CableReady
Member
I’m looking for a budget (sub-$200 after shipping and tax, ideally sub-$150) ~180mm gyuto or santoku for my wife.
She has good knife skills (better than me), and she has been learning to use whetstones, and has gotten proficient at it (she sharpened all her parents knives and even bought a whetstone for their house). She washes and dries her knives at the end of her cooking, but she’d rather not be bothered with wiping down her knives in between tasks, or before putting it down to go do something else. So the knife should be comparatively stainless, or non-reactive. (Unless I am overestimating how frequently carbon steels need to be wiped down.)
I'm looking for something that is stainless steel but still comparatively easy and enjoyable to sharpen and deburr—maybe that's a tall order, and sacrifices need to be made. So, it's fine if this all comes at the expense of edge retention, as long as it isn't totally abysmal like a Kiwi. Maybe that's still a tall order for this budget; you tell me.
Knives I’ve been considering:
Masutani VG-1 Gyuto or Santoku
Kanehide P60 Santoku
Kotetsu Hamon 19C27 Santoku 180mm
Yahiko Ginsan Nashiji Hand Engraved Santoku 165mm
Takamura Santoku in SG2 (worried this is not tough enough and not friendly for sharpening)
I'm leaning toward the Masutani, not sure whether the Gyuto or Santoku though. Open to other options though!
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)? Santoku or smaller Gyuto
Are you right or left handed? This is for my wife who is right handed. (I am a lefty, so something fairly ambidextrous would be nice, in case I use it, but this is not required.)
Are you interested in a Western handle (e.g., classic Wusthof handle) or Japanese handle? Open to either
What length of knife (blade) are you interested in (in inches or millimeters)? ~170-190mm
Do you require a stainless knife? (Yes or no) Yes. Or, at least sufficiently stainless that it could safely go up to 45 minutes or so without being wiped down after cutting.
What is your absolute maximum budget for your knife? $200 after shipping and taxes. (Would prefer less than $150.)
KNIFE USE
Do you primarily intend to use this knife at home or a professional environment? Home
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.)? slicing, chopping, and mincing vegetables (and some fruit) and tofu
What knife, if any, are you replacing? Recently she's been using a #22 Kiwi (largish Nakiri-like profile) mainly. When chopping herbs and larger things she reaches for our Victorinox 8" chef's knife. But mainly looking to replace the Kiwi with something nicer that is also nicer to sharpen/deburr, and has better edge retention.
We used to use a Chinese X50CrMov15 Chef's knife (8") and Santoku by Cangshan. She used them both but reached for the Santoku slightly more frequently. We don't use these knives anymore since the blades have lost a lot of metal from frequent machine sharpening, and they are fully bolstered and the geometry from the bolster to the heel of the blade has gotten to be off from the loss of metal on the blade. Also, the bolster has been inconvenient since we started learning to sharpen on whetstones.
Better edge retention than the Kiwi is a low bar here. The Cangshan knives have comparatively bad edge retention but it is still better than the Kiwi, and good enough. Something stainless that sharpens up like my Shiro Kamo Aogami Super nakiri would be awesome, even if it can't retain its edge as nearly as long. Short-ish edge retention is fine if it is fun enough to sharpen!
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.) Mainly push cutting, some pull cutting, and some rocking with herbs, especially cilantro and parsley.
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.) Easy to care for, pleasant to sharpen, better edge retention than Kiwi (doesn't need to be amazing edge retention).
KNIFE MAINTENANCE
Do you use a bamboo, wood, rubber, or synthetic cutting board? Maple edge grain boos block. Occasionally a basic polyethylene plastic cutting board, when someone else is using the boos block.
Do you sharpen your own knives? Yes. We have Shapton stones: SG220, SG500, SP1000, SP2000, SG4000.
If not, are you interested in learning how to sharpen your knives? We have been learning, and enjoy it. Looking for a stainless steel knife that would be enjoyable to sharpen.
Are you interested in purchasing sharpening products for your knives? No, we have more than enough.
She has good knife skills (better than me), and she has been learning to use whetstones, and has gotten proficient at it (she sharpened all her parents knives and even bought a whetstone for their house). She washes and dries her knives at the end of her cooking, but she’d rather not be bothered with wiping down her knives in between tasks, or before putting it down to go do something else. So the knife should be comparatively stainless, or non-reactive. (Unless I am overestimating how frequently carbon steels need to be wiped down.)
I'm looking for something that is stainless steel but still comparatively easy and enjoyable to sharpen and deburr—maybe that's a tall order, and sacrifices need to be made. So, it's fine if this all comes at the expense of edge retention, as long as it isn't totally abysmal like a Kiwi. Maybe that's still a tall order for this budget; you tell me.
Knives I’ve been considering:
Masutani VG-1 Gyuto or Santoku
Kanehide P60 Santoku
Kotetsu Hamon 19C27 Santoku 180mm
Yahiko Ginsan Nashiji Hand Engraved Santoku 165mm
Takamura Santoku in SG2 (worried this is not tough enough and not friendly for sharpening)
I'm leaning toward the Masutani, not sure whether the Gyuto or Santoku though. Open to other options though!
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)? Santoku or smaller Gyuto
Are you right or left handed? This is for my wife who is right handed. (I am a lefty, so something fairly ambidextrous would be nice, in case I use it, but this is not required.)
Are you interested in a Western handle (e.g., classic Wusthof handle) or Japanese handle? Open to either
What length of knife (blade) are you interested in (in inches or millimeters)? ~170-190mm
Do you require a stainless knife? (Yes or no) Yes. Or, at least sufficiently stainless that it could safely go up to 45 minutes or so without being wiped down after cutting.
What is your absolute maximum budget for your knife? $200 after shipping and taxes. (Would prefer less than $150.)
KNIFE USE
Do you primarily intend to use this knife at home or a professional environment? Home
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.)? slicing, chopping, and mincing vegetables (and some fruit) and tofu
What knife, if any, are you replacing? Recently she's been using a #22 Kiwi (largish Nakiri-like profile) mainly. When chopping herbs and larger things she reaches for our Victorinox 8" chef's knife. But mainly looking to replace the Kiwi with something nicer that is also nicer to sharpen/deburr, and has better edge retention.
We used to use a Chinese X50CrMov15 Chef's knife (8") and Santoku by Cangshan. She used them both but reached for the Santoku slightly more frequently. We don't use these knives anymore since the blades have lost a lot of metal from frequent machine sharpening, and they are fully bolstered and the geometry from the bolster to the heel of the blade has gotten to be off from the loss of metal on the blade. Also, the bolster has been inconvenient since we started learning to sharpen on whetstones.
Better edge retention than the Kiwi is a low bar here. The Cangshan knives have comparatively bad edge retention but it is still better than the Kiwi, and good enough. Something stainless that sharpens up like my Shiro Kamo Aogami Super nakiri would be awesome, even if it can't retain its edge as nearly as long. Short-ish edge retention is fine if it is fun enough to sharpen!
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.) Mainly push cutting, some pull cutting, and some rocking with herbs, especially cilantro and parsley.
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.) Easy to care for, pleasant to sharpen, better edge retention than Kiwi (doesn't need to be amazing edge retention).
KNIFE MAINTENANCE
Do you use a bamboo, wood, rubber, or synthetic cutting board? Maple edge grain boos block. Occasionally a basic polyethylene plastic cutting board, when someone else is using the boos block.
Do you sharpen your own knives? Yes. We have Shapton stones: SG220, SG500, SP1000, SP2000, SG4000.
If not, are you interested in learning how to sharpen your knives? We have been learning, and enjoy it. Looking for a stainless steel knife that would be enjoyable to sharpen.
Are you interested in purchasing sharpening products for your knives? No, we have more than enough.
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