The Gyuto Plunge

Miura knives
Advertise with us
Kitchen Knife Forums

Help Support Kitchen Knife Forums:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
I would say, with all due respect, instead of steeling, strop very lightly on your finest stone or the one before it. Steeling will damage the edge and produce fatigued steel that has to be removed at the next sharpening, and may form a wire edge in between.
 
That's why I only reccom.non invasive steels like smooth polishing.Also incorrect steel use is a major factor for crappy edges in production kitchens.Even in Hawaii though it is more a European tradition.Many cooks use steels.

Alot of Eastern cultures do not use steels at all & probably have sharper knives than the average western cook.
 
Benuser said:
I would say, with all due respect, instead of steeling, strop very lightly on your finest stone or the one before it. Steeling will damage the edge and produce fatigued steel that has to be removed at the next sharpening, and may form a wire edge in between.
Click to expand...
i dont own any stones at the moment.
 
Maybe you should grab a stone or two, they are really helpful if you want a sharp edge, there are many vendors on this forum offering different stones etc and they are all off excellent quality
And it's really fun to put a great edge on a knife I find it quite relaxing?
 
I think I could definitely find sharpening relaxing. but now this opens a new question. for the hiromoto AS gyuto, what a time should I get? and will the stone also work with a stainless edge?
 
You'll need a medium coarse (J800-1200) and a medium fine (3-5k) stone as soon as you have the knife. A factory edge is some service to the Western customers. I've been told in Japan blades are sold unsharpened as the customer or reseller is expected to deal with that.
The factory edge is weak, won't last and should be replaced as soon as possible by a decent edge made on stones.
Current waterstones are suited for use with both AS and stainless.
 
being that I have zero experience sharpening blades with stones I'm not convinced it's a good idea that my first time sharpening a blade be with my brand new gyuto. not sure how to resolve that issue.
 
eighteesix said:
being that I have zero experience sharpening blades with stones I'm not convinced it's a good idea that my first time sharpening a blade be with my brand new gyuto. not sure how to resolve that issue.
Click to expand...

Practice sharpening with the knife you are replacing. It'll wear differently than your new gyuto because of softer steel, but will still be better than no practice at all. Just be aware of the different wearing speed, and the different blade angle.
 
Get a simple carbon blade for learning the basics. In Europe I would suggest an Opinel or a simple Robert Herder.
 
Benuser said:
Get a simple carbon blade for learning the basics. In Europe I would suggest an Opinel or a simple Robert Herder.
Click to expand...
So you're suggesting avoiding the Hiromoto for now? I'm in US.
 
It's been recommended in another reply, but pick up a CarboNext from JCK. It is more than adequately sharp out of the box and is easy to sharpen, almost as easy as white steel.

Rick
 
Pensacola Tiger said:
It's been recommended in another reply, but pick up a CarboNext from JCK. It is more than adequately sharp out of the box and is easy to sharpen, almost as easy as white steel.

Rick
Click to expand...
The price is so similar between that knife and the hiromoto. However I do see the point in getting a lower quality knife for my first carbon.
 
eighteesix said:
So you're suggesting avoiding the Hiromoto for now? I'm in US.
Click to expand...
Make your first scratches on an unexpensive carbon. IIRC in the US you have Old Hickories for that purpose.
Of course you can use a Hiromoto with its factory edge. It will be for sure the sharpest knife you've ever handled. But don't expect it to hold for months.
 
eighteesix said:
The price is so similar between that knife and the hiromoto. However I do see the point in getting a lower quality knife for my first carbon.
Click to expand...

Not so much a lower quality, but the Hiromoto (at least the one's I have handled) needed to be thinned to be good cutters. The CarboNext has no such limitation.

In addition, the soft stainless cladding of the Hiromoto scratches very easily, while the harder mono steel of the CarboNext will not.
 
Very helpful, lots of good info much appreciated. There's just so many options and I've only handled several brands of blades (Shun, Wusthof, Global, Miyabi) so it's really difficult to make decisions on knives I've never used or owned, especially carbon.

Leaning towards a 240mm CarboNext, solely because it's my first japanese-made knife.
 
I seem to recall that more recent Hiromotos are thinner. I have a relatively recent (about a year old) Hiro AS santoku that is nice and thin. Thinner than my Konosuke HD, which is considered a laser. Not sure if it's fair to generalize from just that one, but thought I'd put that out there.
 
toddnmd said:
I seem to recall that more recent Hiromotos are thinner. I have a relatively recent (about a year old) Hiro AS santoku that is nice and thin. Thinner than my Konosuke HD, which is considered a laser. Not sure if it's fair to generalize from just that one, but thought I'd put that out there.
Click to expand...
Based on their production, it's my understanding that many of the Hiromotos (as well as many blades many in Seki City) are very similar with not a lot of variation--only slight. More input would be greatly appreciated on the subject.
 
Recent Hiromotos are much thinner behind the edge than a few years ago. The former fat cladding is ground off just as a good sharpener would do it.
It's true the soft stainless cladding scratches easily. But because it's so soft the same scratches are removed just as easily as well. All you need is a small strip of fine sandpaper, if you care about these things.
 
Hope the poster is not getting confused,I am guilty of getting off topic for sure.You can get a Opinel #12 carbone folder for around 20.00.It is the large one wt.4.5" blade.I have one & use it alot mostly for gardening.It gets very sharp & a good cheap carbon blade to practice on.Plus it's a nice large folder that cuts well.

I don't think of Hiromoto's as show knives to say the least.They are workhorse wt. good core steel.It's not like Damascus or perfect Kasumi mist finish.A few scratches do not affect function at all.
 
Found a nice Opinel #12 for $20 on amazon. I think I may go with that and stick with the Hiromoto based on the recent reviews given here. Which means I'd also pick up a sharpening stone to use with the Opinel as practice.

Someone suggested I would need a Medium Rough and Medium Fine stone for my AS Gyuto. Would this whetstone do the job?

JCK Special Combination Whetstone (#1000 and #4000)
Medium Rough Grit / Fine Grit
 
toddnmd said:
Yep, a 1K/4K should do you just fine.
Click to expand...
I know a JCK 1/4k stone is an option, but the King 1/6k is cheaper and I've read is a good stone for beginners. Assuming I'm using a carbon Hiromoto with it, would the King still be a good choice, as a beginner, and with that AS gyuto?

I've seen other posts praising Gesshin stones but prices there are steep.
 
No own knowledge about the King. As far I've read it's rather soft, slow and easily dishing, and not too appropriated for harder carbides. That makes me a little suspicious about use with AS.
 
Benuser said:
No own knowledge about the King. As far I've read it's rather soft, slow and easily dishing, and not too appropriated for harder carbides. That makes me a little suspicious about use with AS.
Click to expand...
Versus the JCK 1/4k?

When sharpening, is there anything else I would need? Other equipment to go with a stone? A plate? My own method of securing the stone. Anything else ?
 
I think the JCK is a better stone 1/4K is a good grit combo too.No need to go over 4K on a Gyuto.JCK mentions it is good for AS steel.

You can use damp rags & a section of 2x4 wood to sharpen on.Use untreated wood,you can get it cheap or even free.Alot of sharpeners use diamond plates to flatten their stones,the more fine the grit the less a stone dishes as a rule.You can get X- course plate for around 50.00.

It may seem like alot,65.00 for a combo stone & 50.00 for a plate,but it is not really.With practice you will become a skilled freehand sharpener.JKI Jon Broida-(knifesharpeningplaylist)are some of the best English language tutorals on knife sharpening out there.:)
 
eighteesix said:
What about a diamond plate like this?
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0001WP1L0/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

Or are there other options? No idea what I'm looking for or if a diamond plate is even necessary to flatten a stone.
Click to expand...

That is the coarse the, plate in X- coarse is the same price for the DMT.You do not need a plate to level your stones,you can use dry wall sanding sheets or even sandpaper.Once you invest in a plate in this case only 43.00,it is easy to use,works better than the syn. stone fixers.Plus it can be used for chip & tip repair.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest posts

Back
Top