tostadas
Hobbyist / Craftsman
Yes videos of flexing and stiffies plz
Knife Japan: What's notable, worth buying, etc.?
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Yeah, we didn't discuss spine dimensions so I'll be curious to see as well.
I asked Michael about weight and balance point on some 165 nakiri and he emailed be this. I thought it would be helpful to share. The arrows indicate the balance point. The weights are specific to the examples he pulled out and of course they vary from knife to knife.
The Yashima is taller than the others at 55mm. The Fukamizu is the heaviest but the cherry wood handle helps balance that weight. He mentioned it feels more dense in hand compared to the others.
The Yashima is taller than the others at 55mm. The Fukamizu is the heaviest but the cherry wood handle helps balance that weight. He mentioned it feels more dense in hand compared to the others.
Very cool. Thank you for sharing!
My Yashima weighed in at 175 and it was pretty thick. It carried a lot of that weight down the blade and not just up high.
Is this what you had in mind?
I absolutely do not have enough nakiris....
Only 148 days until All Rectangle March. Stock up!
I can recommend the Homi offering if you have an itch.
Oh wow, you weren’t kidding! Found out Mikami’s son made custom paper / letter openers as gifts for the G7 summit this yearIf you're inclined (and haven't already), send him a quick email thanking him for the quick service or some such. Then enjoy Michael's response. His emails are nearly always a step above what you expect from a vendor.
BTW this is a selection of his heaviest 165 nakiri, as I asked specifically for that.
Oh wow, you weren’t kidding! Found out Mikami’s son made custom paper / letter openers as gifts for the G7 summit this year
Yeah, Michael's a pretty cool guy.
Today I created a new Wishlist titled "Rectangles".
All the cool kids, ahh nevermind.Today I created a new Wishlist titled "Rectangles".
A rectangle is a square.
That joke wouldn't have worked....
So here's what is currently in the Rectangles wish list. Love to read your thoughts.
No particular order:
https://knifejapan.com/ikenami-hamono-nakiri-160mm-shirogami-1/Michael told me this is his primary knife. He said he and his wife were gifted one by Ikenami san early into the Knife Japan journey. But it isn't just sentimental, he said it is a source of constant cutting joy.
I do like the stated specs for sure. The only reason I haven't gotten one yet is I'm not sure I want another shirogami knife right now.
https://knifejapan.com/kawatsu-hamono-haisu-stainless-nakiri-165mm/The thing that attracts me most tot his knife is also the thing I'm most hesitant about: HAP40. I've tried a lot of steels but this isn't one of them yet so of course I'm intrigued. But, I also don't know if I feel like messing with the HAP40 and stainless cladding down the road.
The grind looks nice and it all looks well executed. On a site primarily composed of rustic offerings, this one does stand out. Don't love the thin spine though.
https://knifejapan.com/nakamura-hamono-kaku-bocho-165mm/I don't know...Maybe because it's a little different? Maybe it's Michael's "light and lovely" description? There's just something about this one that catches my eye and keeps me from removing it form the list.
https://knifejapan.com/kono-uchihamono-toku-sei-nakiri-bocho-165mm-aogami-1/I like the 50mm height but not sure the weight matches the dimensional specs. I'd probably ask Michael about that before ordering. Otherwise, this is definitely a case of Michael's words seducing me.
https://knifejapan.com/unshu-chuzen-hamono-haisu-nakiri-165mm/The "other" HAP40. Very similar to the Kawatsu but a cheaper handle and price. Pics suggest it may be a little chunkier too but hard to judge that.
No particular order:
https://knifejapan.com/ikenami-hamono-nakiri-160mm-shirogami-1/Michael told me this is his primary knife. He said he and his wife were gifted one by Ikenami san early into the Knife Japan journey. But it isn't just sentimental, he said it is a source of constant cutting joy.
I do like the stated specs for sure. The only reason I haven't gotten one yet is I'm not sure I want another shirogami knife right now.
https://knifejapan.com/kawatsu-hamono-haisu-stainless-nakiri-165mm/The thing that attracts me most tot his knife is also the thing I'm most hesitant about: HAP40. I've tried a lot of steels but this isn't one of them yet so of course I'm intrigued. But, I also don't know if I feel like messing with the HAP40 and stainless cladding down the road.
The grind looks nice and it all looks well executed. On a site primarily composed of rustic offerings, this one does stand out. Don't love the thin spine though.
https://knifejapan.com/nakamura-hamono-kaku-bocho-165mm/I don't know...Maybe because it's a little different? Maybe it's Michael's "light and lovely" description? There's just something about this one that catches my eye and keeps me from removing it form the list.
https://knifejapan.com/kono-uchihamono-toku-sei-nakiri-bocho-165mm-aogami-1/I like the 50mm height but not sure the weight matches the dimensional specs. I'd probably ask Michael about that before ordering. Otherwise, this is definitely a case of Michael's words seducing me.
https://knifejapan.com/unshu-chuzen-hamono-haisu-nakiri-165mm/The "other" HAP40. Very similar to the Kawatsu but a cheaper handle and price. Pics suggest it may be a little chunkier too but hard to judge that.
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I think I might have mentioned it before but I'm very happy with my 170mm Ohkubo Kajiya nakiri from knife japan.
I think that in the last position, you repeated the previous link, rather than another HAP40 selection?
thanks to you F.D.E.s I have just ordered
https://knifejapan.com/sasaoka-hasami-ko-bocho-120mm/
https://knifejapan.com/fukamizu-hamono-kuri-no-kawamuki-75mm-shirogami-2/
I will explain in a week or two
https://knifejapan.com/sasaoka-hasami-ko-bocho-120mm/
https://knifejapan.com/fukamizu-hamono-kuri-no-kawamuki-75mm-shirogami-2/
I will explain in a week or two
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tostadas
Hobbyist / Craftsman
If Michael says he uses it himself, I'd go for it at least to try
Agree and there's no doubt I'll get one.
If not a HAP40 selection to explore that steel, then:
https://knifejapan.com/kono-uchihamono-toku-sei-nakiri-bocho-165mm-aogami-1/
But I’m partial to Aogami 1.
I have never tried the Ikenami Nakiri but I’m very happy with my 210 suji and 180 bannou (sort of santoku).
Decently robust spine (3mm) and not much taper give it a stiff and robust feeling. At the same time it feels light and nimble, the grind from spine to edge is very well made and it’s reasonably thin at the bevel.
Bevels are concave and the cladding is quite easy to thin, abrades easily.
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cheeken1111
Active Member
Bought the Ikenami 6sun scissors from Micheal. Pretty cool you can see the weld line and the hand made nature. Used to it in kitch3n knives but not scissors yet. Plan to use them as toddler food prep scissors on the go.
Side note, There was a snafu which caused a delay in shipping but Micheal was awesome about it. He reached out before I even wondered why the package didn't ship yet and kept me posted. Package arrived with a personal note acknowledging the delay. Had another order from a diff vendor. I had asked for a refund since it was not shipped 2 weeks after the order. Only then was it shipped.... after a refund was requested. Nothing but snark and excuses. All that to say Micheal was a pleasure to order from even with a delayed shipping situation.
Edit: Micheal also included me a book (couple pages) to read about the items purchased and the hostory around them. Pretty cool!
Side note, There was a snafu which caused a delay in shipping but Micheal was awesome about it. He reached out before I even wondered why the package didn't ship yet and kept me posted. Package arrived with a personal note acknowledging the delay. Had another order from a diff vendor. I had asked for a refund since it was not shipped 2 weeks after the order. Only then was it shipped.... after a refund was requested. Nothing but snark and excuses. All that to say Micheal was a pleasure to order from even with a delayed shipping situation.
Edit: Micheal also included me a book (couple pages) to read about the items purchased and the hostory around them. Pretty cool!
Attachments
I don't know what it is about this guy but it definitely makes my "buy" finger twitch...
https://knifejapan.com/yoshimitsu-kajiya-nakiri-bocho-155mm-shirogami-2/
https://knifejapan.com/yoshimitsu-kajiya-nakiri-bocho-155mm-shirogami-2/
BillHanna
Gotta get ready for ARM
do it
Ive been dealing with Junichi Ide of Yosimitu Kajiya for quite a few years now. I think his knives are really good for the price, he's only been forging for 25 years or so. I generally handle the knives that come into the shop as there is much rustic-ness with Junichi-san's f&f. The nakiri bocho is a bit thick BTE but his nakiri, Gyuto etc are very thin in general. I have a larger range of his knives on my website if you want to see more of his offerings.
Great insight. Thank you!
I like that - “only” been forging for 25 years…
I was close Bill. Your two simple words were echoing in my head and feeding my burgeoning "ah just give it a shot" mindset. So, I put a few different knives to work yesterday for lunch and dinner. Even pulled out the small Wok Shop cleaver, that while larger than this one, does give that tall and heavy feel. My 180 Wat Pro also gives that to some extent.
They both felt really good and my resolve was weakening. Until I picked up my Moritaka and Homi. The Moritaka is taller but they are both lighter knives and I instantly remembered that's what I like. Man, it's taken me around three years to be able to say what I like with any confidence. It's nice to have different knives to compare.
So, back to ogling the "regular" nakiris and maybe a santoku or two.
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Some Mikami have been sitting on the site for a few days as well as a 180 nakiri from Okubo listed at 60mm and 222g. I was seriously considering getting a second Mikami nakiri just to have it I like mine so much. Also really curious about the okubo nakiri compared to something like the Wat pro, I know the okubo would probably benefit from a bit of work to get it preforming at a higher level but at that price, very tempting.
After some back and forth with Michael I ordered the Mori nakiri ‘sho’ 120mm for smaller tasks in the kitchen, looks like a great little nakiri. I also ordered the ikenami bannou 180 as a gift for a wonderful employee I had on the farm this summer so it’ll be fun to put my hands on that knife. As always great communication with Michael.
After some back and forth with Michael I ordered the Mori nakiri ‘sho’ 120mm for smaller tasks in the kitchen, looks like a great little nakiri. I also ordered the ikenami bannou 180 as a gift for a wonderful employee I had on the farm this summer so it’ll be fun to put my hands on that knife. As always great communication with Michael.
Love to read your thoughts on the bannou when you get it. I've had that knife on my wish list for a while.
