Shu Matsubara’s Blue 2 Nashiji is a rustic looking and highly practical knife that carries some decent performance and great value. The stainless cladding over the Blue 2 steel is a great plus in usability, and the hand-forged taper and profile offers great handling in use.
The organic trace left from handcraft can be easily spotted on these blades at first glance, the floating cladding line, texture-rich Nashiji and tapered spine speaks of the heat and sweat they went through. Nashiji/pear skin finish is one of my favourite finishes, not only because of the lovely look, but also its ability to keep it.
After forging and heat treating, the black oxidation layer is left on the surface of the knife, by using a wire brush instead of more aggressive abrasive, this softer layer of oxide can be removed without erasing away the texture of the steel. As the wire brush is essentially scratching the steel until the surface is evenly scratched, it is really hard to create more scratch on Nashiji surface in regular use. Compared with other clean and even finishes, this high entropy finish can stay this way very easily.
Just like the surface finish of them, these knives’ construction is also very masculine. They weigh on the higher side in their respective category and tend to have a slightly taller profile. The heavy weight is pretty great for those who like a reassuring handling for their tools, and Matsubara surely delivers that. The geometry of the blade is too not the most aggressive and laser-like. Some thickness is left in the bevel for a more robust edge, but a gentle convex can still ensure a relatively smooth cut.
The Blue 2 is a common steel used extensively in hand forged blades, having more edge retention and being less reactive than White and easier to deal with than Blue Super, many blacksmiths are happy to forge with this steel and many chefs are happy to use knives made with it. Despite the need for maintenance still, the wicked edge you can get on this steel still attracts many users, not to mention the stainless cladding it is warped in on these knives have made the caring much less tedious.
These blades remind me of Shigeki Tanaka’s works(it’s definitely a coincidence that both makers share the family name), rustic, organic and characterful. The pricing is also pretty attractive, and I even think for the amount of work put into these knives, this price is pretty low for what you get. I’d highly recommend this knife for anyone who is looking for a carbon steel knife and prefers a heavy, workhorse style blade.
By
Matsubara Hamono
