SOLD Mikami x XinGuo Santoku 167mm

[Censere]

• Background:
  • I first held a Mikami santoku at a big collector's home and was astonished by the steel. Possibly one of the best blue steel heat treat I've come across so far. After that, I've been chasing the now-deceased smith's work.
  • I just could never find an original Bunka/Santoku for a while, so instead I got a few thick Yo-debas and had Xinguo's help thinning them down and refinish them into convex grind Santokus.
  • All of the issues present in its original condition, slight bends, cavities, angled nakago etc are fixed
  • This one is slightly more convex than XinGuo's typical grind for slightly higher robustness, please see choil shot
• Specs
  • B1 steel forged by Mikami Masayuki
  • convex regrind and sandblast finish by XinGuo, great F&F with rounded spine & choil etc
  • custom blond horn handle, horn was picked out of many
  • weight: from my memories, 176g
  • Thickness at the spine: 3.3 mm
  • Height - 53mm
  • Length was stated by KnifeJapan as 167mm
• Condition:
  • Completely unused after the rework
  • The knife has a thin layer of protective polymerized silicone oil coating on top. It prevents oxidation in daily use and can last for a long-time. it can be removed by any abrasive that removes patina.
  • It's more durable than your average anti-oxidation oil coating, but of course softer than iron, so it can be scratched by harder things
• Price:
  • $365 shipped in the US
  • my cost was $400 = $250 + $90 refinish + $60 custom handle
  • I'll cover the first $15 for global shipping.
• Payment: PayPal / venmo / bank transfer are all fine.
• Logistics:
  • For CONUS buyers, I will be able to ship once I return to the US on Apr 29.
  • For international buyers from other countries, I'll either send from Japan (traveling here now) or the US depending on the time of the order

What it looks like now:


What it looked like before:

 

[ethompson]

This is pretty darn awesome

 

[Censere]

This is pretty darn awesome

Absolutely. Had 3 reworked, one has recently joined the rotation, and it feels good, another one is still in production and probably going to a friend.
To me, a Mikami gyuto would be my ultimate dream knife, though I doubt if one ever existed. Perhaps his swordsmith son knows his father's smithing secrets and may be able to product one someday...

P.S. held one of his son's swords at Aoi Art. Absolutely a work of art...

 

[Stevem627]

Boy, the work turned that into a great looking santoku. I’m sure someone is going to love using that knife.

 

[dehory]

Astonishing transformation!

 

[NickMinton]

Great job on this.

 

[Genghis_F]

Beautiful work!
So I’m slow …is this a reworked deba or a santoku?

 

[simona]

Absolutely. Had 3 reworked, one has recently joined the rotation, and it feels good, another one is still in production and probably going to a friend.
To me, a Mikami gyuto would be my ultimate dream knife, though I doubt if one ever existed. Perhaps his swordsmith son knows his father's smithing secrets and may be able to product one someday...

P.S. held one of his son's swords at Aoi Art. Absolutely a work of art...

Michael @ KJ told me he had once seen a picture of the most elusive of all - the Mikami gyuto - so there is one out there somewhere.....

 

[False_Cast]

There’s one on Instagram. Can’t remember the guy’s name; a polisher and stone guy. Think he used to be active on KKF.

 

[Genghis_F]

There’s one on Instagram. Can’t remember the guy’s name; a polisher and stone guy. Think he used to be active on KKF.

 

[Censere]

Beautiful work!
So I’m slow …is this a reworked deba or a santoku?

It was originally a thick double bevel deba. It’s now thinned down to a santoku!

 

[Censere]

Boy, the work turned that into a great looking santoku. I’m sure someone is going to love using that knife.

Astonishing transformation!

Great job on this.

Thank you! XinGuo and I did spend quite a lot of our mutual time and effort to make sure the end product respects and brings out the full potential of the outstanding smithing that go into this.

 

[Censere]

There’s one on Instagram. Can’t remember the guy’s name; a polisher and stone guy. Think he used to be active on KKF.

Wow, thank you, totally didn’t know this existed….
this is one of the OGs of the JNAT hobby, big respects. Purchased a great stone from him before.