All About Pocket Knives

I have used quite a few brands of kitchen knives over the years, both at home and in restaurants, and still keep and use a few Old Hickory and Warther knives. But last year I treated myself to a set made just for me and I have been very pleased. These were made by Ichimonji-Kichikuni in Sakai Japan and are fantastic tools for the kitchen. The handles are magnolia wood, the bolsters are buffalo horn, very traditional. After a year of using these I can't help but think the are the best kitchen knives I have ever used.

VERY nice set, Ab...

What kind of steel are they ?

I wasn't aware that they have magnolia trees in Japan. (There's a lot in this old world, that I'm not aware of, tho'.) Is it basically the same as the magnolia trees around here ?

Once again, nice set !

JR

As far as I know Magnolia x Soulangiana, aka the Japanese Magnolia does grow there...lol. I am not sure of the steel, translations broke down a bit. My understanding is the center steel is a pure white which means a pure carbon steel hardened above 60, the outside damacus layers are of a softer steel. I do know they are wicked sharp and stay that way for a long time. The only one I have touched up the edge on is the usuba as it gets used the most.

btw...the engravings on the blade are both the maker's name and the shorter line of Kanji is my name translated into a rather colorful expression. My Christian name is Wade which from the english root means wanderer. The Kanji says "the inquisitive eagle that travels.".

Absintheur,if you go on Knifeforums.com to the subforum"in the Kitchen" you will find that most of what is talked about is Japanese knives(Unless youve' been there already).There is also alot of talk about sharpening and other qualities of these knives.Once one uses a Japanese knife i believe they will be hooked like i was yrs ago an you will whind up selling that expensive European knife at a garage sale for a few bucks.
Greg

I have been a member there for quite some time actually...just new to this forum.

nice cutlery absintheur! makes me want new ones in my kitchen. but every time i look at new kitchen stuff, another pocket knife wins out.

You gotta get one laminated Japanese knife Johnnie,you will appreciate the dangeous sharpness,the ability of this knife to cut a piece of youre finger off the bone rather than just slicing to the bone.
You just cant have youre wife CUT THRUGH CHICKEN BONES with the damn things

jonet143 wrote:nice cutlery absintheur! makes me want new ones in my kitchen. but every time i look at new kitchen stuff, another pocket knife wins out.

You don't need to spend as much as I did to get a couple great quality kitchen knives. The Calphalon Katana Series utilizes Japanese VG-1 core steel with 33 layer stainless encasing it. I bought a small set for a nephew who is starting to cook more and I was very impressed with them A three knife set that would cover the basics can be put together for about $200.00.

Out of curiosity, what's the official name for the type of knife in the picture, furthest to the bottom? Looks like a small butcher's knife. My friend likes to use them, but didn't know what they were called so she couldn't look for it online.

Hello J.D. Thompson; I think I might have the answer to your question. The knife blade that you were referring to , according to The Japan Woodworker Catalog is a Usuba Hocho and are used to slice veggies into very thin pieces.
See www.japanwoodworker.com

Jingler, Sorry for the oh so late response. Thanks for the info! I found one online, since I knew what to look for now.

thanks again!