Shigfusa sickness...

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I was thinking that maybe we need to start a sub forum for people that own shigefusa knives?

I don't own one and because I so tired of seeing others spank themselves with them on the forum, I don't want one either.

Wonderful that they are ground well, uber steel yada yada yada. I'm just saying not everyone shares this passion to go home each night and make love to them. Just saying that perhaps you should consolidate your reverence into one forum.

Am I the only one that feels this way?
 
I have the sickness although I am content with my one gyuto. I will say that I've noticed a huge increase in the amount of Shig's on the B/S/T forum as of late.
 
Nah - I'd suggest turning your suggestion around and creating a sub forum for those who don't like Shigefusa. It'd be easier to manage and make more sense, as it'd be a minority. You could get together and moan about those lucky guys with their nice knives. ;)
 
Nah - I'd suggest turning your suggestion around and creating a sub forum for those who don't like Shigefusa. It'd be easier to manage and make more sense, as it'd be a minority. You could get together and moan about those lucky guys with their nice knives. ;)

+1

It's cyclical. Shigs are hot at the moment, (a) because they're great knives, (b) because he seems to be making more of them, and (c) because Maxim is a great dealer. But a while ago it was Heijis, then Katos, and a few months from now it might be honyakis. Who knows?
 
I bought a Shig from Maxim last year. I let it sit in its box for a couple of months without ever using it and then sold it. It was like my personal "Holy Grail" knife acquisition. Thing was, I also purchased a DT san mai gyuto with his so called "Spicy White" steel a short time earlier. I was pretty sure then as I still am today there aren't any knives for me that are any better than one of DT's handcrafted knives.
 
Believe me, i'm passionate about my knives too and don't want to be a party pooper, but Jezz-a-fusa?

Thank goodness we finally cleared this up; it's only Bocho knives we can be passionate about. Whew...
 
I was pretty sure then as I still am today there aren't any knives for me that are any better than one of DT's handcrafted knives.

+10, I will never part with my dt mystery san mai.
 
Shig's are not hot at the moment, they have been hot for many years, as long as I've been around here and the other forum. This thread reminds me of similar Kramers threads. They are not magical, but considered some of the best achievable knife you can get. And they are made by a master japanese man (and sons), known for their focus on perfection, by hand. I'm not speaking of the Kramers, of course.
 
Sill have not gotten to try a Shig, and will oneday...270 gyuto sounds about right.
 
Hmmm, I thought this was a kitchen knife forum...
No offense, but WHY would we start to gripe about other's passion for any specific knife? I'm scratching my head on this one


Oh yeah, I really like my Shig.
 
I no longer have mine, but definitely will replace at some point. Not the biggest fan of the profile, but love the geometry. In fact I have 2 knives on the way and still tempted by Vlad's in B/S/T. :nunchucks:
 
I have also never really heard anyone applaud Shig steel, it's not the greatest steel, but a great knife nonetheless.
 
Hmmm, I thought this was a kitchen knife forum...
No offense, but WHY would we start to gripe about other's passion for any specific knife? I'm scratching my head on this one

:plus1: I've three shig in both kasumi & kitaji. I'm not a big fan of shigefusa's food reactive steel; however, whenever I use my shig, my mind still thinking "wow, this is one great knife"!
 
Ive owned 2 shigs. while i definitely appreciated the craftsmanship and work put into creating these knives i must admit they werent my best performers. But if the right shig at the right price presents itself on BST one day, i might take another chance.
 
To be fair, Shig got his reputation for Japanese style knives i.e. yanigiba. The knives we use, like a gyuto, are used for many acidic foods so it's only fair they would be reactive. He makes these to satisfy the western needs, but that's not his bread & butter. I think if you used the knives he was famous for, you wouldn't have such issues with the steel.
 
I just sharpened mine and now it cuts so smooth that I can see what all the fuss is about. Its very reactive though, gotta force a strong patina and putting on an olivewood handle.
 
hehe now i am very amazed when some say that Shig is very reactive compered to others.
First i have never thought so my self and i used quite many knives and use shigs every day.
Second Shig use same carbon cladding iron as all other blacksmiths. :D

So i dont know if it his polish ? or becose knife not sealed with lacquer like some other blacksmiths do to they carbon knives, Maybe :dontknow:

But anyway i never had a problem with that reactivity and i am NOT the cleanest person. I mean i dont wipe after every cut etc.

Also i did not notice any difference in reactivity between Kitaeji or Kasumi
 
mine seemingly reacts very quickly. i was julienning potato strings with it last night and it started to rust within seconds after putting the knife down. then again i had literally just took a lot of metal off via thinning/sharpening the night before and this was its first use since that point. it smells quite a bit too, but it doesnt rub off on the food smell nor color so that's good.

maxim, quick question, do you think you could draw a picture of the correct tang hole size to do a rehandle of a shig 240 kasumi?
 
They all very quite a lot and i dont have one on me right now :(
 
I will get some tomorrow and will post the size for you :)
 
Shigs react quickly - actually I've always accepted this as a rule, but thinking again I'm not so sure.

Remembering my gyuto, it seemed the case at first. When I thinned and polished again it still seemed reactive, but not really as much as at first. Then soon enough it didn't really become an issue. So in my experience, I'm not sure if it was expectations or reality, but reality didn't seem to be as bad as I'd thought it might.

Maybe it's the reputation, and also the overall feel, but with both my Shigs I've felt a bit more protective, and so maybe more worried about reactivity than I should.
 
Maybe it's the reputation, and also the overall feel, but with both my Shigs I've felt a bit more protective, and so maybe more worried about reactivity than I should.

Yep i think actually the same :D But i might be wrong.
Maybe its how i use them or maybe because i dont use any SS at all but In my experience anyway that they are not more reactive then any other carbon knives
 
hehe now i am very amazed when some say that Shig is very reactive ... dont know if it his polish ?

The polish - that might be a good point.

As you know, Maxim, I have a Kato gyuto and I've polished it. In fact, I've tried to polish off some of the fine grind marks that run from the spine to the edge to give it a bit of a finer finish, and I've found that after it became a bit more reactive even though I hadn't removed any patina.

Also - I can't remember where from - but I recall a video clip where a knife was being finished with a certain pattern of polish, and the idea was that it would be less reactive that way. Wish I could remember more.

At any rate, I haven't seen posts on this in the past so I'm wondering if, regardless of the cladding steel used, if certain polish techniques and fine scratch patterns might affect reactivity in non-obvious ways. Perhaps the Shig polish, as nice as it looks, makes it a bit more prone to react? :scratchhead:
 
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