Aogami Close Up
We, at the Japanese Knife Company, regularly scour the length and breadth of Japan in our never-ending quest to find the perfect knife. We regularly add new ranges as well as update, improve and occasionally replace our existing collections. Most knife aficionados agree that the Ultra High Carbon, Tungsten toughened traditional steel, that is alloyed using the very pure iron only possible with Iron Sand as a base, known, as Aogami Blue No.1 is one of the best steels to create the finest cutting edge. Due to limited supply, the various delicate and specialist processes required to produce this steel it has always been the domain of knives and swords made by and for the most demanding Nokaji and users. For these reasons, blades made from Aogami Blue No 1 are amongst the most prized and this is reflected in the price demanded for these ‘Uber’ knives. In collaboration with Hitachi Special Steels and a small artisan workshop willing to set new standards and make available knives that have been the preserve of only the passionate, JKC is proud to make available a range of knives in this steel at a more accessible price.
Aogami Blue with its very high Carbon content requires the addition of toughening elements to counteract brittleness and slow oxidisation – Tungsten and Chromium are 2 such elements. Taking into account their positive and negative influences – the exact amount of each is used to create a material that is hard, tough and slow to oxidise. In order to make resharpening easier this very hard & tough steel is sandwiched between two layers of soft steel that both protect and aid easy grinding. The result is a material that is capable of enduring razor sharpness that is easy to maintain.
With the raw material, the maker and design in place JKC commissioned a range – the result is our Aogami Collection. A hand made range of even density blades that meet every requirement. demanded. With attention paid to ergonomics, ease of use and aesthetics the result is available to the demanding user.
It should be noted that these are totally handmade items using natural wood for the handles and as such the colour of these can vary from one piece to the next.