What knife should I buy?

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Diesel

Member
Joined
Aug 27, 2014
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LOCATION

USA.

KNIFE TYPE
What type of knife are you interested in (e.g., chef’s knife, slicer, boning knife, utility knife, bread knife, paring knife, cleaver)?

Chef's Knife.

Are you right or left handed?

Right.

Are you interested in a Western handle (e.g., classic Wusthof handle) or Japanese handle?

Do not know what the major differences are besides looks and durability. I would love to know.

What length of knife (blade) are you interested in (in inches or millimeters)?

8 inches I suppose?

Do you require a stainless knife? (Yes or no)

Yes?

What is your absolute maximum budget for your knife?

$200.


KNIFE USE
Do you primarily intend to use this knife at home or a professional environment?

Home.

What are the main tasks you primarily intend to use the knife for (e.g., slicing vegetables, chopping vegetables, mincing vegetables, slicing meats, cutting down poultry, breaking poultry bones, filleting fish, trimming meats, etc.)? (Please identify as many tasks as you would like.)

slicing vegetables, chopping vegetables, mincing vegetables.

What knife, if any, are you replacing?

Calphalon Katana Chef 6".

Do you have a particular grip that you primarily use? (Please click on this LINK for the common types of grips.)

Pinch Grip

What cutting motions do you primarily use? (Please click on this LINK for types of cutting motions and identify the two or three most common cutting motions, in order of most used to least used.)

draw, push cut, chop

What improvements do you want from your current knife? If you are not replacing a knife, please identify as many characteristics identified below in parentheses that you would like this knife to have.)

I think everything will be improved, hehe.

Better aesthetics (e.g., a certain type of finish; layered/Damascus or other pattern of steel; different handle color/pattern/shape/wood; better scratch resistance; better stain resistance)?

Damascus and cool layers are my favorite.

Comfort (e.g., lighter/heavier knife; better handle material; better handle shape; rounded spine/choil of the knife; improved balance)?

Yes.

Ease of Use (e.g., ability to use the knife right out of the box; smoother rock chopping, push cutting, or slicing motion; less wedging; better food release; less reactivity with food; easier to sharpen)?

Yes.

Edge Retention (i.e., length of time you want the edge to last without sharpening)?

Longer the better.


KNIFE MAINTENANCE
Do you use a bamboo, wood, rubber, or synthetic cutting board? (Yes or no.)

I Have Rubber, but I want to get a wooden one.

Do you sharpen your own knives? (Yes or no.)

No.

If not, are you interested in learning how to sharpen your knives? (Yes or no.)

Yes I do.

Are you interested in purchasing sharpening products for your knives? (Yes or no.)

Yes!

SPECIAL REQUESTS/COMMENTS

I am new when it comes to the high end knives, however as I am cooking at home exclusively... I figured it is time to get some good knives and learn the skills. I believe in the saying "Buy cheap, buy twice." So I'm not interested in lower end stuff and would appreciate any information that can improve my knife knowledge. Thanks.
 
As you mentioned Damascus, have a look at http://japanesechefsknife.com/ they have a lot of selection in your price range, and shipping is only $7.
Look at Hattori hd, Shiki, Ryusen, and under specials look at Gekko And Inazuma.
These all have 210 gyutos for less than $200, some for a fair bit less - enough for a combo stone.

There are also a bunch of american (and Canadian) sites such as Japanese Knife Imports, Tosho, aframes gokyo, knifewear, chefs knives to go etc.

Have a look and see what catches your eye.
 
Although they might be a little more expensive, have you thought about custom knives. Many of the less well know makers are every bit as good as the famous makers but don't charge as much because of lack of name recognition.
Tim
 
I have no problem with custom knives... Do they generally tend to be better than non-custom ones?
 
You are replacing a calphalon 6" katana....custom is just the wrong idea, no disrespect, but you don't even know what questions to ask, much less what the answers mean.
And, BTW, many of the 'common' recommendations in your stated budget will give you 95%-99% of the performance of a custom knife at 10%-20% of the price.
Also - Damascus will probably give you 0% performance bump with an accompanying 20% - 100%+ price jump
I would definately stick with japanesechefknife or jon at japanese knife imports
 
Me thinks Mike is on right track. Japapnese Knife Imports, Korin and EE all have entry level offerings that will work within your budget constraints.

You wrote "smoother rock chopping, push cutting, or slicing motion". Smooth rocking and push cut / draw cut are largely contradictory characteristics. Good quality German knives and most cheap knives (to include Calphalon) are designed for rocking. The tip stays on the board, the user moves the back end up and down and cutting takes place somewhere below.

The flatter profile French (usually) and Japanese knives are designed for the more efficient push and draw cuts. The whole knife moves but very little distance. Cutting is more efficient, more precise.

The faux Damascus finish on inexpensive knives can look cool but suggest it will start getting scuffed up with your first sharpening session. Or you won't want to sharpen it at all. But if it works for you it can be had.

The recommendation of someone new to the knife world, however enthusiastic, ordering a custom knife, is farcical.
 
well golly gee and excuuuse me, Daveb and Mikemac. You two obviously know a lot more about knives than I do. I started making knives in 2010, while you two joined this site in 2012 and 2011, respectively. Do you make knives? Your suggestion that "custom is just the wrong idea" or "ordering a custom knife is farcial" indicates a lack of knowledge about custom knives. Since you both seem to be so high on Japanese Knife Imports and/or japaneseschefknife, are you associated with them? No disrespect intended.
 
tim37 said:
well golly gee and excuuuse me, Daveb and Mikemac. You two obviously know a lot more about knives than I do. I started making knives in 2010, while you two joined this site in 2012 and 2011, respectively. Do you make knives? Your suggestion that "custom is just the wrong idea" or "ordering a custom knife is farcial" indicates a lack of knowledge about custom knives. Since you both seem to be so high on Japanese Knife Imports and/or japaneseschefknife, are you associated with them? No disrespect intended.
Click to expand...

Oooooo *grabs popcorn*
 
Timmy, I'm not sure if you're being disingenuous or just obtuse.

I've no issue with custom knives or recommendations for same. The qualifier "new to the knife world" is important, as is the $200 budget. I used the term farcical because it's more tactful than "dumb as dirt".

Of course recommending a custom for this user may make sense if you're a knife maker that's pimping product. But I'm sure that's not the case.


Pass the popcorn my way, I think I'll just sit for awhile.
 
tim37 said:
well golly gee and excuuuse me, Daveb and Mikemac. You two obviously know a lot more about knives than I do. I started making knives in 2010, while you two joined this site in 2012 and 2011, respectively. Do you make knives? Your suggestion that "custom is just the wrong idea" or "ordering a custom knife is farcial" indicates a lack of knowledge about custom knives. Since you both seem to be so high on Japanese Knife Imports and/or japaneseschefknife, are you associated with them? No disrespect intended.
Click to expand...

I think you're taking this too personally. The custom knives we usually think about and highly respect are at a significantly higher price point than the OP's budget. JKI and JCK have very solid offerings in the $200 and under range so the recommending those vendors isn't surprising at all.
 
The OP is an evident novice where kitchen knives are concerned, and is yet incapable of making a choice in different options about material, length. profile, geometry, balance, handle type, etc
He better buys a decent mainstream blade to find about his own preferences, perhaps after fine tuning his technique a bit.
 
I don't really care whether the knife is custom or not, just that I am getting a good product... Now if I can get a good custom knife for 200 bucks that is better than a mass-produced one... Why not?

I'm really just asking for some good knife that I can get for 200 dollars that will work for me... I don't want it to be a "trainer" knife that I cannot add to a collection (like the calphalon).. Because I want to start a collection soon. Is that possible with <$200?

Don't mean to be ungrateful... But just linking me to website and saying get one of these isn't really helpful.

For example, I'm looking at the Ryusen knives... and I see they have a 7 inch Gyuto, and a 6.6 inch Santoku... Same price.. Am I to just flip a coin and pick one? What is the difference? Is Ryusen even a good brand? See what I mean?


Nevertheless, thanks for the replies.
 
Diesel said:
Now if I can get a good custom knife for 200 bucks that is better than a mass-produced one... Why not?
Click to expand...

No, you can't. There are relatively few custom makers that make knives that can keep up with e.g. a <insert any number of $200 dollar "mass-produced" gyutos from respected Japanese companies/makers here>, and the ones that can all charge (usually far) north of $200.

Ryusen Blazen is an excellent choice.

The difference between the gyuto and the santoku is the length and the profile (without wishing to sound harsh, this should be obvious by looking at pictures of them). The geometry may be slightly different too.

Regardless, it's a Blazen, it's a high performance knife, it will cut good.

The bling "hammered damascus" Ryusen is likely a decent knife too, although not in the class of the Blazen. These "tsuchime"/hammered damascus bling blades are an OEM product, offered by lots of different brands, with different (and sometime the same) handles.
 
FWIW the ryusen 6.6" Santoku was the second knife I bought, along with a suji of the same name, both used from another cook in town. And though I've changed my kit a lot, I still have those two. They'll sharpen up real nice and stay sharp for a long time with very little maintenance if you take care of them! If you can afford one, I would recommend the brand to get you started.
 
Oh cool.

I was looking at the Tsuchime Damascus btw, not the Blazen. Would you guys say this is still a good choice?

I'm guessing the Damascus isn't real? Is it prone to the problems one of the previous posters put?

I've been reading around and alot of people seem to not suggest VG-10... They don't say it is bad, however they suggest that there are better choices out there.. ?
 
Define "real"? - it's not a damascus blade, it's an edge of hard steel in a soft layered stainless steel jacket.

The Blazen is a step up.

If you want the absolute best performance, forget the hammered damascus blades, although they are by no means at all a poor choice.
 
Timthebeaver said:
If you want the absolute best performance, forget the hammered damascus blades, although they are by no means at all a poor choice.
Click to expand...

True, you would also be paying for those aesthetics, versus putting all your money into a plain looking but hyper-functional prepmonster.

The Ryusen Tsuchime blades are VG-10 which sometimes seems a point of contention among some knife enthusiasts. Really the quality of a VG-10 blade depends largely on the standards of the maker and if the Blazen line is any indication of what to expect from Ryusen, I think you'd be safe to assume the Tsuchime knives are going to perform well. Hopefully someone who's handled that line or something like it can chime in. I'm going to review your questionnaire again and see if any recommendations cross my mind.
 
The Hiro's are a great choice. I have a gyuto G3 and a suji in AS, and both are really good knives. Throw in the price point ("reasonable" is an understatement) and you can't go wrong. These knives come close to giving you 98%+ of the functionality/performance of any other similar blade at any price point G3 is 'stainless', and AS is stainless clad. My guess is that G3 is thinner and lighter.


Diesel said:
What do you guys think about Hiromoto?

The prices are reasonable and the page gives a little story into who made it and where... Really nice.

Would be nice for a collection if in the future they are not made anymore.

http://japanesechefsknife.com/Hiromoto.html#Hiromoto
Click to expand...
 
Very good point.

The Hiromotos are excellent knives, and are very keenly priced.

For me, the Yoshikane is (still) right at the top of the tree in terms of price/performance.
 
Personally I would consider a Gesshin Ginga in a shorter length (210mm) which hover around the $200 mark. I bought a Wa-Petty and was so popular that my mother in law ended up taking it home with her. Now my wife wants another.
 
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