$235.00
Availability: Normally ships the same day
SHIROU-KUNIMITSU is genuine Japanese sword smithing Mr. Komiya family in Fukuoka Prefecture (Kyushu Island) — A real family of artisans, who are devoting their life and energy to inheriting and preserving the Japanese sword making and knife making traditions that have been maintained by their family since the year 1786. Currently, a total of 4 genuine sword smiths are passionately working together to create the finest Japanese swords, and kitchen knives with outstanding cutting performance and practicality.
WABI-SABI (侘寂) is the best way to succinctly describe the characteristics of SHIRO-KUNIMITSU’s handmade, traditional hammer forged knives. WABI-SABI is a Japanese aesthetic / sensibility that suggests there is beauty within simplicity, imperfection and impermanence.
Each one of the unique Kurouchi ("Black forged") finished blades has an uneven surface and a non-uniform finish. So, if you are looking for a very neat knife, with precise details and great 'fit & finish', these Shirou-Kunimitsu handmade traditional forged knives are not well suited to your preferences. However, at the same time, we really appreciate the originality and artisanal spirit of these knives and we think the traditional Kurouchi finish is something really special — We can feel the WABI-SABI aesthetics striking at our hearts and we hope our customers will feel the same way.
To achieve the goal —Making superb, practical knives with outstanding cutting performance— Master Komiya has selected Hitachi “White Steel No. 2”, a very pure and high quality Japanese High Carbon Steel. This steel is widely used by experienced craftsmen and great forge smiths because it allows each smith to showcase how their particular forging techniques and heat treatment methods can make a difference to the sharpness, edge holding and toughness of the blade.
The Hitachi White Steel No. 2 high carbon steel blade core is sandwiched between two layers of soft iron. In addition to increasing the toughness of the blade, the soft iron also makes the blade easier to sharpen than an unlaminated, solid steel blade.
Shirou-Kunimitsu knives have a 50/50 blade grind and a simple edge shape. Each knife is carefully ground by hand and is then hand sharpened with a water-cooled whetstone wheel to create an even, natural and specially tapered 50/50 edge shape. Both sides of the blade have a SHINOGI line (The line that is created where the ground blade bevel and the blade face / side meet), below the SHINOGI you can see the expert hand grinding and hand sharpening of the specially tapered 50/50 blade bevels and the handcrafted, custom created edge shape.
Since there is no secondary bevel or micro-bevel, we found the simple bevel geometry of these knives was very easy to hand sharpen with a whetstones and the 50/50 blade bevels naturally guided us to create an outstandingly sharp edge. The cutting performance of the knife also impressed us and we could feel it cut deeply in to the foods that we tested. We noted that while these knives might appear to be a simple and rustic looking, they are actually very sophisticated, very practical and thoughtfully designed products — Products that could only be made by an experienced, sophisticated forge smith.
This Bunka Knife comes with a classic Octagonal Japanese Magnolia Wood Wa Handle, which has a Water Buffalo Horn Ferrule.
The Bunka is a general-purpose kitchen knife that used to be just as popular as the Santoku, but has become less commonplace in recent years. With its tall blade, the Bunka knife is particularly suitable for cutting vegetables or fruit and the triangular tip area is particularly useful for detailed work and cutting fish or meat.
A Note About Sharpening Shiro-Kunimitsu Knives: Please do not add a micro-bevel, as this can lead to micro-chipping of the already fine, sharp cutting edge. To maintain the flat factory bevel and bevel angle, we recommend placing the whole bevel flat on the whetstone and applying finger pressure between the cutting edge and Shinogi (The line formed by the bevel and main blade face / cheek) during each sharpening stroke. Please use the same number of sharpening strokes on each side of the knife and de-burr the wire-edge using very light finger pressure, alternating between bevels every few strokes until it is removed.
Knife Model: Shirou-Kunimitsu White Steel No.2 Kurouchi Bunka
Blade Material: White Steel No.2
Rockwell Hardness (HRc): 60 to 62
Blade Grind and Edge Shape: Double Bevel Edge 50/50
Handle Material: Octagonal Magnolia Wood Handle with Water Buffalo Ferrules
Saya Included: No.
| Bunka 190mm (7.4") Cutting edge length: 190mm Total Length: 330mm Blade Thickness: 3.1mm Blade Width: 47mm Handle Length: 128mm Total Weight: 153g |
This knife comes with 50/50 double bevel edge geometry for both right and left handed use.
For your information, Japanese Kitchen knives are generally designed for right hand use with a slightly thicker and rounded grinding on the right side blade and a less rounded (almost straight flat) grinding on the left side blade. However, both right and left hander can use the knives that have double bevel edge sharpened 50/50 without problems.
We believe the quality and cutting performance of Japanese knives are the best in the world, and hope you enjoy the fine craftsmanship and its sharp edge of your new knife. With proper cares, every Japanese knife should be your special cooking partner for a long times.
Important
This is the Carbon steel blade kitchen knife that can get rust and discolor easily, and requires extra cares and attentions to prevent rust.
UkraineI thank your company for the Japanese kitchen knife. I wish you prosperity on behalf of the Ukrainian people!!!
United StatesIncredibly sensible and practical knife. True beauty in its simplicity and imperfection.
Saudi ArabiaI got this knife a few months ago, and it is great, i like the cutting performance although for some harder vegetables like butternut squash it feels like a wedge but otherwise I like the cutting performance. Also the sharpening is really tricky, it took me a while to get the hang of it but once I did, I started enjoying the sharpening experience.
TaiwanPleasantly heavy knife, just right for bulk chopping vegetables, mincing garlic, ginger, etc. In my experience White Steel does not hold razor sharp edge as good as another Aogami Blue Knifes I own, but I'm not using those knives as hard as this one, so maybe that's just me. Rough texture of the blade is a thing of beauty, but handle for this price is a bit lacking: wood is not even once oiled. Nothing a paper towel and a bit of veg oil can't change, but still worth mentioning. Knife is generally front heavy, but I got used to it pretty fast. Steel itself is pretty easily stained, as per pictures, but then again, that's carbon steel doing it's thing.
United StatesHave you ever used a warm knife to cut butter? Now imagine that everything you need to cut is butter. Yeah, that's how amazing this knife is.
