Masakage Koishi Santoku 170mm

This knife is from the Masakage Koishi line, one of the most revered and highest performing line of knives that we carry. The Koishi series is crafted by Hiroshi Kato. Mr. Kato-san is a true master of his craft and has been making knives since he started his apprenticeship in 1960. For nearly 60 years Kato-san has been has been perfecting his talents and skills using traditional methods. His skills and talents are blatantly obvious in this exceptional series of knives.

At the center of it all you will find Aogami Super Blue, commonly referred to as AS on the CKTG forums. Aogami Super is known for the super acute and ultra keen edges that it is able to produce. Not only can it take a fantastic edge, but it will hold it for a very long time. AS arguably has the best edge retention of all the blue and white carbon steels that we carry. The heat treat on these ranges from 63-65 HRC. This is a superlative carbon steel that makes a great foundation for such an amazing series of knives.

Surrounding the AS core steel is a softer stainless cladding that has a tsuchime (hammered) finish. The softer stainless cladding adds durability and strength to the very hard core steel. The finish over the tsuchime is a very well done kurouchi. The grinds and geometry on the Koishi line are done with performance in mind. The handle is octagonal shaped, and crafted from cherry with a black pakka wood ferrule. The fit and finish on the blade and handle are outstanding.

Brand: Masakage

Line: Koishi

Blacksmith: Yoshimi Kato

Location: Echizen, Japan

Construction: Hammer Forged, San Mai

Finish: Kurouchi

Edge Steel: Aogami Super

Handle: Cherry Octagonal

Ferrule: Black Pakka Wood

Engraving: Hand Engraved

Weight: 4.5 oz (128 g)

Edge Length: 171 mm

Total Length: 308 mm

Spine Thickness at Base: 3.5 mm

Blade Height: 46.2 mm

Edge Grind: Even