• Nakiri 180mm Damasteel Desert Ironwood & Brass
  • Nakiri 180mm Damasteel Desert Ironwood & Brass – detail view
  • Nakiri 180mm Damasteel Desert Ironwood & Brass – side profile
  • Nakiri 180mm Damasteel Desert Ironwood & Brass – handle detail
  • Nakiri 180mm Damasteel Desert Ironwood & Brass – blade close-up
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Nakiri 180mm Damasteel Desert Ironwood & Brass

Nakiri 180mm Damasteel Desert Ironwood & Brass

By Martin Huber

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Martin Huber

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This one-of-a-kind Nakiri is handmade by Martin Huber and his team, whose work is defined by a restrained, geometry-driven approach and exceptional attention to detail. The profile is a contemporary interpretation of the Japanese Nakiri, deliberately executed with slightly increased height and length to enhance board presence, knuckle clearance, and overall control. The result is a blade that feels confident and purposeful, offering the familiarity of a traditional Nakiri form while extending its usability for modern kitchens and varied prep styles.

The geometry is carefully considered and unapologetically functional. A pronounced distal taper carries the spine from close to 4 mm at the heel down to under 1 mm near the tip, creating a blade that remains rigid and stable through the rear while becoming increasingly agile toward the front. The edge profile follows a gentle, continuous radius from heel to tip, defining the knife’s smooth, predictable action on the board. Wide convex bevels promote excellent food release and reduce stiction, particularly during dense vegetable prep, while the broad, flat blade face makes scooping and transferring ingredients effortless. An ultra-fine edge combined with this convex geometry results in a Nakiri that excels at precise vegetable work yet remains fully capable of clean, controlled protein cuts.

Forged from Damasteel, the blade benefits from advanced powder metallurgy, delivering outstanding edge retention, high toughness, and true stainless performance. Hardened to approximately 63 HRC, Damasteel allows for an exceptionally refined edge while remaining durable and corrosion-resistant in demanding daily use. The blade is finished with an acid-etched forced patina and satin polish, adding depth and subtle visual character without distracting from the knife’s intent. Completing the piece is a rokkaku hanmaru handle with a faceted top and softly rounded underside, a hidden tang construction in richly grained ironwood with patinated brass bolster and accents. In hand, the knife feels robust and well balanced, yet nimble and deft—an expressive, highly resolved Nakiri built for serious, intentional use.

Product Specification
  • Blade Type:
  • Overall Length: 325mm
  • Edge Length: 180mm
  • Spine Heel: 3.44mm
  • Spine Mid: 1.8mm
  • Spine Tip (20mm before): 0.79mm
  • Blade Height: 70mm
  • Weight: 237.9g
  • Cutting Edge Steel:
  • Steel class: Stainless
  • HRC: 63
  • Blade Construction:
  • Blade Finish: Acid Etched (Forced Patina)Satin Polish
  • Grind:
  • Handle Construction:
  • Handle Materials: Ironwood, Brass
  • Handedness: Ambidextrous

Blade type

Nakiri

菜切

A double-bevel vegetable knife with a tall, rectangular blade and a straight edge that meets the board along its full length. That flat profile is built for one job done exceptionally well: clean, full-contact push and chop cuts through vegetables, with the height giving knuckle clearance and a broad face to guide sliced produce. There is no belly to rock, because rocking is not what it is for.

The nakiri's specialisation is also its limit. It is superb on vegetables and unhurried prep, but the straight edge and squared-off tip make it poor at the tip work, rocking, and protein tasks a gyuto or santoku handle easily. It is best understood as a dedicated vegetable knife that earns its place alongside a more general blade rather than replacing one.

View full knife type guide →

Cutting edge steel

Damasteel

Brand / process — powder metallurgy stainless damascus

Typical HRC
60–63
Corrosion class
Stainless
Production
Pattern-welded
Origin
Sweden

Damasteel is not a single steel but the brand and process of a Swedish manufacturer producing pattern-welded stainless damascus from powder-metallurgy steels — most commonly RWL34 paired with PMC27 (a softer stainless contrast layer). The two powders are layered, hot isostatic pressed, and forge-welded into patterned billets with names like Odin's Eye, Vinland, Hakkapella and Thor.

In a kitchen knife built from Damasteel the metallurgy is governed by the harder layer (typically RWL34); the softer layer is cosmetic. Hardness in the low sixties is typical, and the cutting behaviour is for practical purposes that of a RWL34 blade — a refined, stainless powder edge with very good corrosion resistance and respectable edge retention.

You see Damasteel most often in high-end custom folders and in display-grade kitchen knives where pattern is part of the brief. Among the makers Modern Cooking carries, Fredrik Spåre, Martin Huber, Jonas Johnsson, and MCx work in Damasteel. It is the gold standard for visually expressive stainless damascus and a reliable indicator that the maker is comfortable working at the upper end of the steel-supply chain.

View full steel guide →

Blade construction

Mono Steel

A knife forged from a single piece of steel — no laminations, no clad layers. The simplest and most direct construction. The entire blade is the cutting steel, with no softer outer jacket to protect or contrast it. Most contemporary Western kitchen knives in carbon and stainless steel are mono-steel constructions, as are honyaki and most European bladesmith work.

The trade-off is straightforward: mono-steel knives are easier to forge, sharpen, and reason about, but the entire blade carries the cutting steel's properties — including its reactivity if it's a clean carbon. There is no soft jacket to protect a more brittle core from impact, so the heat treatment and geometry have to do all the work.

View full construction guide →

Grind

Convex

A grind whose bevel bulges outward in a gentle curve from spine to edge, rather than running flat. That extra steel directly behind the edge makes a convex grind notably strong and resistant to chipping, while the curved geometry helps food release and lets the blade glide through dense ingredients with less wedging than a flat grind.

The strength comes at the cost of ultimate thinness and ease of maintenance. A convex edge has more metal behind it, so it is not quite as effortlessly keen as a thinly flat-ground edge, and it is harder to sharpen freehand — holding the curve takes a stropping technique or a deliberate hand rather than a single fixed angle. The reward is an exceptionally tough, smooth-cutting edge.

View full grind guide →

Handle construction

Hidden Tang

A construction in which the tang runs into the handle but stays concealed inside it, rather than showing between two scales. A narrower tang — a full-length stick or a shorter projection — is set into a drilled or burned channel in a one-piece handle and secured with adhesive, a friction fit, or a threaded fitting drawn up against the blade. This is the traditional construction of Japanese wa-handles and many European hidden-tang knives.

The design puts the handle material in charge of the look and feel: a single piece of wood, horn, or composite — often with a ferrule or spacers at the front — is shaped into any cross-section the maker wants, from the classic octagonal and D-shaped wa profiles to fully rounded Western forms. With no steel showing along the grip, the handle can be slim and light, and is frequently made to be removed and replaced, with the balance sitting toward the blade.

View full construction guide →

Shipping & Returns

Shipping

We process orders 5 days a week (Monday - Friday) and ship from our shop in Sydney, Australia. We ship with FedEx, UPS and DHL.

We are happy to offer free international shipping on a variety of orders depending on location and order value.

Free Shipping Regions and Minimum Order Values

For Australia and New Zealand the minimum is $500AUD. For the rest of the world it is approximately €1000EUR. The discount is applied automatically when you reach the minimum cart value at checkout.

Returns

If you're not entirely happy with your purchase, you can return it within 14 days of delivery for a refund. The item must be in its original condition with all original packaging.

  • Returns are accepted for 14 days
  • The customer is responsible for return shipping costs
  • A 15% restocking fee may be applied to change-of-mind returns
  • We do not accept returns on second-hand items for change of mind

Faulty or Damaged Items

You must notify us within 5 business days of receiving your order. Photographic evidence of damage is required. Once approved, Modern Cooking will cover return shipping costs.

Product Care

Cleaning: Clean by hand with warm water. Avoid wetting the handle when possible.

Sharpening: We advise using whetstones to sharpen your knives and a honing rod or steel to maintain the burr between sharpening sessions.

Reactive Steels: Reactive steels like Aogami Super, Apex Ultra or premium reactive German and Swedish steels are susceptible to rust if not properly cared for. Keep the knife dry between uses and when storing for longer periods, wiping the blade with Tsubaki oil or another food-safe oil is a wise choice. A patina can be a beautiful personal feature on your knife and helps to stop rust forming.

Handle Care: For non-stabilised wooden handles, apply Tsubaki oil or another food-safe oil from time to time. Food-safe wax can be applied to both stabilised and non-stabilised wooden handles. Never apply hot wax or oil as you risk warping or damaging the handle.

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