KISEKI Knife: What Cemented Carbide Is and How It Compares with Steel
KISEKI is a Japanese kitchen knife with a blade of cemented carbide instead of steel, made by Fukuda Hamono Kogyo in Seki. Cemented carbide resists wear better than typical knife steel, which helps a thin edge keep slicing longer; in exchange it is less tough (less resistant to chipping and cracking), and it is sharpened on diamond stones.
This guide explains what the material does, what has been published about KISEKI, and how carbide and steel differ, so you can decide which suits your cooking. ZAKU does not sell carbide knives, so everything here comes from the sources we link.
Written by ZAKU Knives, a knife retailer. ZAKU is not affiliated with or endorsed by the businesses named here. Last fact-checked: 13 November 2026.
What is cemented carbide?
Cemented carbide is grains of tungsten carbide held together by a small amount of metal binder, usually cobalt. Machine shops use it for cutting tools because it resists wear so well.
Knife Steel Nerds, a knife-steel research site, describes cemented carbide as high in hardness and wear resistance. It also says the toughness is low compared with typical steel and that sharpening is likely to be hard.
What is the KISEKI knife?
KISEKI is a range of cemented carbide kitchen knives from Fukuda Hamono Kogyo in Seki, Gifu. The company was founded in 1896 and made its name with industrial blades that cut banknotes and magazines.
President Online reported in September 2026 that KISEKI was the first cemented carbide kitchen knife made in Japan. Its blade is 1.2 mm thick, thinner than a typical kitchen knife, with a low-friction shape designed to slide through food while crushing as little of it as possible. President Online names this sharpness as the main reason for its popularity. The knife was first sold through a crowdfunding campaign in November 2022.
What else has been published:
- Retailer listings include a santoku (an all-purpose knife) and a petty knife (a small knife for fruit and fine work), plus a dedicated KISEKI diamond whetstone.
- President Online reported ¥34,650 per knife, a rise to ¥49,500 announced on 1 June 2026 because of raw-material costs, and waits of up to one year and eight months.
- On 4 December 2025 the company won the grand prize (1st place) at the 24th Chubu Science and Technology Center awards, for developing KISEKI and setting up its mass production, and the Chunichi Shimbun Prize at the 39th Chunichi Industrial Technology Awards, according to Gifu Prefecture.
How is a carbide knife different from a steel knife?
Each material gives up something. Carbide's wear resistance keeps an edge slicing for a long time, and its lower toughness means the edge should not be twisted in a cut or used on bone.
Steel is generally tougher and easier to sharpen on ordinary water stones, though it tends to need sharpening more often. How long any edge lasts also depends on its geometry and how the knife is used.
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| Cemented carbide | Japanese knife steel (VG10, SG2, Blue Steel #2) | |
|---|---|---|
| Wear resistance | Very high | High; varies by steel |
| Toughness | Lower than typical steel | Higher; varies by steel and hardness |
| Sharpening | Diamond or CBN (cubic boron nitride) stones expected | Ordinary water stones |
| Corrosion | Does not rust like steel, but the metal binder can corrode; some grades use a nickel binder or add chromium carbide to resist it | VG10 and SG2 are stainless; Blue Steel #2 is carbon steel and rusts if left wet |
How do you sharpen a carbide knife?
Expect to need diamond or CBN stones. Knife Steel Nerds expects carbide to require them because it is so hard, though it did not test KISEKI.
Retailers list a dedicated KISEKI diamond whetstone, so follow the maker's sharpening instructions.
Who is a carbide knife for?
A carbide knife suits a cook who wants an edge that lasts between sharpenings and is happy to use a diamond stone. A steel knife suits a cook who wants to sharpen on ordinary water stones.
Whichever you choose, keep a thin, hard blade away from bone and frozen food and do not twist it in a cut: hard Japanese steels such as VG10 and SG2 can chip that way too.
Does ZAKU sell KISEKI or carbide knives?
No. None of our knives has a carbide blade (catalogue checked 13 November 2026).
Our knives use steels such as SG2, VG10 and Blue Steel #2, listed under stainless knives and carbon knives. Our guide to Japanese knife steels explains how those steels differ, and how to sharpen a knife on a whetstone covers water stones. Steel knives are out for test cutting at our four stores in Tokyo and Kyoto.
Frequently asked questions
Is a KISEKI knife worth it?
That depends on what you want from a knife. KISEKI offers a very thin, wear-resistant carbide blade from a maker that won a regional science and technology award for developing it. Weigh that against the price and the wait of up to one year and eight months that President Online reported, and plan to sharpen it on a diamond stone.
Where can I buy a KISEKI knife?
From the maker and its retail partners; ZAKU does not sell it. Check the current price before you order, because President Online reported a price rise announced in June 2026.
Is tungsten carbide the same as cemented carbide?
Not quite. Tungsten carbide is the hard grain; cemented carbide is those grains bound with a metal such as cobalt. Knife listings often shorten cemented carbide to "tungsten carbide" or just "carbide".