This is my first knife modification post, and I don't know how often I'll get to post, but I have been having a little bit of fun with one of my new knives and kind of wanted to share.
I recently ordered a pair of Zakuri knives: a Tosagata bocho 165mm and a funayuki 135mm. I was going to order through JKI and ask Jon to clean up the edges if possible, but the shipping cost was a bit too extreme for me, so I had to go through a Japanese vendor instead. Good price, but no customization.
Anyway, I received them not long ago and failed to fall in love. I mean, they have really nice profiles that are almost exactly what I want, but the rough sharp edges and the kind of gritty-feeling bead blasted finish on the bevel were a bit disappointing, and the funayuki had some grind inconsistency that left a slightly uneven edge. Unlike most folks, I didn't really think the handles were a problem.
So today I had some rare spare time and decided to play a bit with the funayuki since it was cheaper and I wouldn't be devastated if I ruined it.
The main difference one can notice is the bevel has been (mostly) flattened. I'm not a polisher and don't have the right stuff to do a really cool polish with, but you can see it's a lot nicer than the bead blasting on the Tosagata:
The opposite side had pretty significant convexing of the edge, so I decided to preserve some of that. After I worked the edge to be relatively clean and even (I may have put a minor bird's beak on, but it'll come off soon), I decided to give the choil a bit of a softening:
It isn't super polished, but it feels smooth to the fingers and quite comfy. Last thing to do for now was soften the spine a bit to make it more cozy in a pinch grip. Again, not super-refined, but the Zakuri is not a super-refined kind of blade.
I don't have plans to replace the handle myself in the near future, but it might happen sometime. After sharpening a little, this funayuki is now one of my sharpest knives with a really thin grind, and I have to say now I'd be a bit bummed if this knife disappeared or got damaged.
I know it's not all that impressive, but I just wanted to share since I'm quite happy with the improvement so far.
I recently ordered a pair of Zakuri knives: a Tosagata bocho 165mm and a funayuki 135mm. I was going to order through JKI and ask Jon to clean up the edges if possible, but the shipping cost was a bit too extreme for me, so I had to go through a Japanese vendor instead. Good price, but no customization.
Anyway, I received them not long ago and failed to fall in love. I mean, they have really nice profiles that are almost exactly what I want, but the rough sharp edges and the kind of gritty-feeling bead blasted finish on the bevel were a bit disappointing, and the funayuki had some grind inconsistency that left a slightly uneven edge. Unlike most folks, I didn't really think the handles were a problem.
So today I had some rare spare time and decided to play a bit with the funayuki since it was cheaper and I wouldn't be devastated if I ruined it.
The main difference one can notice is the bevel has been (mostly) flattened. I'm not a polisher and don't have the right stuff to do a really cool polish with, but you can see it's a lot nicer than the bead blasting on the Tosagata:
The opposite side had pretty significant convexing of the edge, so I decided to preserve some of that. After I worked the edge to be relatively clean and even (I may have put a minor bird's beak on, but it'll come off soon), I decided to give the choil a bit of a softening:
It isn't super polished, but it feels smooth to the fingers and quite comfy. Last thing to do for now was soften the spine a bit to make it more cozy in a pinch grip. Again, not super-refined, but the Zakuri is not a super-refined kind of blade.
I don't have plans to replace the handle myself in the near future, but it might happen sometime. After sharpening a little, this funayuki is now one of my sharpest knives with a really thin grind, and I have to say now I'd be a bit bummed if this knife disappeared or got damaged.
I know it's not all that impressive, but I just wanted to share since I'm quite happy with the improvement so far.