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killerfrenzi

Active Member
Joined
Jul 23, 2017
Messages
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LOCATION
What country are you in? USA



KNIFE TYPE
What type of knife are you interested in (e.g., chef’s knife, slicer, boning knife, utility knife, bread knife, paring knife, cleaver)? Gyuto, and regular chef knives

Are you right or left handed? right

Are you interested in a Western handle (e.g., classic Wusthof handle) or Japanese handle? Either

What length of knife (blade) are you interested in (in inches or millimeters)? 8"

Do you require a stainless knife? (Yes or no) No

What is your absolute maximum budget for your knife? $40



KNIFE USE
Do you primarily intend to use this knife at home or a professional environment? Home, first decent knife but I live with roommates

What are the main tasks you primarily intend to use the knife for (e.g., slicing vegetables, chopping vegetables, mincing vegetables, slicing meats, cutting down poultry, breaking poultry bones, filleting fish, trimming meats, etc.)? (Please identify as many tasks as you would like.) Slicing, chopping, mincing veggies, meats, trimming meats

What knife, if any, are you replacing? Kiwi knives

Do you have a particular grip that you primarily use? (Please click on this LINK for the common types of grips.) Pinch

What cutting motions do you primarily use? (Please click on this LINK for types of cutting motions and identify the two or three most common cutting motions, in order of most used to least used.) push-cutting since I have Kiwi santokus, but I'm open to any

What improvements do you want from your current knife? If you are not replacing a knife, please identify as many characteristics identified below in parentheses that you would like this knife to have.) I just need a good all-rounder

Better aesthetics (e.g., a certain type of finish; layered/Damascus or other pattern of steel; different handle color/pattern/shape/wood; better scratch resistance; better stain resistance)? n/a

Comfort (e.g., lighter/heavier knife; better handle material; better handle shape; rounded spine/choil of the knife; improved balance)? C

Ease of Use (e.g., ability to use the knife right out of the box; smoother rock chopping, push cutting, or slicing motion; less wedging; better food release; less reactivity with food; easier to sharpen)? sharp out of box, good learning knife

Edge Retention (i.e., length of time you want the edge to last without sharpening)? at least 1 month



KNIFE MAINTENANCE
Do you use a bamboo, wood, rubber, or synthetic cutting board? (Yes or no.) plastic and wood

Do you sharpen your own knives? (Yes or no.) no

If not, are you interested in learning how to sharpen your knives? (Yes or no.) yes

Are you interested in purchasing sharpening products for your knives? (Yes or no.) not yet



SPECIAL REQUESTS/COMMENTS

I was looking into getting a decent knife since I want to focus a bit on cooking. I live with 2 roommates, and I'm a little afraid they'll mess up my knife. So I'm setting my budget to $40 since the knife I was looking towards was the Wusthof Pro 8" Chef knife ($30) and I wanted to shop around before getting it. I'm really interested Gyutos but I'm not sure what's a comparable gyuto (in terms of quality) to the Wusthof. Budget is pretty strict or else I'd be getting a Tojiro Gyuto if it weren't that I had roommates.

I'm also planning to get learn knife maintenance (ie. honing and sharpening) along the line.
 
I have a couple Wustie Pro knives from a short stint on a food truck. They suck less than other knives at that price point. Rock and Roll.

If you go to $100, you'll open up to more possibilities for an inexpensive knife.
 
Is there any $30-40 gyuto that can be recommended over the Victorinox or Wusthof?

Or I'm better off sticking with the above 2?
 
killerfrenzi said:
Is there any $30-40 gyuto that can be recommended over the Victorinox or Wusthof?

Or I'm better off sticking with the above 2?
Click to expand...

The only $40 or less 210mm gyuto I can think of is a Tojiro color series and you can only get it from one place that cheap. On amazon it is closer to $50. They are okay knives for the price.
 
a vic is already more knife than anyone ever needs. the most important part is that it can withstand the abuse from room mates. if you want more performance then get a coarse stone and learn to thin the blade or find somebody to do it for you.
 
+1 for the Victorinox at that price point. The chef's knife has a more pronounced German-style belly that most Japanese knives. Their 7" Santoku has a flatter belly and will give a longer straight("-ish") cutting edge, but less pronounced point. Which you'd prefer depends on your cutting technique.

Anybody know anything about Kai? Searched Amazon for "Kai Gyuto knife" and this:

cheap Wa-Gyuto

turns up for $40. It looks more of a typical Japanese profile at OP's price point. IIRC- I've seen mixed reviews for Kai knives ranging from "great value" to "complete cr**". I don't think I've ever seen one in the flesh.

ETA: I've never seen anyone say Kai knives are great without some qualifier, like "for the price".
 
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Yet-Another-Dave said:
+1 for the Victorinox at that price point. The chef's knife has a more pronounced German-style belly that most Japanese knives. Their 7" Santoku has a flatter belly and will give a longer straight("-ish") cutting edge, but less pronounced point. Which you'd prefer depends on your cutting technique.

Anybody know anything about Kai? Searched Amazon for "Kai Gyuto knife" and this:

cheap Wa-Gyuto

turns up for $40. It looks more of a typical Japanese profile at OP's price point. IIRC- I've seen mixed reviews for Kai knives ranging from "great value" to "complete cr**". I don't think I've ever seen one in the flesh.

ETA: I've never seen anyone say Kai knives are great without some qualifier, like "for the price".
Click to expand...

Several years ago I bought a Kai to see what it was about. I thought it was fitting when I gave it away to someone who threw away knives when they became dull.
 
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Did you consider buying something well used? $40 is tight, but maybe it could get you a used Tojiro DP or some Fujiwara FKM or similar.
 
I definitely pinch grip and the Wusthof and Vic have the handles shaped making it hard for a pinch grip.

I'm looking into Gyuto since I thought it might be good to start using one early on.

Would something like this be crap?
 
Matus said:
Did you consider buying something well used? $40 is tight, but maybe it could get you a used Tojiro DP or some Fujiwara FKM or similar.
Click to expand...

I haven't considered something used, but I thought it'd be nice to have something new to learn sharpening with it.
 
There's a lot of $40 gyutos on Amazon (210mm too!), are any of those good?

EDIT: Is this pretty much a Victorinox gyuto?
 
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killerfrenzi said:
... EDIT: Is this pretty much a Victorinox gyuto?
Click to expand...

No. Yes. It depends on what you mean by Gyuto.

It's a Chef's Knife (and, I think, a great deal.)

As I understand it, Gyuto is Japanese for a western-style chef's knife. Usually they're made with Japanese techniques and have a reduced belly compared to a to a German-style chef's knife typical in the US. (They're more French-style, search for the many threads on Sabatier for example.) So gyuto in only the very loosest sense.

ETA: at 9" it is a little longer than the typical 7-8" knives used at home. Though around here, amongst the enthusiasts, 240mm (~9") is pretty popular.
 
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killerfrenzi said:
There's a lot of $40 gyutos on Amazon (210mm too!), are any of those good?

EDIT: Is this pretty much a Victorinox gyuto?
Click to expand...

No. And No.

I dont want to sound like an elitist dick but all this discussion of a "good" knife at a $30 price point reminds me of a joke from my college days. Young lad feeling randy went to the local house of ill repute. Wanted some loving but only had $5. It goes downhill fast from there.
 
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daveb said:
Young lad feeling randy went to the local house of ill repute. Wanted some loving but only had $5. It goes downhill fast from there.
Click to expand...
I don't get it.

;)

I don't suppose he did either.
 
daveb said:
No. And No.

I dont want to sound like an elitist dick but all this discussion of a "good" knife at a $30 price point reminds me of a joke from my college days. Young lad feeling randy went to the local house of ill repute. Wanted some loving but only had $5. It goes downhill fast from there.
Click to expand...

daveb, I don't think you're being unreasonable. If you look at the guest knives thread, most people talk about either supermarket santokus with tojiro being the next step up. A lot of members here are interested in j-knife style knives and I am going to boldly declare that Tojiro or Fujiwara FKM are probably considered THE entry level j-knives. While Wustofs are better knives than your average supermarket santokus, asking for validation with a $30 wustof is basically no different than asking validation for a supermarket santoku.
 
daveb said:
He did. But I'll let Panda finish the story.
Click to expand...

I don't think a $30-40 knife is like getting some $5 loving.

Point being, I'm not expecting a $30 Wusthof or the Vic to perform like the Entry-levels you guys recommend, I'm just trying to explore what's comparable since I'm not a big fan of the handle.

That, and I want to see if there are any japanese knives that aren't utter crap in that range.
 
i would but i'm afraid the people viewing this thread don't have the proper level of imagination or sense of humor for the story to go on.

frenzi if youre hung up on handle at the bottom of the barrel you're going to be quite disappointed. all the handles suck even on $100 knives. like i said the rosewood version is not bad https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007V2CJDQ/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

or you could be our guinea pig and try this one https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01ERJTK1E/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20 built like a german knife but shape of a gyuto
 
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panda said:
i would but i'm afraid the people viewing this thread don't have the proper level of imagination or sense of humor for the story to go on.

frenzi if youre hung up on handle at the bottom of the barrel you're going to be quite disappointed. all the handles suck even on $100 knives. like i said the rosewood version is not bad https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007V2CJDQ/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

or you could be our guinea pig and try this one https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01ERJTK1E/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20 built like a german knife but shape of a gyuto
Click to expand...

I'm probably just going to get either the Wusthof or the Rosewood Vic since, for the most part, they're the most recommended have good reviewers backing them.

I'm just a little hung up on the handle if I can find something better at the price.

Maybe I'll come across a comparable gyuto if I dig deeper. Someone linked a decent-looking 180mm gyuto that I'll consider. Or maybe even looking for a Tojiro used.
 
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How come no one has suggested a kiwi?!??
 
The problem is, the Kiwi you are using are unbeatable from a bang for the buck perspective. Yours might just need sharpening, which is easy on these since the hollow grind keeps it from getting too thick quickly.

IKEAs metal handled 365+ are a good tip, but stories abound of bad factory edges, so these might take sharpening skill to make serviceable.

Samura's white handled AUS-8 (the Harakiri series) - but they are a bit thick out of the box, might need some stonework.

I have very rarely had a factory edge last me for a month or two.. that only happens when you found the right edge to put on a certain knife to match your usage of it.
 
I almost feel like this whole thread is a troll. Guy walks into house of ill repute and wanted some loving for 5 dollars. Everyone recommends big bertha. He wants to know if he can get someone with teeth.
 
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