Pass Around: Cris Anderson 245mm gyuto, Nitro-V

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thebradleycrew

thebradleycrew

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Pass Around: Cris Anderson 245mm gyuto, Nitro-V

As a tribute to my four year old, who loves being passed around getting hugs before bedtime, I'm going to do a pass around here on my Cris Anderson gyuto. Cris' knives are expensive and can be elusive, but they are excellent blades and everyone that wants to try one should have the chance to do so. In addition, it's stainless (Nitro-V) which a lot of folks haven't tried.

I'm going to follow in the (successful) footsteps of Ashy and ask for $25 PP F&F from each user so there's some motivation to not beat the **** out of it. Everyone is expected to play by big boys and girls rules - you break it, you buy it. At the end of the pass around, I'll put it up for sale for $1,100 price minus the pass around funds received - significantly below my cost. I'm going to limit this to 15 people, assuming there are 15 participants who want to try it out. At $25 each, that would be about $725 sale price.

To keep it fair, I'm going to post the knife back up for sale once I receive it back. I'll post it at a higher price for those that did not participate in the pass around and at the net price, less $25 fees, to those that did. That should be fair to everyone. I'll ask that folks keep the knife for up to 7 days from day of receipt to keep it moving. Feel free to sharpen it as you like. Please post comments and feedback on this page after you use the knife. It will be fun for folks to see.

Below is a link to the posting (that I've withdrawn) for the knife with photos and specs. Any feedback is appreciated. PM me if you're interested with your name, handle, e-mail, phone number, and address so I can keep track. Thanks in advance!

https://www.kitchenknifeforums.com/threads/cris-anderson-245mm-gyuto.45792/

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What the heck, I don't have much stainless in my kitchen, so why not... I'll send you a PM in a bit. Thanks for doing this!
 
I had my finger on the trigger a while ago. I'd love to have the chance to be pushed over the edge. Sign me up.

I bought one of Cris's natural stones he likes and recommends, so I can do.a little A/B test between his stone and an Aizu.
 
I am game! Interested to try an Anderson. Looks like a knife the predator would use to prep dinner.
 
Update on the pass around. Just wanted to lay out thoughts on some details:
  • Shipping risk between parties is on the shipper; I'm not forcing anyone to insure the knife, but if it gets lost or damaged, the risk falls on the shipper; we are all big boys and girls and let's abide by that rule; risk tolerance should determine your path on insurance
  • Ship whatever carrier is easiest - it matters not IMO; I typically use USPS but I recognize some people are closer to UPS/FedEx stores
  • Cris finishes his blades with 800 grit wet/dry sandpaper; if the finish needs it feel free to touch it up; it makes for really easy clean up if you get too low on the edge sharpening
  • Feel free to oil the handle as needed
  • I included a padded case in the package; you can put the knife in that between transit as you are using it
  • Please reach out to the next person on the pass around list (which I'll update on this thread) to get information when you are ready to send it off; shoot for 5-10 days with it and feel free to use the crap out of it
Current list, in order of shipping is:
@milkbaby
@McMan
@captaincaed
@Acidwash
@mise_en_place
 
Awesome! What insurance value should we put on it if we want to insure for full value?
 
What wood did Cris use on that handle - Koa? Gidgee? Not sure how I feel about the shape, but love the material.
 
Just got the knife but only have time today to unbox and examine in hand.

Really beautiful work, very high fit and finish. Good satin working finish on the blade, excellent distal taper, the handle shape is badass.

Saw the edge reflecting light in a few little spots, but I'll try it as is first then see if stropping on newspaper improves before trying stropping on stones. The edge looks thin enough this should work, and I'm one of those people who prefer to do the least amount of metal removal possible to get to nice working edge.
 
Take it to the stones @milkbaby ! It's good for your magic touch. Serious, folks. It's a tall knife, take off what you need to 1. learn the steel and how it feels and 2. put your preferred edge on it. That's how you'll be able to compare it the best.

@Johnny.B.Good - handle is a dyed maple, actually. The shape (from certain angles) looks weird I agree, but from others it looks more "normal" and it is very comfortable in the hand despite any weird looks. It's fun to use. Feel free to hope into the pass around if it is of interest to try out.
 
Just had time to try CJA to make a salad for myself so far. No time to touch the stones yet.

The edge definitely feels thin in how it contacts the cutting board. If you know, you know... I didn't cut any tall stuff, the tallest stuff being regular sized yellow squash which of course the knife lasered through admirably. Sliced some greenleaf lettuce, mushrooms, carrots, and a red bell pepper too. Slicing and push cuts go right thru everything. I love carrots and they are probably the things I cut the most, and the knife performed admirably. The blade is large but relatively light, and while I used to like a light whippy blade, I've come round full circle to liking a little more heft to it. Chopping some old bell peppers skin up was a bit of work with the blade lighter than I prefer, edge probably could use a touch up.

I compared it to my favorite own kept knife and a "medium" Takeda gyuto (something like 250 x 66 mm blade). The CJA has a light feeling blade similar to the Takeda with somewhat similar balance point just a finger or so towards the tip beyond where my pinch grip is. Technically both blades would be blade heavy, but they're so light for the size they don't feel like that to me. The CJA is similarly tall to the Takeda, but it feels weird to me due to the angle between the edge at the heel and the handle. The handle is angled up a little more than on the Takeda, so it felt like I was abruptly banging the heel down when chopping in comparison. Might work better for me if I was taller or the board was lower.

The handle is faceted and a western version of the diamond shape that Cris had started doing a while back. It's really beautiful and feels great in hand for me personally. The heel of the knife is radiused away so there's no wasted edge underneath where my pointer finger is in a pinch grip, so the blade is effectively quite long due to this (or other blades not designed this way are effectively shorter).

I'm digging it, will probably try a little stropping on newspaper over King 6k and see what the edge does, then perhaps 1k/6k King touch up.

Here's a pic of the knives I used together. I feel that I get more info when using a knife A/B side-by-side for comparison. I'll try to use it more before I send it out. I got some sweet potatoes and onions begging to be cut just sitting in the pantry. :D
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milkbaby said:
Just had time to try CJA to make a salad for myself so far. No time to touch the stones yet.

The edge definitely feels thin in how it contacts the cutting board. If you know, you know... I didn't cut any tall stuff, the tallest stuff being regular sized yellow squash which of course the knife lasered through admirably. Sliced some greenleaf lettuce, mushrooms, carrots, and a red bell pepper too. Slicing and push cuts go right thru everything. I love carrots and they are probably the things I cut the most, and the knife performed admirably. The blade is large but relatively light, and while I used to like a light whippy blade, I've come round full circle to liking a little more heft to it. Chopping some old bell peppers skin up was a bit of work with the blade lighter than I prefer, edge probably could use a touch up.

I compared it to my favorite own kept knife and a "medium" Takeda gyuto (something like 250 x 66 mm blade). The CJA has a light feeling blade similar to the Takeda with somewhat similar balance point just a finger or so towards the tip beyond where my pinch grip is. Technically both blades would be blade heavy, but they're so light for the size they don't feel like that to me. The CJA is similarly tall to the Takeda, but it feels weird to me due to the angle between the edge at the heel and the handle. The handle is angled up a little more than on the Takeda, so it felt like I was abruptly banging the heel down when chopping in comparison. Might work better for me if I was taller or the board was lower.

The handle is faceted and a western version of the diamond shape that Cris had started doing a while back. It's really beautiful and feels great in hand for me personally. The heel of the knife is radiused away so there's no wasted edge underneath where my pointer finger is in a pinch grip, so the blade is effectively quite long due to this (or other blades not designed this way are effectively shorter).

I'm digging it, will probably try a little stropping on newspaper over King 6k and see what the edge does, then perhaps 1k/6k King touch up.

Here's a pic of the knives I used together. I feel that I get more info when using a knife A/B side-by-side for comparison. I'll try to use it more before I send it out. I got some sweet potatoes and onions begging to be cut just sitting in the pantry. :D
tZm8zfQh.jpg
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Love the feedback. Thanks for sharing.

Cris' taller knives, and knives from others with a similar profile, take some adjustment on the angle. I'm not tall and use a thick cutting board, and I find if I adjust the angle of my elbow (up) that helps change the motion to match the geometry and in turn cutting is in line. Give it a try!
 
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I tried to just dry strop on the 6k side of a King combo stone but wasn't happy with the result. So I soaked the 1k side and sharpened just enough to feel the burr, flipped it on the other side, did my usual burr removal on the 1k, then went to the 6k. I didn't go crazy, I prefer to remove less metal than try to get the ultimate sharpness, but this knife was super easy to sharpen a nice edge on which is also toothy. I spent more time soaking the stone than I did sharpening, LOL! Just did the standard tomato on the board horizontal slice, no time for real cutting until later.

I think I'll get more time to use it by the end of the week and then send it out Friday or Saturday.
 
I have more thoughts to post after using the knife on more stuff to make a curry yesterday, but too busy dealing with the world today LOL

Sent out to @McMan and put in the USPS email notification system to give you and @thebradleycrew updates on delivery. Expected arrival Monday, hope you enjoy trying it out as much as I did! Kudos for putting on this passaround of such a beautiful knife!
 
milkbaby said:
I have more thoughts to post after using the knife on more stuff to make a curry yesterday, but too busy dealing with the world today LOL

Sent out to @McMan and put in the USPS email notification system to give you and @thebradleycrew updates on delivery. Expected arrival Monday, hope you enjoy trying it out as much as I did! Kudos for putting on this passaround of such a beautiful knife!
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I'm next on the list for the 240 Kato Pass Around too.
There is a very real possibility I will be trying a CJA and a Kato AT THE SAME TIME.:coffee:
KKF is a nice place, right?!
 
Okay, the CJA landed.
Whoever get's this next is going to get a kick out of the packaging. I'll leave it at that :p
I spent some time with the knife tonight and hope to get this to @captaincaed before the end of the week. Kudos to @milkbaby for sending this with a nice crispy edge! I haven't used it enough to be anywhere close to needing to refresh the edge. So, @captaincaed you'll get it with a crispy edge too.
(Still putting my thoughts together in terms of a review.)
 
Just the facts, ma’am:
245mm edge length
65mm tall
3.25mm at the handle and above the heel
1.25mm midway and till 20mm from tip
216g

This is a unique knife... It’s performance tuned. It flies in the face of convention. There’s logic behind the decisions.
What struck me as unique features were the amount of flat-spot (which is quite significant), the upswept handle, and the angled heel.

I came to the conclusion that the features of this knife were over my head—in a good way :cool: (I'm a home cook now, ex-pro but it's been a looooong time since I did that for a living.) The features could be serious benefits for someone that uses knives for hours daily. It’d be an absolute beast for bulk prep in a pro kitchen. The long flat spot would make for accurate push cuts with no accordion across many, many rows of product. For my use, it was a bit too much flat spot (blasphemy, I know!); but I can see how this would be a strength in a pro context. The lack of strong distal taper would also be a benefit; because most of the blade thickness is consistent—performance doesn’t differ drastically from heel to tip. The upswept handle I think would come in handy after using this knife for a long time. The angled heel is also a comfort feature probably best suited to long use.

Fit and finish is excellent, which is what I expected from having seen pics of CJA’s work. The handle is craaaaaazy. Spend some time looking at it. There are facets that are exactly at the spacer, plus the spacer is at a diagonal. The amount of precision (and patience!) in this handle impressive. Plus, it’s comfy.
 
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