Takeda gyuto

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Andreas

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Any thoughts on a takeda over any of the other knives I've been looking at?
 
I would highly recommend the Takeda. What other knives are you looking at?
 
Love my Takedas. Good knives. I'm also wondering which other knives you're considering :)
 
If you want thin, don't mind rustic, and are happy with the extra blade height then go for it. I looked at them for about 4 years before getting one a few weeks ago and it's a great knife. Takes a killer edge and feels like it just wants to cut stuff. Has taken a little getting used to the blade shape as its different to my other gyutos but it flies through stuff. Edge retention is pretty solid as well IMO.
What else are you looking at?
 
By "rustic" he means ACTUALLY rustic. Not a polite word for "sloppy".
 
I can't decide between this knife or a carter basic stainless laminated white steel. Please help
 
Akifusa is another knife I was looking at. Which one should I get?
 
Go Carter if you want American. Go Takeda if you want Japanese.
 
If you are looking for a knife that the whole forum agrees is the ideal 240mm gyuto, that's not going to happen. Every ones work situation, i.e. kitchen, likes and dislikes, are different.

The home kitchens, that I work in, typically are small. Even a few of the McMansions kitchens, have been small, and awkward to work in. A lot of times, I am going to help out, somebody in the family, with a party.

I needed a knife that was good in small spaces, but could still handle a high volume of food. After trying a variety of knives, the cleaver was the knife, that best met my needs.

What does your kitchen allow? Can you use a wood handled knife or does it have to be synthetic? Does your chef allow carbon knives? How often do you wipe down your knifes? Carbon, will rust if not kept up.
The more questions you ask yourself and can answer will give you a better idea of what knife to pick up.

The first Japanese knife should be relatively inexpensive. This is the knife that should give you a good idea of what Japanese knifes are all about. Since you are going to be learning on this knife, that is making mistakes, especially when you start to sharpen, an expensive knife doesn't make sense.

A few years ago, the recommendation was to buy an all purpose or thicker knife, as the first one. All purpose or workhorse knives, are more robust, and have a wider margin of error, when it comes to sharpening, then their thin or laser counter parts. The knives that have been mentioned in your threads have been all over the place. The Gessin Ginga is a thin knife, the Hattori is between a laser and a work horse, Takeda is thin, Zakuri is a work horse. I don't know where the JCK CarboNext fits, but I'd assume it would be in lines of the Hattori.

Except for the Carbonext, I woudn't recommend any of the knifes for a first time buyer. Instead take a look at Fujiwara, Hiromoto, Tojiro, Yoshiro. You should be able to get into a 240mm gyuto for $150 or less.

None of these knives will perform anywhere near to their potential until they are sharpened. Sending your knife to Dave is highly recommended. He has experience, working with pro cooks. He will put a sharp, but strong edge, that should give you a good idea of how the knife can perform in the pro environment. When it comes time to sharpen, you will have his bevels as a guide. A lot of forum members, when they buy new knives have them shipped straight to Dave, for the initial sharpening.

After you gain some experience, that's when the fun and expense starts, because there is always something to explore, whether it be a steel type, a manufacturer, or sharpening technique.

Jay
 
I have both carter and takeda... but if I we're to give up one... i'd sell my takeda... but that's a big "if" i had to give up one... i won't if I didn't have to... :)
 
Akifusa is another knife I was looking at. Which one should I get?

I would take a carter and akifusa over a takeda any day.I have owned all three.I you go with a takeda don't buy it direct from him,his return policy is a joke.
 
Carters and Takedas are both really nice. You'd be really happy with either one, I think - provided that you like the taller blade height on the Takedas (which I do).

As to whether you want to start off with either of these as your first... it depends on whether you are going to seriously kick yourself for scuffing up the blade a bit when you first start hand-sharpening, when you get a little chip in the edge, or maybe get a bit of rust on the blade, etc etc. If you're going to really fret about it and kick yourself for it, go with something that'll hurt less psychologically. If you can take it in stride and shrug it off as part of the learning process, I see nothing wrong with starting with something nicer - where you know you're going to end up anything.

Sometimes there's a benefit to starting with what you really want anyways: you'll end up spending less in the end that way.
 
I instinctually grab other knives daily; my Takeda only gets used when I cognitively grab it; if that makes sense. It's fun, sharp, everything a knife should be, but its quirky. For the price, I think a near perfect knife can be had.....
 
I can't decide between this knife or a carter basic stainless laminated white steel. Please help

Big difference imo. First there's price. I have a Carter and Takeda, both about the same length and blade profile. Carter: $3x as much, on sale.
Then there's thinness. I'm clearly not a pro, so take this for what it's worth, but given my admittedly poor technique the Carter is almost too thin--even w/ a light pinch grip, the rounded narrow spine still wear a sore into my index finger faster than any knife. Maybe the Carter you're looking at isn't so thin; mine is literally half as thick as a my Takeda. I love them both, you can't go wrong. I tend toward the Takeda, probably because it was my first really good knife and I used nothing else for six months, so I'm bonded to it like no other knife.
 
I have a Carter and Takeda, both about the same length and blade profile. Carter: $3x as much, on sale.

Actually, the Carter in question(6sun SFGZ Shirogami) is listed on his site at $186. The Takeda(AS 240) is listed on CKTG at $330.
 
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