Any thoughts on a petty?

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heirkb

heirkb

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I'm pretty new to all this kitchen knife stuff. I recently migrated over from the straight razor forums.

I want to start with a gyuto and petty for now. I figure that I don't slice enough meat or fish to justify a suji or yanagi. And I won't need a honesuki/hankotsu since a petty can probably handle any minor chicken boning, right?

So I have the gyuto figured out and now I need help with the petty. I'll write my thoughts and then maybe you guys can give me some feedback. I figure I could pick up a cheaper, smaller petty like a Carbonext, Fujiwara FKM, or something like that. My gyuto will be carbon, so I'd like to try something stainless/semi-stainless for the petty since I haven't tried any Japanese knives, yet. The other option for the petty in my mind is to go for something really nice. The options I've thought of are 210mm Konosuke HD or 210mm Suisin Inox Honyaki. I haven't tested enough to know what I like or don't like, but I figured that given the high praise both these lines get (Konosuke HD and Suisin Inox Honyaki), it'd be a pretty safe bet if I ended up choosing one of them. What do you guys think? Would it be worth it for me as a newbie to pick up one of the two more expensive knives or should I wait and experiment with a few cheaper ones?
 
If you want to start with a gyuto and a petty I'd say a Konosuke or Suisin 210 is too close to the gyuto and too far from a petty (135-150 mm) that you'd wanna use when the gyuto is too big. I'd rather start with a 150 mm petty on a budget (Carbonext gets high praise but there's many more).
 
I bought my first petty, a 150mm Ashi wa-petty, about a month ago and I've found it to be extremely useful. It's one of the best sized knives I've ever used to prep broccoli and cauliflower into flowerettes. I LOVE MY PETTY, sorry I get carried away when I talk about my petty. :biggrin:
 
Welcome heirkb, but be carefull. You might endup like me and spending all your free cash on kitchen knives now...
 
Ehsan,

I am over the moon with my Konosuke 150mm Petty from Jon. I reach for it all the time!

150 is a good sized petty to start with, in time you may want a shorter one, but I just dont see the need for a longer one in my kitchen.

Happy hunting!


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I'm kinda wierd, I like a longer petty 150-180 range. It is a good compliment to my cleavers. I like them for random quick cutting and trimming meat etc. I would highly recommend a "wa" style versus western style. I'm not a fan at all of the western handled pettys, too blade heavy not nimble IMHO etc. I have two Takedas that I use almost daily (145 and 170). I've always wanted to try one of these Tadatsunas, the 180 in particular.

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http://itkitchenknife.com/j_catalog/youtou1.shtml
 
Apparently I'm not cool enough to be able to upload a pic, so I had to get one hosted elsewhere. Anyway here's an obligatory pic of my 145 Takeda.



Uploaded with ImageShack.us
 
If you prefer a western-style knife, check out the Maruyoshi knives from **************.com -- excellent knives, IMHO, made by Ryusen, same as those sold under the Hattori HD and other monikers, but with a different kanji. http://www.**************.com/hattoriknives.html
 
Andy777 said:
I'm kinda wierd, I like a longer petty 150-180 range. It is a good compliment to my cleavers. I like them for random quick cutting and trimming meat etc. I would highly recommend a "wa" style versus western style. I'm not a fan at all of the western handled pettys, too blade heavy not nimble IMHO etc. I have two Takedas that I use almost daily (145 and 170). I've always wanted to try one of these Tadatsunas, the 180 in particular.

g1-2.jpg


http://itkitchenknife.com/j_catalog/youtou1.shtml
Click to expand...

Andy IN response to the length you prefer I also prefer something in the 5-6" range in a petty. However, after trying a few japanese ones, I still prefer a 30 year old Sabatier (taken from my father since the handle was cracked off) that has an absolute dead flat profile. This knife also takes an insane edge, is very thin, and full tang/bolster removes any blade heavy feeling.

I have re-handled this knife, with wooden scales made from an old cigar box. Soon i will put up a pic.

This is not to say I wont eventually find one I prefer to the sabatier (it is a MERCEUR & co sabatier [sp?]) same line sold at surlatable, however I prefer the stainless INOXYDABLE line for my petty, gets alot of chicken and boning duties.... The au carbon line is great as well, but after much trial the inox for my uses in a petty, are preferable. I do prefer a carbon gyuto, and less often a carbon santoku for most of my other work...

JC
 
I always loved these long Tadatsuna petties, they are so elegant. At one point I asked Moritaka to make something similar for me. What I ended up with is a very cool knife that is a mix between a petty and a salmon knife, ultra thin and narrow. I think that means I still need a petty... But I do have a Blazen petty that is a bit shorter, but I really like it for a Western handled small utility knife. A small Carter funayuki also works well as a petty, and you can get them in different styles. And I admit that I sometimes reach for a honesuki when I need something in that size but sturdier, for cutting off a chunk of parmesan etc.

Stefan
 
Two or so years ago I asked basically the same question, and every other reply seemed to recommend Watanabe. Times change, I guess.

I'm very happy with the Watanabe, but really have no basis for comparison.
 
Thank you for all your responses everyone. In case it helps, the gyuto that I am getting is a 240mm kasumi Shigefusa wa gyuto. I will look into all the other petty's (petties?) that you guys recommended.

Jim, is yours the Konosuke HD, the regular stainless, or the white #2? I think those are the three options that Jon has, right?
 
heirkb said:
Thank you for all your responses everyone. In case it helps, the gyuto that I am getting is a 240mm kasumi Shigefusa wa gyuto. I will look into all the other petty's (petties?) that you guys recommended.

Jim, is yours the Konosuke HD, the regular stainless, or the white #2? I think those are the three options that Jon has, right?
Click to expand...
Mine is the white #2
 
If you are just new to j-knives, a wa-handled light knife might not even be what you are looking for. If you want a 150mm or less petty, then I think the CarboNext is a no-nonsense blade that will get sharp and hold it.

However, if you want a longer petty(like myself) and love wa-handles...you can't go wrong with a 180/210 Tadatsuna/Suisin Inox/Konosuke HD

I can't see myself ever giving this thing up! Here is my 210 petty for a size comparison versus a regular 150mm petty
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First off. If it were me knowing what I know now I would buy a Gyuto and a good paring knife. The petty would be my third purchase. Personally, I prefer a petty to be light nimble and thin. I'm not as big a fan of bigger petty's and I'm not talking strictly about length. I have two petty's I adore. One is my 150mm Ichimonji TKC and the other is a 150mm Tadatsuna in White Steel. Both are thin, small in terms of heel to spine ratios and have a superb taper and thin point. The petty's I own and am less fond of are both 150mm knives which are really more like scaled down gyutos are the Hiro AS and my Devin Thomas Petty. These bigger pettys lack the nimble dexterity I want in a petty. The blades are too wide to turn well when making curving cuts IMO. They are'nt bad knives per-se. Particularly when you are looking for a knife to work like a smaller gyuto for some precise simple cuts like say brunoise of garlic etc.

Good Paring Knife? I like my Misono 80mm Swedish Steel knife. I also like the 80mm Dojo knives with the blue steel core. But the Dojo has a hot spot on the back of the handle and you need to round off the pointy edge of the handle with some sandpaper to make it comfortable IMO. Not a big deal and it won't alter the appearance of the knife one iota as long as you don't go crazy. Just round that edge a little with som 400 grit sandpaper and nobody will know it...except you will feel it!
 
I use a petty to debone poulty, but I’m only cutting through the joints, around (not through any) bones, and can have the time to ensure my cuts aren’t misaligned. A honesuki is like a very stout petty. You get the nibleness / maneuverablity of a petty along with a thicker blade that could plow through not quite dead on joint cuts with ease.
 
One of the most used knives in my kitchen is my 210 mm Suisin Inox Honyaki Wa petty. It's really, really thin. It takes an insane edge and it's hard enough (RC 62 I think) to keep it that way with a few swipes on a loaded strop from time to time. At the other end of the length spectrum, I have a 3" Shun Kramer paring knife. I love this little puppy. You can perform a lot of knife tasks with a long flexible petty and a short stiff paring knife. Of course this may be a little overkill but that's what happens when you get the bug.
 
So I've been looking around and reading some more and have come up with a few options. I'll have to go to Korin to handle a few before I really decide on size, but let's say 150-180 for now. Here's what I've narrowed it to (not really narrowed):

150 Konosuke HD
150-180 Yoshikane SKD11 or 12 (I can't remember)
150 Carbonext
150 Ichimonji TKC

So the Konosuke and Yoshikane would be the more expensive ones and the Carbonext and Ichimonji would be somewhat cheaper. What do you guys think? Can anyone compare any of the ones I listed with each other on any of the following: ease of sharpening, the sharpness of the edge, dimensions, edge retention, etc.?
 
I think those are all good options...IMO, the deciding factor would be do you want wa- or yo-handle. Also, the Konosuke HD pricing includes a saya, so I think you can opt out of that for cheaper if you wish.

I've never sharpened SKD before, but you shouldn't have problem with the semi-stainless at all if you are comfortable in your abilities. Then again, I've never came across a knife or steel that I considered 'hard' to sharpen...just ones that feel better on the stones and the burr just melts away.
 
Or just do what I'm doing and get Pierre to make you one to your specs.:biggrin2:
38mm at the heel and 175mm sounds juuuuusssst right!
Sorry, I had to brag. Is it August yet?? Haha
 
Yes I did that on purpose! Haha
Not sure if it's a secret or not. Can I get back to you??
 
I don't think he'd care either way, but I'll hold off for now...I'm not sure just how top secret the Mad genius's plans are :)
 
x2 on the Pierre petty. He made a 150 for me last summer (CPM154). Profile and distal taper are great, but I went a little too thick (1/8" instead of 3/32", if I remember correctly), which limits the use sometimes. But it still gets a heavy workout. Got it with the hybrid handle, which works well for me with a blade that size.
 
Well, thank you for that!
Pierre specifically mentioned starting with 3/32, with the end result being slightly thinner.
Your knife and jon broida's are actually the two that tipped me over the edge.
 
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