We are always impressed with the knives coming out of the shop run by Itsuo Doi. He is the son of the great blade maker Keijiro Doi, one of the knife world’s true legends. Itsuo-san worked alongside his father for almost 50 years, producing the highest quality blades for chefs and collectors worldwide. His famous father was acclaimed for perfecting the very difficult low temperature forging technique known as ÎyakidoshiÌ and was a pioneer of forging Ao-ko No. 2 (Blue Steel).
Blue Steel #2 is used as the core of this knife, which Itsuo-san hardens to 62+ HRC. The outer layer is a soft iron which is applied in the san-mai style. As it is a carbon steel, this knife is reactive and will need careful maintenance to prevent corrosion. The exposed edge steel is highly polished to contrast with the outer cladding satin finish. To further enhance these fine looks, some lovely hand engraved kanji is applied to the blade face.
The blade is long and slender, and so elegant. It is quite stout at the spine and very stiff at the tip. It boasts a symmetrical 50/50 edge and a really well formed profile, suitable for both push and rocking cutters. The icing on this cake is the beautiful custom handle made by Isaiah Schroeder. Form and function meet in perfect harmony in the Doi Blue #2 Gyuto 240mm Custom.
Maker: Itsuo Doi
Location: Sakai, Japan
Construction: Hammer Forged
Core Edge Steel: Blue #2
HRC: 62+-
Edge: 50/50 (see photo of the choil)
Engraving: Hand Engraved
Weight: 6 ounces
Blade Length: 248 mm
Spine Thickness at Base: 3.3 mm
Blade Height: 48 mm
Handle: Custom Octagonal (The video is showing a standard handle. You will get the one pictured)