Current source of Sakai yusuke thin (I think?)

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bprescot

bprescot

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Hello All,

I have a knife in my stash that I'm having some trouble remembering the details of. Important details, like... it's name... and where the hell I can get another one.

The knife in question is the one below. I... THINK it's a Sakai Yusuke... I also have a vague recollection that it's a thin variant of their normal stuff. (It's insanely thin. Basically just a sharpened piece of aluminum foil really.) But I got it 7+ years, two house renovations, and four states ago. My memory is fuzzy.

Can anyone:

1.) Confirm that it is Sakai Yusuke (kanji seems similar to what's on bluewayjapan... but this gaijin can't read kanji for ****).

2.) Confirm if these are even made anymore (I'm hoping they haven't gone the way of the old hiro hc's) and who currently carries them?

Cheers!
Ben
 

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I don't know enough to understand what you're talking about but ebay has some Sakai Yusuke knives listed......
 
wilburh said:
I don't know enough to understand what you're talking about but ebay has some Sakai Yusuke knives listed......
Click to expand...
Was just looking at that now that someone confirmed the kanji.

Anyone know if these guys are the same?
http://rover.ebay.com/rover/1/711-5...0001&campid=5338413729&icep_item=382441987257

I have this vague tickle of a memory that this guy was labeled an "extra thin" or something like that. Oddly, i can't find an email in my inbox confirming the ebay order.

EDIT: After reading through spine dimensions, I think it LIKELY is... though the choil shot seems like a different geometry. may just pull the trigger on it this weekend unless someone can say definitively that what I'm looking for is a different variant.

Sorry to be a pest guys and sincerely appreciate the help.
 
Last edited:
bprescot said:
Was just looking at that now that someone confirmed the kanji.

Anyone know if these guys are the same?
http://rover.ebay.com/rover/1/711-5...0001&campid=5338413729&icep_item=382441987257

I have this vague tickle of a memory that this guy was labeled an "extra thin" or something like that. Oddly, i can't find an email in my inbox confirming the ebay order.

EDIT: After reading through spine dimensions, I think it LIKELY is... though the choil shot seems like a different geometry. may just pull the trigger on it this weekend unless someone can say definitively that what I'm looking for is a different variant.

Sorry to be a pest guys and sincerely appreciate the help.
Click to expand...
There are also some extra thin gingas on ebay.
 
I think the extra thin only came in white#2 carbon steel. One you posted is stain
bprescot said:
Was just looking at that now that someone confirmed the kanji.

Anyone know if these guys are the same?
http://rover.ebay.com/rover/1/711-5...0001&campid=5338413729&icep_item=382441987257

I have this vague tickle of a memory that this guy was labeled an "extra thin" or something like that. Oddly, i can't find an email in my inbox confirming the ebay order.

EDIT: After reading through spine dimensions, I think it LIKELY is... though the choil shot seems like a different geometry. may just pull the trigger on it this weekend unless someone can say definitively that what I'm looking for is a different variant.

Sorry to be a pest guys and sincerely appreciate the help.
Click to expand...

I think the extra thin only came in white#2 carbon steel. The one posted from Ebay is stainless. I think you can get mono steel carbons, not the extra thin though have not seen them in years. Used mine at work quite a bit wore some steel off of it, could not find same knife X thin. The Ginga white steel is a good blade. JKI also has a Aogami Super stainless clad that is as thin as they come.
 
Keith Sinclair said:
I think the extra thin only came in white#2 carbon steel. One you posted is stain


I think the extra thin only came in white#2 carbon steel. The one posted from Ebay is stainless. I think you can get mono steel carbons, not the extra thin though have not seen them in years. Used mine at work quite a bit wore some steel off of it, could not find same knife X thin. The Ginga white steel is a good blade. JKI also has a Aogami Super stainless clad that is as thin as they come.
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Ooo. I'll give jon a ping about the AS knife you mentioned. Sadly the one I posted took some damage in our move. Great knife, though, so was curious if they could still be found some place.

Thanks Keith!
 
I'm pretty sure I saw a Sakai Yusuke "extra thin and harden" in Swedish stainless on Blueway not long ago (when I was Christmas shopping). It is not listed now (and I could be mistaken) but it might be worth an email to Blueway. He may even recognize the knife, too, if indeed he sold it to you all those years ago.
 
Blueway cleans up his listings pretty well so it can be hard to tell. I did find a listing from 2017:

http://rover.ebay.com/rover/1/707-5...0001&campid=5338413729&icep_item=232571397771

(Ebony handle though which is beautiful but probably heavier and changes the balance for better or worse.)

It may be worth an e-mail to Blueway if you are interested in finding your exact old knife, OP. He would know. Of course Ginga also garners much praise, so hey.
 
JBroida said:
sure it was an autocorrect error, but its "saku" not zakuri... and "saku" means made by
Click to expand...

Jon,
There are 3 Kanji which have essentially the same meaning; 作　造　創. All three can be read as Tsukuru, a verb meaning to make. The first two are the most commonly used. But there is a slight difference in nuance.
作　Tsukuru read "saku" has the impression of "hand made, or crafted". A hand crafted item is called a Sakuhin 作品. This is of course the "made by" that we see on 99.9% of knives. And 99.9% of swords for that matter.

The kanji 造 Tsukuru read "zou" gives the impression of "manufactured or built" rather than crafted. For example 製造(seizou-manufacturing) 造船 (zousen -shipbuilding) 改造(kaizou-structural modification).

The engraved kanji on a blade is completely up to the maker, he can choose whatever he wants. Some choose clear simple characters, others choose very stylized difficult to read characters. Some use an old form of a character no longer in use. Some choose a reading that is normally read differently, presumably "just to be different".

In the case of this Sakai Yuusuke knife the kanji 造 was chosen rather than the more common　作　that we always see. The meaning "made by" in this context is the same as 作.
But it can not be read as "Saku". Because 造 can only be read as Tsukuri/Tsukuri (or Zukuri if following something) or "Zou".

For that reason I translated 造 as "zukuri". I could have translated it as "zou" as well but I simply haven't heard that reading used on a blade. For that matter I've never seen one before that didn't use 作.

Hope this clarifies my translation.
Ken
 
KenHash said:
Jon,
There are 3 Kanji which have essentially the same meaning; 作 造 創. All three can be read as Tsukuru, a verb meaning to make. The first two are the most commonly used. But there is a slight difference in nuance.
作 Tsukuru read "saku" has the impression of "hand made, or crafted". A hand crafted item is called a Sakuhin 作品. This is of course the "made by" that we see on 99.9% of knives. And 99.9% of swords for that matter.

The kanji 造 Tsukuru read "zou" gives the impression of "manufactured or built" rather than crafted. For example 製造(seizou-manufacturing) 造船 (zousen -shipbuilding) 改造(kaizou-structural modification).

The engraved kanji on a blade is completely up to the maker, he can choose whatever he wants. Some choose clear simple characters, others choose very stylized difficult to read characters. Some use an old form of a character no longer in use. Some choose a reading that is normally read differently, presumably "just to be different".

In the case of this Sakai Yuusuke knife the kanji 造 was chosen rather than the more common 作 that we always see. The meaning "made by" in this context is the same as 作.
But it can not be read as "Saku". Because 造 can only be read as Tsukuri/Tsukuri (or Zukuri if following something) or "Zou".

For that reason I translated 造 as "zukuri". I could have translated it as "zou" as well but I simply haven't heard that reading used on a blade. For that matter I've never seen one before that didn't use 作.

Hope this clarifies my translation.
Ken
Click to expand...

yeah... make sense and see it now... thats what i get for making a quick comment in passing without looking further. I'm so used to seeing 作 that its the only thing i expect to be there. I get it. I also misread your original comment as zakuri, as opposed to zukuri (like monozukuri). Anyways, thanks for the reply.
 
Hi!

Of course there are sakai yusukes extra thin extra hard made of swedish stainless steel, at least I own one and had a second one some time ago.

Mack.
 
Mucho Bocho said:
Mack, no kidding? I must be mistaken. What’s the spine thickness. Can you post a few pics too?
Click to expand...

No kidding. Here are some pics of the one I still own - it's a 240mm (I had one with ho wood and black ferrule as well):

34868293zg.jpg


34868295ve.jpg


34868296xt.jpg


34868297bv.jpg


34868298vv.jpg


34868299at.jpg


I have some other 240s for a spine thickness comparison:

34868305bj.jpg


Starting at the top:
- Ikkanshi Tadatsuna INOX (Gingami 3): 2,35
- Sakai yusuke extra thin extra hard Swedish Stainless Steel: 1,73mm
- Ashi Extra Hard Swedish Stainless Steel: 2,26
- Konosuke HD2: 2,46mm

The Yusuke is the best cutter - by far.

Mack.
 
So the Tosa-ichi Ao Aogami Super, and the Ginga Swedish Stainless Wa-Gyuto Knife 240mm Extra Thin arrived. will need to find calipers, but both of these are pretty damn thin. Will put them up against the original and a kono this weekend. Also picked up a Gengetsu on BST and can use my old Rader so we'll see what matters more: Thinness or grind.
 
bprescot said:
So the Tosa-ichi Ao Aogami Super, and the Ginga Swedish Stainless Wa-Gyuto Knife 240mm Extra Thin arrived. will need to find calipers, but both of these are pretty damn thin. Will put them up against the original and a kono this weekend. Also picked up a Gengetsu on BST and can use my old Rader so we'll see what matters more: Thinness or grind.
Click to expand...
How is the Tosa-ichi? Can you give a quick review?
 
battlecry501 said:
How is the Tosa-ichi? Can you give a quick review?
Click to expand...
So, the Tosa is... fine? It's not one I'd recommend unless someone had a super strict budget. The finish is pretty "meh" it's not super super thin, and the grind isn't the best. Haven't sharpened or tried to make it better, though... The profile isn't bad and with some work it might be okay.

The Ginga is nice and thin, though not as thin as the original Sakai Yasuke. But the Gengetsu is a phenomenal knife that has become one of my go-tos.
 
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