18/05/2023
Since as early as the 14th century,
the city of Seki has served as the sword-making center of Japan. Samurai swords, also known as katana, were used by samurai warriors in feudal Japan. They were slowly banned during the mid-19th century Meiji Restoration in an attempt to modernize the country. Consequently, many swordsmiths needed to refocus their skills. They began to produce knives, this time for the kitchen instead of the battlefield. Today, these specialty-steel blades are crafted by a combination of traditional hand tools and modern machinery. Seki is now the revered home of modern Japanese cutlery.
Why should you choose Japanese knives? Light in weight, Japanese knives feature blades made of thin, hard steel with an ultra-sharp edge and long-lasting sharpness. These beautiful knives are designed for exceptionally precise cutting and superior performance. MIYABI’s intricate knife-making method incorporates time-honored techniques, premium steels and innovative hardening processes. Each blade touches the hands of skilled artisans, ensuring a beauty and quality like no other. Honbazuke, Japanese for “true cutting edge,” is the three-step honing process that gives Japanese blades their exceptional sharpness. Each step of this traditional technique is done by hand. Blades are coarsely ground with a vertically rotating whetstone, fine-honed with a horizontal rotating whetstone, then polished using a leather belt. Combined with a traditional, Japanese 9.5° to 12° edge angle, Honbazuke makes MIYABI knives remarkably sharp MIYABI Steels.
Three distinct types of steel are used in the MIYABI collection. Each one has a different degree of hardness — as shown on the Rockwell scale — that affects the sharpness and the length of time the knives stay sharp.
SG2 (MC63) STEEL MIYABI Birchwood and Artisan Microcarbide powder steel with the hardness of 63 Rockwell. SG2 is synonymous with Japanese sharpness. Evenly-spread carbides give SG2 its scalpel-like precision and impressive cutting edge retention. Unsurpassed sharpness for the ultimate Japanese knife.
VG10 (CMV60) STEEL MIYABI Kaizen and Fusion Morimoto Edition Cobalt Molybdenum Vanadium Steel with a hardness of 60 Rockwell. The highly complex composition gives the cutting edge long-lasting sharpness. Signature sharpness for which Japanese knives are renown.
SPECIAL FORMULA STEEL MIYABI Red Morimoto Edition Special formula steel with a hardness of 57 Rockwell. This traditional German composition includes carbon for hardness and chromium for corrosion resistance. Perfect balance between Japanese bladesmithing and Western-style ease of use
