Shirogami: White paper steel is one of the purest carbon steels. Shirogami is made from iron sand (Japanese: satetsu), which is also mined in Japan. This material has been used for centuries to make sword blades.
Shirogami is more difficult to work with than Aogami or other carbon steels. The blacksmith only has a very small temperature window for hardening. Therefore, experienced and skilled hands are needed to forge the steel without making any mistakes. Steel that cools too quickly will cause cracks in the blade.
This makes resharpening relatively easy and effective.
Shirogami comes in 3 quality levels: 1, 2 and 3, with 1 being the highest quality.
Satoshi Nakagawa Shirogami #1 Yanagiba Sakimaru 300mm: Single-sided ground Shirogami #1 core with Suminagashi (Damascus) finish and an octagonal magnolia wood handle with water buffalo ferrule.
This knife has a hard carbon steel core with an iron coating for added durability. The entire blade will develop a patina over time, especially This is increased with acidic foods. Special attention is required to prevent rusting. Please read the care tips in my FAQ section. Here you will also find the general knife 1x1 .
Satoshi Nakagawa: For almost 16 years, Satoshi Nakagawa was taught and trained by his master Kenichi Shiraki.
Now he creates his own knives in his own company under the name “Nakagawa Hamono”.
Nakagawa-san is constantly improving his knife blades and delivering consistently high quality. Regardless of the type of steel, he can use them all.
This and much more have made Nakagawa-san one of the most respected knife smiths in Sakai.
Yanagiba: Fish knife/slicer, more information about the most common knife shapes can be found here: knife shapes .
- HRC: 63-64
- Steel: Shirogami #1 (White Carbon)
- Blade length (according to manufacturer): 300 mm
- Heel height: approx. 34.7 mm
- Thickness of blade back above heel: approx. 3.88 mm
- Weight: 205g
- Form: Sakimaru Yanagiba
- Blade type: Single-sided ground
- Finish: Suminagashi (Damascus)
- Handle material: Magnolia, water buffalo horn
- Blacksmith: Satoshi Nakagawa
- Origin: Sakai, Japan
Size and weight can always vary for a handmade product. These numbers were taken from a random knife from my range.