Kuwahara Kaji Kobo・Nagasaki Gunkanjima Deba-bocho 145mm・Migaki stainless

Japanese knife makers are fond of saying you don't cut with the handle, but if you could then this would be the one you'd want. It's... sharp. Hiba is a lovely durable timber, not heavy, it feels substantial and grippy but what's really striking is the beautifully executed branding of the kanji characters for 'Nagasaki hocho Gunkanjima' - we've never seen looking quite so perfect and consistent. Very nicely done.

But they're right, you don't cut with the handle. We're here for the steel, a mid-weight stainless blade that's light, low maintenance, short and versatile. We think Kuwahara san's migaki (polished) blade is singularly beautiful, with a hand-forged vibe not often seen in a stainless product.

Kayaki-cho knives are known as being 'nebari-zuyoi', a term that is sometimes translated as 'tenacious'. Persistent, perhaps. The sense of the word is a quality of malleability and stickiness, applied to high-grade cutlery steel it describes a robust, chip-resistant cutting edge.

Sharp, rust resistant, beautiful. Versatile. With an overall impression of comparative lightness for a deba of this length.