Shun Ken Onion Japanese Chef’s Knife

VG-10 Damascus Full Tang

Shun Ken Onion Japanese Chef's Knife Made to Shun's exacting standards with the same materials as their Classic series, this 4 3/8" Chef's Knife follows a design by famous American knifemaker Ken Onion. This beautiful knife makes a practical addition to any cutlery set, with features suitable for collectors.

The curved full tang handle shows Ken Onion's concept of a very well known and much used American handle pattern, this time in Shun's unique PakkaWood and Damascus stainless steel. The chef's knife has the look of an American handmade blade, but is built for everyday use.

Shun's typical build is a core layer of very hard VG-10 stainless steel, sandwiched between 32 thin forged layers of high tensile stainless steel. The rippled structure of the blade is stronger and sharper than either alloy would be if used alone. The slight hollows at the edges of the polished layers cut down on friction and break the contact between the knife and slices of food, limiting the tendency to stack up on the blade.

It's the short blade length of this knife that's the real limitation -- with most chef's knives ranging from 5" to 10", this knife is a little underpowered even for small hands. Maintenance requires the same special care as Shun's Japanese styles: sharpen the blade on waterstones, not with a sharpening steel, and be wary of bones and frozen food. Hand washing and drying is better by far than risking this good knife in a dishwasher.