Nigara Hamono has a reputation for the absolute highest quality and the level of expertise and skill these craftsmen posses is not often found. The company is led by the master blacksmith by the name of Tsuyoshi Yoshizawa and every knife they make is forged by hand with the utmost care and attention to detail and quality. This combined, helps create knives made to last for years to come. Hand-crafted using SG2/R2 powder stainless steel and with perfectly crafted custom wood handles the fit and finish of Nigara knives are second to none.

The Bunka is the ultimate bad ass as its a multipurpose knife that sits between the Nakiri and a Gyuto knife. The word “bunker” means “culture” its a very versatile knife and perfect if you want a slightly wide blade compared to the santoku. The blade’s rocking point is around the same place as a santoku but the big difference is the pointed tip. Its sharp scalpel point is perfect for cutting small shallots but has the belly too chop larger foods and so is the perfect addition to any collection.

SG2 (R2) is a high speed powder stainless steel made by Takefu special steel Co Ltd. For some knife makers, this is an ideal steel for knife making as it has a great hardiness of greater than 63HR. This steel has great edge retention, high wear resistance and is stainless. The grains are so fine and uniform that the hammer forging is not necessary.