Anyone tried the JCK Fu Rin Ka Zan series?

Need to replace my petty (second that's gone missing in this job :angry1: ), was looking for something in carbon, about 150mm, don't care about whether is wa or yo just so long as the handle is a reasonable size. I'm a fan of white 2 and I've been keen to check out white 1 for a while so this series seemed like a cheap way to try it out.

It's going to be used for topping shitloads of garlic, peeling heaps of ginger and cutting raw meat on the line.

Open to all other suggestions. I'll say my budget is about $150, though I may stretch it if I'm particularly taken by anything.

I'm also looking at grabbing a saya for my Masamoto KS gyuto, so it's convenient to order from JCK but not essential.

Thanks in advance,
Josh

I have the Fu Rin Ka Zan 150mm Petty in clad White #1 thinner profile and find it quite a nice knife. The FF wasn't all it could have been and there was a distinct bias in the bevel which I'm slowly correcting (I'm a lefty, it was a righty bias).

I just got a Shig 150mm petty as well and was cutting various things with both of them tonight (plus a KS) for comparison/trials. So I'll do a very entry level (I'm a home cook, and not fantastic at it!) comparison between to two.

Shig blade FF is miles ahead of the FuRinKaZan
FuRinKaZan felt sharper than the Shig (though I've spent a lot of time playing around with bevels/thinning on the FuRinKaZan)
Slightly more sticktion on the FuRinKaZan
A lots less reaction on the exposed bits of the FuRinKaZan
FuRinKaZan is a lot lighter

As I mentioned above I have spent quite a while playing around with stones/sandpaper on the FuRinKaZan so it's quite a bit different to when I initially got it. It is a nice knife to use though but I haven't used the Shig enough yet to decide which one I like better. At first it was quite chippy but after a few decent sessions on the stones that has stopped and it instead gets mental sharp. Like I said I'm a home cook with not a lot of volume so I'm not the best to comment on edge retention but for my usage it seems fine.

There didn't seem to be much taper from handle to tip (I think there's a name for this dimension) but most of that is the cladding which I believe is a soft SS so it comes away easy enough.

I use it for garlic and ginger a lot too (oddly) and it is quite nimble for the task though the profile of the cutting edge took me a while to get used to (could be my horrible technique) so often I would have incomplete cuts. It works quite well for trimming meats/chicken, at least I find.

Handle is standard ho octagonal and not the highest of quality, in fact I think mine has a bit of a twist in it. I still find it quite comfortable to hold.

Like I've said I'm far from pro or even good amateur but those are my several cents on the knife.

My old boss had one that I got to play with. It took a great edge, that touched up v.well, but I found t to be quite thick, with out great convexing to pull it off. Perhaps the thinner model is better. Handle was a bit rough and I don't like nashiji finishes, but maybe I'm biased. It was also a pleasure to sharpen.

I probably wouldn't buy one.

Cheers for the feedback guys, very helpful.

How do you find the KS petty, Xhills? Was considering that as well, just to compliment the gyuto. Only concern was with the handle, I find the handle on the KS gyuto far too skinny, but I love the steel.

Edge retention and sticktion aren't a big concern, as I mentioned, the majority of it's use will be in-hand cutting and pretty much the only thing it'll be on the boards for is trimming meat.

Reckon it's worth the $? Was considering just being cheap and buying a Carbonext, Kanetsugu or Fujiwara. Or maybe a sugimoto just cause I'm a bit of a fanboy for their products :surrendar:

Thanks again,
Josh

JKerr said:

How do you find the KS petty, Xhills?

Click to expand...

Oops no KS petty sorry, I wasn't really clear. KS is the 240(255) gyuto.

I can't really tell you if it's worth the $ but to me I was interested in trying White #1 and it fit the size shape requirements of a German SS utility knife that I used on occasions and wanted to replace.

I'm not really adept enough at using it for in-hand cutting (reckon I'd do myself a mischief) but if it's not hitting the board I imagine the edge would hang around for ages.

As Dusty mentioned it is pretty fat and the profile, at first, is not ideal.

I can't speak for any of the other makes you've mentioned as I'm yet to try any of them.

KS 4216 without saya is available cheaply here, Josh : http://global.rakuten.com/en/store/yamakawa/item/masamoto-ks4216/

Have you received the new cleaver yet?

Cheers for the heads up Schanop. Mighty tempting, he had a few other items in stock I was considering....

As for the cleaver, unfortunately I was working during the day and missed the delivery and what with the long weekend it looks like tues/wed before I'll receive it. Still, 3-4 days from Denmark, hats of to Maxim.

Depending on what you're cutting, I'd grab the Fujiwara FKH petty and run! Especially if they keep going missing at work.

Is the FKH better than the FKM series, or are you suggesting that only because the OP wanted carbon?

I've only used the carbon, as far as I can remember, and I don't like recommending knives I'm not truly familiar with. But, the FKM would also get my recommendation, based on my experience with the FKH.

A good point of reference for my rec is that I have used/sold/handled/still own a pretty ridiculous collection of knives and my FKH petty will never leave my kitchen.

Carter4.8 sun kuro uchi funyuki....with newsletter discount, under your price point. These smaller Carters are killer!

Now that's a good call.

Lefty said:

I've only used the carbon, as far as I can remember, and I don't like recommending knives I'm not truly familiar with. But, the FKM would also get my recommendation, based on my experience with the FKH.

A good point of reference for my rec is that I have used/sold/handled/still own a pretty ridiculous collection of knives and my FKH petty will never leave my kitchen.

Click to expand...

What are the reasons it will never leave? How reactive is it?

NO ChoP! said:

Carter4.8 sun kuro uchi funyuki....with newsletter discount, under your price point. These smaller Carters are killer!

Click to expand...

I'm on the market for a shorter petty too, and had been thinking of a stainless Ginga as I was concerned about citrus fruit (I'm only a home cook though). But these Carters do look interesting.
Do you guys know how reactive they are, and whether kurouchi or migaki is less reactive?

perneto said:

I'm on the market for a shorter petty too, and had been thinking of a stainless Ginga as I was concerned about citrus fruit (I'm only a home cook though). But these Carters do look interesting.
Do you guys know how reactive they are, and whether kurouchi or migaki is less reactive?

Click to expand...

Honestly, don't fret about carbon's reactivity. Unless you are incredibly careless and you just remember to wipe it after use you will never have a problem with carbon. Now the benefits of carbon typically far outweigh that of stainless unless you are going for top dollar, specially heat treated customs.