Current Top 5 and Top 10 Gyutos

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DitmasPork said:
I’d borrowed a friend’s Mazaki santoku, they look cool to me, fun to use—but honestly couldn’t see why’d I’d get a santoku, or why I’d grab a santoku over a gyuto. If working in a small space, I’d rather use a smaller gyuto or nakiri tbh.
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If shorter in length is your thing with increased blade height, add a flatter profile… If that is what you like, then a santoku might be better than a gyuto.
 
daddy yo yo said:
If shorter in length is your thing with increased blade height, add a flatter profile… If that is what you like, then a santoku might be better than a gyuto.
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Where would this Milan small gyuto come in then? I always find the distinction between small gyuto and santoku so nebulous.

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daddy yo yo said:
Really? For me it was the other way round: Top5 was easy, Top10 gets tough. Probably because I have way too many knives too choose from.
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If the question were ‘which 5 gyutos I’d save if my apartment were on fire,’ my answer would be different, it might be.
Kato
Yanick
Raquin
Jiro
Shig or Denka
 
PeterL said:
Where would this Milan small gyuto come in then? I always find the distinction between small gyuto and santoku so nebulous.

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Looks like a gyuto to me - I love small 180 gyutos since I typically do small prep. Santoku to me is a more rounded bullnose tip, although it’s nebulous as you say. Some call 180 gyutos pettys, too.
 
PeterL said:
Just gotta let me try that Kamon x Huber and it could be 2/3 Kamon's like you :love: How do you find it differs to the rest of your Kamon's?

Also I'm sure this question has been asked before but what is the collective term for Kamon's.
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Well, the whole blade is more substantial around the heel, it is heavier, the handle feels different, and the handle scales go more forward than Kamon‘s usual handles. In the pic all heels are on one line.
 
DitmasPork said:
Wait, I do own a santoku, a stainless, vivid pink, under-$10 santoku my mom gave me years ago. Before coming to my senses and traveling with a knife roll, I’d cooked up many a fine meals with that colorful, versatile, kitchen workhorse.
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It makes sense that it’s pink, the ladies love pink.
 
This is hard. I just got a Goko W1 240. Haven't used it enough to put it in the rankings, but it will get some attention. I love the profile, and the steel takes a wicked edge.

Top 5?

JNS Tanaka 270 B1
Masamoto KS 270
Denka 240
Halcyon wrought-clad 250
Takamura R2 180

Next 5

Shiro Kamo R2 240
Sukenari HAP40 Ktip 240
Wat Pro 270
Konosuke Fujiyama W1 240
Takeda 210
 
JuniperGhosts said:
Do you have all your knives loose in a drawer??
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That's the flat file drawer, the kitchen drawer is much smaller, but yeah knives are loose—long knives on bottom, gyutos and petty knives on top, cream floats to the top. They all have edge guards—choosing a knife sometimes akin to drawing a card from the pile in the middle of a poker table. Despite the chaos, all knives are safe.
FWIW, my fishing tackle box is similarly controlled chaos.
 
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This is tougher than anticipated. I only have five gyutos at the moment, so I'll limit it to those rather than including knives I previously owned or have used extensively.

1). Kikumori/Tanaka Blue #1 custom 270mm. The grind, retention, heel height all put this thing in a league of its own. (Interestingly it's very different from a "thick" Konosuke FM 270 or a Kaiju--lighter, much thinner at the spine, and whisper-thin at the edge with a lot of convexity).

2). Martell 240mm in 52100. It's not a laser, and its best edge doesn't reach the level of absolute sharpness of the others on this list. But it's the easiest to maintain by far, the grind's brilliant for almost any purpose, and most importantly, I have no hesitation when using it. It's also the oldest knife in my collection, my first custom, and a source of anticipation and joy on arrival that I haven't felt since.

3). Togashi White #1 wide bevel 240mm kiritsuke gyuto. Never used anything double beveled that's as sharp as this, and the edge retention at about 95% of capacity is surprisingly long. The k-tip is a lot of fun for precision work, too.

4). Ikeda custom Blue #1 that was once 240mm and is now about 220mm. This took a spill, but after an incredible spa treatment by Evan at Strata, it's beautiful, nimble, and as thin as tin foil at the edge.

5). Konosuke FM White #2 240mm. I think I got lucky here--I'll admit that I haven't used multiple iterations of Tanaka's White #2 (just this and a yanagiba), but the edge retention has been strong on this example, and the geometry is perfect--Myojin knocked this out of the park. I carry this knife or the Martell with me when I cook away from home, and it's the second best pure cutter on softer foods after the Togashi.
 
heldentenor said:
This is tougher than anticipated. I only have five gyutos at the moment, so I'll limit it to those rather than including knives I previously owned or have used extensively.

1). Kikumori/Tanaka Blue #1 custom 270mm. The grind, retention, heel height all put this thing in a league of its own. (Interestingly it's very different from a "thick" Konosuke FM 270 or a Kaiju--lighter, much thinner at the spine, and whisper-thin at the edge with a lot of convexity).
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Mind posting some photos? I'm a huge fan of Kikumori knives.
 
Top 5 (although it changes with mood...)
Thick FM Blue 1
Tetsujin Metal flow
Birgersson
Catcheside
Kipp laserpony


Honestly though, everything I currently own is awesome. At this point I'm selling stuff just to maintain diversity without having too many knives. My block somehow became full again because of impulse buys :facepalm:
 
Limited to just my 9 gyutos, top five, in alpha order, would be

Denka 210
Jiro 240
Kamon 240
Takada Blue 1 suiboku 240
Wakui 240 Tsuchime

Catcheside might make the list, but its new to me and I've hardly used it.

Rounding out the stable are Togashi 210 k-tip, Felipi 240, and Takeda 210. No slouches there.

If this wasn't limited to gyuto I'd include Wat Pro Nakiri and Shibata Bunka. Short knives need love too!
 
Top 5 Gyutos
(Alphabetical)

245 CJA in Nitro V - My Largest gyuto but possibly the most nimble.

240 Dalman/Birgersson - Solid beast with an easy, stable patina

235 Kippington Hook Grind - Possibly my favorite profile

210 Martell - Doesn't truly excel anywhere, but one of the most complete packages and oddly satisfying

230 theNine B1 & ironclad - Great knife, solid and classy

6-10

210 HVB in M390 - Nimble, sharp, stainless

210 Raquin (French Chef profile) - Braaap Great knife, best at rock-chopping

260 Raquin Gyutohiki (Ok fine TALL slicer)- Shorter heel makes it feel nimble, but the length gives it more utility. (Also new [to me], but it's been fun. )

210 Tim Johnson AEBL- Great value, my go to chicken and no worries knife.

190 Smedja Aspen - Nice little workhorse, but never connected ( probably could use a little help to get it dialed in.)



(Probably going into the Top 5, but time will tell)

210 Tsukasa Riverjump (Recently acquired, could use some TLC and only use once. )

220 Xerxes Magnacut - Haven't received yet.
 
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Top 5:
1 Comet 26c3 honyaki 240
2 Kono FM Togo 240
3 Kato B2 240 STD
4a Kono B2 240 morihiro wide bevel
4b Kagekiyo B1 240

Next 5:
6 Takada no Hamono b1 240 suiboku
7 kono fm w1 210
8 HF 52100 210 mono
9 sakai takayuki 240 ginsan damascus
10 toyama damascus 240
pretty sure 2 knives i have coming will displace the bottom 2 within a couple weeks
 
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Top 5 (alphabetical):

Dalman x BB 240
Kippington WH 52100 255
Kippington WP AEB-L 245
Konosuke MM blue #2 230
Watanabe Pro ironclad 270

superworrier said:
Honestly though, everything I currently own is awesome. At this point I'm selling stuff just to maintain diversity without having too many knives.
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Agree with this sentiment - other than a beater I keep for sentimental reasons and a project knife that's languishing in the drawer, it's all good stuff.
 
dmonterisi said:
Top 5:
1 Comet 26c3 honyaki 240
2 Kono FM Togo 240
3 Kato B2 240 STD
4a Kono B2 240 morihiro wide bevel
4b Kagekiyo B1 240

Next 5:
6 Takada no Hamono b1 240 suiboku
7 kono fm w1 210
8 comet honyaki 220 suji
9 Dalman 1.2519 cleaver
10 HF 52100 210 mono

pretty sure 2 knives i have coming will displace the bottom 2 within a couple weeks
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Extremely jealous of this rotation
 
dmonterisi said:
Top 5:
1 Comet 26c3 honyaki 240
2 Kono FM Togo 240
3 Kato B2 240 STD
4a Kono B2 240 morihiro wide bevel
4b Kagekiyo B1 240

Next 5:
6 Takada no Hamono b1 240 suiboku
7 kono fm w1 210
8 comet honyaki 220 suji
9 Dalman 1.2519 cleaver
10 HF 52100 210 mono

pretty sure 2 knives i have coming will displace the bottom 2 within a couple weeks
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Thought we were just doing gyutos… 😂
 
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