looking for stiff carbon slicer/suji

so im looking at picking up (another) sujihiki. would be using it for carvery or potentially bbq so something on the stiff side seems appropriate. something pretty tough would be nice as well so as to avoid chipping issues with bark. i guess it's also possible I would use this knife to process fish as well (fillet, trim and portion) plus other generic portioning and slicing tasks if appropriate.

current slicers im using are a yasuke white 2 suji and itinomonn v2. i find that the yusuke feels a bit whippy in hand for carving and lacks guts (great for trimming though). the itinomonn is just sturdy enough but the stainless cladding is kind of annoying for thinning. the fact im using these knives for predominatly meat I am also wondering whether a western handle would be more appropriate? they seem less porous (more hygienic for all that meat jizz?) plus I think I like the weight balance closer to the handle for slicing.

im thinking to keep this purchase a little cheaper than my gyutos as I honestly won't get THAT much use out of it in comparison so I'm thinking around $250 us max.

at the moment my shortlist includes fujiwara carbon (tough stuff although worried about flex), misono swedish and sakai takayuki mono blue #2. specs wise, the takayuki on knives and stones have the spine width listed as a bit thicker along its length than my itinomonn (less taper) so thinking maybe thats where my money will go. however i am yet to find any user info on these knives. its also at the upper end of my (current) budget. the misono seems to be the middle ground between these two knives but im unsure about the flex within this blade? if someone had measurements along the spine for a 270 that would be handy so ive got a vague idea how stiff it could be.

im open to iron clad knives as they are a sinch to sharpen. if someone could convince me a wa handle is better i probably wouldnt object either but some info on these knives ive asked about would be handy.

cheers

Fujiwara FKH 270 is remarkably stiff, Misono has too much flex for easy sharpening to my taste. The Fujiwara has a coarser grain, this might explain.

id have thought geometry would have had more to do with it? previously owned a 240 fujiwara suji which wasn't too bad for flex. not sure i 270 would be as stiff as my itinomonn though. ill take measurments later for comparison. if the misono is whippier again I probably wont bother with it (although maybe the gyuto could be okay)

So you're looking for a stiffy that can handle some jizz... have you tried asking on Craigslist? :biggrin:

i did.. a lovely pair of gentlemen were very eager to meet up but then flaked out. come to think of it, they didnt really share the same interest in knives as i do..

Hinoura suji. W#1 clad with ss.
You can buy it from cleancut.se around 250 usd.

although white 1 takes a razor edge, it isnt particularly tough stuff. stainless cladding also makes it somewhat more frustrating for sharpening. the cladding and core steel abrade at very different rates (the core steel being much less resistant).

If you are a professional chef and use the knife everyday I agreed with it but if you are a home cook chef it s different story.
Anyway if know how to use a knife you don't gonna need to resharp so often a suji, since it s a slicer knife it will not see so much constant contact against the chop board, but that it just my opinion as a professional chef then everyone has different tastes in blades and how to maintain them 😉
Maybe a misono dragon would be more appropriate for you do 😄

Dragon sujis pretty flexy

i probably should have mentioned that it would be used in a professional environment. i know sharpening a suji would tend to be less frequent but i tend to thin my knives a little most sessions so my bevels stay reasonably small. i know that i can just touch the edge up but at some point I will need to remove some of the cladding.. easier to do it on the go than spend an hour sometime in the future- especially if we are talking stainless cladding

thinning stainless cladding is gross, particularly compared to the delicious carbon core. iron cladding is fine.. its pretty fast in comparison and easier to finish well. reactivity isnt a big issue either as im only using the blade for proteins

for reference, my itinomonn 270 suji is 2mm at the spine halfway along the blade. the last 1/3 of the blade tapers to 1mm 1cm from the tip (i guess the tip would be considered a little bit flexy). i wouldnt want to go any thinner than this blade. by comparison, the yusuke is like 1.5mm halfway along the spine. it tapers a bit less in the last 1/3 of the blade and is like 0.6mm thick 1cm off the tip. its incredibly 'whippy' in comparison. if the fujiwara, misono or takayuki is as stiff as the itinomonn i can cope, although a little stiffer would be nice.

just bump your budget and spring for a direct order carbon heiji

where can i order one of those bad boys (heiji)? i was leaning towards going skint and seeing how the fujiwara goes and upgrade later if necessary.

geez he's actually not too expensive at all, although I can't see any sujis? I want another gyuto to play with though

I've both a stainless clad carbon and an Iron clad suji and don't find any quantifiable difference in sharpening. Of course if stainless is "gross" to you then iron clad would no doubt be a better choice for you. Both clad knives are considerably stiffer that a couple of mono-steels (aebl and Ginsanko) I have laying about.

I use a Sakai Takayuki in Blue2. It is monosteel and I consider it quite stiff. It took a bit of work on the edge to make it a good cutter but it is a solid knife for not much more than the Fujiwara.

I don't recall exactly where I picked it up but in sure a bit of googling will turn it up.