Gyuto w/ traditional Japanese Joinery knife handle Process Video

[RianDavidson]

Hello everyone!

I wanted to share with you a recent process build video of mine - I forged a Gyuto/Santoku hybrid out of 102cr6 steel and paired it with a traditional Japanese scarf joint called Kanawa Tsugi.

https://youtu.be/-QWMKVKaKxY

Making a Kanawa-Tsugi joint on this micro scale is well... somewhat complicated. In western terms the joint translates to a half-blind tenoned, dadoed, and rabbeted scarf joint. The joint is carefully measured and adjusted slightly against traditional ratios/angles in order to compensate for the small scale. It's a joint that is typically used for joining beams together by timber framers in Japan.

I've made a few of these knives now and they are all holding up well but with this variation I've opted to stabilize the handle with G-Flex epoxy resin in order to deter any moisture or material degradation. This keeps the handle rigid and allows me to drill the holes for the hidden knife tang without potentially loosening the wedges.

I'm happy to answer any question regarding the process.

This santoku/gyuto hybrid is forged from 102cr6 steel. It has been normalized three times before receiving a 10 minute soak and quenching in fast quench oil. Following the quench it was tempered at 200 degrees in 2 stages of 2 hours each.

I would love to hear your feedback - this is a direction I'll continue to pursue as I hope I'm bringing something unique to the conversation of knife making.

Thanks a lot for watching! I'll be making more content like this in the coming weeks if you would like to Subscribe.