Yoshikane SKD

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tk59

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I've seen two Yoshikane SKD 270 gyutos. One is western and is a massive BEAST the other is a wa and is almost laser-like. When the box got here, it was so light I thought it was empty at first. Is there that much variation or are the western and wa just that different?
 
I know my wa SKD 240 from Dr. Naka is pretty light, 175g or so IIRC.
 
If you see Yoshikane Gyuto shop to shop in Japan you will see that the spine thickness varies
 
where did you get the knives from?
 
Where both of these other people's knives?

I thought they were thicker in general, but really thin one on Dr. Naka's site was special requestd by the customer?
 
Where both of these other people's knives?...
Yup. The thick, western-handled one was from EE. The thin, wa-handled one, I don't know yet but the thick on was WAY thicker (close to double the thickness). It's not really in the same ballpark at all.
 
my kitaeji yoshikane v2 240 is 243g with the stock handle. the blade is probably 10% thinner than the blade on my 240 kasumi shig. not sure how useful that is, since they are different knife styles, and handmade and all.
 
ok ... just to make sure i'm on the right page - what we're saying here is that there's a thin knife made from that tough tool steel that yoshikane that people have loved so much in the past? and how thin? Like 2.25mm thin? Just curious. Maybe I should just email drnaka?
 
ok ... just to make sure i'm on the right page - what we're saying here is that there's a thin knife made from that tough tool steel that yoshikane that people have loved so much in the past? and how thin? Like 2.25mm thin? Just curious. Maybe I should just email drnaka?

if the wa skd is like my wa v2, then it's very similar to the shigefusa, and that's why it's loved so much.
 
Some confusion here... perhaps translation and individual knife uniqueness?
Terms and different levels/makers of the same or various models?

Is there a mechanical reason for the diff in Wa vs. western?
Wouldn't think so.

But I am not confident everyone is on the same page.
Is there a Dr. in the house?

Lovin' my 240 Yoshi SKD.
Mid-sized at the spine, thin at and above the edge.
Easy to sharpen and it stays that way a loooong time.
 
I just put this wa-version up right next to my KonHD. Looking at the spine, the Yoshi obviously is thicker at the handle but half way up the spine to the tip, it appears to be thinner than the HD (hard to really say due to the very deep hammer marks on this one), then toward the tip, the HD is much thinner (but I did some significant thinning in that area of my HD). In terms of cross section, the grinds are very different so it is pretty clear the KonHD is thinner on average over the entire blade.
 
I just put this wa-version up right next to my KonHD. Looking at the spine, the Yoshi obviously is thicker at the handle but half way up the spine to the tip, it appears to be thinner than the HD (hard to really say due to the very deep hammer marks on this one), then toward the tip, the HD is much thinner (but I did some significant thinning in that area of my HD). In terms of cross section, the grinds are very different so it is pretty clear the KonHD is thinner on average over the entire blade.

doesn't surprise me. then again, my Kasumi Shig cuts better than my Kono White 2 did. :)
 
I have both, the western is much thicker and heavier than the WA. Had my western rehandled and spine rounded at EE and at least it's now a pretty beast.
 
I have both, the western is much thicker and heavier than the WA. Had my western rehandled and spine rounded at EE and at least it's now a pretty beast.

Don't be an a-hole...we need pics!
 
Pardon, if I am outdated on Yoshikanes, but SKD what? I run query on steel db, comes back with half a dozen skds - JIS SKD steels, which range in western classification from A2 to D2, D3, D6... Very different stuff. Used to be SKD11, which is D2, then at some point I think I saw SKD12, which is A2, so what now?
 
Pardon, if I am outdated on Yoshikanes, but SKD what? I run query on steel db, comes back with half a dozen skds - JIS SKD steels, which range in western classification from A2 to D2, D3, D6... Very different stuff. Used to be SKD11, which is D2, then at some point I think I saw SKD12, which is A2, so what now?
Haha. That's a good question. I used to think it was 11, as well. Then someone said it was 12 and I started talking myself into one or the other based on behavior during sharpening and as it is being damaged by various cutting action. Bottom line is I don't know but it's nice stuff. Same with Heiji. SKD something or other... Jon said he'd ask, if he got the chance. Hopefully, we'll find out soon...
 
Pardon, if I am outdated on Yoshikanes, but SKD what? I run query on steel db, comes back with half a dozen skds - JIS SKD steels, which range in western classification from A2 to D2, D3, D6... Very different stuff. Used to be SKD11, which is D2, then at some point I think I saw SKD12, which is A2, so what now?

The SKD of Yoshikane is SKD12. It will have the mark SKD at the back side.
SKDblade2.jpg


The Sekiso (Damascus) is marked as SLD and it is the same steel as JIS SKD11.
 
Thanks. SKD12(AISI A2) would be interesting to play with. Never seen it higher than 60HRC in western knives...
 

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