Knife Japan: What's notable, worth buying, etc.?

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bsfsu said:
This is my daily knife that Ide-san gave me a few years ago, it sharpens like a dream.
I can generally get has knives down to 30 BESS, with a micro bevel. He has said to me he just wants to make sharp knives for everyone, and he does this very well!
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How do you feel about his “tall Nakiri”. I assume its iron clad… I have a yoshimi kato stainless clad blue #2 that is 180mm and on the light side and have been wanting some more “rustic”. Does it feel effortless to cut through scallions and ginger? How does it do with root vegetables like sweet potatoes and butternut squash?
 
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Kingyingming said:
How do you feel about his “tall Nakiri”. I assume its iron clad… I have a yoshimi kato stainless clad blue #2 that is 180mm and on the light side and have been wanting some more “rustic”. Does it feel effortless to cut through scallions and ginger? How does it do with root vegetables like sweet potatoes and butternut squash?
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The tall nakiri that I have seen from Yosimitu Kajiya were all a bit thick behind the edge for my liking, quite a convex edge.
I prefer Ide-san's normal nakiri (165,180mm), they are super thin and light.
 
bsfsu said:
I still think more people need to try Yosimitu Kajiya, (Junichi Ide). Rustic finish and each knife is different due to free forging, but I like his aesthetics.

A few of the shapes that Ide-san makes, deba(ryoba), nakiri(large, from the carrot harvest), Petty's, Bunka, Gyuto's, Sujihiki, camping knives with integral handles.View attachment 319029
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I got to try a white 2 double bevel from Yosimitu kajiya and the steel is the most buttery and pleasant if anything I've ever sharpened (kanna, razor, etc). Not the absolute most hard or hair popping but my favorite to sharpen, and strops well, and is pretty sticky of an edge. Grind and forging is consistent and even. Highest recommendation from me.

If you find Sakai white 2 being a little too soft and squishy almost, then this is a little harder and glassier yet crisp. I'm not too sure how to describe it.. . .not glassy like teruyasu fujiwara. Distinctly hard but not super duper hard matrix that would make it glassy. So a harder matrix than Sakai white 2, but also as if it has more distinct and hard teeth? Idk. Very great bitey edge without feeling like it'll roll or bend. Or, compared to the hatsukokoro blue steel thick gyutos -- a little harder feeling actually.


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bsfsu said:
I still think more people need to try Yosimitu Kajiya, (Junichi Ide). Rustic finish and each knife is different due to free forging, but I like his aesthetics.

A few of the shapes that Ide-san makes, deba(ryoba), nakiri(large, from the carrot harvest), Petty's, Bunka, Gyuto's, Sujihiki, camping knives with integral handles.View attachment 319029
Click to expand...
How do his blue 2 and white 2 steels compare?
 
Beerzebub said:
How do his blue 2 and white 2 steels compare?
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I still need to grab a blue 2 off the shelf and take it home to use (I might do that now🤔)so i can't comment on how they compare. I've only Honbadzuke'd a couple of his blue 2 Gyuto, not super hard like a TF but they seemed to feel nice on the stones.

I think his aogami knives are a bit lighter and thinner than his Shirogami.

edit; pic attached

Left are Aogami (180ish 210ish)
Right are Shirogami (210ish)
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bsfsu said:
I still need to grab a blue 2 off the shelf and take it home to use (I might do that now🤔)so i can't comment on how they compare. I've only Honbadzuke'd a couple of his blue 2 Gyuto, not super hard like a TF but they seemed to feel nice on the stones.

I think his aogami knives are a bit lighter and thinner than his Shirogami.

edit; pic attached

Left are Aogami (180ish 210ish)
Right are Shirogami (210ish)
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HumbleHomeCook said:
Oh I like that Unshu.

I have this one in my Wish List:
https://knifejapan.com/unshu-chuzen-hamono-haisu-nakiri-165mm/
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So I have this family friend who has been complaining about the dull knives rattling around her drawer. Every time I visit, I sharpen her Tsubazo and Henckels. The next time I visit, they’re dull again.

Yesterday she asked for recs.

Stainless is a must, and edge retention a key requirement. So I said HAP40:
Board:
She wanted a petty too. I said to choose anything from this page
To maintain the knives I suggested a sharpmaker.

Probably the thing that will make the most difference though will be the cardboard sayas I make up for her.
 
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They never understand it isn't a matter of spending more money. There isn't a knife that will hold its edge for ever. If they aren't going to sharpen their knives they might as well buy cheap blades and throw them away when they get dull.
 
I’m curious about the HAP40 too. I’m hoping that in between my visits, they can manage a few strokes with a ceramic rod, or on a Sharpmaker at 30°. If the steel cooperates, of course.

Angle control of the rod is going to be a challenge. Does anyone make a mounting bracket jig angle crock clamp device that you can slot a rod or a stone into at 15° from vertical? Sort of a poor man’s fixed system. Sized for SG, bet there’s a market.
 
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SwampDonkey said:
Very curious about that HAP40
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I have one (1) knife in Hap40. It was a purchase near the start point of my journey into Japanese culinary uh-huh.

It’s a Kohetsu 210 gyuto. Total featherweight. The downside is I got one of the early mega asymmetric 90/10 models. I’m told they’ve moved more to the middle in meantime.

Nice steel. Slowly yields to good waterstones. No coarseness detected chez apo. Gotta really work to make it stain. Holds an edge much longer than white or blue.

I never committed to symmetrizing the edge, since the whole knife seems built around that near-chisel geometry down by where the cutting happens.

So this is a steel report, refracted through the lens of a knife report.
 
That particular hap40 from knife Japan I've tried. It's probably not made by that blacksmith, just a (mostly) stainless alternative. Anyhow, I bought a second with scuffing to try, and the steel is wear resistant, so that's good if what you wanted to know. Compared to gihei forged hap40 it's slightly coarser feeling but a good steel for what it tries to do (edge life)
 
Devil's advocate: Why not instead one in a less "extreme" stainless steel (e.g. VG-10, R2/SG2, or perhaps an "oddball" choice like VG-7), a cheap blade cover, and a splash-and-go stone?
 
mengwong said:
Stainless is a must, and edge retention a key requirement. So I said HAP40....
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I don't know if HAP40 is a great choice for stainless. If it's semi-well looked after it will be fine, but if it's neglected or put in a dishwasher it won't hold up very well. I guess it depends on how confident you are about the people who will be using the knife being a bit conscientious about basic knife care.
 
Qapla' said:
or perhaps an "oddball" choice like VG-7
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VG-7 is abuse-tolerant in my experience. Makoto's Ryusei line is my go-to for family members who want a nice, stainless knife. Basically a tougher ginsan to me, felt fine on the stones. Didn't take quite the screaming edge I can put on ginsan but held an effective edge longer than ginsan at a similar 61-62 HRC.
 
SwampDonkey said:
Very curious about that HAP40
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I got a Yoshida Hamono Hap 40 gyuto and I absolutely love it. They are an island to themselves and don't have any other knifemakers in the area so they do the blade making process from start to finish at their Hamono. They have a really advanced treatment for their Hap40 that is very dialed in. I have obviously drunk the kool-aid, but the knife has been pretty flawless. Fantastic grind and I haven't sharpened it in a few months.
 
mengwong said:
Angle control of the rod is going to be a challenge. Does anyone make a mounting bracket jig angle crock clamp device that you can slot a rod or a stone into at 15° from vertical? Sort of a poor man’s fixed system. Sized for SG, bet there’s a market.
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You can buy/print little cones that slip onto rods/steels that provides a reference surface for your angle. They work quite well and I am supprised all rods/steels for general consumers do not come with them, but I've been warned about using ceramic rods on high carbide volume steels.
 
Redwax said:
I don't know if HAP40 is a great choice for stainless. If it's semi-well looked after it will be fine, but if it's neglected or put in a dishwasher it won't hold up very well. I guess it depends on how confident you are about the people who will be using the knife being a bit conscientious about basic knife care.
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This, and I omitted it from my report. The edge steel has spots of patina. I treat my carbon and stainless knives (excepting a few red-haired stepchildren) equally well, and my carbons look good.

So, its staining properties are more than say AEB-L … not far from AS.
 
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