NKD - Hitohira Ashi W2 Gyuto 210 (Ghost of Sakai)
Hello TCK,
It’s a NKD for me and quite the one, with a Hitohira Ashi 210 W2 gyuto. It was a lucky find over on kitchintools a while back, and I finally got it out of its box onto the board.
Long story short, all that’s written about Ashis is true! This thing is performance, performance, performance. It whispers through carrots, onions, potatoes, protein, with almost no food sticking (at least not in such a way that you need to pry off the produce).
It’s really one of those knives where you do your first cut, stop and take a short moment to realize what just happened. Only other knife I had that with was my Tanaka x Kyuzo B1 210. In this case though the combination of the monosteel W2 and the Ashi grind works wonders. It’s light and nimble at 141g, but comes with great feedback and presence on the board. The balance point is right where the blade meets the handle. This version is quite a bit heavier than its Swedish stainless ho wood handled counterpart (107g listed), but I personally don’t mind that, on the contrary.
The only little qualm I have is that the tip hovers over the bench when laying on the counter. That means if you accidentally push it, it starts to spin into the next best thing close to it. Not ideal if the edge hits into something hard.
In terms of looks it’s simple yet elegant. It matches the aesthetics of a precision tool. The plain brushed finish of the vertical mikagi, the barely visible Hitohira kanji and missing steel stamp, give it a ghost like appearance. The translucent horn ferrul on the ebony handle compliments this well, it fits the blade.
Let’s talk patina, here the monosteel really comes to shine. I mean just look at those blues. That’s after slicing a hot rib eye, and letting it sit for some minutes. Here the minimal blade becomes a canvas for the most gorgeous patina I have in my collection.
So Overall it’s really a fantastic knive and I would be pick up a 240 version without hesitation. Make the steel B2 and there’s a grail knife for me.
Since there are many knowledgeable people here, could someone explain to me the difference between monosteel and honyaki. I understand honyaki and its differential heat treatment, but monosteel eludes me. Does it have anything to do with the knives being stamped?
Here are some specs:
Size: 210mm
Steel: Mono White 2
Handle: Ebony & Buffalo Horn Ferrule Octagonal
Total Length: 357mm
Edge Length: 202mm
Handle two Tip Length: 214mm
Blade Height: 42mm
Thickness: 2.2mm
Handle Length: 140mm
Weight: 141g
Thanks for reading and till next time! 👋
Tl;dr: fantastic knife go get one.