Kanji / Maker help

[cotedupy]

Can anybody tell me who made/sold this knife...?

Many thanks in advance!

 

[blokey]

Looks like Masashi Yamamoto

 

[cotedupy]

Looks like Masashi Yamamoto

Ah thank you!

The reason I asked is because it was probably the best stainless* I've ever sharpened, something about that knife really did it for me. Internet tells me he uses something called 'VS1' which I've never heard of before. Will have to research.

Poor guy who brought it in was new in London (think he might have been Canadian) and had a trial at a trendy restaurant the next day. He'd taken his knives to a well-known company here who offer sharpening, and they'd completely screwed his two gyuto. I was genuinely shocked at the condition they'd given them back to him in; stupidly fat bte, and with zero core steel exposure.

Happily though I did a f-ing amazing job, thinning them right down and rebuilding the geometry. That Masashi in particular I really liked, if I hadn't tried etching it I would've guessed the core was high quality carbon steel.





* Probably 'semi-stainless' I think, given what happened with the etch. I polished it out after cos it didn't look great, but there was some distinction between core and cladding.

 

[blokey]

Ah thank you!

The reason I asked is because it was probably the best stainless* I've ever sharpened, something about that knife really did it for me. Internet tells me he uses something called 'VS1' which I've never heard of before. Will have to research.

Poor guy who brought it in was a chef new in London (think he might have been Canadian) and had a trial at a trendy restaurant the next day. He'd taken his knives to a well-known company here who offer sharpening, and they'd completely screwed his two gyuto. I was genuinely shocked at the condition they'd given them back to him in; stupidly fat bte, and with zero core steel exposure.

Happily though - I did a f-ing amazing job, thinning them right down and rebuilding the geometry. That Masashi in particular I really liked, if I hadn't tried etching it I would've guessed the core was high quality carbon steel.





* Probably 'semi-stainless' I think given what happened when I tried etching it. I polished out the etch after, but there was some distinction between core and cladding.

KnifeWear gave out the composition, seems very close to SKD12/A2 which is a favorite as well

VS1 Semi Stainless Steel

VS1 is a high-tech modern knife-making steel, prized for its ability to hold an edge and sharpen like high-carbon steel, with much less maintenance. Though this steel can rust, it doesn't do so easily and is relatively easy to care for. This steel is perfect for both home cooks looking for their...

knifewear.com

 

[cotedupy]

KnifeWear gave out the composition, seems very close to SKD12/A2 which is a favorite as well

VS1 Semi Stainless Steel

VS1 is a high-tech modern knife-making steel, prized for its ability to hold an edge and sharpen like high-carbon steel, with much less maintenance. Though this steel can rust, it doesn't do so easily and is relatively easy to care for. This steel is perfect for both home cooks looking for their...

knifewear.com

Ah cheers. Wonders never cease eh - I clearly do know what I'm talking about (sometimes)!

I would certainly agree with them that the way in which it behaved while sharpening, and the edge it took, was far more comparable to good 'carbon' steels than good stainless. I see a lot of VG10 for instance, which can be nice enough, but it sharpens like a stainless steel. This VS1 stuff would've fooled me though.