Continous curve gyuto in SLD/SKD?

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dsk

dsk

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after trialing the yoshi profile and feeling kinda lukewarm towards its epic flatness, I'm curious if there's something with more curve in semi-stainless.

All the continuous curve standbys (akifusa variants, Tanaka, ashi) are in ginsan or aebL, while the SLD flat spot monsters are all former yoshi apprentices and carry on that trademark (Masashi, nihei)

Am I digging around for a configuration that just doesn't exist?
 
ah yeah the gs+/hd2 seem viable, if a bit laserish for me. I tried the 210 gs+ a while back and loved the handle and finish.
JNS Kaeru is also on the list.
 
Takamura Chromax is made with a variant of SKD. It has a gentle continuous curve. Not available in a size larger than 210mm, if that's what you desire.
 
M1k3 said:
Takamura Chromax is made with a variant of SKD. It has a gentle continuous curve. Not available in a size larger than 210mm, if that's what you desire.
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yeahh a tak chromax/red handle has been on my radar for a long time, but i do prefer 240 and a bit more weight.

Middle height (49-52mm), curved, middleweight, lefty friendly symmetry, and semi stainless seems to be just funky enough to not really exist.
 
Tanaka in VG-10. His is the only VG-10 I've liked. Not the easiest to find, but also not spendy. I'll see if I can find a link for ya...
 
MowgFace said:
Maybe a bit tall...

Masashi SLD from Aframes

Full disclosure... i dont have any experience with these, nor held them in hand.
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Great knives for the price--but a ton of flat spot in the azz-end. He was a Yoshikane smith and so echoes their flat spot at the rear, even though he goes waaaaay different from the pointy Yoshi tip with his torpedo nose.
 
McMan said:
Great knives for the price--but a ton of flat spot in the azz-end. He was a Yoshikane smith and so echoes their flat spot at the rear, even though he goes waaaaay different from the pointy Yoshi tip with his torpedo nose.
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Thanks McMan! I appreciate you correcting me.
 
MowgFace said:
Maybe a bit tall...

Masashi SLD from Aframes

Full disclosure... i dont have any experience with these, nor held them in hand.
Click to expand...
Yeah I mentioned Masashi in the original post, as mcman said, he's yoshi family. I've owned 2 diff knives from him and they are fantastic. His sld is absolutely boss with a great grind. The only reason I don't buy another one is my Kipp is already tall at 55mm, I have a markin on order that will also come in 56+, so something in the 50 range is nice for change of pace.
 
Does Sukenari's profile suit? YXR7 performs similarly in sharpening to SKD12. Pretty tough too.

Whatever the stainless in Gengetsu is also preforms in quite a similar fashion to Yoshi SKD.

How about Hejii SS? Haven't used it but I've heard lots of rants about how good it is.
 
Nemo said:
Does Sukenari's profile suit? YXR7 performs similarly in sharpening to SKD12. Pretty tough too.

Whatever the stainless in Gengetsu is also preforms in quite a similar fashion to Yoshi SKD.

How about Hejii SS? Haven't used it but I've heard lots of rants about how good it is.
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Sukenari profile is wicked but iirc not very great grind for lefty, I could be wrong on that though.

Gengetsu is one of those classics ill have try eventually, about analogous with the newer yoshi nashiji skd options, which can't be a bad thing. Plus, burnt chestnut. Its definitely been on my mind since I made my kkf acc.

Heiji and tf falling in that "legendary steel with caveats" category always makes me hesitate, maybe if I see a good one on bst.
 
M1k3 said:
Gengetsu is really nice but reminds me of Yoshikane profile.
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Yeah thats what holds me back now that I've used yoshi, and those two knives 'probably' share some ancestry.

If Tanaka had a nashiji finish similar to yoshi I'd be on it. The amekiri I owned for a week had my favorite pear finish while two Tanakas were sad rustic and generally meh for me.
 
M1k3 said:
Gengetsu is really nice but reminds me of Yoshikane profile.
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Yeah, both are pretty flat.

In my mind's eye, the Gengetsu was bit less "epic" in its flatness. Having just pulled them both out to check, however, the profiles are almost identical. The only real difference is that the Gengetsu has a very slight upcurve at the heel which is not present on the Yoshi.
 
A co worker had a bunka from this line it it was surprisingly good for the price.

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I sold my yoshi SKD for it being too flat. Not sure why that profile is preferred by Yoshi and his apprentices. I tried push cut, pull cut, fast chopping, and rocking. I feel like none of them benefits from the absolute flat spot. A little subtle curve would allow my wrist to be more relaxed. Am I missing anything?
 
Hz_zzzzzz said:
I sold my yoshi SKD for it being too flat. Not sure why that profile is preferred by Yoshi and his apprentices. I tried push cut, pull cut, fast chopping, and rocking. I feel like none of them benefits from the absolute flat spot. A little subtle curve would allow my wrist to be more relaxed. Am I missing anything?
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This is how I felt about it. I have some nice smooth boardsmiths and a sorta wonky huge board that came with the house I need to sand down, and in either case, having that enormous flatspot didn't do it for me. Had to try it cause its legendary and it does cut very well, but felt off.

In any case, someone sold me an En on bst and now to try the opposite flavor.
 
dsk said:
This is how I felt about it. I have some nice smooth boardsmiths and a sorta wonky huge board that came with the house I need to sand down, and in either case, having that enormous flatspot didn't do it for me. Had to try it cause its legendary and it does cut very well, but felt off.

In any case, someone sold me an En on bst and now to try the opposite flavor.
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Let us know what you think of the En.
 
dafox said:
Let us know what you think of the En.
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yeah i will, seem lots of people buy the En but i haven't found a giant comprehensive review of it. it checks a lot of boxes im interested in, we'll see how its short heel height and curve work out for me. It has its work cut out since my main points of comparison are kipp and mazaki.
 
@soigne_west I have one of those Kohetsu 210 bunkas in the shop right now. Pretty decent. A bit beefy. High grit polish. Spine is quite square. It definitely has belly.
 
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Already on your radar, but Kaeru is fantastic imo. I absolutely love the profile. A little extra meat on it, at least my early example, compared to Yoshikane and the like, but that gives you more room to fine tune it, thinning and convexing to your liking. I found my old Gengetsu a bit a bit too light for my preferences, and you can't exactly put metal back. Great knife, but the lack of weight and flat profile made it less-than-ideal to use it all day, for most tasks in a pro kitchen, as I had intended when I decided to pick up a stainless/semi-stainless gyuto.

Kaeru with a few minutes of thinning behind the edge, a few passes of horizontal polishing at 400 or 600 grit to clean it up, and a burnt chestnut handle upgrade was exactly the tough, high-performance, mostly stainless workhorse I was looking for, and came in cheaper than almost all of the competitors, even with the upgraded handle.
 
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