TAKEDA STAINLESS AOGAMI SUPER KOGATANA 85MM (3.4")

I obtained this knife not through Amazon, but through one of Takeda's direct outlet. Takeda does not sell his meticulously crafted knives directly, and his website will redirect you to a bunch of his direct outlets. I am mentioning this because he sells this same knife at less than half the price quoted here on Amazon. The catch here however is that his knives literally sell like hotcakes, and you may find that this knife, as minimalist-looking as it is, is out of stock in most of these outlets.This knife, like all of Takeda's knives, are meticulously handcrafted, ultrasharp, perfectly ground, handforged in relatively rare Aogami super steel, heat treated to HRC 62 or higher. There are only a few knife makers in Japan who exclusively work with this supersteel, acknowledged to be one of the best steel as far as durability and edge retention. And none outside Japan, since not enough of this steel is produced by Hitachi to allow distribution to knifemakers outside Japan. Thus blade production with this steel is limited and this is why there is often a long wait if you want a particular model of Takeda's knives, and why his knives sell out just as soon as Takeda manages to make some available for sale.