Sam’s life is on a sailboat.
It’s a 1976 Transpac 49 Ketch, called Havili. He sails across the Pacific Ocean, enjoys diving with sea lions, dolphins, and even whales. Sam fishes, fillets, and cooks his catches himself. Look, how big they are!
To fillet them, Sam needs an extra-sharp single-bevel Deba knife Because he’s a lefty, we built a special left-handed Deba knife We even hammered in his name in Japanese characters.
A custom made treasure!
It's impossible not to notice how high quality this knife is, from the surface finish, to the strong magnolia handle, perfect balance, concave blade, and the thick heel, this knife becomes an extension of your body. I use it for all fish cleaning and butchering tasks aboard Havili, be it a 4" sardine or 7 foot long sailfish. This knife sharpens quickly to razor-quality and easily slices paper with no tearing. I use a 1000/6000 KDS water stone to keep it in top condition, and about a 60 degree single bevel edge so that I can cut through thick bones. Since I use this knife on a sailboat and around salt water, I simply rinse, dry, and oil after each use, and the blade has taken a beautiful patina over the years. The saya is perfect for both storage and traveling with the knife. I even use it to protect the blade when taking the knife above deck, as it is much safer to move with the perfectly fitting saya in place.
Sam Whittemore
Unfortunately, his left-handed Deba got knocked into the ocean so, he got another one. It's a 210mm left-handed Deba Knife with white steel as well. This time, he engraved the knife with "サム 復活" which means Samu's return/comeback.
Sam enjoys our Gyuto knife for general purposes, too.
Four years and going strong!
I've used this knife daily on my sailboat for the past 4 years and it never fails to please whoever is using or looking at it! The VG-10 edge is easy to sharpen but rarely needs to be maintained - just a rinse after use is sufficient. I cut everything with this knife - fish, octopus, boneless meat, vegetables, herbs, spices, and occasionally even a piece of rope that needs a clean cut. I love it so much that I got the ZA-18 version for friends as a wedding present, and they love it! The wooden saya is a must have as it makes it easy and safe to transport the knife, so you don't have to be without it at your next barbeque or picnic!
Sam Whittemore
You can join his amazing life on his Instagram channel here:
HAVILI (@sv_havili)
And also see Ski Bums to Sea Legs’ Documentation of Havili’s first Pacific Crossing here:
SKI BUMS TO SEA LEGS
Get to know him more in this video:
