Forged Banding 200mm D2 Gyuto

D2 Tool Steel Is Tariff Free And Falls under CUSMA.

A forged D2 gyuto with banding

This is a special knife utilizing materials I’ve never used previously. In the past I’ve made forged blades of differing varieties that have been etched and polished to reveal the alloy banding within the steel. This is one such blade but in a steel I had previously never worked with, ingot D2 tool steel. Surprisingly this D2 gyuto was less difficult to make than I had anticipated, though still much more difficult than any low alloy steel or A2.

The banding is phenomenally dense and photographing it was a nightmare as the pictures tended to look bland and grainy. There’s just too much detail for a nice macro shot. So while it looks a bit bland and 2D, every white line in actuality represents a bit of figuring that dances in the light as you look over the blade. Next time I forge a D2 gyuto I’ll try to make the activity a bit bolder but I didn’t want to push my luck with this stuff, never having forged it previously.

I also thought I’d try something new for the handle and used a piece of wenge end grain that has a lovely bit of character only occasionally seen on knife handles. It appears lighter than it actually is in the pictures. This D2 gyuto’s banding just refused to be photographed without otherwise excessive exposure.

• Blade: 203mmx57mm Forged D2-Tool Steel 800 grit diamond lapping film finish + etch and polishing cycles
• Neck: 18mmx18mm
• Handle: Wenge endgrain, oil finished and waxed
• POB: 30mm from the handle
• Spine: 2.7mm at the handle, 2.1mm at halfway, .59mm 1cm from the tip
• Grind: full convex
• Weight: 165g
• Relieved choil and spine
• Edge: .17mm@1mm, .32mm @2mm, measured at the midpoint,

To learn more about D2 tool steel click Here

For the makers summative take on various steels click Here