Nigara Hamono sg2 240 mm gyuto..any good?

[HappyamateurDK]

Hi all.

Looking for a nice stainless gyuto for a friend.

I've come across a pretty nice looking Nigara Hamono 240 mm gyuto in SG2.

Anyone who knows how Nigaras sg2 knives are? Are they any good?

Have a nice day.

 

[Stevem627]

I have three of their tsuchime hammered SG2 (240, 180 bunka, and 150 petty), and they are very nice. Hollow ground much like a Yu Kurosaki in my opinion. I would recommend them if the look works good for you.

They are thin behind the edge and sharpen easily.

 

[Tekkz]

Good knives but you are paying a premium for looks over performance. Nothing wrong with that, I have one myself.

 

[HappyamateurDK]

Good knives but you are paying a premium for looks over performance. Nothing wrong with that, I have one myself.

I'm okay paying for looks. But would you say it's cutting performance is disappointing?

 

[Tekkz]

I'm okay paying for looks. But would you say it's cutting performance is disappointing?

No, they are not disappointing. They are good, just not as good as plainer looking knives in the same price range.

 

[blokey]

For Homebutcher price they are good, very decent steel, thin grind, the handle is not my couple of tea but they seems nice to hold

 

[Stevem627]

I bought all mine at Homebutcher and all were very good deals imho. The 240 has a Wenge/faux horn handle and it is actually very nice. The handle on the bunka was their maple western faceted wa handle. I really like those handles quite a bit.

 

[pitted_soul]

I haven't owned one but have handled a few. Their grinds look solid, ticks a lot of boxes, and their fit and finish is very solid. Their western handle knives are freaking sweet. You will be hard pressed to find a rain drop damascus that looks that clean for that price. Every time I go into Tokushu Knife, I pick theirs up and handle it. Their F&F on their western handled knives was as good as Wusthoff's handles, just smooth as could be with minorly perceptible transitions between materials.

 

[HappyamateurDK]

No, they are not disappointing. They are good, just not as good as plainer looking knives in the same price range.

Thanks for input. What plainer looking knives would you suggest instead?

 

[HappyamateurDK]

I haven't owned one but have handled a few. Their grinds look solid, ticks a lot of boxes, and their fit and finish is very solid. Their western handle knives are freaking sweet. You will be hard pressed to find a rain drop damascus that looks that clean for that price. Every time I go into Tokushu Knife, I pick theirs up and handle it. Their F&F on their western handled knives was as good as Wusthoff's handles, just smooth as could be with minorly perceptible transitions between materials.

Sounds good.

I'm looking for one with the wa handle. But I guess they are still decent.

 

[Tekkz]

Thanks for input. What plainer looking knives would you suggest instead?

Yoshikane 240mm SKD
https://knivesandstones.us/products...i-semi-stainless-clad-gyuto-210mm-240mm-270mm
Ashi Ginga 240mm Stainless
https://www.ebay.com/itm/235335281823?hash=item36cb136c9f:g:EmoAAOSwMPxlcyHr(Not a used ebay item, Blueway is a legit retailer)

Fabulous knives.

 

[HappyamateurDK]

Yoshikane 240mm SKD
https://knivesandstones.us/products...i-semi-stainless-clad-gyuto-210mm-240mm-270mm
Ashi Ginga 240mm Stainless
https://www.ebay.com/itm/235335281823?hash=item36cb136c9f:g:EmoAAOSwMPxlcyHr(Not a used ebay item, Blueway is a legit retailer)

Fabulous knives.

Those are indeed beautiful knives.

But also about 100 euros more here locally.

 

[madmotts]

From nigara- I have the anmon (raindrop), KU hammered sg2 and recently a Damascus ginsan. They’re all different animals tho-

The hammered sg2 is just as @Stevem627 described and is my favorite of the bunch for straight out of the box experience. It’s super thin behind the edge.

The anmon raindrop was super sticky/grabby out of the box. I haven’t heard anyone else with this experience, so mine could be unique. I kinda fuggd up the appearance -did some light sanding, kniferbaited it and lost the dark areas. It’s convex vs the slight hollow of the other.

If you can find the hammered migaki sg2 for a deal < $200 (home butcher) they are easily one my favorite recommended stainless.

 

[Tanalasta]

Has anyone compared the Nigara to a Tanaka R2? The latter is significantly more expensive though...

 

[Mytola]

From nigara- I have the anmon (raindrop), KU hammered sg2 and recently a Damascus ginsan. They’re all different animals tho-

How is the Damascus ginsan? I've not seen too much feedback on those.

 

[madmotts]

How is the Damascus ginsan? I've not seen too much feedback on those.

It’s a beast- work horse choil and got some weight to it. Thin thin behind the edge. Pretty flat profile on the kiritsuke of mine. very rustic and cool aesthetic. Haven’t spent that much time with it tho.

 

[blokey]

some of the recent Nigara stuff like blue 2 and Ginsan made me suspect they might be behind Komorebi and Yoake series…

 

[Tanalasta]

Bump. Is there any difference in performance, grind etc between the different sg2 models. Eg. Damascus vs raindrop vs hammered

 

[madmotts]

Yes they vary quite a bit. I have one of each. The Damascus is a workhorse type with thick spine and the grind is dramatic from edge to top of bevel. It will wedge on hard things like carrots but have good separation. I like the feel of this knife ( heavy assertive) & the look (rustic). The blue 2 and ginsan are very similar in grind.

The other two are kinda lazerish- The hammered is thin (3mm) with a slight concave and the raindrop is thin (2.5mm) with a gradual convex. The grind and feel are way different tho- the hammered is a super smooth cutter for firm product like apples and carrots and has decent food separation for the spine thickness. When found for under $300, I love the value of these and highly recommend.

Initially the raindrop was super sticky and sluggish (Tho I haven’t heard anyone complaining about theirs). I basically removed the etch to see if that solved the problem (nope) and then took the leap of thinning (yay!). It’s pretty good cutter (almost sukenari) now but the irritation of thinning and ruining the contrast lingers (love hate). I havent heard too much negative commentary about raindrops in these forums, so I think my copy wasn’t great.

There’s some higher end nigara stuff with some wild names ( fantasy, trolls killers?) that I’d love to have with some amazing organic patterns and also expect to have different grinds. Myojin liked some of these back when I was raindrop shopping.

 

[Just a DK]

some of the recent Nigara stuff like blue 2 and Ginsan made me suspect they might be behind Komorebi and Yoake series…

I was going to say that maybe they hired the Komorembi sharpener.

 

[tostadas]

I have 3 of the ginsan damascus. They are thick spined, but thin concave grind behind the edge, so I have not experienced any wedging issues with mine on dense stuff. The stock etch finish is on the rough side though, so I found benefit from polishing it. The look and feel are amazing though.

 

[tay314]

I’ve gifted a few hammered SG2s to family members and they’ve been well received. Cutting feel is good, they’re not overly delicate, and they look fancier than the average knife. Fancy isn’t necessary but sometimes that extra flash is enough to stop people from sticking knives where they don’t belong (in dishwashers, that is).

Homebutcher frequently has sales (occasionally as much as 40% off) so you can get one for a pretty good price then.

 

[Tomas Randa]

I have their 240 gyuto ku sg2, 240 gyuto raindrop dammy, few others too the nakiri the butcher and a 210 Kritsuke. The hammered sg2 line out performs their Damascus. Don’t have a pic on my phone of my dammy for some reason it’s at my other place rn. So yeah the Damascus one isn’t as thin behind the edge isn’t as lasery. Their hammered blades have a very aggressive hollow grind, the choil shot is amongst the most impressive imo so they preform extremely well. Couple things to know they measure their blades from the handle so their 240 is actually a 230. Their handles are slightly on the chunky side too, compared to Kurosaki handles when I get my new custom handles installed on them I’ll put some pics up

 

[Tomas Randa]

Yes they vary quite a bit. I have one of each. The Damascus is a workhorse type with thick spine and the grind is dramatic from edge to top of bevel. It will wedge on hard things like carrots but have good separation. I like the feel of this knife ( heavy assertive) & the look (rustic). The blue 2 and ginsan are very similar in grind.

The other two are kinda lazerish- The hammered is thin (3mm) with a slight concave and the raindrop is thin (2.5mm) with a gradual convex. The grind and feel are way different tho- the hammered is a super smooth cutter for firm product like apples and carrots and has decent food separation for the spine thickness. When found for under $300, I love the value of these and highly recommend.

Initially the raindrop was super sticky and sluggish (Tho I haven’t heard anyone complaining about theirs). I basically removed the etch to see if that solved the problem (nope) and then took the leap of thinning (yay!). It’s pretty good cutter (almost sukenari) now but the irritation of thinning and ruining the contrast lingers (love hate). I havent heard too much negative commentary about raindrops in these forums, so I think my copy wasn’t great.

There’s some higher end nigara stuff with some wild names ( fantasy, trolls killers?) that I’d love to have with some amazing organic patterns and also expect to have different grinds. Myojin liked some of these back when I was raindrop shopping.

My 240 raindrop gyuto doesn’t stick bad. My Yoshimi kato black Damascus unfortunately has horrible blade stick will be avoiding black Damascus in the future. Polished hammered blades just perform better, less friction. From my experience

 

[M1k3]

My 240 raindrop gyuto doesn’t stick bad. My Yoshimi kato black Damascus unfortunately has horrible blade stick will be avoiding black Damascus in the future. Polished hammered blades just perform better, less friction. From my experience

Use some 0000 steel wool on your Yoshimi.

 

[Tomas Randa]

The

Use some 0000 steel wool on your Yoshimi.

thanks for the advice. What effect on blade finish might that have? Thanks

 

[M1k3]

The

thanks for the advice. What effect on blade finish might that have? Thanks

Smooth out the oxide layer, without completely removing it and the contrast it creates.

 

[plantgainz]

Have a few, they look great, fit and finish is very good but not impressed with performance on any of them.