Inexpensive semi stainless besides the carbonxt?

I want to get a semi stainless knive for my niece and before I pull the plug on the carbonext, which let's face it requires me tuning it up and then sending it on to her as opposed to her having a "wow" experience when she just opens the box, is there any semi stainless out there for roughly the same price in a western handle that has a better OOB experience?

TIA

Didn't we just do this dance?

http://www.kitchenknifeforums.com/showthread.php/22472-stainless-210-gyuto-around-100

For out of box wow, the Gesshin Stainless. If asked nicely Jon will sharpen it for you before he puts a stamp on it. Korin will also do initial sharpening for you.

Every Carbonot (albeit not many) that I've seen has looked like it was dragged behind a truck down a gravel road. They may be well suited for pro kitchen use but not one I would give to a home cook to put on the wall.

If you're trying to differentiate stainless from semi-stainless on a 100 knife well ............

Yea, my carbonext was really dull but needed only a bit of thinning and a much lower angle edge before it becomes quite quite nice.

Looking at that thread, I wanted to get a semi stainless rather than a stainless because I want to teach her how to sharpen eventually and the steel like the one in the carbonext are much easier to sharpen than most pure stainless

Why not just buy her a carbon knife? It will be easier to learn to sharpen, you'll get more knife for your money, and she'll get to learn how to properly take care of a knife.

That's an idea, I could show her how to force a patina on it for example...

Is it just me or did the Carbonext go from being one of the most talked about (at least at the entry level) knives to being rarely mentioned?

They did receive a lot of traction in the past and noticeably less so now. Don't know why but then I never understood the appeal in the first place.

A company makes a knife that needs work right out of the box more often than not. Thinning or sharpening or thinning and sharpening - not in the perview of most new knife buyers. The vendor, JCK, offers a sharpening service that is largely dismissed as worthless. But other than that it's great? I guess I'm missing the great part, hell I can't find the acceptable part.

For those of us in the states, there are a host of alternatives at the $100 price point that IMO offer a much better value.

I've been saying all along carbonext is not any good, maybe people are finally seeing through the hype machine.

You're not going to get quality fit&finish at $100 except maybe a low end miyabi, but those suck. Better off looking for a deal on a mac pro.

The carbonext sharpens really easily and even takes a lpretty ow angle - that is when one needs to thin it a bit. If one sharpens at say 15 degrees, the profile is probably OK as is, it's the OOB edge that sucks

Other than the edge, F&F is fine and better than on many other knives at the $100 level

one problem I see with them in the current market is that they haven't lowered their prices to take into account the yens weakness. Given the 30% decline, It should now be an under $100 240 gyuto at which point it is a bargain.

There's a yoshikane hammered on rakuten for ~ $165. Otherwise, I can't think of too many semi-stainless knives except for Itinomonn, Gengetsu, Heiji and Kono HD and those are all wa-handled and probably out of the price range you're looking at.

I have one. It can take an edge and it is indestructible.

gic said:

The carbonext sharpens really easily and even takes a lpretty ow angle - that is when one needs to thin it a bit. If one sharpens at say 15 degrees, the profile is probably OK as is, it's the OOB edge that sucks

Other than the edge, F&F is fine and better than on many other knives at the $100 level

one problem I see with them in the current market is that they haven't lowered their prices to take into account the yens weakness. Given the 30% decline, It should now be an under $100 240 gyuto at which point it is a bargain.

Click to expand...

Sorry for a nob qustion : 15° means 15° on each side (i.e. 30° for both sides) or 15° for both sides ?

When I got my Carbonext I was sold on the idea that it was allegedly the same knife as a TKC that you paid 80 dollars less in exchange for having to correct a poor sharpening job. I believe this is and was the appeal. However, I have not found that to be the case. I own a TKC gyuto, my Carbonext is a sujihiki.

TKC was ground far thinner, and more consistently, from the jump. I also don't believe it's the same steel, or at most it's the same steel in the way that Tojiro ITK and Konosuke Fujiyama both use White #2. My Carbonext loses its edge much faster and is more reactive than my TKC.

I got it ultimately because it didn't seem like there were many other options in affordable 300mm sujis, but of course an opportunity for a far better knife at a similar price came around a few months later.

Anyway, yea I don't think you have many options as far as low priced semi stainless. As others suggested, carbon may be a better bet at that price.

Yes 15 degrees here means 30 in total, German knives used to be at 40 in total, double bevel J knives range from 20 to 30 in total (often somewhat asymentric) so for them it isn't necessarily an even split

I have a 270mm Carbonext gyuto, finish is really nice. Can't say anything about the edge, haven't used it yet ... like about 40 of my 60 knives ... :O

TKC is pretty cheap nowadays too because of the exchange rate

Thanks.
I put about 30° in total on my old european knives. I have not yeat sharppen my jknives.

I have provided 3 of my nieces knives, all stainless. Suisin Inox 240mm (have gone up in price if you can find one in stock), Korin Togiharu Inox thin profile 240mm, and a Kanetsugu Pro J 230mm at JCK. All are nice knives under 150.00.

My better half's favorite knife is my Gesshin Ginga, thin light stain resistant & cuts great.