A petty for your thoughts ? 150mm mini-gyuto style ?

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ayumi_ishida

ayumi_ishida

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Looking for suggestions for a tall 150mm stainless petty for cooking at home for myself .
Considering this Shigeki Tanaka being sold and branded by Honmamon-Japan . (also available branded Tanaka from K&S NYC)
Height is listed as 34mm .
(photo is 155mm version )

SHIGEHIRO SPECIAL VG10 Damascus Petty (Pairing) Knife 150mm Made in Japan | eBay

Tanaka VG10 Damascus Petty 150 mm with Western Handle

4K9A7581_2048x.jpg
 
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How much do you wanna spend? I'm assuming you're set on stainless?

What's the steel on that S. Tanaka? How did you narrow it down to that knife? I've a similar looking S Tanaka blade on a gyuto I got my wife.

If you're open to a wa handle knife, I'd highly recommend Yoshikane SKD, it's been one of my go-to pettys—height is listed at 33mm; very good f&f.
https://carbonknifeco.com/collectio...ikane-nashiji-skd-petty-150mm-chestnut-handle
 
I have a Tanaka ginsan petty in this size, about 35mm heel. It is a good cutter but IMO does just OK in the mini-gyuto role. The heel is a bit short for me, though my wife loves it for small board work though--if you have small hands it's a winner.

Not sure of other easily available stainless options in this size with tall heels. Fujiwara FKM has a 150mm gyuto but the heel is also ~35mm.
 
DitmasPork said:
How much do you wanna spend? I'm assuming you're set on stainless?

What's the steel on that S. Tanaka? How did you narrow it down to that knife? I've a similar looking S Tanaka blade on a gyuto I got my wife.

If you're open to a wa handle knife, I'd highly recommend Yoshikane SKD, it's been one of my go-to pettys—height is listed at 33mm; very good f&f.
https://carbonknifeco.com/collectio...ikane-nashiji-skd-petty-150mm-chestnut-handle
Click to expand...

Budget was up to $150 , before you posted that stunning Yoshikane . :)
Yes , set on stainless but open to wa .
The Tanaka is VG-10 .
It caught my attention due to the 34mm height , $100 price , and some good reviews .
I haven't seen many tall 150mm petty .
The JKI Gesshin Stainless is an option ; 33mm height , $115 ; but not sure about that particular handle .
I'm going to take a look at the Yoshikane .
Mahalo .
 
ayumi_ishida said:
Budget was up to $150 , before you posted that stunning Yoshikane . :)
Yes , set on stainless but open to wa .
The Tanaka is VG-10 .
It caught my attention due to the 34mm height , $100 price , and some good reviews .
I haven't seen many tall 150mm petty .
The JKI Gesshin Stainless is an option ; 33mm height , $115 ; but not sure about that particular handle .
I'm going to take a look at the Yoshikane .
Mahalo .
Click to expand...

Firstly, all the knives you've mentioned are fine—with steel, profile, etc., it's impossible to say that one is better than the other, without hearing more about your needs. The goal should be finding the most appropriate petty.

How do you plan one sharping your knives—hand sharpening; electric sharpener; hand held pull sharpener; send it out?

Have you considered getting a Mac Pro petty, since you're getting a Mac Pro Chef's knife? I've had a Mac Pro Petty for aver a decade, still use it often.
 
Why do you want a tall petty? None of those 150mm will be tall enough to have knuckle clearance over a cutting board, and if you find one that does it'll resemble a santoku. Besides, your MTH-80 is not a big knife - hold it in a pinch grip and it'll basically be a tall petty.

Personally my favorite petties are thin, narrow, and flat - perfect for slicing stuff. Ashi ginga 180mm (bit pricey and hard to find), Tojiro DP 180mm (also really good, and like $65).
 
DitmasPork said:
Firstly, all the knives you've mentioned are fine—with steel, profile, etc., it's impossible to say that one is better than the other, without hearing more about your needs. The goal should be finding the most appropriate petty.

How do you plan one sharping your knives—hand sharpening; electric sharpener; hand held pull sharpener; send it out?

Have you considered getting a Mac Pro petty, since you're getting a Mac Pro Chef's knife? I've had a Mac Pro Petty for aver a decade, still use it often.
Click to expand...
Yes , I'm considering the MAC Pro petty since I like the MTH-80 which I recently received .
I also recently got a Shapton Ha No Kuromaku Ceramic Whetstone Medium Grit #1000 and will learn to use it .
As far as needs , I'm looking for a utility knife to pair with the MTH-80 .
I currently have a Victorinix 4" pairing .
I cook simple meals for myself and am curious to try a tall petty .
 
OnionSlicer said:
Why do you want a tall petty? None of those 150mm will be tall enough to have knuckle clearance over a cutting board, and if you find one that does it'll resemble a santoku. Besides, your MTH-80 is not a big knife - hold it in a pinch grip and it'll basically be a tall petty.

Personally my favorite petties are thin, narrow, and flat - perfect for slicing stuff. Ashi ginga 180mm (bit pricey and hard to find), Tojiro DP 180mm (also really good, and like $65).
Click to expand...

I see your point .
 
I have the 150 Tanaka, but in ginsan with a wa handle. It has about 35mm heel height, but the profile doesn't "rise up" at too steep of an angle from heel to tip. As a result there is some knuckle clearance but not as much as if the tip were higher. If you want this to be used as a small all purpose knife, I'd look for something taller or with a steeper profile. Two options you might want to consider are either a funayuki profile, or perhaps something longer around 165-180mm
 
My friend loves his victorinox 5", which has the steep heel to tip profile that I mentioned. It works decently as a knife for board work. However the steel is not as nice as the others you're considering. But you can find it for $15-20 on Amazon. Killer deal for what you pay.
 
ayumi_ishida said:
Yes , I'm considering the MAC Pro petty since I like the MTH-80 which I recently received .
I also recently got a Shapton Ha No Kuromaku Ceramic Whetstone Medium Grit #1000 and will learn to use it .
As far as needs , I'm looking for a utility knife to pair with the MTH-80 .
I currently have a Victorinix 4" pairing .
I cook simple meals for myself and am curious to try a tall petty .
Click to expand...

IMHO, the Mac Pro 6" Utility could be a good choice.

Everyone’s different—I tend not to overthink petty knives, and just commit to getting one. For me, pettys are 'beaters'—they're subject to much, much more wear, perhaps abuse, than my gyutos—besides small tasks like mincing ginger, they sometimes find themselves boning meats/chicken; filleting fish; cutting string, opening boxes, slicing open bags; banging against board or bone. Therefore, I prefer pettys that can take a bit of punishment; ones that don't mind getting scuffed.

The 1k grit stone should keep you going fine—a mid grit it all you need for now. Maybe a combo stone if wanting a bit more range.
 
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ayumi_ishida said:
from the copy "general purpose utility knife for tasks around the kitchen"
That's what I'm looking for .
Click to expand...

I think one reason there's not a lot of options in this range in Japanese product lines is that the "general purpose utility knife" for a lot of knife nerds/enthusiasts/pros is a 180, 210, or larger gyuto. For a lot of home users who aren't into knives, an 8" chef might be the biggest knife you use, so it's natural to want something a couple inches smaller. But if you're used to using 240mm+ gyutos for everything from gourds and heads of lettuce to mincing garlic, there's less of an obvious role for a much smaller board-oriented knife that may be taller than ideal for slicing/trimming and too delicate for rough jobs. Not to say you can't find something that hits what you're after, but more mass-market options like Victorinox, Shun, Miyabi, Mac may have something closer to what you're after.
 
This is a tough one. You're not going to go wrong with Mac.

I use a 210 petty/suji as an all around utility knife -- when I'm just getting a couple of things together, or in the final stages of a bigger meal.

I have a couple of Bunkas and 180 gyutos that can fill a similar role.

While I've never gravitated to 150 petties, which seem to be a standard, I do have a Mazaki in carbon, which is great. It fits that mini-gyuto style better than anything else I've seen. Gihei also makes a well regarded one, which is stainless clad but still carbon.
 
The S. Tanaka is plenty usable on board - knuckle clearance will depend more on the size of your fingers, but I wouldn't buy it for that: whatever clearance you might have will be lost soon with sharpening. Technique adapted though, plenty usable.

I concur with a small Bunka or Santoku being a nice tool for "board petty".
 
With the Santoku-ish shape, possibly a S. Tanaka 150mm Santoku could be a cheap alternative to that, but that flat spot with the Masashi is hard to find in that size and shape. 😍
 
I've found 33mm high to work as a board knife (with 27mm being too low).

For fruits I have moved up in length to 170-ish length because the 150s felt a little too small for pears & apples. There aren't a lot of makers in the 180 gyuto space so the 165 santoku/bunkas as mentioned above will be easier to find a match (or in stock :confused: )
 
Dull_Apex said:
I've found 33mm high to work as a board knife (with 27mm being too low).

For fruits I have moved up in length to 170-ish length because the 150s felt a little too small for pears & apples. There aren't a lot of makers in the 180 gyuto space so the 165 santoku/bunkas as mentioned above will be easier to find a match (or in stock :confused: )
Click to expand...

Something for your consideration. An excellent 180 gyuto:

https://www.epicedge.com/shopexd.asp?id=97273&bc=no
Can also be had in PM stainless steel but quite a bit more expensive.
 
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