FANTECK Damascus Santoku Knife, 7 Inch Kitchen Knife Ultra Sharp Japanese VG10 67 Layers Stainless Steel Chef Knife,High Carbon Meat Fruit Cutting Knife-Pakkawood Handle,Gift box & Plastic Sheath

The members of V-sharp and Fanteck have done it again! This knife is a wonderful representation of how functionality and aesthetics can be optimally combined. This chef knife remains on the smaller side at about 8” and comes very sharp out of the box. The pakkawood handle has a fitting shape that provides comfort and stability in the hand, even when wet. At the top of the handle there are 3 layers of beautiful acrylic in the colors of amber, pearl, and a deep red. These colors were achieved with a mother of pearl mix within the acrylic to provide an additional level of detail. This detail is functional too, as the acrylic stripes are flush with the handle. Acrylic is shock, water, and somewhat heat resistant, which will assist in the overall longevity of the blade. Moving on to the blade, I have another fanteck knife that uses a different handle but has an almost identical blade. On initial inspection the blades resembled each other very closely but I would say this blade may contain more folds than intended (not A bad thing). The folds allow impurities to be purified out of the blade and further allow strength and resilience to grow within the metal, providing at least A Rockwell hardness test of 62 or higher. My father, who was a heat treater for years, was very impressed by the VG-10 steel this knife is made of. Grooves in the blade are quite prevalent, as you can feel the texture within the knife’s side. Some Damascus receive a smooth finish while others keep the grooves a bit more deeply ingrained. Personally, I like the deeper side, it’s texture in the hand really makes it feel special every time you cut something for a meal. I am also very hard on my knives and I can say, without a doubt, you would really have to be trying to break this thing if you wanted to destroy it. If you want a dependable knife, that will make you look forward to cooking, last a lifetime, and look lovely while doing it, look no further!

I am a fan of high quality kitchen knives, and have a large collection of top-brand and custom-made chef knives, most are of Japanese style (gyuto, santoku) and Chinese style (cleaver). I previously used a 6" Nenox petty knife in kitchen, and it mysteriously disappeared. I came a cross this knife on Amazon, and decided to give it a try, as it costs less than 1/12 of the Nenox and about 1/3 of Shun classic. The knife came with a very nice presentation box and a edge guard. The blade is made of very standard Japanese laminate damascus steel with VG-10 core. Finish of the blade is excellent, and is on par with Shun Kaji series, and better than Shun Classic series. The surface texture feels more like Shun Classic. It is not super smooth and provide good food release. The damascus pattern is beautiful. The blade has a flat ground that creates a smooth transition from thick spine to thin cutting edge. The spine is straight from bolster to tip. The edge profile is excellent, perfectly the standard shape for a 6" petty knife. The out-of-the-box sharpness is not super sharp but sufficient, I do not really care as I sharpened it anyway. The best thing I like of the blade is it's stiffness. It feels rigid, compared to some petty knives that are slightly flexible. However, this is totally up to personal preference. Finish of bolster and handle is of first class, actually better than my Nenox petty, and all my Shun Classic and Kaji. The metal is beautifully polished, with colorful spacer to create artistic feel. The main part of handle is made of pakkawood, which is widely used for Japanese knives. It feels smooth and warm. I initially was afraid that the handle might be slippy in wet hand. It turns out to be completely fine. The metal parts parts are slippy when wet, however, the pakkawood gives secured grip. No problem. The cutting core is made of VG-10, which has been well-proven for kitchen knives. It is not a super steel as SG2, ZDP-189, HAP40 and M390, however, is a excellently balanced mix of sharpness, edge retention, toughness, easiness to re-sharpen, non-stain, material and manufactory cost. Specific of this knife, the edge performance is of standard VG-10, very similar to Shun Classic, and feels tougher than a new Shun Classic, which is reported initially brittle and becomes tougher after a few times of re-sharpening. I have been using this knife for more than 8 months now, from peeling apple to breakdown whole chicken (cut through joints only). It works very well and has never disappointed me. The materials used for this knife, VG-10 steel and pakkawood, are well-proven and every standard nowadays. The value of knife should be determined heavily on design and craftsmanship. And this knife is definitely worth the price.

While I have always tried to stay away from knives with this handle style I'm so glad I decided to try this one out. The handle fits your hand very well. The knife is small enough for precision work but still large enough to do anything that it's needed to do. Fanteck offer's quality knives at a affordable price. Japanese VG-10 is my all time favorite blade material. The damascas design is stunning all the colors and handle material works well together and fit and finish is superb. This is without a doubt the best knife you can get for the money. Many knives of this quality sell for two to three times the price of this knife. Right out of the box the knife is ready to work and extremely sharp! I wanted to test it's cutting/slicing ability and found that my wife had left a container of strawberries out overnight, the berries were a little on the soft side but the knife sliced them without any problem at all. I took some pictures of this and if you look close you'll see that some of the slices are so thin you can see right through them. Notice the thinnest slice in my pictures and you'll see the damascas pattern of the knife under it. This knife slices paper thin. With a little practice you'll be slicing and dicing like a pro. The knife is well packaged and would make a very nice gift also. Anyone would be proud to have one. There's even a blade protector to keep the edge protected when not in use. The knife holds a edge a very, very long time. If you have a steel just touch it up from time to time to keep it razor sharp.

Review -- FANTECK 6” VG10 Stainless Steel 67 layer Damascus Utility Knife There are a number of key questions I ask myself when I evaluate a knife. Will it take and hold an edge, is it comfortable to hold, are the materials “right,” is it well constructed with fine fit and finish, and perhaps most importantly – is it pleasing to the eye. I know that a knife lacking one or more of these attributes goes unused in favor of another in my collection. The long and short of it is, I can't put this nimble and distinctive little knife down! It has proven to be one of the most versatile blades in my kitchen. And, it's a joy to use. Here's what I like about it: Upon removing it from its presentation-quality box, I was immediately struck by the beauty and craftsmanship that went into making this knife. “Refined” springs to mind when looking and feeling it in one's hand. This is no Chevy, it's a Cadillac (check out the tasteful accent of those rings of semiprecious stones in the handle!) The blade itself is quite obviously real Damascus, not the laser-etched impostors you have to watch out for. these days. Actual VG-10 I dunno, but it would fit since FANTECK spared no expense with the rest of the components and construction. [BTW this is a good time to point out that this knife was made in China in the manner of a bona fide Japanese example. Chinese metallurgy is far more advanced than you might expect. It's not your basic one-metal carbon steel cleaver anymore. They sport a vast array of incredible state-of-the-art cutlery. Take a look on AliExpress sometime. I have both Japanese and Chinese cutlery and I would be willing to bet that if blindfolded you, you wouldn't be able to tell the difference. I am to the point now where, yes, my authentic Japanese cutlery is my pride and joy, but I'd rather explore the vast possibilities and get 3-5 fine new Chinese blades than a single Japanese one.] This blade's VG-10 center layer performs like my other VG-10 blades. I simply took a few strokes of the new blade to a ceramic steel and was in business right away. After several week's use cutting all manner of fruit, vegetables and meat, the blade has only required a couple more visits to the steel and it is as sharp as when I first used it. It is light and thin so that it glides through each cut. without sticking. Its lean and mean and very easy to control. Perfect for those smaller jobs that don't demand an 18” - 10” chef's knife. Oops, I almost forgot to mention the simple but nice little plastic sheath that's included. All I all, I feel a bit guilty. I can't imagine how anyone could make a profit manufacturing such a fine a blade as this at such a ridiculously low price.

Very good knife. I tried a few Asian knife brands, this came slightly sharper than others. I just add microcerrations, none of these knives seem to come already having them. This improves the cutting capability a bit for things like fruit skin. Some of these don't have a hollow edge, but this one does. The Damascus pattern is beautiful. It is probably some welded or etching process as most of these are these days, not sure what it helps beyond just the looks. Fwiw the pattern completely disappears on the spine and bolster. But it gives it a well rounded craftsmanship expression along with the handle, which is a typical rounded, wooden with resin inserts, rivet free Asian style that I am particularly fond of. They probably overdid it with with a laminated mdf box, just a regular carton box would have sufficed for me. That's probably what you pay those extra few bucks over the $50 mark that these kind of knives normally go for at retail. But it sure makes for a nice gift option should you buy it as a gift.

This is the second Fanteck knife I have purchased through Amazon. I was very pleased with the first purchase, both in terms of its appearance, craftsmanship, ability, and presentation when opening the package. When ordering this knife, I knew if I was equally pleased with this purchase, I would have gotten my money's worth. What I discovered is that I was even more pleased with this knife! For starters, this knife comes in a nicer presentation box than the previous knife (plastic presentation vs cardboard). Secondly, the knife sharpener is of a higher quality than the other knife sharpener. I love the fact that they include sharpeners with their knives. This is not something that they have to do, or that I can think of other companies doing, but this is like a little gift, a little extra something that you weren't expecting. Upon opening the box, you see a beautiful knife in a familiar blade pattern (familiar if you have purchased a Fanteck knife before). The swirling design of the blade gives it a unique look and I image it will help hide rust spots, if you so happen to let you knives get those unfortunate spots. The handle itself is a unique design also, with multicolored wooden handle and acrylic rim. Needless to say, I'm a sucker for knives that have a good look to them, so this was a no-brainer purchase...but how does the knife actually work? If the first knife I purchased from them was the best knife I have ever owned, then this newer knife from them must be at least just as good, right? RIGHT! In fact, I would go so far as to say it's even better. The handle has a bit more ergonomic feel. It also feels a bit more balanced than the other knife. Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining about the first knife, it's just I feel they took everything I loved about the first one and made it even better. I've done a fair bit of slicing, dicing, and chopping vegetables, fruit, and meat with this knife and each cut is smooth and effortless. I will easily be recommending this knife to all my foodie friends!

I purchased the set of three knives both because of price and features. At this price I don't have to worry too much about damage. The features, including handle material and steel, ensure good, long lasting performance. The knives were extremely sharp from the box and were a joy to use. After several weeks of every day use they have proven to be excellent knives. The blades have held their edge very well through a variety of everyday tasks, including some tough jobs, though we do not use them on bone or frozen foods. We have been using Miyabi Kaizen (Zwilling) knives for years and the handle difference is noticeable. Not bad, just different. These knives are very attractive and are noticeably heavier than similar knives, which some people prefer. The "damascus" coating over the VG10 core is much rougher than it appears in photo, but is not objectionable. Overall, the knives are excellent performers, but won't know for sure for several years. I may, however, recommend them to a friend who wants better knives for his kitchen. I have large hands and the handles require a different hand position than I normally use so knuckles don't hit cutting board, but it is not a problem. My wife has smaller hands and absolutely loves everything about these knives.

The knife is just too thick to be a great kitchen knife. It's beautiful, comfortable etc but you can't cut quickly especially on onions. It's plenty sharp but my 20 dollar levinchy is thinner and therefore just more versitale. Again, its not a sharpness problem. Julienne cuts are fine. It's going through stuff.