Help judging if a Munetoshi is worth returning

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Leon.B

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I recently bought a Munetoshi 210 from Cleancut. I'm well aware F&F is not Munetoshi San primary concern but I would like to have your opinion on what's the reasonable limit to accept before returning a knife. I took a few pictures but I'm not sure they're gonna clarify the situation too much.
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The knife handle is a bit wonky but doesn't effect my cutting much.
The spine tapering is not what I would call even..
To be completely honest the knife feels good in my hand and if I'm comfortable with it. I also could change the handle at some point. I'm looking for someone that maybe owns Munetoshi to give me a feedback. I personally don't like to return items unless there's a really good reason for it. You always have to try it for a while before really judging a knife but I I have the feeling this one is a great cutter. I need to know tho what's the standard for Munetoshi work and if it's worth contact the seller at least to have a conversation about it.
Thank you in advance.
 
I bought a Munetoshi 210 gyuto from JNS a few months ago, and also had issues with the fit and finish. I actually cut my finger just holding the knife as the choil was razor sharp.. I sent that one back. However, I also ordered a 165 petty at the same time and that one was more or less perfect. Very good F&F.

Then 2 weeks or so ago, with the cleancut sale, I also bought a Mune santoku and gave it to my sister. I used it yesterday and it's again a near perfect F&F.

They are amazing cutters. Yesterday the santoku went through lemongrass like it was nothing. If I were you I'd contact cleancut, explain the situation, and see if you can replace it with another one.
 
The thing is, the spine on mine is a bit uneven but the actual polish of it is perfectly fine. If I have had a problem with the extreme sharpness of the spine or choil I would have done the same as you. Thank you for letting me know tho. It might still be a good idea to contact them and come up with a solution.
If anyone else have other feedback I'm grateful if they can share before I send an email to cleancut.
 
What bothers you the most ?
The knife handle being wonky sounds like a problem but also an easy fix.

I only own 1 Munetoshi and it's a butcher, the F&F is definitely not perfect but the spine and edge are straight and cuts like a dream which in my opinion is the most important. The only reason for which I would send the knife back is if it was badly bent or something else that affects gravely the performances of the knife. Other than that I think that it's just a Munetoshi being a Munetoshi (I'd still like to see more pictures tho)
 
Like I said the handle problem is more visual than anything else. My pinch grip is not effected. The edge is straight and was pretty good out o the box. I don't have big concerns on the functionality of the knife but despite the fact that it is cheaper than many other I own I still want to be sure I had the best bang for the buck deal. I don't mean to diminish the effort of the maker at all but I'm trying to assess the situation before actively using the knife (I can't return it ones I put it through food. It's a white#2).
 
It's difficult telling from the pictures what's wrong with it, but bottom line if you're not satisfied just contact cleancut and let them come up with a solution. It's not the end of the world for them to replace a knife. You'll likely pay the return shipping upfront, and imho it's worth it ultimately paying it yourself if you can get cleancut to send you a better one.
 

That.

even tho the knife might be ok with munetoshi's standards, if something is bothering you about this particular knife it will probably get worse with time. Maybe someone with more infos will see yout thread
 
I'll wait for couple of other feedbacks if someone else reaches but I'll most likely contact cleancut tomorrow just to see what they say. Thank you for your opinion so far. This community is always quite responsive.
 
I think if it's bothered you enough to start a thread, it's probably something you'll find more annoying over time rather than something you'll get used to.
 
Somewhat hard to tell from the pics, but... Looks fine to me.
Munetoshi is somewhat of a "rustic" knife. I'm not seeing any glaring defects.
The spine looks straight--the lumpy edges are from forging the taper--not a defect, just the knife. It the spine isn't straight, then that'd be an issue. The handle looks fine too. Is it the black that's bothering you?--that's an artifact of the handle being burned in. Otherwise the handle looks straight.
My vote would be to just start using it and enjoying it.
 
I'll let people who know more than me comment on the photos of your example and just speak to the 165 I got earlier this year. It came (secondhand but NIB) with a couple issues, namely rust on/around the spine, handle installed a little askew, and a very slight bend in the spine. The BST seller offered to refund me but I decided to hang onto it as a project knife. I've eased the spine and choil, unbent it as best I could, and have started working on flattening the bevels and raising the shoulder a bit (probably need a coarser stone to finish this properly). Once I get the blade on good shape making and installing a custom handle is next on the list, but in the meantime it's still a lot of fun to use. It feels rough but solid in hand and I don't feel any urge to baby it.

Basically--if you don't like it, by all means send it back, but if you're willing to treat it as a bit of a work in progress (and feel okay about that relative to what you paid), I think you might find it rather enjoyable.
 
I wouldn't worry about the slightly wonky spine (sorta to be expected looking at the rough finish on the Ku). I'd be more concerned the wonkiness doesn't extend down the blade road into the edge. Is that straight?
 
It's certainly your decision. I will only comment on the evenness of the spine. Since the knife spine is forge finish, the spine taper was done on the anvil with a hammer. With that being considered, I'd say it is near perfect.

The knife looks great to me.
 
Let's put it this way. I bought Munetoshi for a couple of reasons, one of those was I wanted a shiro#2 not too delicate and high quality with a relatively low price. I'm not unsatisfied by the rustic look at all. That would not be the reason to return it. It doesn't have major technical flaws otherwise I would have return it without even open a thread. I was trying to understand what's the base quality of the overall product comparing it with others. I give you an example on another level to make myself more clear (I hope). I buy a kono (famously perfect F&F) and I find a small imperfection or a really small dent. It doesn't really take away anything from the knife in term of use but It might be a reason to ask another one couse I was looking for perfection. I wasn't looking for perfection in a Munetoshi but I've wanted to understand the bare minimum, F&F wise, to expect from the line and if the "flaws" I found are normal or not.
I have no idea if I made myself clear.. probably not..:p
 
If the edge is straight then this looks like a perfectly fine Munetoshi to me. These don’t want to be babied and are not afraid show it 😁.
I have several and all have their cosmetic issues, the worst being the stock handle, I changed all of mine.
Try to enjoy this nice and functional tool, you won’t regret it.
 
Leon.B said:
I sincerely thank you all for the comments. If this is the F&F I can expect from Munetoshi and I didn't receive nothing less for my money, believe it or not, I'm perfectly happy with the product. I have the feeling I'm gonna enjoy it.
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Glad to hear that ! have fun
I'd hope to read your review once you've put it to use 🙃
 
I love munetoshi. I use my 165 petty and 240 gyuto religiously at work. My gyuto did come with rust on the spine as well but other than that i’ve been lucky. Fit and finish on those two were decent. His heat treat is top notch. My gyuto ghosts through carrots. For the money, I’ll take this good of a rustic knife all day. Sometimes when you pay so little, it is what it is. Unless there are real serious issues or you just would rather something else. I put mine to heavy work pretty often so they will end up taking a beating anyways.
 
Robert Lavacca said:
I love munetoshi. I use my 165 petty and 240 gyuto religiously at work. My gyuto did come with rust on the spine as well but other than that i’ve been lucky. Fit and finish on those two were decent. His heat treat is top notch. My gyuto ghosts through carrots. For the money, I’ll take this good of a rustic knife all day. Sometimes when you pay so little, it is what it is. Unless there are real serious issues or you just would rather something else. I put mine to heavy work pretty often so they will end up taking a beating anyways.
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A little off topic but I've been meaning to buy a Munetoshi Gyuto too, I can read that you like it a lot:
Is it a Laser or more of a Workhorse ?
I know that things are not often quite so simple and two sided but I'd like to hear your opinion on that ?
My Mune Butcher has a thickness at the spine that I love (makes sense for a butcher)
 
If you return it you may have to pay postage both ways and took a hit on currency exchange . That was the only downside I had with a CC return, they didn’t have an exchange knife and quickly refunded (minus shipping to me and I paid shipping to return) as soon as they had the knife in hand.
You may come out better having someone local tune up the knife you have.
 
Really recommend the new polished munetoshi at knifewear...slightly better F&F but slightly thinner overall (both spine & edge). I'd recommend returning this one in favor of the newer one.
 
OP, just to confirm, your Munetoshi looks very similar to my 210mm. I had the same doubts/ worries initially but at the time figured it was within limits. I had only bought stainless western style knives until then.
Really enjoy this knife now!
 
Looks pretty much exactly like my 210 mm gyuto, except mine had a spine full of rust.
I'm in the process of thinning and raising the shinogi on my knife, but hopefully your example, like so many others, performs better than mine :).
 
There will be no return, I'll keep my rustic friend with me. It had his first real cut test today with some chicken. It cats like a champ. Surprisingly it has one of the best OOTB edge sharpness I've ever had. It's also not reactive at all so far.
 
Leon.B said:
There will be no return, I'll keep my rustic friend with me. It had his first real cut test today with some chicken. It cats like a champ. Surprisingly it has one of the best OOTB edge sharpness I've ever had. It's also not reactive at all so far.
Click to expand...
You got me buying one :upsidedownspin: waiting on my 240 gyuto
 
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