fancy handle on traditional yanagi

I just use a yanagi as an example.
For traditional J-knives, we often see ebony/ivory(or blonde buffalo ferrule)/ginmaki combination is for true high-end knives. However, what I did not understand well is the price difference between the knife with a fancy handle and a knife from the same line but with a typical magnolia handle; A handle alone should not explain the difference.
Then, the only other difference should be the quality of a blade, right?
Provided two blades are from the same bladesmith, do Japanese brands really try to differentiate the final blade quality by having different handles? or is it just a different scheme of profit max by having a fancier handle on the same quality blades??

I'm seeing it from this perspective: if you want something fancy — you'd be asked to pay premium. Same happens everywhere: cars, clothes, watches, etc.

Also the fancy handle could actually cost a lot. Up to a few hundreds bucks just for the handle. I mean that's a real price if you consider costs of materials and labour.

I should have included a fancy saya as well.

icanhaschzbrgr said:

I'm seeing it from this perspective: if you want something fancy — you'd be asked to pay premium. Same happens everywhere: cars, clothes, watches, etc.

Also the fancy handle could actually cost a lot. Up to a few hundreds bucks just for the handle. I mean that's a real price if you consider costs of materials and labour.

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I appreciate that...but still the difference is sometimes pretty steep.
I am in the camp that does not care much about aesthetic as long as I get a good steel. ^^
So, just wondering if there's actual difference in steel quality.

Orange, can you give an example of wh?
Technically is the knife series is the same, you should be getting same steel/performance. For example AFAIK Konosuke HD2 with ebony handle will perform same as Konosuke HD2 with Ho wood (where HD2 is the "series" of the knives).

Nice hand made ebony handles with silver rings and water buffalo are not usually common on Japanese knives but reserved for the fancy stuff. And yes they do cost a lot of money. Ebony is not cheap.
So that could explain the jump in price. You'd have to provide us with the example example and we could elaborate more.

Usually they won't try to jerk you around in prices by doing a gimmick like that. The brand company might.

Have you got any links of the different versions?

If the difference is over $1000 I'd be curious as to if there were other differences, but a few hundred dollars could easily be attributed to a high end saya and handle. A really good handle made from exotic materials is expensive, as is an exceptional saya and the lacquer work on it.

They would also feel quite different in hand as an ebony handle would be significantly heavier.

If you are going from a pure function standpoint, the fancy handle will not make the knife cut better. More comfortable perhaps. I think the steel and geometry Japanese blades are known for often come with handles that are lesser than the quality of the blade.

It is a personal choice if you want to pay a premium to make a good blade nicer with a custom handle. Icanhaschzbrgr should know the cost of materials & esp. labor nobody is going to get rich making custom knife handles.

I see a lot of text.... Not enough of those... What are they called? Oh yeah.... PHOTOS! :viking:

Without mentioning vendors, if you have checked out some of those high-end nenohi and suisin, you might have noticed some of them are over $5k. How much of it is for a blade??
I understand we can't break it down like that and when we talk about a luxury item pricing is more on perception and scarcity of the item. Having said that, even if the same blade smith makes a knife in the same way, resulting knife quality can vary. So, I am wondering if a sharpener does sorting knives in different quality buckets so that the knife company puts a different quality handle/saya for different pricing.

Having said that, even if the same blade smith makes a knife in the same way, resulting knife quality can vary. So, I am wondering if a sharpener does sorting knives in different quality buckets...

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That's why there are different series of blades. For example, Masamoto KK vs KS.
And you cant compare two different series of knifes just based on the handle/sayas. As you can not compare BMW 320 with BMW M3 based on that one come with leather seats.

For example, to get this suisin inox honyaki with the standard handle is a $600 discount. Is the blade also produced to a higher standard?

Ruso said:

That's why there are different series of blades. For example, Masamoto KK vs KS.
And you cant compare two different series of knifes just based on the handle/sayas. As you can not compare BMW 320 with BMW M3 based on that one come with leather seats.

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I appreciate your point, however, we are not on the same page: My comparison is not for two different series.

eshua said:

For example, to get this suisin inox honyaki with the standard handle is a $600 discount. Is the blade also produced to a higher standard?

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Yes, conceptually this is what I am talking about....for true high-end knives priced over a few thousand dollars.

orange said:

I appreciate your point, however, we are not on the same page: My comparison is not for two different series.

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Technically you should be getting same performance give or take then.
Handles can cost arm and a leg.
The Yanagi example:
"Ebony handle, Silver both wheels handle.
Ebony Saya is a set. It is included in The highest-class wood box. "
I can see that price difference of $600 "justified". Besides the work and the materials you pay for the exclusivity, do not forget.

Back to the car analogy, the more expensive the car gets, the more expensive the retail price o parts is.

The finish of the blade on the fancier version might play a part as well.
I am sure a few of the knife makers would agree that there is quite a bit of time goes into a hand finished blade vs a less refined machine finish.
Last comment,
I am sure some are meant as a limited edition collectible. Not something for someone who wants to use it as a work horse type tool.
But there is a market for that sort of thing that not everyone will understand, let alone be able to afford.

Or.....maybe the rich people make the knife makers price them high, so us poor folks won't have the same knives that they have. (just teasing)