Ginga

Aoki Hamono Co. Ltd., the manufacturer of the Sakai Takayuki brand is one of the most prominent knife producers in Japan. The fact that he has been based in the city of Sakai for over 60 years tells us that his knives are mainly intended for professional use. The range of materials and techniques is very extensive and we are pleased to introduce them to you gradually.

And we'll shoot really high right away. Even to the neighboring galaxy? Yes, that is exactly the name of the series of these knives. GINGA in Japanese. The galaxy is reminiscent of the 67 layers of a beautiful damascene blade. It is made up of 66 interlaced layers of softer and harder steel. In the center between them sits the core of the blade. Surprisingly, this does not come from Takefu or Yasugi, but from Aichi Prefecture, specifically from Aichi Steel Co.This steel mill, well-known to us for the 

materials AUS6, AUS8, AUS10, belongs to the concern Toyota and 40% of its production goes to automotive industry.

The success of the interlaced steel with a VG10 core from Takefu Special Steel obviously did not contribute to the calm sleep of the engineers from Aichi Steel, so they came up with a similar one under the designation ZA-18. So that the composition was not strikingly similar, they increased the content of carbon, chromium, tungsten and cobalt. Thus, they achieved higher abrasion resistance and, unfortunately, also the price. It is quite possible that this is the reason for the lower usage compared to VG10. The core is hardened to 62-63 HRC, which is actually an above-standard value. The blade is Hamaguri-shaped. The right side of the blade bears embossed kanji characters with the brand name, the left laser inscription TAKAYUKI JAPAN and the steel marking.

The material composition and craftsmanship of the blade deserve a high-quality ferrule. It is therefore made of genuine buffalo horn and smoothly transitions into a beautiful octagonal handle made of exotic wenge wood. Its elegant brown-black drawing only accentuates the luxurious status of these knives.

Sakai Takayuki Ginga rightfully found a place in our Top Gun section.

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