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mpukas said:
Hate to be the party pooper here, but I didn't get along with mine at all and have no regrets about selling it. I have other knives that I like better for a variety of reasons, primarily they are all much better cutters. The one good thing I'll say about it was the semi SS is outstanding. Also, the thinning and edge Jon put on it was unworldly.
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Judging from what you did to it, it's no wonder it didn't cut. What you aren't mentioning is Jon had to FIX what you did, THEN thin and sharpen that knife. Frankly, I question your ability to evaluate a knife at all.
 
tk59 said:
Judging from what you did to it, it's no wonder it didn't cut. What you aren't mentioning is Jon had to FIX what you did, THEN thin and sharpen that knife. Frankly, I question your ability to evaluate a knife at all.
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I know you saw what I did to my knife, and if you had followed any of my other posts about it since then, you'd have seen that I acknowledged what I did, and that Jon fixed it.

Just because I don’t yet possess the skills to thin a knife of this type like you and Jon do – or like the same things in a knife that you do, doesn’t mean I can’t evaluate a knife, or make my preferences invalid. I’ll put my knife skills against you or anyone on this forum any day of the week.

Even after Jon fixed it I still didn't like it. I get what the knife is supposed to be about, but it didn’t do it for me.

Here’s what I didn’t like about it;
  • That handle was too small – both in length and thickness – for a knife of this size.
  • The handle was misaligned – it was not installed in line with the spine
  • The handle was titled up – which I CAN’T STAND
  • Jon tried to fix both of these issues for me, but because there’s only so much he could do to the original handle, it was still slightly off-kilter. That’s when Jon and I decided to replace the handle.
  • The overall fit and finish of the blade was not up to what I expected from a knife of that price range.
All this is cosmetic and really not that important. But if a knife doesn’t impress on me on these basic levels

The biggest issue I had was that it wasn’t the best cutter – and yes TK – even after Jon fixed what I did – can I say that again any clearer???

Cutting anything that was shorter than the bevel height was fine. But cut anything taller than the bevel and it wedged and food stuck – apples, pears, onions, potatoes, etc. and god forbid a sweet potato/yam.

Stiction was also a big issue – because the blade face above the bevel was dead flat with no convexing any food item that was not directed away by the shinogi got stuck. And yeah, TK, I get that having a crisp shinogi helps reduce stiction, and even after Jon fixed what I did to it I still had issues with food sticking to it.

The blade thickness above the bevels had very little taper from the spine down, and was very thick above the bevel. As this area of the blade enter the food being cut, it got stuck.

I get that there’s a lot of Heiji love around here and that it’s warranted. But from the one knife I had my experience has been different.

And once again TK just to make sure you get it, all of my impressions are AFTER Jon fixed it. Clear enough?
 
Mucho Bocho said:
TK, MP is actually someone on this forum that I look to for advise about knives. So how about we all hug it out ok cause, like you TK, Mike P knows what he's talking about.
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And he also has the best knife skills in the world!

Mucho Bocho, TK59 is also an extremely well regarded member of the forum that many people look for advice about sharpening and knives to. Has been around a long time and has been highly respected my many. I think he was just saying it's not fair to judge a knife brand based off of a knife you have changed (screwed up and then had fixed from the initial knife still isn't what the knife was when it was first made.)

On a side note. One great thing about knives is we all have our own opinions, I think a lot of knives people like are garbage and knives that other people hate, I love. We all have our opinions about different knives. I am 100% sure that other people out there hated their experience with Heiji. Personally, as I stated before, I really miss mine.

-Chuck
 
mpukas said:
...Cutting anything that was shorter than the bevel height was fine. But cut anything taller than the bevel and it wedged and food stuck – apples, pears, onions, potatoes, etc. and god forbid a sweet potato/yam...
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I cut these things all the time with my Heijis without a problem. I've used other folks Heijis to do these same tasks, as well. I haven't met one that isn't excellent. Maybe you did get a lemon and in spite of your expertise (which I also question) it just won't cut. I'm saying I doubt it.
@Mucho: You can ask whoever you want for advice but unless Mike P had a revelation, no, he doesn't always know what he's talking about but he likes to sound that way.
 
my Heijis are my prized rutabaga and sweet potato knives.
 
Out of curiosity, what makes the Heji such an excellent cutter? In past discussions, the comments were more mixed. The main criticism was that a Heji was too thick.

Is this the kind of knife, where you need to be a fairly accomplished sharpener to unlock its potential?

Jay
 
Mucho Bocho said:
Michael, Oh yea? How many drinks does it take EP to numb the pain in his thumb?
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Whatever he does, he does it well. EdipisReks is easily one of the better sharpeners I have seen from this forum. I've bought a Sabatier from him and seen a couple of other knives he's sharpened. He puts a consistent, even bevel, maintains the profile and can put a very nice, strong edge. He also knows how to sharpen Heijis.

And, I'm not just only person who has seen this. His sharpening ability has also been corroborated by others who are some of the best sharpeners on this forum. I would trust EdipisReks to sharpen my double bevel knives.
 
Mike, I'm with ya and have never doubted your or EP word on anything. I trust him to sharpen my knives too. I just think that its insensitive for TK to bash MP, that's all.

I can sharpen bettter that you, Na Na Na Na.

Mike, I can consistenly put a very sharp, long lasting edge on my knives too. Ask Zweifle. When he came to my house last month on his cross-country tour, he said that my edges raised his expectations of sharp is.

That doesn't make me want to put him down. Know what i mean Mike?
 
Now I'm curious to know what you're doing that your Heijis are your go-to knives for sweet potatoes, rutabagas, etc...Those are the only things I don't love cutting with my Heiji. No matter what I've tried, the first one or two cuts on a huge root aren't really all that smooth and there have been better knives for that.

I stuck with the Heijis in spite of some troubles with huge roots, because they have some of the nicest cutting feedback (hard to describe) and cut everything else better than anything else I tried (again, it's that very precise feedback)...Now if I could get them to cut roots better, then they'd really be perfect for me.
 
:happy222:Main thing you get your knife sharp enough to do the job.Steering,Flex,Stiction,I've prefered thin J-Gyuto many yrs. cut all kinds of food never thought about these things,but they seem to be a major concern on knife forums:whistling:
 
im in the process of getting a heiji. considering 1 person here was unsafisfied with his but 14 other people say its the best knife they ever used or close to it im not worried.
 
Mucho Bocho said:
Mike, I'm with ya and have never doubted your or EP word on anything. I trust him to sharpen my knives too. I just think that its insensitive for TK to bash MP, that's all.
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If you have issue with what tk said, engage him in a discussion then, not EdipisReks. Your comments toward him are misdirected.

And, you're guilty of exactly what you claim to be insensitive. You're basically bashing EdipisReks when he said absolutely nothing about mpukas.
 
Michael, I have nothing against ER or TK. ER said he liked to sharpen his knives when he drinks. I didn't say it. Just making light of it.

ER if I have offended, I'm sorry as that was not my intention, but I can see how my words could be mis-construde and taken the wrong way.

However, I've been reading/enjoying/laughing/learning your post for years and have a gut feel that you've got a good sense of humor, unlike others on this forum.
 
@jaybett: Heijis (and other similarly ground knives) do thicken up a little quicker as you get farther from the edge and in my hands, that does lead to a bit more resistance than a knife that is less "convex" but then there is less sticktion when cutting larger objects so I think that's a decent trade-off. While I am not a rutabaga guy, I do cut everything else with these knives and enjoy doing so. Perhaps the one exception would be cutting big chunks of large, fully hydrated carrots, which sometimes tend to crack before the cut makes it all the way through.
 
tk59 said:
@jaybett: Heijis (and other similarly ground knives) do thicken up a little quicker as you get farther from the edge and in my hands, that does lead to a bit more resistance than a knife that is less "convex" but then there is less sticktion when cutting larger objects so I think that's a decent trade-off. While I am not a rutabaga guy, I do cut everything else with these knives and enjoy doing so. Perhaps the one exception would be cutting big chunks of large, fully hydrated carrots, which sometimes tend to crack before the cut makes it all the way through.
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This is exactly my experience as well. I could be wrong but in my experience the most important part of maintaining the geometry of any double bevel heiji is to follow the bevels and thin well.
 
tk59 said:
@jaybett: Heijis (and other similarly ground knives) do thicken up a little quicker as you get farther from the edge and in my hands, that does lead to a bit more resistance than a knife that is less "convex" but then there is less sticktion when cutting larger objects so I think that's a decent trade-off. While I am not a rutabaga guy, I do cut everything else with these knives and enjoy doing so. Perhaps the one exception would be cutting big chunks of large, fully hydrated carrots, which sometimes tend to crack before the cut makes it all the way through.
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Thanks for the info.

Jay
 
tk59 said:
@jaybett: Heijis (and other similarly ground knives) do thicken up a little quicker as you get farther from the edge and in my hands, that does lead to a bit more resistance than a knife that is less "convex" but then there is less sticktion when cutting larger objects so I think that's a decent trade-off. While I am not a rutabaga guy, I do cut everything else with these knives and enjoy doing so. Perhaps the one exception would be cutting big chunks of large, fully hydrated carrots, which sometimes tend to crack before the cut makes it all the way through.
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I use the front half of the knife, and find even big carrots to be fine.
 
EdipisReks said:
I use the front half of the knife, and find even big carrots to be fine.
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Really? I'm thinking our "fine" or "enjoyable" are probably different. All the Heijis I've used have been especially amazing at most things, so I love them. But for hard, huge roots, I've always felt they're just meh...not good, not horrible.
 
heirkb said:
Really? I'm thinking our "fine" or "enjoyable" are probably different. All the Heijis I've used have been especially amazing at most things, so I love them. But for hard, huge roots, I've always felt they're just meh...not good, not horrible.
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Entirely possible, but I love to cut very thin sections of rutabaga for making rutabaga fries. And I've found no better knives than my Heijis for it.
 
In spreading the Heiji love I though I'd share the only level that he trumps the awe I have for his SS knives.
Heiji bone saws are works of art! Don't think there is a finer saw maker out there.

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