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250mm Gyuto Asymmetrical B-Grind Koa

250mm Gyuto Asymmetrical B-Grind Koa

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Dan Bidinger

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This handmade kitchen knife is truly one of a kind, meticulously crafted by artisanal knife maker Dan Bidinger to showcase both form and function. Drawing inspiration from the classic Japanese Gyuto, the blade’s profile offers superb versatility in slicing, dicing, and chopping. Every angle, curve, and surface is deliberately designed to promote comfort, efficiency, and precision for chefs of every skill level. The asymmetrical B grind that Dan pioneered sets this knife apart from typical Western or Japanese blades, incorporating both a wide fuller at the top of the blade and a secondary narrow fuller along the right face. These fullers dramatically reduce weight while minimizing drag, ensuring that slices glide smoothly and ingredients release swiftly. Constructed from CPM 3V steel—one of Dan’s personal favorites—this blade boasts exceptional sharpness potential and remarkable edge retention, making it a formidable tool for the discerning cook. The result is a knife whose geometry and steel composition stand as a testament to thoughtful craftsmanship and a deep understanding of culinary needs.

Dan’s proprietary asymmetrical B grind is widely revered as one of the best geometries for both professional and home kitchens, elevating food preparation to an art form. The wide fuller not only lessens overall blade mass but also helps channel away ingredients to prevent sticking. Meanwhile, the secondary narrow fuller on the right side fine-tunes these effects, allowing for effortless control as you push or pull through various textures. This careful engineering perfectly aligns with CPM 3V’s resilient characteristics, delivering strength without compromising on lightness or edge stability. Repeated sharpening sessions are kept to a minimum, as the steel’s high wear-resistance means it holds a keen edge far longer than many other alloys. For those who wish to learn more about the specialized qualities of CPM 3V, a quick web search reveals its esteemed reputation among knife enthusiasts. In every sense, this geometry and steel pairing creates an agile, precise, and durable blade that stands head and shoulders above typical production knives on the market.

Complementing the exquisite blade is a classic tapered full tang handle, shaped in a timeless coke-bottle contour that feels luxuriously ergonomic. Crafted with breathtakingly figured Koa scales, the handle adds warmth and visual appeal to the knife, giving a singular piece a touch of uniquely natural beautiful. The ultra-fine tapered tang not only enhances balance but also contributes to the knife’s elegant silhouette, ensuring it rests naturally in the hand without causing fatigue during extended prep work. This thoughtful union of materials, geometry, and design results in a rare masterpiece that both collectors and culinary professionals will cherish for years. From the asymmetrical B grind to the premium CPM 3V steel and the stunning Koa handle, every element of this singular creation exemplifies Dan Bidinger’s commitment to pushing the boundaries of artistry and performance in kitchen cutlery.

Product Specification
  • Blade Type:
  • Overall Length: 370mm
  • Edge Length: 250mm
  • Spine Heel: 3.83mm
  • Spine Mid: 2.07mm
  • Spine Tip (20mm before): 1.59mm
  • Blade Height: 51mm
  • Weight: 173g
  • Cutting Edge Steel:
  • Steel class: Carbon
  • HRC: 66
  • Blade Construction:
  • Blade Finish: Satin Polish
  • Grind:
  • Handle Construction:
  • Handle Materials: Koa
  • Handedness: Ambidextrous

Blade type

Gyuto

牛刀

The Japanese take on the Western chef's knife, and the most versatile blade in a modern kitchen. A gyuto carries a long, gently curved edge — most often 210 to 270 mm — that allows both push cuts and a rocking motion, with a pointed tip for fine work and enough height at the heel to keep knuckles clear of the board. It handles proteins, vegetables, and herbs without complaint, which is why most cooks reach for it first.

Compared with a European chef's knife, the gyuto is usually thinner, harder, and lighter, ground to a finer edge that rewards good board technique and regular honing. That same thinness is the trade-off: the edge is less forgiving of bone, frozen food, and twisting cuts, and it asks for a little more care in maintenance in exchange for its keenness.

View full knife type guide →

Cutting edge steel

CPM 3V

Powder metallurgy chromium-vanadium tool steel

Typical HRC
58–62
Corrosion class
Carbon
Production
Powder
Origin
United States (Crucible)

CPM 3V is the toughness specialist of the powder-metallurgy world: about 0.80 percent carbon, 7.5 percent chromium, 2.75 percent vanadium, 1.3 percent molybdenum, and 1 percent tungsten produce a steel with toughness that is, in most published comparisons, the highest of any non-PM3V variant tool steel in commercial production.

For a kitchen knife — which is generally not a knife asked to chop bones — 3V's toughness is somewhat over-specified. Where the steel earns its place is in heavy chef's knives, large cleavers, and crossover camp/kitchen blades. At 60 HRC it offers respectable edge retention (better than 80CrV2, short of 52100 on a clean cut), and it is genuinely difficult to chip. It is not stainless, despite its moderate chromium, and will patina politely.

You will see 3V most often in the work of American forging custom shops that want a "do not worry about it" carbon steel. As a kitchen-only choice it is somewhat overbuilt, but for a one-knife-fits-all enthusiast it is an honest and very durable answer.

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

Compound Grind

A category covering blades ground with more than one geometry stacked into a single cross-section — typically a convex (or flat) primary bevel at the very edge, with one or more hollows ground higher up the blade face to relieve material behind it. The aim is food release and reduced wedging: the hollow opens an air gap so dense produce breaks away from the blade instead of clinging to it, while the convex steel at the edge keeps the apex strong and the knife driving through the cut.

The named variations in the Modern Cooking catalogue differ in where the hollows sit, how many there are, and whether the two faces are ground alike:

S-Grind — a convex primary bevel at the edge with a hollow ground into both faces just above it. The symmetrical "S"-shaped cross-section is the classic food-release grind: relief above the edge, strength at the edge.

C-Grind — an asymmetric S-grind. Both faces keep the convex primary bevel, but only one face carries the hollow above it. The single-sided relief biases food release to one side, and is simpler to grind and to maintain than a full S.

B-Grind — a stacked twin-hollow grind: a tight, narrow hollow immediately above the edge, with a second, broader and wider hollow above that. The staged relief gives especially strong food release across the height of the blade.

S-Hook Grind — also called a hook, harpoon, or J grind. An S-grind taken to an extreme, with the hollow placed very close to the cutting edge. The aggressive near-edge relief gives outstanding food release, at the price of being the most maintenance-sensitive of the family.

Asymmetrical-B Grind — a B-grind in which the twin-hollow structure is carried on one face while the other is ground differently (or left without the upper hollow), off-setting the edge. It combines the staged food release of a B-grind with the handed, steering character of an asymmetric grind.

In every case the gain is food release and reduced drag, and the shared cost is sharpening: as the edge is thinned over the knife's life, maintenance eventually reaches the hollowed steel, which cannot be flattened on a stone the way a convex or flat bevel can. How soon that happens depends on how deeply the hollows are cut and how close to the edge they sit — exactly what separates a gentle S-grind from an aggressive S-hook. These are high-craft geometries, prized by makers and experienced users for their cutting feel, and best appreciated by a cook who maintains their own edges.

View full grind guide →

Handle construction

Half Tang

A construction in which the tang extends partway into the handle rather than running its full length. The tang is forged or cut as a partial projection from the blade — often a stub or tapered stick — and seated into the handle material, set into a drilled or slotted channel and fixed with adhesive, a pin, or a friction fit. Because the steel stops short of the butt, the body of the handle is built from the handle material itself, and the weight sits forward toward the blade.

Visually and in the hand it reads as a one-piece handle: a grip of wood, horn, or composite shaped, rounded, and finished without a strip of steel running through it, much like a hidden tang but with a shorter internal anchor. It is a light, blade-forward construction, and in a kitchen knife the tang's role is to hold the blade securely in a comfortable handle rather than to carry the prying and impact loads a hard-use outdoor tool is built around.

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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