Hi - Introductory post!

[lichen]

I just joined to ask a question about a recent purchase, but looks like this is required. I guess I'll share some background!

My first foray into nicer knives was a Yamashin W1 240 Gyuto. I think this is the knife that showed me what a 'good' knife could do. Over time I ended up thinning the tip and bringing the shinogi line up to get a little bit more performance out of it. My next few knives were all HAP40 blanks, which I think turned out objectively better than my first knife. But I guess I'm a sucker for frequent sharpening and as a home cook the seemingly forever edge got old.

Which brings me to my current situation - I recently grabbed a Yoshikane SKD 240 Gyuto and I'm not sure how I feel about it. OOTB edge was pretty terrible. I touched it up and the steel felt noticeably softer in one small ~1in section. In that section when I press the edge against my nail the last mm or so of the edge deflects, instead of ~5-7mm deflecting everywhere else. It seems like it's an even thickness, so I was thinking it might have been overheated.

I'm currently thinking about thinning it just enough to get past this point and came across a post here where someone mentioned that the slightly convex grind on Yoshikanes makes it much easier than other hollow ground knives. Mine is definitely hollow ground. Does this vary by model? And is this whole experience typical for knives that are thin behind the edge?

Input appreciated

 

[Nemo]

Welcome to the forums

 

[Benuser]

I touched it up and the steel felt noticeably softer in one small ~1in section. In that section when I press the edge against my nail the last mm or so of the edge deflects, instead of ~5-7mm deflecting everywhere else. It seems like it's an even thickness, so I was thinking it might have been overheated.

Welcome aboard!
Those "~5-7mm deflecting everywhere else" are a typo, I guess? Did you mean .5-.7mm?
I would really check the thinneth with a micrometer, just above the bevel and at 5mm upward. Not sure softness in the sense of resistance to a dent as in Rc hardness — as indeed may occur by overheating — is in any way related to malleability or the absence of stiffness.

 

[lichen]

Thanks for the welcome! Point taken regarding RC hardness not necessarily being related to malleability. I don't have any background in this stuff and that's where my mind went.

I waited to respond since I wanted to get those measurements done. As far as I can tell it's a pretty even grind, approx 0.1mm thick @1mm from the edge and 0.35mm thick @5mm from the edge along the entire knife.

I do mean 5-7mm deflects, I can see the reflection warp almost all the way to the lamination line along most of the knife when I press it against my nail. The questionable section only warps the reflection of the last 1-1.5mm (and at a much lower force). I agree it would make sense if this part was thinner, but (I think) the measurements don't support this.

To be honest, I'm a little bit worried about rolling the edge in that section. But maybe it would be best to just use it and deal with it when/if the time comes?