Kitaoka Blue #2 Deba 180mm Lefty

Hideo Kitaoka has been making knife blades for over 30 years. Over these years he has honed his craft by concentrating on perfecting his skills making just a few knife styles employing just a couple of steel types.

The Kitaoka 180mm Deba Blue #2 is a perfect example of this dedication to his art. Fashioned in the traditional steel jacketed ‘awase’ way, these blades consist of a core ‘hagane’ steel for the cutting edge and a ‘jigane’ of soft iron for the spine and upper blade body. The hagane steel used here is Blue #2. This is the longest deba in the Kitaoka Blue #2 line of kitchen knives. It is a quintessential rendition of the classic blade shape.

Blue #2 steel is made by Hitachi and sometimes called Blue Paper #2 since the steel is wrapped in blue paper when it’s sent to blacksmiths. This steel is highly regarded by blade makers and knife users. The alloy is made from Japanese pure sand irons. It has 1.10 ~1.20 high carbon with 0.20 ~0.50 Chromium and 1.00 ~1.50 Tungsten. It is manufactured at Hitachi’s Yasugi plant in Shimane Prefecture.

The blade has a single bevel with a mild concave back side and a lovely primary bevel on the front revealing the core hagane steel just shy of the edge. The Blue #2 core steel has a great ability to take and maintain a sharp edge. The handle is rosewood octagonal.

This single-bevel knife is made specifically for left-handed users.

Blacksmith: Kitaoka San Construction: Hammer Forged, Left Handed Grind

Handle: Rosewood Octagonal

Weight: 10.8 oz (308 g)

Edge Length: 180 mm

Total Length: 325 mm

Spine Thickness at Base: 7.1 mm

Blade Height: 52.4 mm

Please note the video has the old handle. The new one is correctly pictured above.

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