Choosing the right carbon santoku

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boavista

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Hello there !
I am new to the forum and decided to register after reading lots of top information and reviews.

I am a home cook, already enjoying an hiromoto AS Gyuto (small one, 21 cm), an Ichimonji TKC sujihiki (great!), a Fujiwara S/S nakiri (do not remind the line) and a Lion Sabatier Chef.
I would like to add a santoku as a general purpose knife that will be used often by my wife and from time to time by parents and friends on special cooking occasions.
I would opt for a knife that is easy to sharpen, keep its edge, does not chip.
I don't like much damascus knives or hammered ones.
Rust resistance is an important point since i won't be the only user of the knife: over reactive knives may be a problem.
Wa handles or western are either OK.
I would like to keep the budget under $ 130.
Also i would like to buy from JCK which is a vendor with cheap delivery to France ($7).

Among knives i am interested in:

- Mizuno Akitada Hontanren, White Steel #2, either in 16,5 or 18 cm (i do not know if it's cladded, i would prefer not)
- Misono Sweden (this one is reputed to be very reactive and requiring extra care)
- Hiromoto AS with S/S cladding
- Masamoto CT (but overpriced, even if i read good reviews)

Or should i pick a stainless from these ones ?
- Masamoto VG
- Hiromoto G3

Would you have experience with the above knives ? For exemple, is White Steel (in the Mizuno) as reactive as the Sweden in Misono knives ?
I would really appreciate your input and experience to pick the right knife.
 
If carbon was fine I'd go with the Mizuno. I've used a 165 and they're a great knife, although i can't really speak to edge retention or reactivity compared to the misono swedish. I can tell you that they take an extremely fine edge very easily. Its nice and thin, cuts very well and I like wa-santoku.

If stain resistance is important I'd choose the Hiromoto AS. The 190 is a touch beefy, but a is solid knife. It will be a bit thicker than the 210 gyuto.
 
Masahiro Carbon 175mm santoku gets very very sharp and is not all that reactive, quickly forms a stable patina. Very good fit and finish (better than CT or AS). Great edge retention and does not chip easily. An excellent value. Can order thru JCK or BWJ among others. I have had mine for years and love it.

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Thank you Dusty and Seb

Dusty: is the mizuno cladded or fortunately not ? Does it build a stable patina ?

Seb: the masahiro carbon also looks very interesting, efficient and simple to care.
I haven't seen it on JCK pages but i may ask Koki by mail for the price.
By the way could you just remind me who/what is BWJ ? (sorry to ask )
 
Welcome to KKF!

Since you like your Ichimonji TKC, perhaps a CarboNext santoku from JCK would be a good fit? The steels are virtually identical, and all you'd need to do is smooth the spine and choil area.

Rick
 
You are welcome! :)

BWJ = Bluewayjapan on eBay.

Koki doesn't advertise Masahiro but he has always sold them. You can ask him by email.
 
Mizuno runs short and have fairly reactive cladding. Fit and finish on the handles is not great. Other than that it gets really sharp but came with a crappy edge.
 
I really like my Hiro AS santoku. I prefer the extra length, and mine is quite thin. Mine is not "beefy" at all. Does well head to head with Kono HD gyuto.

Sounds like you have some other good options there as well (but I don't know about those knives, so can't comment on them.
 
Todd is perfectly right about the Hiromoto Santoku. They used to be rather beefy, indeed, until recently geometry got changed.
 
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