Taller gyuto fans, we should talk.

Kitchen Knife Forums

Help Support Kitchen Knife Forums:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
labor of love

labor of love

Cowboys from Hell
KKF Supporting Member
Joined
Dec 15, 2011
Messages
11,189
Reaction score
7,424
In general I prefer taller gyutos. By taller I mean for instance a 240mm gyuto that is atleast 52mm blade height at the heel although 54mm is even better, a 270mm gyuto that runs 56mm tall is nice too. The pickings are slim for people like me and I would like to make a list of tall gyutos that are out there(incase there's something I actually haven't tried yet).
These are the knives that come to mind: gesshin ittetsu, kochi, watanabe, Toyama, takeda, Sakai jikko(knives@stones blue version), some shigs, mizuno honyaki(haven't used yet),suien vc(haven't tried yet either). There's probably some obvious stuff I'm forgetting, but anyway...what else is out there?
Thanks
 
Ok, lets talk! :goodpost:

IMHO I'd say its harder above the lets say 54mm mark, you listed a good ammount of knives, my real problem is the end of the knife, particularly the geometry of point and tip, i've found that taller knives tend to fall a bit more into the "western" (Nothing wrong with that) category of things and not gyutos (without going into the whole hybrid discussion).

In the taller knives ive purchassed/tried, I very much look at this area of the knife to make sure the tip is "low" therefore making them "flatter". Otherwise its a dealbraker for me.

If pressed i would have to say i am happiest between 49mm and 52mm. But some 55-56mm are stellar.

When i start looking at taller knives I become more aware of thickness, taper, grind and for the most part weight and balance. Although every once in a while I find knives that defy Characteristics (like weight) this through tapering and things like compound grind (with customs mainly) and other neat tricks. :thumbsup:
 
Shiro Kano's knives tend to be pretty tall as well.
 
Agreed, wouldn't mind taking one of those for a spin! :knife:
 
I like a tall knife as well but it appears I have found my limit. I have a recently acquired Takeda that is so tall I'm having great difficulty getting comfortable with it.
 
Jovidah said:
Shiro Kano's knives tend to be pretty tall as well.
Click to expand...

No idea why I wrote Kano, but I meant to write Kamo. Doh.
If you want to take one for a spin, they can actually be had for fairly cheap. Over here in Europe a rebranded Kamo is one of the cheapest options on the market.
 
1masashi2_zpseaelg3a6.jpg
[/URL][/IMG]

Tallest gyuto I have. I think it's called a Masashi. It's a 240, don't have the height measurement but you can tell from the shape that it's tall. I use it often, mostly for non-technical vegy cutting. I like it. It's mirror polished stainless (low maintenance) and holds an edge pretty good considering it takes a pretty good pounding.
 
Not sure if you confine your request only to japanese knifes?
Ealy, Martell, Mario, Carter, Billipp, Haburn, Rader, Harner, Catcheside, Tilman, Xerxes, ZKramer come to my mind. All of those make taller blades.
 
Salty dog said:
1masashi2_zpseaelg3a6.jpg
[/URL][/IMG]

Tallest gyuto I have. I think it's called a Masashi. It's a 240, don't have the height measurement but you can tell from the shape that it's tall. I use it often, mostly for non-technical vegy cutting. I like it. It's mirror polished stainless (low maintenance) and holds an edge pretty good considering it takes a pretty good pounding.
Click to expand...


I have the damascus version of this, a Masashi Kobo, also 240 but it actually runs to 250.
It's a really good knife, very good cutter and very tall.
I find it suprisingly light considering the size of the blade.
One of my favourites, as Salty says it holds an edge for a long while.

I also have a shiro kamo R2 from James, not quite as tall, but still a very tall knife.

Two extremely good knives.
 
270mm Masashi is 60mm (yes 60)

240mm Takeda ktip gyuto was 54.

270mm Yoshikazu Tanaka is 54

270mm Shigehiro (Yoshikazu Ikeda) is 51mm

270mm Kato Workhorse is 57mm
 
Loving this list and I'm a big fan if tall knives too. Masashi is one I want to try although I'm not sure if it is medium weight or heavy weight. Most interested in opinions.
 
Man Scott! That really is a tall gyuto! You've got the coolest stuff.... wonder how tall that is, i'm guessing 70mm?
 
Suprised no one mentioned tanaka. My b#2 damascus is 240 x 55mm and a beast. Sub $200 and cuts like a dream.
 
I know Mert (Tansu Knives) loves a tall blade himself and he loves to make tall blades too.
 
khashy said:
Dude! That Masashi is a monster!
Click to expand...

I didn't like it at first. The OOTB edge wasn't great (they never are except the shigehiro) and I was used to very thin knives like the Takeda. Once i learned to swing the knife a little more freely, I fell in love. I think this is true about most workhorse style knives; you need to swing them a little more to see them really perform/shine.
 
The itinimonn I just sold in bst it s around 60 mm tall.
Also the masakage kujira it s 60 mm tall.
Takeda medium gyuto it s over 60 mm tall.
My custom gyuto from goldeband knife it s 60 mm tall.
Z Kramer are tall blades.
My gyuto from the nine it s 55 mm tall.
My custom Alexander blaze gyuto also is 56 mm tall.
Fujiwara are tall, all most 54 mm.
My Kato wh 240 mm gyuto it s 54 mm tall
Hinoura w #2 line from cleancut are pretty tall blades, 55 mm tall
Shiro kamo b #2 Damascus are 55 + mm tall.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest posts

Back
Top