LOCATION
What country are you in? USA
KNIFE TYPE
What type of knife are you interested in (e.g., chefs knife, slicer, boning knife, utility knife, bread knife, paring knife, cleaver)? Gyuto
Are you right or left handed? Right
Are you interested in a Western handle (e.g., classic Wusthof handle) or Japanese handle? Japanese
What length of knife (blade) are you interested in (in inches or millimeters)? 210-240
Do you require a stainless knife? (Yes or no) No
What is your absolute maximum budget for your knife? 400
KNIFE USE
Do you primarily intend to use this knife at home or a professional environment? Home
What are the main tasks you primarily intend to use the knife for (e.g., slicing vegetables, chopping vegetables, mincing vegetables, slicing meats, cutting down poultry, breaking poultry bones, filleting fish, trimming meats, etc.)? (Please identify as many tasks as you would like.) Chopping veggies and boneless meat
What knife, if any, are you replacing? L.C. Germain (Made in Japan) 210 Chef Knife
Do you have a particular grip that you primarily use? (Please click on this LINK for the common types of grips.) Pinch
What cutting motions do you primarily use? (Please click on this LINK for types of cutting motions and identify the two or three most common cutting motions, in order of most used to least used.) Push Cut, Chopping, Rocking
What improvements do you want from your current knife? If you are not replacing a knife, please identify as many characteristics identified below in parentheses that you would like this knife to have.) Sharpness, ability to sharpen, edge retention
Better aesthetics (e.g., a certain type of finish; layered/Damascus or other pattern of steel; different handle color/pattern/shape/wood; better scratch resistance; better stain resistance)? Aesthetics are low on the priority
Comfort (e.g., lighter/heavier knife; better handle material; better handle shape; rounded spine/choil of the knife; improved balance)? Lighter, and ease of use
Ease of Use (e.g., ability to use the knife right out of the box; smoother rock chopping, push cutting, or slicing motion; less wedging; better food release; less reactivity with food; easier to sharpen)? Less wedging, better food release
Edge Retention (i.e., length of time you want the edge to last without sharpening)? 1-2 months
KNIFE MAINTENANCE
Do you use a bamboo, wood, rubber, or synthetic cutting board? (Yes or no.) Boardsmith hard maple.
Do you sharpen your own knives? (Yes or no.) Yes, King 1000/6000
If not, are you interested in learning how to sharpen your knives? (Yes or no.)
Are you interested in purchasing sharpening products for your knives? (Yes or no.) Yes if necessary
SPECIAL REQUESTS/COMMENTS
So I've been browsing the forums for a while now and soaking up all the information and I've run into a bit of a problem. Information overload. There is just so much choice that it has led me to not be able to make any choice at all. What I'm looking for in a knife is a workhorse, something that can handle anything I can throw at it. Whether it's dicing an onion, slicing through a sweet potato, chopping up a head of cabbage, or whatever. I know that good at everything, master of none is a thing but something for me to worry about in the future. The problem I'm running into is there is just so much choice. For instance Tanaka gets a lot of love around here and at 200 is not bad. But is it worth it to invest in a Toyama at 400? Is it twice the knife? Then you have Watanabe, Wakui, TF, Itonmon, and on and on. I had a chef friend staying with me a few weeks ago and suggested I start with something cheap and find what I like. I don't really want to go down the route and end up with 3 knifes that I hate just to get to one I like. He brought over a few knives as well and I got to try a Shun and a Wustoff. The Wustoff I hated, didn't like how it cut, the weight, the handle everything just did not like it. The Shun wasn't terrible but was HEAVY. Couldn't believe how heavy it was, and it did cut way better than what I have but still wasn't that impressed. So I need some sound advice on where to go from here. I'm too scared of buying the wrong knife, of course I know anything I get will be a vast improvement but I still want to make the right choice. Thanks in advance.
What country are you in? USA
KNIFE TYPE
What type of knife are you interested in (e.g., chefs knife, slicer, boning knife, utility knife, bread knife, paring knife, cleaver)? Gyuto
Are you right or left handed? Right
Are you interested in a Western handle (e.g., classic Wusthof handle) or Japanese handle? Japanese
What length of knife (blade) are you interested in (in inches or millimeters)? 210-240
Do you require a stainless knife? (Yes or no) No
What is your absolute maximum budget for your knife? 400
KNIFE USE
Do you primarily intend to use this knife at home or a professional environment? Home
What are the main tasks you primarily intend to use the knife for (e.g., slicing vegetables, chopping vegetables, mincing vegetables, slicing meats, cutting down poultry, breaking poultry bones, filleting fish, trimming meats, etc.)? (Please identify as many tasks as you would like.) Chopping veggies and boneless meat
What knife, if any, are you replacing? L.C. Germain (Made in Japan) 210 Chef Knife
Do you have a particular grip that you primarily use? (Please click on this LINK for the common types of grips.) Pinch
What cutting motions do you primarily use? (Please click on this LINK for types of cutting motions and identify the two or three most common cutting motions, in order of most used to least used.) Push Cut, Chopping, Rocking
What improvements do you want from your current knife? If you are not replacing a knife, please identify as many characteristics identified below in parentheses that you would like this knife to have.) Sharpness, ability to sharpen, edge retention
Better aesthetics (e.g., a certain type of finish; layered/Damascus or other pattern of steel; different handle color/pattern/shape/wood; better scratch resistance; better stain resistance)? Aesthetics are low on the priority
Comfort (e.g., lighter/heavier knife; better handle material; better handle shape; rounded spine/choil of the knife; improved balance)? Lighter, and ease of use
Ease of Use (e.g., ability to use the knife right out of the box; smoother rock chopping, push cutting, or slicing motion; less wedging; better food release; less reactivity with food; easier to sharpen)? Less wedging, better food release
Edge Retention (i.e., length of time you want the edge to last without sharpening)? 1-2 months
KNIFE MAINTENANCE
Do you use a bamboo, wood, rubber, or synthetic cutting board? (Yes or no.) Boardsmith hard maple.
Do you sharpen your own knives? (Yes or no.) Yes, King 1000/6000
If not, are you interested in learning how to sharpen your knives? (Yes or no.)
Are you interested in purchasing sharpening products for your knives? (Yes or no.) Yes if necessary
SPECIAL REQUESTS/COMMENTS
So I've been browsing the forums for a while now and soaking up all the information and I've run into a bit of a problem. Information overload. There is just so much choice that it has led me to not be able to make any choice at all. What I'm looking for in a knife is a workhorse, something that can handle anything I can throw at it. Whether it's dicing an onion, slicing through a sweet potato, chopping up a head of cabbage, or whatever. I know that good at everything, master of none is a thing but something for me to worry about in the future. The problem I'm running into is there is just so much choice. For instance Tanaka gets a lot of love around here and at 200 is not bad. But is it worth it to invest in a Toyama at 400? Is it twice the knife? Then you have Watanabe, Wakui, TF, Itonmon, and on and on. I had a chef friend staying with me a few weeks ago and suggested I start with something cheap and find what I like. I don't really want to go down the route and end up with 3 knifes that I hate just to get to one I like. He brought over a few knives as well and I got to try a Shun and a Wustoff. The Wustoff I hated, didn't like how it cut, the weight, the handle everything just did not like it. The Shun wasn't terrible but was HEAVY. Couldn't believe how heavy it was, and it did cut way better than what I have but still wasn't that impressed. So I need some sound advice on where to go from here. I'm too scared of buying the wrong knife, of course I know anything I get will be a vast improvement but I still want to make the right choice. Thanks in advance.