Hatsukokoro Itadaki Blue2 & White2 Dual Core Damascus Tsuchime Petty 150mm with Saya

A petty is a small utility knife, from the French petit. It is commonly shaped like a small gyuto and runs from 120 to 150 mm, up to 180 mm. Its clearest role is detailed work where a larger knife feels cumbersome: fruit peeling, garnish work, condiments, and small board work beside a gyuto or santoku.

A knife maker, Tojiro, frames the petty as a useful second knife, not an automatic necessity, and recommends santoku plus petty or gyuto plus petty combinations. It is not a replacement for a full size chef's knife; it lacks the blade length and belly for efficient chopping, rocking, or breaking down larger proteins. Treat it as a precision tool, not an all-rounder.

Petty knife lengths vary by maker: KAI's guide defines a petty (ペティナイフ) as a small knife with a narrow blade measuring 150 mm or under. Its table gives 90 to 150 mm, and it describes the shape as a smaller gyuto with a pointed tip.

We list petty knives from 70 mm to 165 mm, including lengths above the limit used in KAI's guide.

Yes, carbon steels such as Aogami (Blue) and Shirogami (White) are not stainless steels, so left wet they can spot or rust.

Care is simple once it becomes habit. Wipe the blade as you go, especially after acidic food like citrus, tomato or onion. When you finish, wash it in warm water with a little soap and dry it straight away with a towel. Do not let it air dry, leave it in the sink or the dish rack, or put it in the dishwasher. Store it dry: on a magnetic strip, in a saya or in a block in a dry spot.

If the knife will sit unused for a while, wipe on a thin layer of oil before storing. In our video James shows that mineral oil can stand in for camellia (tsubaki) oil, and he picks one labelled medical grade; we list the Kitchen Knife / Cutting Board Mineral Oil Medical Grade for this. If you find light rust, lift it with a rust eraser and a little water, then dry and oil the blade; we list the CKK and Naniwa rust erasers.

Proterial lists 1.05 to 1.15% carbon for both steels; its Blue 2 table lists 0.20 to 0.50% chromium and 1.00 to 1.50% tungsten, while its White 2 table lists neither.

Proterial describes White 2 as a carbon steel with minimum impurities and high hardness, and Blue 2 as an alloy steel with tungsten and chromium to improve heat-treatment properties and wear resistance, with a hardening hardness of over 60 HRC for both. In its Japanese materials, Proterial calls its Aogami (青紙) steels high-carbon steel (高炭素鋼). Neither steel is close to the JSSA's 10.5% minimum for stainless.

White 1, White 2 and White 3 are Proterial's Shirogami 1, Shirogami 2 and Shirogami 3. Proterial lists carbon at 1.25 to 1.35% for Shirogami 1, 1.05 to 1.15% for Shirogami 2 and 0.80 to 0.90% for Shirogami 3, with the same silicon and manganese ranges for all three and no chromium listed.

Proterial describes all three as carbon steel with minimum impurities, at highest, high and middle hardness in that order, and gives a hardening hardness of over 60 HRC for each.

The Nigara family line began in 1803, when the family served the Tsugaru domain as gunsmiths. For generations afterwards it made Japanese swords.

After the Second World War, the forge turned to blades for everyday life, including farm tools and kitchen knives.

Go Yoshizawa, president of Nigara Hamono Forge, leads it today and signs as the eighth generation of the Nigara family line.

The company is Nigara Hamono Forge (二唐刃物鍛造所), in Kanazoku-machi, Hirosaki, Aomori.

We think so. Nigara's own company page says its family line began in 1803 as gunsmiths retained by the Tsugaru domain and made Japanese swords for generations, before turning to farm tools and kitchen knives after the Second World War.

We have visited Nigara several times, once for a few days of hands-on training with them, and we list its knives in steels such as SG2, Blue 2, Ginsan and VG10.