My family name, Masaki (正木) roughly means "elegant tree,” derived from masa (正) correct/beginning/great/superior, etc, and ki (木), meaning "tree.” It is no wonder that the purchase of the limited edition Senzo Dawn by Suncraft was an irresistible buy for me. What came was the 101 Layer Black Damascus R2 (SG2) blade with stabilized Oak Wa that incorporated a 300 year old Holy Oak ferrule Gyuto. I was taken aback by the beautiful black Damascus pattern with its golden sheen. The spacer between the stabilized wood and the holy oak merged seamlessly. Even the box it came in was beautiful, complete with the number “065/150.” But looks are not the only thing it has, while doing the paper-cutting test, it passed through it with ease. With its rounded Gyuto cutting profile, rock chopping veggies and slicing meats cover about 90% of my routine kitchen duties. About the only downside I could see was that it doesn’t have a long enough flat cutting profile to chop with at the heel, as it is rounded all the way through the cutting edge. Ironically the choil was not rounded, but this was obviously not a deal-breaker for me. In the end, I felt that the price of this purchase was easily justified because of the quality of materials, the high level of craftsmanship, great design, and together with the basic fact that this is a limited product. Quite a rarity, after all, the people of Japan do not go around cutting down holy trees for profit; such a find is scarce. This is indeed, my holy “Masaki” tree knife, and I quite literally could not resist getting one. Thank you to SharpEdge and Suncraft for working together to bring me this wonderful product.
Having a few vg10 knives I wanted to make a big step and get a knife that’s a lot harder and would be sharper for longer. Decided to go with this hap40 bunka. This knife gets razor sharp (using HORL3 premium set) and stays super sharp for so long, absolute pleasure to use it and cutting and slicing with it is so satisfying I started cooking more just to use it. Highly recommended.
I haven't use king stones for quite some time. When i unboxed it immediately felt like i was in Japan and sharpening katana's on the shore of Okinawa. Felt like magic,all the bubbles from soaking the stone,are like greeting me saying hello old friend we are gone have magical journey sharpening. I like the stone very much:big surface to sharpen,great mud,great feedback, and leaves great finnish on my yanagiba white n°2). I got so excited, that sharpen all my japanese knives in one afternoon. Thanks Sharp Edge you are the Best! Exceptional customer service and fast delivery.
A well-designed plastic case with internal lining, perfect for protecting the Deba knife during transport — especially useful for someone like me who travels often — and also ideal for safe storage. Excellent value for money and quality!
Once again, many thanks to Urban for his great suggestions, helpful comments, and patience, and to your Sharp Edge company for the outstanding service.
Warm greetings from Thessaloniki, Greece.
Upon unboxing, my first thought was: "Well, this is definitely a brick!" It’s large, very heavy, and could probably be used to build something as well.
In terms of performance, this stone does a solid job. It forms a mud super quickly, which is great for those who enjoy that satisfying slurry. However, the downside is that this also means the stone wears down relatively quickly, but given its massive size, that shouldn’t be an issue for a while.
I’m planning to keep it next to my Shapton Glass set for my high-performance knives, but this one will mainly come in handy when I sharpen friends' knives, especially since they tend to be made of softer steels. The 800 grit is perfect for this since it’s aggressive enough to remove material efficiently but still gives a decent finish with low pressure and plenty of mud.
Overall, a solid stone for general use, especially when you want a bit more bite for softer steels. Don't expect it to work on powder metallurgy steels like ZDP-189
Hey Youri,
Thanks for sharing your thoughts on the - King Deluxe 'Big Mamma'.
We agree—it is on the softer side and can wear down a bit faster. Luckily, there's a good amount of material to work with, so it should still last you a long time.
We've also tested this stone on various powder steels (SG2, HAP-40, ZDP-189, SRS13), and it performs well across the board. It removes material efficiently, though as you mentioned, the wear is slightly higher compared to harder stones.
All the best,
Urban
As someone who owns a decent collection of Japanese knives, ranging from more entry-level smiths up until custom one-offs, I feel like I have a fair amount of experience with different knives and quality control levels. However, I’ve never encountered an issue quite like this before.
At first glance, the knife looks impressive; the kasumi finish is beautifully and quite even. There are a few scratches in the kurouchi, but that's acceptable at this price point. The rosewood and cedar handle has a good contrast and is sanded smooth, so it feels quite good in hand. The actual edge seems razor sharp on my fingers.
However, when it comes to performance, I was disappointed to notice that the entire blade is actually warped. Not only is the blade on an offset angle from the handle, the blade itself is twisted as well. I've included a couple of photo's to show this.
Despite owning knives that could be described as rustic, I’ve never come across one where the flaw had such a significant impact on the knife’s usability. The warping would make it hard to get consistent, precise cuts, which completely undermines the knife's function in the kitchen.
While the aesthetics and handle are fantastic (especially considering the price), the warped blade makes this knife hard to recommend. I'm considering returning it for this reason.
Hello Youri,
Urban from SharpEdge here—thank you for your order and for reaching out.
Thank you also for bringing this to our attention! All our knives are hand-assembled, and it looks like we missed this one during our inspection before shipping. Not sure how this knife become so warped. We will have to look that in person, and contact the smithy.
We’ll arrange a return for this knife and send you a new one. I’ll contact you via email shortly to arrange the details.
Again, apologies for the extra hassle with your order.
Best regards,
Urban
It’s not easy to find a proper cutting knife — and especially a Deba knife for left-handers.
I found one here, with truly great quality and price. But most importantly, what made the difference for me was the excellent customer service. Urban answered all my emails kindly and patiently, and his knowledge really helped me a lot.
I’m not a professional — just an amateur fisherman — but I truly appreciate your fast shipping, careful packaging, and the overall respect you show to your customers.
Warm greetings from Thessaloniki, Greece, and a heartfelt thank you!
"A good knife, but the steel is weaker than I expected — it gets damaged and loses its edge easily."
Hello Neriya,
Urban from SharpEdge here—thank you so much for letting us know about the knife's performance.
Could you please share a bit more detail about the issue? Where exactly did the chipping occur? Were you cutting anything in particular? I will also send you a private email, where you can respond.
Ginsanko steel is usually quite durable and doesn’t chip easily. It’s true that the Hayabusa line has a very exposed core and is also very thin, which makes cutting much easier. However, they are not as resistant to twisting or horizontal force.
Best regards,
Urban
I would like to compliment the seriousness shown by the SharpEdge team. During the sales, I bought an Usuba and unfortunately noticed that the blade geometry wasn't perfect. After contacting customer service, they immediately offered to collect the knife for re-sharpening. In just three days, I repeat, 3 days, the knife was collected, the blade fixed, and the package returned to my home. A truly special applause for the way they solved the problem! Regarding the Usuba, there's little to say, I thought the 210mm blade would be unwieldy, but it's perfect. The only thing I would have liked to find in the box is some information about the craftsman who made the knife.
Very sharp. Easy to use. Easy to clean. Perfect slices. Use a glove, i cutted my finger in the first minute. But very happy. Love it. Also best price in this shop for this tool, inspite the (fair) shipping costs
Freitag bestellt, Dienstag nach Deutschland geliefert. Der Griff ist perfekt verarbeitet, keine Absätze oder Überstände zwischen Griffholz und Zwinge. Das Büffelhorn ist dunkel-blond und gefällt mir sehr gut. Das Loch für den Erl ist sauber und gerade ausgeführt. Vor der Montage an mein Teruyasu Fujiwara Gyuto habe ich das Loch mit Schlüsselfeilen minimal vergrößert und dann den Erl mit Heißkleber eingeklebt. Ich bin mit dem Ergebnis sehr zufrieden. Der Originalgriff (Magnolienholz mit Plastikzwinge) wiegt übrigens 23 Gramm, der Ebenholzgriff wiegt 66 Gramm. Dadurch wandert der Schwerpunkt des Messers etwas nach hinten.
Lightweight knife with a razor Sharp Edge! It's a guyto but can be used as a small deba for filleting fish. A surprising knife at incredible price (buyed at last minute offer)
The knife, well, it just delivered perfectly. It's beautiful and has some serious sharp. Fast delivery.
È il mio primo coltello giapponese e ne sono entusiasta!
Manico perfetto, lama perfetta, oltre ogni aspettativa!
Veramente bello,
un grazie di cuore allo staff che mi ha supportato e sopportato.
This is my first gyuuto and man it fits me like a glove. It’s a long blade so I wouldn’t recommend it for someone with small hands or short arms. I’ve mostly used santoku knives previously but this knife is a dream. I mostly use it for cutting meat and it slices up the thickest steaks as if they were butter. Beautiful blade, keeps an edge (at least for the month I’ve had it) and it’s also beautiful