245mm Carbon Steel Gyuto With Active Banding

This 245mm gyuto has been a long time in the works. The particular steel I selected for this blade is one that I have long been attempting to find a suitable polishing regimen for. Many attempts have been made that lead to a variety of unsatisfactory results from splotchy etches, to finishes that rubbed away completely with just a paper towel.

I’ve finally found a combination that produces not only an even and bold etch, but a durable one as well that wont simply rub away with a cloth. This blade’s finish is the culmination of approximately 50 hours of experimentation and trial and error between myself and an experienced blade polisher. For the time being at least, I’ll be keeping the alloy under wraps, but rest assured it is an excellent cutlery steel.

Alloy banding is a phenomenon that appears in essentially every ingot based steel, whether it’s mild steel, high carbon steel, stainless steel, or semi stainless tool steel. As the steel cools at the mill the various alloying elements will segregate themselves during cooling, as they have different melting temperatures within the alloy and so solidify at different rates.

The pattern in the as rolled bar is very linear and somewhat uninteresting, but with some heavy deformation at the correct forging temperatures (to avoid eliminating the pattern with excess heat) and the right heat treatment protocol (to enhance/preserve the banding while still reaching full hardness) results very reminiscent of a wattering wootz pattern are possible (as seen in this blade). Microstructurally, they are different, however at a surface level they are essentially indistinguishable.

The profile is essentially a tall KS pattern.

Blade Details

Blade: 245mm x 56mm carbon steel (~64/65 hrc) Stone tuned bevels + 2500 grit hand finish + alloy specific polish to bring out the banding

Neck: 16mmx19mm

Handle: Stabilized/dyed maple burl, oil finished, buffed and waxed

POB: 40mm from the handle

Spine: 2.97mm at the handle, 2.40mm at halfway, .52mm 1cm from the tip

Grind: full convex RH bias

Weight: 192g

Relieved choil and spine

Edge: .14mm@1mm, .28mm@2mm from the edge, measured at the midpoint

Click HERE for close up video of this 245mm gyuto

Blade Special Features

Fully convex ground carbon steel 245mm gyuto with active banding.

This 245mm Gyuto features a stone tuned geometry and a very fine 2500 grit finish that was polished with my own special polishing protocol that highlights the banding without leaving a splotchy or unstable finish.

For the maker’s impression on various steels click here: https://msicardcutlery.com/knife-making-steel-information-faq/