GOU 101 LAYERS Blade: The blade has an extremely sharp cutting edge. It is made up of Japanese SG2 Micro Carbide powder stainless steel, which is enveloped by 50 layers on each side with soft and hard stainless steel. This powdered steel contains a lot of carbon and has an unprecedented hardness of approximately 63 Rockwell. Powdered steel is used because it ensures a high degree of purity and strength. The resulting blade is extremely hard, ensuring an exceptionally sharp cutting edge. The surface impresses with a fascinating Damascus design pattern - a symbol of the highest quality knife and its signature, GOU 101 layers. Handle The handle is made out of FDA-approved black Canvas-Micarta, which is an odorless and enormously durable material made of resin and linen. The canvas material is dyed black and brilliantly finished. The inner handle is a solid forged 18-10 stainless ingot that has been welded onto the multi-layered steel blade. The welded junction is invisible, and as strong as the material itself. Yaxell is unique in the use of this super strong handle construction. The trade mark GOU is engraved on the grip end in a noble style.