NCKD - 240mm Blue Steel Super "Wide" Wa-Gyuto
Hey friends!
Sometimes we get people requesting knives to be made fully custom for them, and whenever this happens, once the production reaches us I like to share it here, and see if there's any questions I can field about the process or about just what these knives are in general. Hopefully we can raise the curtains behind custom knife manufacturing from Sakai just a little bit... As always the idea isn't to promote, so I won't be mentioning prices publicly. But, it is important to acknowledge that yes I work at a place that makes and sells these things, so always take what I say with a grain of salt.
Like usual, we won't reveal, confirm, or deny who was involved in the process. Keen eyes may know some things, though.
The lighting removes a heap of color from the handle, so a handle shot is below.
This is normally a knife we actually would make in White Steel #1, but the customer in this case was seeking Blue Steel Super as well as a wider/taller construction. So, our design team and the artisans we work with got to it! This is the first time we have really accepted creating a knife specifically with a wider blade, so we were very curious to see the results.
Width from spine to chin is 57mm (which is wider than our regular 270mm on average, so yeah this is wide given this is a 240mm!)
Weight is around 200 grams on average
Knife is 240mm long
Engraving on it is Kirameki (煌) which is our premium trademark. Nothing on the back!
Measurement of the custom knife, didn't have the regular WS #1 in to compare with sadly.
Measurements are always on average because when we make a custom knife, we always make between 4 to 6 so that the person ordering it has the best one to choose from. Can take other measurements if people ask, though.
The handle is one we call "Akaro", which uses a red urushi application on two sides of the handle. You may have seen this on some other well known knives from Sakai, too.
Hope this gives a little more insight, and I will try to answer questions where I can, provided I am allowed to!
Rule 5: Sakai Ichimonji Mitsuhide "Kirameki" Wide Gyuto, Blue Steel Super, 240mm, Akaro Urushi Handle.