Sharpening Rod - Ji Series (X08)

Reach for this when you're peeling an apple in your hand or deveining prawns. Segmenting a citrus without putting it on the board. A paring knife lives in your palm, not on the bench. The shorter blade gives you the control you need when the food is moving and the knife is doing the steering.

Small Blade, Real Steel

The core is 12Cr18MoV high-carbon stainless steel, wrapped in 67 layers of Damascus. Vacuum heat-treated to 60-62 HRC, the edge holds through fiddly work that would blunt a softer blade quickly. At 219g it won't tire your hand during extended in-hand prep.

Ebony Handle, Full-Tang Build

Ebony is a dense, oily hardwood that stays dry and grippy even when your hands are wet from citrus juice or prawn brine. The handle is compact enough to sit comfortably in a smaller hand. Full-tang through to the butt keeps the balance point close to the guard where you want it for in-hand work.

Specifications

• Blade Steel: 67-layer Damascus with 12Cr18MoV core
• Hardness: 60-62 HRC (Vacuum Heat Treated)
• Blade Profile: 4-inch paring knife
• Handle: Ebony wood, full-tang
• Weight: 219g
• Use: In-hand peeling, deveining prawns, segmenting citrus, and any fine work where the food doesn't go on the board.
• Series: Ji Series (X08)
• Model: X08-SG

Complete Your Set

Pair it with the Ji Series 8" Chef Knife for the board work that follows, and the Ji Series 5" Utility Knife for jobs that sit between the two in size.

Reach for this when you've got a whole cabbage to ribbon or a pile of carrots to julienne. A mirepoix at scale takes half the time with a Nakiri than with a chef knife. The Nakiri's straight edge and rectangular blade make full contact with the board on every stroke. No rocking, no steering. Just clean push-cuts from heel to tip, stacking slices as fast as you can move.

The Vegetable Specialist

The core is 12Cr18MoV high-carbon stainless steel, wrapped in 67 layers of Damascus. Vacuum heat-treated to 60-62 HRC, it takes a sharp edge and holds it through extended vegetable sessions. The broad flat blade also doubles as a bench scraper once the cutting is done.

Ebony Handle, Full-Tang Build

Ebony is a dense, oily hardwood that stays grippy through a long prep session. The handle is set lower than it looks, with a profile that sits naturally in the pinch grip you'll use for a Nakiri. One solid piece of steel runs from tip to butt so the weight doesn't shift when you pick up speed.

Specifications

• Blade Steel: 67-layer Damascus with 12Cr18MoV core
• Hardness: 60-62 HRC (Vacuum Heat Treated)
• Blade Profile: 7-inch Nakiri, straight edge, rectangular profile
• Handle: Ebony wood, full-tang
• Weight: 404g
• Use: Ribbon-cutting cabbage, julienning carrots, and working through large vegetable prep where a straight edge beats a curved one.
• Series: Ji Series (X08)
• Model: X08-XC

Complete Your Set

Pair it with the Ji Series 8" Chef Knife for proteins and mixed prep, and the Ji Series 7" Santoku for push-cutting where a slightly narrower blade suits the ingredient.

Reach for this when the rested ribeye hits the table and you want the knife doing the work, not your guest's hand. A good steak knife respects the cook's effort. The 5-inch blade is long enough for a full portion, short enough to stay controlled at an angle on a dinner plate.

Sharp Where It Matters

The core is 12Cr18MoV high-carbon stainless steel, wrapped in 67 layers of Damascus. Vacuum heat-treated to 60-62 HRC, the edge stays keen through dinner for a full table without needing a touch-up between courses. The flowing Damascus pattern gives each blade its own look, so they're worth putting on the table rather than hiding in a block.

Ebony Handle, Full-Tang Build

Ebony is a dense, oily hardwood that sits well at a dinner setting: dark and clean-looking, with good grip even when a guest's hands are slightly damp from the table. The full-tang construction keeps the balance point back toward the hand rather than out at the tip, which matters when you're cutting at an angle on a plate rather than straight down on a board.

Specifications

• Blade Steel: 67-layer Damascus with 12Cr18MoV core
• Hardness: 60-62 HRC (Vacuum Heat Treated)
• Blade Profile: 5-inch steak knife
• Handle: Ebony wood, full-tang
• Use: At-table steak cutting, grilled proteins, and any moment where a sharp dinner knife makes the difference.
• Series: Ji Series (X08)
• Model: X08-NP

Complete Your Set

Pair it with the Ji Series 8" Chef Knife for the prep side of the meal, and the Ji Series 8" Carving Knife for presenting a roast before it reaches the table.

Reach for this when you're halving cherry tomatoes or trimming silverskin off a chicken breast. It cuts a sandwich without crushing it. It's the blade that fills the gap between your chef knife and your paring knife. Long enough to mean business, short enough to stay nimble.

Damascus Steel Performance

The core is 12Cr18MoV high-carbon stainless steel, wrapped in 67 layers of Damascus. Vacuum heat-treated to 60-62 HRC, the edge stays sharp through fine work that blunts on harder steels. The layered cladding isn't decorative filler; it adds structural support around the core so the edge won't chip on the occasional pit or seed.

Ebony Handle, Full-Tang Build

Ebony is a dense, oily hardwood that holds up to kitchen moisture without warping or staining. The handle is compact in proportion to the blade, so the knife doesn't feel front-heavy when you're working close. Full-tang all the way to the butt keeps the balance point predictable in your grip.

Specifications

• Blade Steel: 67-layer Damascus with 12Cr18MoV core
• Hardness: 60-62 HRC (Vacuum Heat Treated)
• Blade Profile: 5-inch utility knife
• Handle: Ebony wood, full-tang
• Weight: 234g
• Use: Halving cherry tomatoes, trimming silverskin, slicing smallgoods, and any task where your chef knife is too much blade.
• Series: Ji Series (X08)
• Model: X08-WY

Complete Your Set

Pair it with the Ji Series 8" Chef Knife for the bigger board work, and the Ji Series 4" Paring Knife for anything that needs an in-hand cut.

Reach for this when you're breaking down a whole chicken and need a blade that can work both sides of a joint. The upswept Honesuki-style tip gets in under the oyster, and the stiff spine gives you the control to separate the thigh from the carcass without slipping. It handles like a chef knife and thinks like a boning knife.

The Honesuki Profile

The triangular blade with its steep spine-to-edge taper isn't just for show. It lets you work close to the bone where a standard chef knife gets awkward, and the stiff blade won't flex away from the joint when you're applying lateral pressure. Use it through the whole chicken breakdown and you won't need to switch knives once.

Damascus Steel, Ebony Handle

The core is 12Cr18MoV high-carbon stainless steel, wrapped in 67 layers of Damascus. Vacuum heat-treated to 60-62 HRC, the edge holds sharp through the cartilage and tendon work that would blunt a softer blade quickly. The ebony handle runs full-tang, so the weight sits behind your grip and the knife doesn't feel tip-heavy when you're working with the blade angled down.

Specifications

• Blade Steel: 67-layer Damascus with 12Cr18MoV core
• Hardness: 60-62 HRC (Vacuum Heat Treated)
• Blade Profile: 6-inch chef knife, Honesuki-style triangular profile
• Handle: Ebony wood, full-tang
• Use: Breaking down poultry, working around joints and cartilage, and tasks where a stiff blade near the bone beats a flexible boning knife.
• Series: Ji Series (X08)
• Model: X08-DY

Complete Your Set

Pair it with the Ji Series 8" Chef Knife for the board work once the chicken is broken down, and the Ji Series 7" Fillet Knife for fish where flexibility matters more than stiffness.

Reach for this when you're breaking down a whole chicken and need to split the carcass through the rib cage, or when a bone-in duck breast needs separating with one clean strike. The 6.5-inch Butcher's Cleaver isn't for slicing. It's for the moments where you need a heavy spine and a short blade to drive through cartilage and small bones with control. One stroke. Done.

Built for the Joint

The thick spine carries the mass that makes bone work possible without hammering. Drive it down through a chicken joint and it goes through cleanly, so you're not bruising the meat by hacking repeatedly. The 6.5-inch blade length keeps it controllable on a standard cutting board. Full-tang construction means every gram of steel sits behind your grip instead of swinging out past your hand.

Damascus Cladding, Hardened Core

The core is 12Cr18MoV high-carbon stainless steel, wrapped in 67 layers of Damascus cladding. Vacuum heat-treated to 60-62 HRC, the edge holds through the repeated impact work that would roll a softer blade. The layered Damascus cladding adds chip resistance on the shoulder of the blade, which is where most of the impact lands on a bone stroke.

Specifications

• Blade Steel: 67-layer Damascus with 12Cr18MoV core
• Hardness: 60-62 HRC (Vacuum Heat Treated)
• Blade Profile: 6.5-inch Butcher's Cleaver, heavy spine
• Handle: Ebony wood, full-tang
• Use: Splitting poultry carcasses, cleaving through rib joints, and any bone work where a short, heavy blade beats a longer one.
• Series: Ji Series (X08)
• Model: X08-KG

Complete Your Set

Pair it with the Ji Series 8" Chef Knife for the prep work once the joints are split, and the Ji Series 6" Honesuki-style Chef Knife for working around bone and cartilage where the cleaver is too blunt an instrument.

Stop crushing your crusty sourdough. A serrated blade with the right set of teeth cuts through a hard crust and a soft crumb in one forward stroke, no pressing required. This 8-inch bread knife is long enough to clear a wide boule in a single pass without having to start over at the heel.

The Serrated Edge Advantage

Serrations grip the crust where a straight edge would slide and compress. You draw the blade back and the teeth do the work, so the crumb underneath stays intact instead of squashing flat. It's the same principle on a brioche as it is on a baguette, just lighter pressure. Slicing tomatoes also works without the skin skating away first.

Damascus Steel, Ebony Handle

The core is 12Cr18MoV high-carbon stainless steel, wrapped in 67 layers of Damascus. Vacuum heat-treated to 60-62 HRC, the steel holds its edge between sharpenings far longer than a soft serrated blade would. The ebony handle runs full-tang all the way to the butt, so the knife doesn't feel front-heavy when you're drawing it back through a wide loaf.

Specifications

• Blade Steel: 67-layer Damascus with 12Cr18MoV core
• Hardness: 60-62 HRC (Vacuum Heat Treated)
• Blade Profile: 8-inch bread knife, serrated edge
• Handle: Ebony wood, full-tang
• Use: Slicing sourdough, baguettes, brioche, and ripe tomatoes where a straight edge compresses instead of cuts.
• Series: Ji Series (X08)
• Model: X08-MB

Complete Your Set

Pair it with the Ji Series 5" Butter Knife for spreading at the table, and the Ji Series 8" Chef Knife for the rest of your board work.

Reach for this when you're putting together a cheese board and want to spread cultured butter onto a crispbread without tearing it. A butter knife doesn't need an edge. It needs a shape that spreads and lifts without gouging. This one does all three cleanly.

Built for the Board

The 5-inch blade is wide enough to carry a generous spread of soft cheese or whipped butter in one pass, and rounded enough at the tip to work the edge of a cracker without cracking it. It also handles pate and soft rillettes, anything with the texture of cold butter that a regular knife would drag through instead of spread. The Damascus cladding keeps it matching the rest of your Ji Series set on a table setting.

Ebony Handle, Full-Tang Build

Ebony is a dense, oily hardwood that stays dry and clean-looking after wiping down. The full-tang construction means the blade and handle feel like one piece in your hand, not a blade pushed into a socket. It's a small knife, but it doesn't feel cheap.

Specifications

• Blade Steel: 67-layer Damascus with 12Cr18MoV core
• Hardness: 60-62 HRC (Vacuum Heat Treated)
• Blade Profile: 5-inch butter knife, rounded tip, spreading edge
• Handle: Ebony wood, full-tang
• Use: Spreading cultured butter, soft cheese, pate, and whipped spreads on cheese boards and at the table.
• Series: Ji Series (X08)
• Model: X08-HYD

Complete Your Set

Pair it with the Ji Series 8" Bread Knife for slicing the loaf, and the Ji Series 4" Paring Knife for cutting hard cheeses and fruit alongside your spread.

Reach for this when the cheese board comes out. A standard kitchen knife crushes soft cheeses: the blade sticks to the paste, the slice tears, and the presentation suffers. A dedicated cheese knife is narrower through the blade, lighter in the hand, and takes a thin enough edge to pass cleanly through brie or camembert without dragging the rind along with it.

Built for Soft Cheeses

The 6-inch blade is the right length for a whole wheel or a generous wedge. The core is 12Cr18MoV high-carbon stainless steel, wrapped in 67 layers of Damascus, vacuum heat-treated to 60-62 HRC. That edge holds sharp enough to cut cleanly through soft paste without compression, which is what makes the difference between a clean slice and a smear. The flowing Damascus pattern looks at home on a board beside a good shiraz.

Ebony Handle, Full-Tang Build

Ebony is a dense, oily hardwood that cleans easily when soft cheese gets into the handle. The full-tang construction keeps the balance even for a lighter blade, so the knife doesn't feel awkward in the hand when you're working at a low angle across a board. It's a knife you'll leave out rather than put away.

Specifications

• Blade Steel: 67-layer Damascus with 12Cr18MoV core
• Hardness: 60-62 HRC (Vacuum Heat Treated)
• Blade Profile: 6-inch cheese knife
• Handle: Ebony wood, full-tang
• Use: Slicing soft cheeses like brie and camembert, serving wedges at the board without tearing the paste.
• Series: Ji Series (X08)
• Model: X08-ZS

Complete Your Set

Pair it with the Ji Series 8" Chef Knife for the kitchen prep and the Ji Series 5" Steak Knife for at-table cutting, so the Ji Series covers the meal from start to finish.

Reach for this when you've pulled a leg of lamb out of the oven and need to lift each slice cleanly onto the plate without it falling apart. A carving fork does one thing: holds the roast still while you cut. Two sharp tines in the right place mean you're not chasing the meat across the board while the guests are waiting.

Control While You Carve

The tines are long enough to anchor a full chicken or a roast pork shoulder without slipping, and spaced to give you a stable hold without tearing the meat. The ebony handle sits at the same level as the rest of the Ji Series so it pairs cleanly with your carving knife when you're presenting at the table. It's a tool, not decoration, but it doesn't look out of place either.

Ebony Handle, Full-Tang Build

Ebony is a dense, oily hardwood that stays dry-feeling even with roast juices running down the handle. The full-tang construction means the tines are part of one continuous piece of steel, so there's no flex point where the fork meets the handle. You get the force you need without anything shifting in your grip.

Specifications

• Blade Steel: 67-layer Damascus with 12Cr18MoV core
• Hardness: 60-62 HRC (Vacuum Heat Treated)
• Blade Profile: 6-inch carving fork, two-tine
• Handle: Ebony wood, full-tang
• Use: Anchoring roasts while carving, steadying whole chickens and pork shoulders at the table or on the board.
• Series: Ji Series (X08)
• Model: X08-DRC

Complete Your Set

Pair it with the Ji Series 8" Chef Knife for the carving itself, and the Ji Series 7" Santoku if you prefer a shorter blade for slicing at the table.

Reach for this when you want a blade that does the work of a chef knife but sits differently in the hand. The Viking profile is wider at the belly and heavier through the spine than a standard kitchen knife. It's designed for outdoor prep, camp cooking, or anyone who wants more substance under the grip when they're working through dense vegetables or breaking apart a rack of ribs.

The Viking Profile

The 7.5-inch blade has more height through the midsection than a chef knife and a straighter edge geometry closer to a cleaver than a French curve. That width gives you knuckle clearance on the board without lifting your grip, and the spine thickness means it won't flex when you're pushing through a dense squash or a thick-cut pork belly. The core is 12Cr18MoV high-carbon stainless steel, wrapped in 67 layers of Damascus, vacuum heat-treated to 60-62 HRC. The edge holds through heavy work that would dull a thinner blade faster.

Ebony Handle, Full-Tang Build

Ebony is a dense, oily hardwood that grips well even in wet outdoor conditions. The handle is proportioned to suit a fuller grip rather than a pinch, which matches how most people hold a wider blade naturally. Full-tang through to the butt, so the balance sits deep in the hand where you want it when you're working with more force than usual.

Specifications

• Blade Steel: 67-layer Damascus with 12Cr18MoV core
• Hardness: 60-62 HRC (Vacuum Heat Treated)
• Blade Profile: 7.5-inch Viking knife, broad belly, heavier spine
• Handle: Ebony wood, full-tang
• Use: Dense vegetable prep, outdoor cooking, camp meals, and any task where extra blade height and weight work in your favour.
• Series: Ji Series (X08)
• Model: X08-WD

Complete Your Set

Pair it with the Ji Series 8" Chef Knife for everyday kitchen prep, and the Ji Series 4" Paring Knife for the fine work this blade is too broad for.

Reach for this when you're breaking down a whole napa cabbage or slicing a block of firm tofu into planks. The Chinese cleaver's wide rectangular blade lets you scoop ingredients off the board straight into the wok without touching anything else. It looks heavy-handed until you pick it up. Then you realise how much work one blade can do.

The Rectangular Blade Advantage

The core is 12Cr18MoV high-carbon stainless steel, wrapped in 67 layers of Damascus. Vacuum heat-treated to 60-62 HRC, the edge holds through extended vegetable sessions that would dull a softer blade mid-prep. The broad flat of the blade also works as a bench scraper or a meat tenderiser in a pinch, and the spine is wide enough to use for crushing garlic.

Ebony Handle, Full-Tang Build

Ebony is a dense, oily hardwood that doesn't absorb moisture or stain over time. The handle is set deep into the steel, with the full tang running tip to butt so the weight sits behind your grip where it counts. It's balanced closer to the heel than most Western cleavers, which makes it more nimble than it looks on the board.

Specifications

• Blade Steel: 67-layer Damascus with 12Cr18MoV core
• Hardness: 60-62 HRC (Vacuum Heat Treated)
• Blade Profile: 7-inch Chinese cleaver, rectangular blade
• Handle: Ebony wood, full-tang
• Use: Breaking down brassicas, slicing tofu, scooping chopped ingredients, and crushing garlic with the spine.
• Series: Ji Series (X08)
• Model: X08-DC

Complete Your Set

Pair it with the Ji Series 8" Chef Knife for rock-chop tasks and proteins where a curved belly is faster, and the Ji Series 4" Paring Knife for anything too small to bring to a full board.

Reach for this when you've got a shallot to split lengthways and a carrot to chop into rounds without rocking the blade. The Bunka's reverse-tanto tip gives you a pointed end for detail work, but the flat heel keeps contact with the board all the way through the stroke. It's a different motion to a chef knife, and once you're used to it you won't go back for vegetable prep.

Damascus Steel Performance

The core is 12Cr18MoV high-carbon stainless steel, wrapped in 67 layers of Damascus. Vacuum heat-treated to 60-62 HRC, it takes a keen edge and holds it through a full session of chopping. The layered cladding also helps resist chipping on denser produce like raw beetroot or sweet potato.

Ebony Handle, Full-Tang Build

Ebony is a dense, oily hardwood that doesn't swell or stain the way cheaper timbers do. The handle sits low in the hand with a clean, minimalist profile. One solid piece of steel runs from tip to butt, so the weight sits right on your pinch grip where you want it.

Specifications

• Blade Steel: 67-layer Damascus with 12Cr18MoV core
• Hardness: 60-62 HRC (Vacuum Heat Treated)
• Blade Profile: 8-inch Bunka knife, reverse-tanto tip with flat heel
• Handle: Ebony wood, full-tang
• Weight: 400g
• Use: Push-cutting vegetables, shallots, and root produce where a flat heel matters more than a rocking chef's curve.
• Series: Ji Series (X08)
• Model: X08-QF

Complete Your Set

Pair it with the Ji Series 8" Chef Knife for the rock-chop tasks where a curved belly helps, and the Ji Series 4" Paring Knife for anything too small to bring to the board.

Reach for this when you're working through zucchini coins or radish sliced paper-thin. The Santoku's push-cut profile suits vegetables that need a clean pass down, not a rock across the board. A julienned capsicum takes two minutes. You'll move faster, and the cuts will be more even.

The Push-Cut Specialist

The core is 12Cr18MoV high-carbon stainless steel, wrapped in 67 layers of Damascus. Vacuum heat-treated to 60-62 HRC, the edge stays sharp across a full session of slicing. The shorter blade length means less weight out front, so it's easier to keep your grip consistent through a long veg prep.

Ebony Handle, Full-Tang Build

Ebony is a dense, oily hardwood that resists moisture and doesn't shift colour over time. The handle sits low in the hand with a clean profile that won't fatigue your grip mid-prep. One solid piece of steel runs tip to butt, balancing the knife right at your pinch point.

Specifications

• Blade Steel: 67-layer Damascus with 12Cr18MoV core
• Hardness: 60-62 HRC (Vacuum Heat Treated)
• Blade Profile: 7-inch Santoku, push-cut profile
• Handle: Ebony wood, full-tang
• Weight: 384g
• Use: Push-cutting vegetables, zucchini coins, capsicum dice, and delicate radish slices.
• Series: Ji Series (X08)
• Model: X08-RS

Complete Your Set

Pair it with the Ji Series 8" Chef Knife for rock-chopping herbs and breaking down larger produce, and the Ji Series 5" Utility Knife for the trimming jobs that fall between the two.

Reach for this when you're breaking down a whole snapper or skinning a salmon fillet. Run the blade between a fish frame and the flesh and it follows the bone instead of fighting it. A fillet knife needs to flex without wandering, and this one does. The narrow blade bends into the contour of the fish and stays on track instead of fighting you.

Flexible Fish Specialist

The core is 12Cr18MoV high-carbon stainless steel, wrapped in 67 layers of Damascus. Vacuum heat-treated to 60-62 HRC, it holds an edge sharp enough to feel every pin bone while you work. At 334g it's light enough to keep control through a long filleting session without your wrist tiring before the fish does.

Ebony Handle, Full-Tang Build

Ebony is a dense, oily hardwood that stays non-slip even when your hands are wet from fish. The handle tapers cleanly toward the blade, keeping the centre of gravity close to where you're gripping. Full-tang construction means there's no flex point at the bolster where cheaper fillet knives tend to fail under repeated use.

Specifications

• Blade Steel: 67-layer Damascus with 12Cr18MoV core
• Hardness: 60-62 HRC (Vacuum Heat Treated)
• Blade Profile: 7-inch fillet knife, narrow flexible blade
• Handle: Ebony wood, full-tang
• Weight: 334g
• Use: Breaking down whole fish, skinning salmon fillets, and any protein work where you need a blade that bends with the bone.
• Series: Ji Series (X08)
• Model: X08-YD

Complete Your Set

Pair it with the Ji Series 8" Chef Knife for portioning and board work after the fish is broken down, and the Ji Series 4" Paring Knife for pin-boning and fine trimming.

Reach for this before you reach for the whetstone. A honing rod doesn't remove steel; it realigns the edge that's folded over from ordinary use. Five or six passes before a prep session and your Ji Series knife cuts the way it did the week you bought it.

Maintain the Edge You Already Have

Your Damascus blade's edge doesn't go dull so much as it goes sideways. Microscopic bends accumulate with every session on the board, and that's what makes the knife push food instead of slicing through it. Running the rod along the edge a few times straightens it back without thinning the steel the way a stone does. Do it regularly and your stone sessions become a quarterly event instead of a weekly one.

Specifications

• Use: Honing and edge realignment for Ji Series knives between whetstone sharpening sessions.
• Series: Ji Series (X08)
• Model: X08-MDB