due to the non stainless nature of this steel care must be taken to dry the knives properly after use..  

FINISH: . This type of finish is made by creating a Kitaeji; which is produced by repeatedly folding/stacking then compressing two different steels until they create a laminated pattern. This can then be manipulated in various ways to produce the maker’s desired pattern effect. This material is then clad around the core metal of the blade as an elaborate protective layer for the core steel - thus giving the knife a beautiful and striking appearance.

HANDLE: Octagonal Magnolia wood with Walnut ferrule.

LENGTH: 240mm in length.

MAKER: Naoki Mazaki - Sanjo city, Japan

BEST FOR: Having something beautiful with a function.

SAUNDERS SAYS: "I have waited almost three years for these and it was all worth it, these things are fantastic and so nicely balanced."