what should I buy, carried over from newbie section

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steelcity

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It was brought to my attention that I'd probably get a little more help by posting in this section instead of my thread in the introduction section. I'm looking to buy my first set of real knives. I have larger hands and have never used or sharpened a japanese style knife before.

So right now I'm looking at Fujiwara, Misano, and the Carbonext. They all seem to be relatively close in price except for certain lines of each knife. Does one of these have a better reputation than the other? Is there antyhing about Swedish steel that sets it apart? What are the difference between the Misano UX10 and the regular swedish steel?

The Fujiwara and Misano knives contain a series with dimples. I haven't had a knife with dimples so I'm not sure if they really aid with anything. Are dimples just for looks or do they really aid in helping the food to peel off of the knife?
 
I would choose the Carbonext. It's a very good deal but the handles are on the smallish side. I would also consider Suisin INOX western (http://www.japaneseknifeimports.com/kitchen-knives/suisin/suisin-inox-western.html). These are excellent knives and have probably unmatched fit and finish at this price point. Misono probably has the largest handles but is the worst deal, in my opinion. I like the construction less and edge holding is not as good. Dimples are useless unless they are huge like Glestain (An excellent knife.).
 
I'd go with Carbonext. I have pretty big hands and the handle is fine for me.
 
The Suisin western were suggested to me on a different forum. I like the looks of those as well but see a pettystyle knife is not available in this series. Do most guys on here purchase a couple of knives from the same maker/series or mix and match.
 
Most people mix and match, but then, many of us have multiple knives that perform the same function. If you get truly bitten by the knife bug, you'll end up justifying to yourself both mixing among multiple makers and having matched sets.

Carbonext is a great representation of western-style Japanese knives. I bought a Kikuichi TKC (purportedly the same knife under a different label) for a good friend who's an avid cook, and it's everything a functional knife should be. Probably a step up from Fujiwara.
 
I just spoke with Jon at Japanese Knife Imports. Suisin does make a petty, he just doesn't have it in right now. They do appear to have a nice finish with the wood grain handles instead of black.
 
steelcity said:
It was brought to my attention that I'd probably get a little more help by posting in this section instead of my thread in the introduction section. I'm looking to buy my first set of real knives. I have larger hands and have never used or sharpened a japanese style knife before.

So right now I'm looking at Fujiwara, Misano, and the Carbonext. They all seem to be relatively close in price except for certain lines of each knife. Does one of these have a better reputation than the other? Is there antyhing about Swedish steel that sets it apart? What are the difference between the Misano UX10 and the regular swedish steel?

The Fujiwara and Misano knives contain a series with dimples. I haven't had a knife with dimples so I'm not sure if they really aid with anything. Are dimples just for looks or do they really aid in helping the food to peel off of the knife?
Click to expand...

The UX10 was all the rage a few years back, but it's fallen into disfavor; the knives are good, but not at their current price point. F&f is great, steel is decent, and profile and geometry (imo) are good, but $300 for a 240 mm gyuto? No thanks. For that price, you can get something substantially better.

The dimples are supposed to help with food release issues, but they don't work too well (minus those on the glestain knives) and they shorten the lifetime of a knife.

I agree with the other posters in their recommendations of the carbonext; I own the ichimonji TKC (a carbonext clone) and it's a great knife. On top of that, they're pretty cheap.

Pick up some carbonext knives and perhaps some waterstones if you need/want to add anything to your current setup.
 
You really sound like me when I got here. I have a ux10 gyuto 210 brand new that sits in the box and wishes I would use it. I use my Sakai yusuke wa gyuto all the time instead. But in fairness the Sakai is a 270mm which I found I prefer and a wa handle which I prefer. Good luck on your journey. Don't think too hard about it. Most knives can be sold on the forum at 80% as you find out what your preferences are and get better knives for your tastes. Or if you can find someone to test drive some knives that can help immensely.
 
I got 2 Fujiwara carbons in yesterday and they have better handle F&F than the Hiromoto AS (3 of them) that I have gotten. I was very pleasantly surprised!
 
Here's an idea (FYI-these make/style combos are not random):
Fujiwara petty
Carbonext Suji
Suisin Western gyuto

This is really the quickest way to educate yourself. You can get a feel for the differences and learn a lot in the process.
 
I'm quite sure that when I asked Dave what the worst knife he ever had to sharpen was, he responded with the Suisin western INOX. Just an FYI.
 
Really? Worse than a Maestro Wu Bombshell Cleaver? I know he LOVES those!

I don't mind sharpening the Suisin westerns at all. Can't see why Dave would.
 
Nope it would be New West Knives. He said how much he loves that steal. Just cringes every time he gets one in.
 
What do you guys use for steak knives? Smaller pettys for those who want non serrated?
 
steelcity said:
What do you guys use for steak knives? Smaller pettys for those who want non serrated?
Click to expand...

FWIW: I'm using 120mm Fujiwara FKM's. It was the cheapest good knife I could find, and I think stainless is a must for this application. It's the perfect size, at about 1/2" longer than my regular el cheapo steak knives.

I wanted the Hiromoto G3 for some reason, but decided against it because that extra $26 adds up quickly on multiples, now I can hardly see needing a nicer production knife for this application. Sure a full custom set would be nice (with pretty handles and all), but it is a hard to justify extravagance for my lifestyle.
 
Are you set on a western style handle? I have very large hands and find that I have much better luck with "wa" style handles. Zakuri seem to be among the largest that I've used, but really the only wa handle that's felt too small has been the redwood one that CKTG uses on the house "********' brand.

Western style handles are much more hit or miss for me. I really love my Kikuichi TKC (same template as the CarbonNext that you where looking at) but, the stock handle felt so cramped that I eventually had it re-handled.
 
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