Japanese Spear Point Marking Knife
I managed to injure my right foot and wind up stomping around in a moon boot, so shop time has been very limited for the last week. Having nothing very interesting to write about, I thought I would recommend a relatively recent tool I picked up and have come to love.
The Ikeuchi Shirabiki V pointed Japanese marking knife is a joy to use. It comes extremely sharp and needs no honing to put it to work. It is hollow ground at the back, making it very fast to re-sharpen. There is no lengthy process of flattening, but it still provides a great reference surface.
The knife is a single bevelled spearpoint, making it very easy to mark in either direction. Its sharp and flat enough that I often found myself using it as a paring chisel where it performed admirably. If you are in the market for a marking knife, its worth considering. While some might not like the absence of a handle, with one, the paring functionality would be greatly reduced. I can drop it down in the middle of a board and pare off anything I need to. It’s just as good as having a cranked chisel.
Until I sat down to write a recommendation, I didn’t know who actually made it. It appears these knifes are made by a family of Japanese blacksmiths. From Workshop Heaven: “The maker Ikeuchi Hamono was founded in 1953 by Shozo Ikeuchi, who at the age of 12 became a disciple to a master Swordsmith serving an 8 year apprenticeship before setting up on his own. The company now has three generations of family members working together to produce beautiful quality cutting implements, either as one-off commissions or small batch handmade production.”
Its made of a lamination of blue steel Aogami and soft steel. I picked mine up on a whim in the carpentry store in Ireland (https://www.thecarpentrystore.com/), but they seem to be very widely available.
Here are a few links to find it. Its available in many more places, but often without the makers name. Search for Japanese V or Spear point marking knife in your retailer of choice, and there is a good chance they have it.
https://www.workshopheaven.com/kensaki-shiribiki-marking-knife-15mm/
https://www.finetools.com.au/products/japanese-v-pointed-marking-knife
This Lee Valley Knife looks like it might be the same one, but its hard to be sure. https://www.leevalley.com/en-gb/shop/tools/hand-tools/marking-and-measuring/marking-tools/110953-japanese-spear-point-marking-knife?item=60N0704
