Ittetsu Ginsan Nashiji 9.4" Gyuto

I have a mixture of excellent Japanese Damascus knives from Enso, Shun, and Miyabi and I was looking for something a bit different for my Chef's knife. I chose this knife because of its rustic appearance (the nashiji finish on the blade is absolutely beautiful), the octagonal wa style handle, and the ginsan steel which is a bit uncommon but has an excellent reputation as an easy to maintain steel with good edge retention.

I was a bit concerned that I could not find much in terms of reviews or information on this knife and maker, but due to the very reasonable price, I decided to give it a try. In addition to its beauty, this knife was very sharp out of the box, and seems to be holding its edge very well over several weeks of normal use. The knife is well balanced, the blade is thin and sharp, and the handle is comfortable and well made. It definitely compares very well to my other knives including Miyabis which are twice as expensive. Cutlery & More currently only sells three knives by this manufacturer, hopefully this changes as the quality and value of this brand seem to be excellent.

My only caution is that the maple handle was a bit thirsty out of the box. I treated it with a mineral oil/beeswax wood conditioner which helped tremendously.

Thin, light and well balanced. The handle is understatedly beautiful. Matches my maple, cherry, and walnut butcher blocks and cutting boards well.

I was a little nervous about ginsan since I've never used it and don't know anyone who does, but it seems to be pretty great and going forward; this knife will probably be my daily driver.

The only downside of the knife is that there seems to be some kind of funky glue that the tang sits in and it seems kind of soft. But it hasn't broken down or anything with daily use so far.