What happened to the popularity of these knives?

[jaybett]

Makers become popular, when a well known member gives them a positive review. Fred over at FF, gave Yoshahiro a boast. While KCMA helped Aritsugu and Tadatsuna.

The forum goal has been to find a maker, with great knives at great prices. Takeda so far is the best example. A thin knife, with AS steel, initially at a low price, that cut as well or better then many higher priced knives. Even after a few price increases, they were a good deal.

Moritaka seemed poised to be the next Takeda, until the issues began to surface. There was a lot of excitement about Konosuke, and then it went away. On the HD series, the main complaint seemed to be they were too light?

The main reason knives fall out of popularity is price. Takeda is a great knife, but at their current price level, would they still be considered a good deal? When a knife becomes common enough, that seems to take some of the bloom off. The Forum knife is a good example.

Jay

 

[tk59]

It's a lot of things, pretty much all mentioned here. I'm continually surprised that Glestain doesn't get more pub, as a matter of fact. Once I thinned it just a tad and more recently, ground off some of that thick butt cap, it is very difficult to put down. After seeing what a lot of folks have done to thier A-type, I do understand why they don't get recommended but mine remains among my favorite knives to use, albeit after a lot of modification. Blazen is a very nice knife but I don't see it outperforming other knives in it's price range and general category. I like Yoshikane but I've found them not to be outstanding all around knives, in general. I always try to give reasons why I like knives but in the end it comes down to what I keep wanting to use. Tadatsuna are just like Gesshin, etc but Gesshin takes and holds an nice edge better. My IT sits in my block. I guess I should get rid of it...maybe...nah...

 

[K-Fed]

Used my glestain tonight. It was one of my first h knives and I still love it years later. The only thing I feel could be better is the edge retention. Still a fantasticly well made knife that can stand up to a lot of abuse.

 

[K-Fed]

Used my glestain tonight. It was one of my first j knives and I still love it years later. The only thing I feel could be better is the edge retention. Still a fantasticly well made knife that can stand up to a lot of abuse.

 

[K-Fed]

Double post sorry. iPhone is giving me fits. Lol

 

[Lefty]

Another one is Misono. I love mine, as most here know. The increased prices and lack of a new model seems to be keeping them back. With that being said, I still want a UX-10 gyuto. Haha

 

[NO ChoP!]

I refurbed a beat up 240 Misono moly gyuto for a coworker today. My expectations were low, but that thing impressed. It was thin and nimble, and took a great edge.
.
I never got the UX10 hype. Doesn't seem all that special.

How about Tojiro DP? Used to be the goto recommendation..

 

[tk59]

I refurbed a beat up 240 Misono moly gyuto for a coworker today. My expectations were low, but that thing impressed. It was thin and nimble, and took a great edge.
.
I never got the UX10 hype. Doesn't seem all that special.

How about Tojiro DP? Used to be the goto recommendation..

I've used the 440 and UX10 side by side. The UX10 edge seemed to hold up better but not by a lot. The Tojiro DP is a nice knife but the chippiness is a deal breaker for me. Various flavors of moly stainless found in a lot of relatively low cost knives is much more practical, imo.

 

[Duckfat]

aframes restocked several tads not too long ago. anybody interested in tads should check with aframestokyo.

I have no idea if they re-stocked with new inventory (I asked but did not get a response to that) but I spoke with Takeshi yesterday and A-frames does have some Ikkanshi-Tads. It looks like the prices have been marked down as well.

Dave

 

[playford]

How about Tojiro DP? Used to be the goto recommendation..

Here why for me, You used to be able to get a 240mm DP from JCK for $59.99 + $7 shipping to the uk. This was when the pound to dollar was 2:1 so for just over £30 you got a pretty decent knife.

How about when everyone decided that wantanabe gyutos were "too thick" and he went out of fashion lol.

Takedas are nice but theres no way I'd pay the kind of price they are now.

 

[mikemac]

...
I never got the UX10 hype. Doesn't seem all that special...

The UX10 hype was (IMHO) all about the LA Times article's impact on SLT/WS type high end consumers. Re-read the article and all the knives mentioned should have taken off, but "we" consumers seemingly love to skip the details and buy #1 on the list.

 

[mikemac]

Here why for me, You used to be able to get a 240mm DP from JCK for $59.99 + $7 shipping to the uk. This was when the pound to dollar was 2:1 so for just over £30 you got a pretty decent knife...

I'm pretty sure that at about the same time, Tojiro replaced the core steel - VG10 replaced cromoly -so you had a related price bump there too.

 

[NO ChoP!]

Pointing out Tojiros price hike as singular is silly when every maker has bumped prices by now...still considered relatively affordable, I would think. More so, there's been a slew of other affordable entry levels; enter Carbonext....

 

[playford]

It was also that JCK stopped stocking them (no more cheap postage etc) and now the pound to the dollar is 1:1.5 for me. So not such a bargain now!

 

[WiscoNole]

I don't think Tadatsuna was ever significantly overpriced. Of course there are much cheaper options for that style of knife, but F&F have been perfect on all 3 of my Tads and the handles, pin and all, are much nicer and more aesthetic than, say, a Sakai Yusuke's. Do the Sakai's come with sayas? Bc Tadatsuna's are (were?) pretty nice.

 

[WiscoNole]

The UX10 hype was (IMHO) all about the LA Times article's impact on SLT/WS type high end consumers. Re-read the article and all the knives mentioned should have taken off, but "we" consumers seemingly love to skip the details and buy #1 on the list.

That doesn't explain how it's all over NYC restaurants I worked at

 

[tk59]

That doesn't explain how it's all over NYC restaurants I worked at

Back when I started out, I remember doing a Google search and UX10 came up several times. I almost ended up getting one as my first high end knife. I'm glad the guy at the local KnifeMerchant convinced me to get a Glestain. A hundred plus knives later, I still love that knife. Anyway, I can see why a lot of folks would get a UX10 after searching the same way I did.

 

[labor of love]

hung huynhs knife skills from top chef certainly gave the ux 10 a boost in popularity as well.

 

[Duckfat]

IIR Hung may have been the one that made me want that Glestain box so bad....Bastage! unish:

Dave

 

[James]

I'm quite fond of the profile of the UX10s, but the blade geometry leaves something to be desired. The grind is very flat.

 

[labor of love]

every time i feel enticed by ux 10, i quickly realize a stainless ashi ginga western would be a nicer and cheaper option.

 

[bieniek]

I'm continually surprised that Glestain doesn't get more pub, as a matter of fact. Once I thinned it just a tad and more recently, ground off some of that thick butt cap, it is very difficult to put down.

I did pretty much the same.

Its for sale now, I am very happy I got it for free [damaged] cause I would be mad at myself if I spent so much money on that something.
The steel is a disaster.
Does it take worthy edge? I would just say it cuts.
It feels solid in hand but like made with chewing gum when cutting.

The only thing worth is the food release. The right side really really works.
The flat side however...
Is that about preference? I think its measurable whether edge or retention are very good in its segment

 

[phasedweasel]

I'm quite fond of the profile of the UX10s, but the blade geometry leaves something to be desired. The grind is very flat.

What do you mean by this, that the grind is too flat? I'm having a hard time picturing it.

 

[EdipisReks]

What do you mean by this, that the grind is too flat? I'm having a hard time picturing it.

each side is more a less a straight line from bevel to spine.

 

[Duckfat]

Does any one still have an Ikkanshi catalog to cross check the address?

I found the address for Ikkanshi in the past and does look like some change change has taken place. There is mention on the site linked up thread about the change which as best as I can tell says; "Along with the trend of the times, the new one is born, but good old disappears".
Here's the old info Vs the new if any one is interested;

Old Ikkanshi Tadatsuna ;
V&V Logistics Corporation
3-18-21, Nagayoshi-Kawanabe, Hirano-ku, Ōsaka-fu, Japan 547-0014
TEL: +81-(0)6-4302-3700
FAX: +81-(0)6-4302-3600

New;
Nagata Cutlery Co., Ltd.
1 No. 4 Ding Kainochohigashi Sakai-ku, Sakai, Japan 590-0953
TEL: 072-232-2921 / 072-232-1132
FAX: 072-222-1948

 

[tk59]

I did pretty much the same.

Its for sale now, I am very happy I got it for free [damaged] cause I would be mad at myself if I spent so much money on that something.
The steel is a disaster.
Does it take worthy edge? I would just say it cuts.
It feels solid in hand but like made with chewing gum when cutting.

The only thing worth is the food release. The right side really really works.
The flat side however...
Is that about preference? I think its measurable whether edge or retention are very good in its segment

Glestain does not have a flat side. Yes, the steel is softer. I do not have problems with burrs or wire edges. The edge isn't like carbon but it performs far better than a Wusthof or Henckels or Forschner. I like to sharpen mine on a coticule. Edge holding and performance is decent. Mine cuts much better than chewing gum, lol. Frankly, that's ridiculous. Steel is less than half the story, imo. As long as the steel is decent (which it is) 90% of performance is grind and sharpening. Once you figure out how to put a good edge on it (It's not hard.), it is an excellent knife.

 

[Rottman]

Old Ikkanshi Tadatsuna ;
V&V Logistics Corporation
3-18-21, Nagayoshi-Kawanabe, Hirano-ku, Ōsaka-fu, Japan 547-0014
TEL: +81-(0)6-4302-3700
FAX: +81-(0)6-4302-3600

New;
Nagata Cutlery Co., Ltd.
1 No. 4 Ding Kainochohigashi Sakai-ku, Sakai, Japan 590-0953
TEL: 072-232-2921 / 072-232-1132
FAX: 072-222-1948

IIRC V&V logistics was only a distributor and not the IT address.

 

[bieniek]

Glestain does not have a flat side. Yes, the steel is softer. I do not have problems with burrs or wire edges. The edge isn't like carbon but it performs far better than a Wusthof or Henckels or Forschner. I like to sharpen mine on a coticule. Edge holding and performance is decent. Mine cuts much better than chewing gum, lol. Frankly, that's ridiculous. Steel is less than half the story, imo. As long as the steel is decent (which it is) 90% of performance is grind and sharpening. Once you figure out how to put a good edge on it (It's not hard.), it is an excellent knife.

Yeah. Sure.

That is much better explanation then the knife being piece of crap. At least I like it

 

[Yamabushi]

New;
Nagata Cutlery Co., Ltd.
1 No. 4 Ding Kainochohigashi Sakai-ku, Sakai, Japan 590-0953
TEL: 072-232-2921 / 072-232-1132
FAX: 072-222-1948

This is the address listed on the site I linked to earlier: It is this the Romanized version of this address: 堺市堺区甲斐町東1丁1番4号 〒590-0953. I'd write it slightly differently, like this:

1-1-4 Kainochōhigashi, Sakai-shi, Sakai-ku, Japan 590-0953


The workshop address is also listed as: 堺市堺区柳之町西３丁８番３号. No postal code is shown but here is the Romanized version of the workshop address:

3-8-3 Yanaginochōnishi, Sakai-shi, Sakai-ku, Japan

 

[RobinW]

No difference if IT is still in business, but i just put my white 240 gyuto back in rotation and it is a brilliant knife :biggrin: