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Those heiji’s sound awesome man. Sounds like a nice score to me!

very pleased. Glad how things turned out - heiji’s fit, finish, and sharpness is 2 notches above Mazaki IMHO

The only thing is when I put that Carbon Heiji to use today, there was a bit of a stink after I cut the tomatoes. I read about smells on this forum, but was strange to experience it. had this metallic, mineral-like smell. I do hope it goes away. After the smell, patina formed instantly
 
I kind of don’t blame james at k&s. A lot of guys have been trying to get those blue mazaki and the dammy mazaki. He only had two so he wanted it to go to customers of his that had purchased mazaki from him before. I thought about it. Already have a blue 2. Plus I feel like the finish on the blade didn’t really blow me away. More of a basic handle fan.
Lately i’m trying to tame myself. If something comes up and I can buy it, great. If i’m too slow etc, it’s all good. Others will pop up man.
Did these just come in? I didn't think James was going to get any more blue mazakis. That's pretty sweet if he is going to continue to get them.

very pleased. Glad how things turned out - heiji’s fit, finish, and sharpness is 2 notches above Mazaki IMHO

The only thing is when I put that Carbon Heiji to use today, there was a bit of a stink after I cut the tomatoes. I read about smells on this forum, but was strange to experience it. had this metallic, mineral-like smell. I do hope it goes away. After the smell, patina formed instantly

That smell the first time is normal. That can happen with semi stainless, nevertheless carbon.
 
That smell the first time is normal. That can happen with semi stainless, nevertheless carbon.

Ahh - ok, mine is the Carbon Heiji - I have a SS one as well but no smell with that Santoku.

Thanks for letting me know. I presume the smell dissipates over time
 
Ahh - ok, mine is the Carbon Heiji - I have a SS one as well but no smell with that Santoku.

Thanks for letting me know. I presume the smell dissipates over time
It will dissipate basically imiedately, after the initial contact and patina forms. It shouldn't do it much if ever. Sometimes after sharpening or if you strip patina. But usually it's just the first time, because it's such a strong initial reaction.
 
glad You got it, I bought it at K&S and then they cancelled my order saying I had not bought a mazaki before from them - I had bought other’$600 knife (Gihei ZDP) but no Mazaki. So without offering me any alternative, they refunded my money and cancelled my order.

Let me know how you like it. It’s a sanamai -

I was ticked off, so to drown my knife blues, I bought 2 sanmai forged knives from Heiji - 250 mm Gyuto carbon 245 gm sharpened on natural stones - the knife is amazing. It may well be one of the sharpest knives, perhaps even more so than my Toyoma.

I posted some pics and I love it. And then, to fully recover from a jarring knife purchase experience, I also got a Heiji Carbon 180mm Nakiri - sanami forged too. Not sure if I will go back to K&S

yet to receive the Nakiri

would love to hear your opinions on this Blue Mazaki - as it’s the one that got away!

Sorry to hear what happened. I was surprised when I saw them in stock (if it wasn't the rule, it would be gone way earlier). I was glad I had the opportunity to pick up this one. I have to say this new batch has thinner grind to it. In term of sharpness, I would say it is close to my blue 2. Here is the shot for comparison. (left blue 2, right blue 1

) WechatIMG6.jpegWechatIMG2.jpeg
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It will dissipate basically imiedately, after the initial contact and patina forms. It shouldn't do it much if ever. Sometimes after sharpening or if you strip patina. But usually it's just the first time, because it's such a strong initial reaction.

great - thanks for letting me know
 
Sorry to hear what happened. I was surprised when I saw them in stock (if it wasn't the rule, it would be gone way earlier). I was glad I had the opportunity to pick up this one. I have to say this new batch has thinner grind to it. In term of sharpness, I would say it is close to my blue 2. Here is the shot for comparison. (left blue 2, right blue 1

)View attachment 85024View attachment 85025
View attachment 85026View attachment 85028

wait, you have 2 blue Mazakii? Congrats sir, that’s an enviable collection
 
New to Mazaki World and trying to keep up with them. Learning who the vendors are but don't know BST or CKo as mentioned in previous posts.
Is the availability really as random as it seems to me?
Thanks in advance.
 
New to Mazaki World and trying to keep up with them. Learning who the vendors are but don't know BST or CKo as mentioned in previous posts.
Is the availability really as random as it seems to me?
Thanks in advance.

Not really random,not loads of vendors though...
BST is “buy, sell, trade”, classifieds on here; CKC is Carbon Knife Co, Denver. Currently has new stock of the ku versions.
Cleancut stock some in Europe, Knives & Stones in Aus/US, they’re available in Singapore, someone else can chime in with more stockists.
 
Knifewear.com, based in Canada, also sells them. They currently don't have any gyutos in stock though.
 
Not really random,not loads of vendors though...
BST is “buy, sell, trade”, classifieds on here; CKC is Carbon Knife Co, Denver. Currently has new stock of the ku versions.
Cleancut stock some in Europe, Knives & Stones in Aus/US, they’re available in Singapore, someone else can chime in with more stockists.
These are the main ones - carbon knife has new stock and availability
 
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Got the latest batch kurouchi 210 Mazaki from CKC and I have to say I'm impressed. I was a bit worried about the fat spine when ordering the knife, but the spine narrows down considerably before coming out of my fingers on the punch grip. If anything, the fat spine at the start makes the knife more comfortable to hold.

The grind on this knife is excellent on this knife. Really tall bevels on a tall knife makes cutting everything a breeze. Geometry trumps thinness on this knife. Food sticks minimally to the knife too.

The knife has a speckled semi rough kurouchi finish which I like. The spine and heal are nicely rounded. Hard to compare fit & finish against a Heiji, this knife being ku, but the Heiji I owned didn't have as good if a grind. Overall, great knife at a good price.
 
Forgot to add, I really like the flat profile of this blade. When the knife hits the cutting board, a large portion of the blade sits flatly on the cutting board. Probably the most of my gyutos.
 
Forgot to add, I really like the flat profile of this blade. When the knife hits the cutting board, a large portion of the blade sits flatly on the cutting board. Probably the most of my gyutos.
I just got the 240 mm Gyuto from Craig at CKC. The price is unbeatable. But you have to really watch the tip. The tip barely touched the fawcet when I was cleaning it, and it got bent. Incredible distal taper. I could straighten it with my fingers - it’s really thin and delicate - unlike the rest of knife. I posted pics when it came last week - I think it was 270 or 280 gm or so.

I don’t think it can compare to my Sanmai (3-layer) forged Carbon Heiji sharpened on multiple Japanese natural stones. That knife is so sharp, its unbelievable. But the price points are so different - mazaki half price of the Heiji

so value-wise, mazaki wins hands down.

I also have to be careful I don’t end up drinking the Mazaki hype cool-aid of this forum - that I keep an independent and objective perspective. Right now, mazaki is the golden child on this forum - he can do no wrong! We only see his work through rose tinted lenses

that being said, I love my Mazaki, it’s amazing! It peforms brilliantly, has some emotion to it, an object of substance

but Sanmai Carbon Heiji is 2 notches above. I don’t have unicorn knives, (Shig, Kato, Tatsuo Ikeda, etc.) so for me it’s Togashi, Heiji, Toyoma who seem a cut above the rest

Long live Mazaki!
 
I just got the 240 mm Gyuto from Craig at CKC. The price is unbeatable. But you have to really watch the tip. The tip barely touched the fawcet when I was cleaning it, and it got bent. Incredible distal taper. I could straighten it with my fingers - it’s really thin and delicate - unlike the rest of knife. I posted pics when it came last week - I think it was 270 or 280 gm or so.

I don’t think it can compare to my Sanmai (3-layer) forged Carbon Heiji sharpened on multiple Japanese natural stones. That knife is so sharp, its unbelievable. But the price points are so different - mazaki half price of the Heiji

so value-wise, mazaki wins hands down.

I also have to be careful I don’t end up drinking the Mazaki hype cool-aid of this forum - that I keep an independent and objective perspective. Right now, mazaki is the golden child on this forum - he can do no wrong! We only see his work through rose tinted lenses

that being said, I love my Mazaki, it’s amazing! It peforms brilliantly, has some emotion to it, an object of substance

but Sanmai Carbon Heiji is 2 notches above. I don’t have unicorn knives, (Shig, Kato, Tatsuo Ikeda, etc.) so for me it’s Togashi, Heiji, Toyoma who seem a cut above the rest

Long live Mazaki!

Fwiw, whenever I hear

“This knife is the best because it’s so sharp!”

I think

“This car is the best because it has the most gas in it!”

Sharpness is an ephemeral thing that speaks of the quality of the most recent sharpening and the amount of use the knife has seen since then. It’s not an indication of the knife’s quality, although some knives are easier to sharpen or will retain a good edge longer.

That said, Heiji carbon is freakin awesome and is so easy to sharpen, so I’m not disagreeing with you that Heiji is on another level steelwise. (Though many often complain about the grind.) Personally, I’d be happy if all my knives were from Heiji... he’s the only maker I have two knives from atm. Seems like you’re making some really wise purchases. 🥳
 
I’m finding it increasingly difficult to NOT pull the trigger on a 240... shipping and UK duty make it a little too much :(
 
Fwiw, whenever I hear

“This knife is the best because it’s so sharp!”

I think

“This car is the best because it has the most gas in it!”

Sharpness is an ephemeral thing that speaks of the quality of the most recent sharpening and the amount of use the knife has seen since then. It’s not an indication of the knife’s quality, although some knives are easier to sharpen or will retain a good edge longer.

That said, Heiji carbon is freakin awesome and is so easy to sharpen, so I’m not disagreeing with you that Heiji is on another level steelwise. (Though many often complain about the grind.) Personally, I’d be happy if all my knives were from Heiji... he’s the only maker I have two knives from atm. Seems like you’re making some really wise purchases. 🥳

Well said! It’s not about sharpness - could not agree more - I have a super sharp Kei Kobayashi, but as you say, the steel of the Heiji is something else.

there is a quality that sometimes is hard to describe - the grind, steel, HT, geometry - the interplay of all of these can create something special that is more than the sum of all of those individual parts
 
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I have to comment on the love for KU knives. These blades require much less work from the blacksmith so why isn't the price reduced to reflect this reduced labor?
 
I have to comment on the love for KU knives. These blades require much less work from the blacksmith so why isn't the price reduced to reflect this reduced labor?
They were at one point, there was like a 5 to 10% difference between kasumi/ku but I guess it just is what it is now
 
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