Sakai Takayuki 33-Layer Damascus Chef's Knife, 240mm / 9.5"

A beautiful and high performance chef's knife at a great price! This size is perfect for home users who already have a smaller knife and know they want something bigger, or for pros who are used to handling a longer knife. These knives really are very sharp, with excellent construction quality and they just look spectacular with the layered steel, hammered finish and gorgeous wood-grain handle. The handle is made of Spanish mahogany pakkawood, which has that nice wooden feel and look, but it is impregnated with resin/epoxy so it's very strong and is very water resistant to avoid absorbing water or warping or cracking -- an excellent material! If you like the damascus layered steel look, this is a truly excellent choice. You get a super sharp and long-lasting VG-10 steel cutting core (this is a very hard steel and high quality knife steel, with a Rockwell hardness of approximately 60), with a 33-layer hammered stainless steel surface and a beautifully finished handle. This makes an excellent choice as an all-around knife.

Approx. weight: 245g

I'd recommend the fine ceramic hone for regular/daily maintenance of the edge. As with any knife, use the hone regularly and you'll keep the edge in good shape for a LONG time before you need to think about doing any serious "re-sharpening" or real grinding and refinishing of the edge.

NOTE: This knife is sharpened 50/50 (equally on the right and left side), so it's easy to maintain and fine for right or left hand use. If you look carefully at the edge, you'll see a slight right-side bias, this is just because the final edge is so tiny and because of the way they finish the edge; it has NO bearing on right- or left-hand use, sharpening or maintenance and can be ignored, so you should treat the edge just like any standard 50/50 edge.