Japanese kitchen knives are rich in variety such as Nakiri or Usuba Knives for cutting vegetables, Yanagiba or Takohiki Knives for sashimi, Deba Knives for raw fish, and Santoku Knives for anything. Although kitchen knives are used everywhere in the world, Japanese ones feature their wide variety.

This time we would like to tell you about “Machi”, a joint of blade of Japanese knives.

What is Machi?

Machi is a joint or gap between the blade and handle.

Some knives have Machi and others don’t. For this reason, some people often mistake Machi as a design flaw or think the blade isn’t properly connected to the handle. However, Machi is not a design flaw at all, and it plays an important role.

Features of Japanese Knives

First of all, blade and handle are separate on Japanese knives while they are integrated in western knives. So, we can take good care of each.

Basically, a blade is inserted into handle, and Machi plays an important role.

The Role of Machi

In fact, Match is made to adjust the length from handle to blade. If there isn’t Machi, the blade would go further into the handle over time. Machi enables appropriate length adjustment between handle and blade.

Machi can be completely tucked in the handle if there is no problem in use, and there wouldn’t be a problem unless you have such a big hand.

On the other hand, the blade can be pulled out of the handle, if you want more space there for comfort in use.

Yet, for either way, adjustment should be conducted by professionals in order to not harm the blade. If you do it by yourself, make sure to wrap the blade with a cloth and fix it in a vise firmly, and gently hit the handle with a wooden hammer.

Machi is an essential part of Japanese knives.

There are many knives with no Machi, but it is often seen in Yanagiba or Usuba Knives. In terms of structure, Machi is an essential part, and because of Machi, we can adjust the knives to fit in hand more comfortably.

Learning about Machi might enable you to handle Japanese knives better.