Shiro Kamo White #2 Gyuto 185mm

These sweet knives are made by Master Blacksmith Kamo-san from Takefu Village in Japan. It's rare to find blacksmiths who excel with both grinding and forging but Kamo-san is one of them. He works with a very small crew of just two other workmen. While many shops farm their blades out to various workmen for the different stages of manufacture, Kamo-san keeps these operations in-house and under his personal supervision.

Constructed from White #2 carbon steel, the knife is then clad with reactive Damascus steel for a beautiful looking blade that will gain character as patina forms on the blade with use. The face etching is very well realized and reveals a lovely pattern from the cladding layers. This is a light blade but one that feels strong in the hand. Edge sharpness out of the box is excellent, as are the overall fit and finish.

The blade shape is fairly conventional for this type of knife, featuring a fine tip and slight belly and it will excel with push and pull cutting. We are now supplying these knives with a beautiful sandalwood D-shaped handle with a black pakkawood ferrule. This is a really fun knife and one that will surprise you with its abilities to perform many tasks around the kitchen. It’s also a great and inexpensive way to experience White #2 steel.

Please note these knives have thin edge grinds and use hard steel so they can chip if you don’t use them carefully. No bones, frozen foods, hard root stems, or garlic husks. Use push or pull cuts to put less stress on the edge.

Blacksmith: Shiro Kamo

Location: Echizen, Japan

Factory: Takefu Village

Construction: San Mai, Hammer Forged

Cladding: Damascus

Edge Steel: White Paper #2 Steel

HRC: 61

Edge Grind: Even (See Choil Shot)

Handle: D Shape Sandalwood

Weight: 4.2 oz (120 g)

Edge Length: 188 mm

Total Length: 329 mm

Spine Thickness at Base: 2.1 mm

Blade Height: 47.8 mm

Engraving: Hand Engraved