Red Rainbow Gyuto 172mm

With the blade’s striking rainbow quench and handle sculpted from modern red linen micarta and rare vintage Westinghouse glass epoxy-laminate, this chef knife by Don Carlos Andrade represents functional art for the kitchen at its finest. To achieve the remarkable differential blade hardening and etched finish, Don selected, for the first time in his long tenure as a bladesmith and artisan, 26c3 ‘spicy white’ high-carbon steel, an alloy prized for its clean, low-alloying formula and fine grain structure. A versatile, balanced, and dynamic chef’s workhorse, as so many of Don’s creations are, the 172mm / 6.8″ blade is forged to shape in his ‘step gyuto’ profile and honed with pronounced convexity through the primary bevels above a thin, sharp edge. The result is a combination of toughness, durability, and finesse that Don’s loyal followers prize. A full-distal taper along the spine slims from 3.3mm above the 48mm-tall heel to 1.5mm an inch from the tip where the material has reduced in width even further to produce a fine profile perfect for detail work and precision slices. Its mass centered just behind the rounded blade choil, this knife is quick and nimble in the hand, its overall size ideal for nearly every cut in the kitchen while remaining compact enough for smaller cutting boards and workspaces. For comfortable and control in any grip, the handle, secured by a domed, polished, hand-peened steel pin, is shaped in Don’s well-loved wa handle rendition of a shield profile that includes a combination of flat faces, rounded sides, a back-to-front taper, and thoughtful details at every turn. A customer cloth-covered saya is included.