I figure it's time for a little review, before it's too late.
My first impression of this knife was very, very positive! It's a knife that just felt right, right away. I honestly tried not to let me initial feelings dictate my overall "review"...I think I was pretty successful in doing so, too, so I feel safe giving you my thoughts.
Looks: I love the look of this knife. Both the handle and blade go together beautifully, and I don't think it's any coincidence that it perfectly matches my cutting board.
The lines on the handle are clean and very nicely done, even though it is possible to tell that it was not machine made. By this I mean, it's not perfect, but it's not flawed either. I think Mike did a great job with the hamon. It's cloud-like, and just peeks through the solid patina that is on the blade.
Fit and Finish: This goes along with the last category, and overall, I'm really impressed. There is evidence of the knife being handmade (bevels on the handle, epoxy at the joint), but these are so virtually microscopic, they are non-factors. I fact, I like a properly handmade item better than anything else, and this one is exactly that - a skillfully handmade item.
The choil and spine are nicely eased/rounded and the rounding was done evenly. By this, I mean there are no waves evident when looking spine up, towards the tip. This it VERY IMPORTANT, and is a good way of determining the skill and care taken to make a knife. In other words, if this small feature cannot be carried out properly, you ca almost guarantee that the grind will be wavy as well. However, the opposite isn't always true, either.
Cutting Ability: This knife is a very, very good cutter and is just a hair below being a great cutter. It is in between laser and workhorse, and as a result, doesn't fall through items quite as effortlessly as say a Carter at 1.6mm thick. With this being said, it doesn't get stuck in the middle of cuts, and it does outperform all but 4 knives I've ever used (and I've used more than my fair share). HOWEVER, this knife cuts for you, with a slight draw and is one of those "fast chopping machines". While cutting, momentum gets built up and paperthin pieces just fly!
I like to use a French style of cutting, at times and this knife is unbelievably good while using this technique. I should add that it also chops and push cuts with the best of them.
The tip does what it is designed to, and that is fine tip work, without seeming delicate. In fact, the whole profile does this. There is not a single flat spot on the edge, and when done properly, like this one, that is a very good thing.
Steel: I can't accurately judge this, because quite honestly, the knife came to me beaten to all hell. It had a broken tip and about five chips along the edge. I sharpened them out, in no time, and haven't had enough time with my edge to be confident in giving it a grade here. I will say, it sharpens very nicely and takes a beautiful patina. I have had zero transference issues with foods like onions, apples and garlic, which are often trouble for carbon steel. It gives off that wonderful mild carbon steel smell while being washed, but that is all. I really like W2, based on this knife!
Overall Feeling: I fell very hard for this knife. Is it the absolute best cutter in the world? Likely not, but it is more than impressive. Is it flawless? No, but it is beautifully executed. Is it the prettiest knife I've ever seen? In the sense that it's beautiful, but I'm not afraid to beat on it and use it as a tool (which it is), it's up there.
There aren't too many knives out there that I would rather use than this one. It has an awesome, versatile profile, very nice steel (it seems), a gorgeous handle and most importantly, it feels right to me. I look forward to using it, and in fact, I suspect I will be using it for years to come. I jokingly told Matt he wasn't going to get his knife back, and lucky for me, he didn't outright tell me to "sod off". Sometimes you can't explain why you like/love something, but you just know you do. Well, this is one of those things.
Not that I wear a hat, but my hat's off to you on this one, Mike. It's a perfect example of how the sum of all parts can be greater than the sum of all scores...if that makes sense.
I hope Matt doesn't miss his gyuto too much...
Overall score: A
Score for me: I could use this and only this gyuto, along with a good parer and petty and be more than happy. What I guess I mean is that even a gyuto addict like me could stop here and be happy for quite some time. So, it gets an A+!