Are Takedas still worth the price?

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JKerr

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So it's almost tax time so I'm looking at treating myself to a new cleaver. Looking at spending a decent sum so I have a few options floating about in my head. The majority seem to love Takeda's offerings and I know Andy gave it top marks when he did his line up over on KF a few years back, but back then I think they were in the 300-400 range. For those who have used one of his cleavers, would you still pay $550 for it?

Other options I was considering were the Sugimoto OMS 6 ($527), Saji damascus ($650, though seems to have sold out sometime over night), or potentially looking at a custom; not sure about who I would consider there? DT, Yoshikane, Geshin Hide perhaps?

Cheers,
Josh
 
I know I'm biased, but mine have never let me down.

Tim
 
if i was considering a cleaver with a $550 budget i would look into custom stuff. I bet you could get something really nice at that price.
 
I dunno--few custom makers will get down on the idea of doing a full size cleaver for $550.
 
youre right. I guess what i meant to say was if i was prepared to spend $550 on a cleaver, why not go the extra mile and go custom?
 
youre right. I guess what i meant to say was if i was prepared to spend $550 on a cleaver, why not go the extra mile and go custom?

I don't think you'd get anything significantly better for the same price, in fact it would probably cost a bit more, depending on your specifications.
 
Compared to the others you mentioned, I would not want a cleaver(or anything, really) in VG10. I am just tired of it, and don't like it. The Sugimoto VS the Takeda--I'd say that, provided you like a KU finish and don't mind a Wa handle, it is a better value than the Sugimoto #6.
 
Compared to the others you mentioned, I would not want a cleaver(or anything, really) in VG10. I am just tired of it, and don't like it. The Sugimoto VS the Takeda--I'd say that, provided you like a KU finish and don't mind a Wa handle, it is a better value than the Sugimoto #6.

I agree. In both regards.
 
You can get aeb-l/swedish steel cleavers from gesshin ginga,konosuke and mizuno for $250-210 less. i dont think the upgrade to blue steel is worth the $$$. ofcourse there is other things to consider but i dunno...im pretty thrifty:razz:
 
Kono makes a chuka? And under $300. And it's something other than W2? I find this hard to believe... But I'm out of the loop maybe... mizunos and gingas always appear too thick IMO honestly. Chukas have to be stupid thin. It's why the CCK's are so successful. If they had quality steel, improved F/F, better handles.... Oh wait-! That's a Takeda chuka!

It's just ten times the price of a CCK... Dammit!!!
 
im referring to #6 chinese cleavers. konosuke makes one actually for $290 that you can get through their vendor. swedish stainless.
 
Ashi white steel #6 is $265 at blueway. 420g, looks to have a very nice taper. Think Keiichi can get customs as well
 
I handled Konosuke white #2 Cleaver #6 at Chef's armoury the other day. It feels quite good in hand, and has decent finish. From appearance, it seems to have core steel all the way up to the spine where you can see three layers of steel there.

It is, at 480g, a little a bit heavier than sugimoto #6, but seems to be thinner at the spine. The extra weight is probably due to steel in the handle. I still prefer the feeling of sugimoto #6 myself, and now really wonder how #7 would feel in hand.
 
You can't go wrong with a Takeda, but for a chukabocho, there are a lot of options because the geometry won't be all that different (bevel, and then thin and flat all the way up to the spine). You can get the same AS steel in a Moritaka for less cost, but it doesn't have the badass Takeda kurouchi finish. Takeda excels in the gyuto (if you like the wide blade) because there's really nothing out there that has the same geometry as a Takeda gyuto.

If you're welling to shell out the extra money for the Sugimoto OMS version, then I guess money isn't the issue.. I'm particular to Aogami Super steel because it is still the king of edge retention when it comes to carbon steels, so among those choices I'd pick the Takeda. I'm biased, as I own five Takedas and six Moritakas.

Even more important is how the cleaver feels when you wield it because I doubt there will be a bad performer in the group.
 
The appeal of Takeda was getting a high performance knife at a low price. The trade off being rough fit and finish. As prices have gone up, it gets harder to justify the issues. If I paid $550 for my Takeda, more then likely I would have sent it back.

For the money, I'd pick up a Mizuno Swedish steel cleaver and get it re-handled. The cleaver handle design that Fish and Andy came up with, is close to perfect. Andy has continued to refine the design. The last time I talked with Andy, he was really busy, but he might be willing to share some tips on what makes a good cleaver handle.

Another idea Andy is always working on a project. He sells his old knives to get money for new projects. With his collection you might be able to score a kick ass cleaver.

Jay
 
i have two of Takeda's gyutos (both nominally 240mm, but both are very different in profile and size and weight) and i adore both. i use them most of the time instead of my Kochi and Shigefusa, both of which (especially the Shig; i need to thin my Kochi out) cut very well. i don't think they are value knives at all, and i think they have good handles and F&F (one has a Keller handle, which is of course great, but the stock handle on the other is very nice), with the parts that need to be rounded being rounded, and the parts that don't need to be rounded being left alone. they cut like the Dickens and feel great doing it. easy sharpening, as well. hard to beat.
 
i own a ashi hamono ginga cleaver special order, full size but 400g only, and have to say it shouldnt be thinner! i often think about that a 450g chuka would be better and if i was to buy another one, id go for 450g. still im very satisfied with it. the white #2 is way easier to sharpen than every other "high end" steel ive tried. after 4 weeks of daily use it had formed a nice natural patina and didnt have any problems with rust since then. id recommend this knife to anybody interested in chukas, and dont think the takeda could do any better other then 2-3 hrc.
 
Cheers for the input so far everyonbe. Much appreciated.

I probably should have added a but more info in the OP. The knife won't be used at work, pretty much just for when I'm cooking at home so I was after something that would basically be fun to use (and maybe to look at :D). As such, I'm not specifically after a certain type of cleaver (laser, bone-in-meats etc) which is why I was considering the takeda, sugimoto oms and the saji, all of which are pretty damn different. And my preference would be for carbon, though if the right thing comes up I am open; already have one of the N2T mid tech cleavers on order.

Anyone know if Tadatsuna are still making chuckabocho?

Cheers,
Josh
 
Not that it's relevant, butt I would get the Takeda. I love those suckers!
 
Didn't liked any I have seen (I made sayas for a few of those, including chuka). To me, they weren't worth the price then, and even more now.


M
 
Didn't liked any I have seen (I made sayas for a few of those, including chuka). To me, they weren't worth the price then, and even more now.


M

Are you speaking strictly aesthetics Marko? Or F/F? Perceived performance based on geometry? I'm very curious, as I'm fairly close to pulling the trigger on a used one myself...
 
Saji ones are pretty heavy, 600g+ and 800g+ from chef's armoury store.
 
Saji ones are pretty heavy, 600g+ and 800g+ from chef's armoury store.

Yeah, I seen that. But like I said, it's not gonna be used at work for hours and hours of vege prep so potential fatigue isn't really a concern. I was taken by Saji's cleaver as I think it's a stunning piece and I was very impressed by the gyuto of his I just recently sold. I know a lot of people don't care much for VG-10, but I for one am a fan and he knows who to squeeze a lot out of that steel.

Cheers,
Josh
 
Cheers for the input so far everyonbe. Much appreciated.

I probably should have added a but more info in the OP. The knife won't be used at work, pretty much just for when I'm cooking at home so I was after something that would basically be fun to use (and maybe to look at :D). As such, I'm not specifically after a certain type of cleaver (laser, bone-in-meats etc) which is why I was considering the takeda, sugimoto oms and the saji, all of which are pretty damn different. And my preference would be for carbon, though if the right thing comes up I am open; already have one of the N2T mid tech cleavers on order.

Anyone know if Tadatsuna are still making chuckabocho?

Cheers,
Josh
Before Tadatsunas English website went down they were selling a inox cleaver. The white steel version was discontinued when the craftsman retired.

Jay
 
I brought my two Moritaka cleavers to the DFW meetup. The last one I had made a year ago and was $550. It was very highly customized.
 
I seem to have had a funky mojo with Takeda, but that was more with the transaction than the knife...that said, I feel that there are two seperate, but equal truths about Takeda blades....1) They cut like a mother****, you just can't deny that; and 2) when the craftsman threw the rejects into the trash pile, Takeda blades always seem to land a few mm's short.
To call them unrefined, rustic, or crude really doesn't do them justice.
And they cut like a mother. And most owners love them.
When we get to a chuka for $550, we get a whole different set of issues. FWIW, the chuka was my second Takeda, I paid $250 for it, and Ithink that was only 6 - 7 years ago. The two things that I would look out for in a chuka - first, every Takeda I've had (6?) was wavy...looking at the blade from both handle to tip and spine to edge, the blade went left and right. My chuka had the least amount of this, but all of them had it. Next - the takeda is a 'sandwich' construction.Seems like you're paying an awfully large price for a really small piece of AS shoved up the butt crack of cheap iron. Are Takedas worth the price? thats your call. But it sure seems like a lot of steps taken in putting these knives together are done on the cheap.
 
What sort of custom options did you go for on the Moritaka? I didn't think they would make anything as expensive as that, aside from their damascus.

Cheers,
Josh
 
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