Should I buy a Tadafusa for my sister?

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nkbitsch

nkbitsch

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My sister is turning 20, and I'm thinking of giving her a j-knive as her birthday gift.

She loves cooking and is usually the one in the kitchen for thanksgiving, easter, christmas etc.

She has everything it takes to be a good cook, except for a proper knife. I shed a tear every time I see her in the kitchen with her dull Global knife, and I figured that now is the time to buy her something nice.

My budget is $200 and I know that she has been drooling over some knives with a hammered finish.

Do you have any recommendations for a knife with hammered finish at that price-level? I have been looking at the Tadafusa SLD blades with a hammered finish (like the one below), but I have never tried one.

Tadafusa_gyuto210_SLD.jpg
 
You could also have a look at Yoshikane Tsuchime, Masashi Kobo and Kikuichi Tsuchime. Kurosaki does a hammer finish line too
 
Check if there is a local superstition about gifting knives. In that case, gift a coin with it (comes included with a new Masakage btw ;) ) ...
 
Perhaps the Itinomonn 210 stainless, when it comes back in stock! That is a superb knife.

And of you are in Denmark, postage will be quick!
 
fatboylim said:
Perhaps the Itinomonn 210 stainless, when it comes back in stock! That is a superb knife.

And of you are in Denmark, postage will be quick!
Click to expand...

I think he is keen on a tsuchime finish
 
But a bigger question is how will she keep the knife sharp? Does she know how to use stones or is there someone nearby who knows how to properly sharpen a Japanese knife?

(And no, the guy with the grinder at the flea market/farmer's market does not count)
 
The Eden Takara and the Yoshikane actually looks a bit better specs-wise. Somehow I just really like the combination of my sister and the semi-stainless SLD steel on the Tadafusa :biggrin:.

She definitely don't know how to sharpen a knife properly. The good thing is though, that I only live 20 min away.

It's always a pain in the *%& living in Denmark, when it comes to all other knives than what Maksim offers, but it should be possible to source the knives from cleancut even though their website doesn't allow shipping outside Sweden.

Once again thank you KKF for your kind recommendations!
 
Just thinking out loud, but if the sharpening is outsourced to you (so less-than-regular) maybe try to go for something high on edge-retention? Something in R2/SG2? Might not be as pretty in that budget range but something to consider...
 
Cleancut will ship worldwide, in short just email them and they will respond with a custom link, in short its just a link for ups shipping to Finland its usually 200sek, so more then likely same for you.
 
I've not handled a Tadafusa but in years of playing with knives I've not heard anything negative about them. I think consensus is they are a nice but average knife, priced well for 1st timers.

Have handled/owned a good number of Yoshikane. They do a very nice job with SLD or SKD, though SLD offerings are pricey. If Tadafusa and Yoshi are comparably priced I would go with Yoshi.

And by the way, if sis is 20 min away, why is her Global dull? "I just love the sound of the Global's edge as it sings across the stones" said no one ever.:cool2:
 
nkbitsch said:
The Eden Takara and the Yoshikane actually looks a bit better specs-wise. Somehow I just really like the combination of my sister and the semi-stainless SLD steel on the Tadafusa :biggrin:.

She definitely don't know how to sharpen a knife properly. The good thing is though, that I only live 20 min away.

It's always a pain in the *%& living in Denmark, when it comes to all other knives than what Maksim offers, but it should be possible to source the knives from cleancut even though their website doesn't allow shipping outside Sweden.

Once again thank you KKF for your kind recommendations!
Click to expand...

It does, send them an email ans they'll send you the shipping link

Edit: sorry I see someone else pointed you out that they do int. Shipping
 
daveb said:
I've not handled a Tadafusa but in years of playing with knives I've not heard anything negative about them. I think consensus is they are a nice but average knife, priced well for 1st timers.

Have handled/owned a good number of Yoshikane. They do a very nice job with SLD or SKD, though SLD offerings are pricey. If Tadafusa and Yoshi are comparably priced I would go with Yoshi.

And by the way, if sis is 20 min away, why is her Global dull? "I just love the sound of the Global's edge as it sings across the stones" said no one ever.:cool2:
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Haha, after that comment I had to sharpen it. It is now as sharp as a Global can be (but probably already dull again). I just had a look at Kokis website, which is now exceptionally easy to navigate even though it doesn't have the same oldschool vibe to it, and stumbled upon this one: https://japanesechefsknife.com/products/jck-natures-inazuma-series-wa-gyuto-210mm-and-240mm

Does anybody know about this knife? The look of it is beautiful, but I have never tried AUS-10 steel.
 
If you and your sister don't like Globals (which are likely an AUS-series steel (AUS-6M) too), you might not get to truly love AUS-10 (these are all somewhat 440ish, western-style stainless...)
 
LifeByA1000Cuts said:
If you and your sister don't like Globals (which are likely an AUS-series steel (AUS-6M) too), you might not get to truly love AUS-10 (these are all somewhat 440ish, western-style stainless...)
Click to expand...

Globals are moly steel... Very average steel...
 
nkbitsch said:
Haha, after that comment I had to sharpen it. It is now as sharp as a Global can be (but probably already dull again). I just had a look at Kokis website, which is now exceptionally easy to navigate even though it doesn't have the same oldschool vibe to it, and stumbled upon this one: https://japanesechefsknife.com/products/jck-natures-inazuma-series-wa-gyuto-210mm-and-240mm

Does anybody know about this knife? The look of it is beautiful, but I have never tried AUS-10 steel.
Click to expand...

I have the Inazuma nakiri from 4 years ago, it was 19C27 steel then, they changed to VG10 for a while, and now it appears to be AUS-10.
The knife is nice enough, nothing special, nothing bad. A good looker for the price.
It has withstood a lot of use, mainly from the mum in law.
Don't know about AUS-10, haven't heard anything bad about it.
 
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