K&S Special Sakai Takayuki Syousin Gin-Sakura Wa Gyuto 270mm (Ginsanko) with Saya

About the blade

Forged and sharpened by the best smith in Sakai. Syousin represents the best possible workmanship. To qualify for the Syousin badge, both the bladesmith and sharpener have to be highly regarded masters. For this particular Syousin Sakura, the bladesimth is Master. Suogo Yamatuka and the sharpener is Master. Norikatsu Nishimura. Both of them are among the elite group (currently less than 30) of the Dentou Kougeishi (Traditional Craftsman). Basically, you know that you are getting a blade that comes with a guaranteed workmanship. The blade is hand sharpened by Nishimura san back in Sakai using natural stone, and thanks to the extremely thinness behind the edge, you could expect the OOTB edge is quite pleasant to use.

You can read more about the Dentou Kougeishi here (Japanese).

About the F&F

Usually, knives produced in Sakai, even by the best guys, do not automatically mean the best fit and finish that we, the KKFers, pay particular attention. For instance, the spine and choil are likely not rounded nor polished. The handle is sometimes installed rather badly. Apart from the QC problem, is perhaps due to that the Japanese chefs traditionally do not care too much about these aspects. For Syousin, we specifically asked for the top F&F. For example, spine and choil are rounded and polished in all Syousin knives. In fact the choil of the Sakura has some of the best work that I have seen in Sakai knives.

About the handle

I also want to take time to talk about the handle that comes with the Sakura. As a keen woodworker, I am often quite picky about the detail of the handle, such as the wood, the finish, the straightness after installation. I particular dislike the through mortise and tenon joint employed by the traditional Japanese WA handles (uneven tenon), and the burn in process can sometimes ruin the knife entry point to the handle (badly burnt). I much prefer the custom handles that we often seen here in KKF made by our own hobbyists and pro craftsmen. I wanted something like those. As a result, after closely working with a handle manufacturer that are willing to listen and accommodate our requests for the past few months, I am proud to offer you the K&S semi-custom handles.

Why I call it "Semi-custom"? Well, they are manufactured accordingly our specifications (custom) and are made in batches (semi). So while I may not have a unique handle for each individual knives, I do offer these handles to you, which are normally only seen in ultra high-end Japanese kitchen knives, and I offer them with K&S / Syousin quality: blind mortise and tenon construction ensures the knife entry to the handle is a neat slot; the polish job is insanely neat (no polyurethane) and use the best wood that I can get my hands to.

Measurements