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Bunka • 165 mm • GIN3 • Japanese handle • Walnut • for left and right handed use
Manufactured in Miki City, Hyogo Prefecture, this series uses the semi-stainless steel, GIN3 steel, as its core. The knives in the Okeya GIN3 Tsuchime series are all carefully finished by hand by a young knife maker, Akihito Fujiwara. The core (Hagane) is then covered with a layer of softer steel to protect and add a little more rigidity. This outer layer (Jigane) gets a unique hammered finish (Tsuchime). This is aesthetically pleasing, but your product may also dissolve sooner during cutting. The Japanese handle is made of walnut with a pakka bolster. The handle is also slightly thicker than normal handles and therefore also easy to hold for people with large hands.
Gingami No. 3, known as ginsan steel silver steel (manufactured by Hitachi Metals Ltd.) is a semi stainless steel. It has a very fine structure, which can be maintained easily and can be sharpened to extreme sharpness. Hitachi steel factory disigned silver to position it next to the well known VG10 steel, same characteristics, but a little less chrome and more refinement. The ginsan silver steel becomes more and more popular with home cooks and professionals.
The knife maker Okeya makes his knives in the town of Miki. Okeya-san's grandfather started producing what is called "kogatana" in Japanese. Kogatanas are small, handy knives for multifunctional use. (Fun fact: the original Higonokami knives are also from Miki)
Okeya-san also making chef's knives nowadays. He is in his mid-40s and his son has just joined the company. Their goal is to expand more and more, which is why they plan to add more kitchen knives such as gyutos, santoku's and nakiris.