Etsu Village Knife // Damascus Black

The Damascus Santoku Etsu Village Knife features a Western-style (Yo) handle from black micarta. This knife will be a great addition to your kitchen, suitable for cutting veggies, meat and fish. With their very thin spine, this knife will slide through food with ease.

The core of this Santoku is made of VG-1 stainless steel— the younger cousin of more widespread VG-10 steel— and clad into a layer of softer steel, which gives the knife a beautiful Damascus pattern. Compared to VG-10, VG-1 is slightly tougher steel, but with a bit less wear resistance. Due to a very thin grind, VG-1 steel is exposed at the very bottom of the blade (the curvy, hamon-like line). This knife was forged to a hardness of around 60 HRC, which offers satisfying edge retention and is easy to resharpen.

This Santoku was fitted a yo-style, Western-type handle made of black micarta— a very durable wood composite. It also features a stainless bolster for a more comfortable grip, and for a smoother transition from the handle to the blade. The knife tang ends halfway through the handle, further reducing the weight of the knife and pushing the balance more towards the tip of the blade. The handle will fit well in your hands for both the hammer and pinch grip.