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These knives are made of carbon steel and are NOT stainless! Good-quality, three-layer laminated Japanese kitchen knives are expensive. So when you're looking for knives, you'll generally find many offers for "high quality" knives at unrealistically low prices. Of course, the offers neither clearly state that the knives are laminated or made of cheaper, single-layer steel, nor if they're made in Japan or in a low-wage Third World country.
However, especially in knives, the quality of the steel and workmanship are paramount if the knife is not to become a constant source of annoyance. The problem is that not all countries have the necessary knowledge and experience in knife-making, gathered over generations of craft and industrial production, to be allow their manufactorers to produce truly high-quality goods.
We don't play such games: we deliver what we promise, and stake our reputation on it. Our economy-line kitchen knives are made in Japan. They are not laminated but consist of a single layer of steel, even if at first glance they appear as if they were. Even a relative novice will become aware of this after sharpening these knives for the first time.
In case you haven't read our fact sheet on knives: Japanese kitchen knives customarily consist of three layers of steel; two soft outer layers and an extremely hard high-carbon steel central layer. Most of the knives of this type that we offer exhibit hardnesses of Rc 61 and higher, which is extremely high for knife blades. On the other hand, the single-layer knives shown here are typically hardened to approximately Rc 57 - 58, which is still the equivalent of very high-grade European cutlery. They do, however, require more frequent sharpening than the three-layer knives.
The knives offered here are not "rust free", except the fruit knife. The handle is wood, the ferrul is made of synthetic material.
Click on pictures to enlarge!