Sakai Takayuki Blue 2 Monosteel Western Handle

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supersayan3

supersayan3

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I was thinking what knife I need and I found none, but the Sakai Takayuki Blue 2 Monosteel Western.

Please whoever owns this knife, tell things about it, as much as possible, performance wise, feel wise, aesthetics(Patina's behavior included), sharpening, how hard it feels, comparison with other knives, hope someone on a heavy pro kitchen will answer [emoji38]
 
Sorry no pro here, but below is a thread that i had started by asking similar question, and ended with buying and a review. i still use that knife a lot. Surprisingly, even compared to other better known knives, it has never left my "lineup". not my favorite knife to use, but probably gets used the most :scratchhead:. just versatile and tough. I would still like to see someone tweak the geometry and/or transform to a wa.
Now, PK has them on his site:
http://www.knivesandstones.com/aoniko-blue-2-carbon-western

this was the thread: here
 
I have no info on it. :( I'm interested in the 210 gyuto of that myself; I'm just jumpy about the 70/30 grind, which people tell me to get past.

The gyutos are for a very good price at KitchenVirtue, FYI, though for some reason the 150 petty isn't.
 
It's not like it's shigefusa or kato price point lads... ;)
 
chinacats said:
No help here, but maybe this knife is clad rather than monosteel?
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I confirmed with... one of the vendors, I forget which. It's monosteel.

chinacats said:
Yeah, you'll get over it pretty quickly...70/30 is not very asymmetric, you'll be fine.
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Maybe I will...

spoiledbroth said:
It's not like it's shigefusa or kato price point lads... ;)
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Y'know, some of us are still getting used to the notion of not buying knives at a dozen for $60. :p
 
Thank you very much for the link for the thread. I read it.
Thank everyone for their responses so far, as well .
Only drawback might seem the 46mm height. I have to measure my knives to come to a better understanding of it.
Interesting the opinion of someone who bought the 24cm, and suggests because of the height the 27cm gyuto.

How is the patina coloring compared to other carbons?
I never had a blue2.

Read that takes great edge easily and keeps 90% for a long time.

Can someone compare with other steels?

Also read at some vendors that it is HRC 62, not bad if it doesn't chip(as a member describes), though I would had preferred it 63-65 [emoji4]
 
andre s said:
Sorry no pro here, but below is a thread that i had started by asking similar question, and ended with buying and a review. i still use that knife a lot. Surprisingly, even compared to other better known knives, it has never left my "lineup". not my favorite knife to use, but probably gets used the most :scratchhead:. just versatile and tough. I would still like to see someone tweak the geometry and/or transform to a wa.
Now, PK has them on his site:
http://www.knivesandstones.com/aoniko-blue-2-carbon-western

this was the thread: here
Click to expand...

Thank you for everything!

So far you are the only source [emoji1]
 
I think all carbons are very easy to sharpen. They sharpen very quick.
 
spoiledbroth said:
is blue that much harder to sharp than white?
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Not really, but it depends upon the heat treat... It's a little more abrasion resistant, but I actually think it's a little easier to deburr, as the wire edge is more brittle and it tends to dissolve rather than plastically deform on the stones. The difference between aogami and shirogami is most obvious for me on J-Nats, but on synthetic stones or Coticules which have harder abrasives, it's not that big.

I have a couple of blue's, and prefer them over white steels slightly for a couple of reasons... I like the way they deburr, and when exposed to food acids I find that they tend to oxidize around the carbides and get really toothy, rather than smooth and dull like my white #2 knives. Some people say that shirogami initially gets sharper than aogami, and this may be true from a technical perspective (Carbide grain size in aogami I think is minimum 1-micron; shirogami <0.2 microns, and I've read as low as 0.05-microns), but for any edge you'd normally apply to a kitchen knife you're not normally going to go anywhere near that level let alone exceed it.

Hopefully this helps...

- Steampunk
 
Steampunk said:
Not really, but it depends upon the heat treat... It's a little more abrasion resistant, but I actually think it's a little easier to deburr, as the wire edge is more brittle and it tends to dissolve rather than plastically deform on the stones. The difference between aogami and shirogami is most obvious for me on J-Nats, but on synthetic stones or Coticules which have harder abrasives, it's not that big.

I have a couple of blue's, and prefer them over white steels slightly for a couple of reasons... I like the way they deburr, and when exposed to food acids I find that they tend to oxidize around the carbides and get really toothy, rather than smooth and dull like my white #2 knives. Some people say that shirogami initially gets sharper than aogami, and this may be true from a technical perspective (Carbide grain size in aogami I think is minimum 1-micron; shirogami <0.2 microns, and I've read as low as 0.05-microns), but for any edge you'd normally apply to a kitchen knife you're not normally going to go anywhere near that level let alone exceed it.

Hopefully this helps...

- Steampunk
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Thank you!
 
I think I have never experienced deburing problems with white 2, but I will give it more attention next time
 
supersayan3 said:
I think I have never experienced deburing problems with white 2, but I will give it more attention next time
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White #2 is still extremely easy to deburr in the realm of things; really I'm just picking nits, but if you overcook white #2 when you're sharpening (Which isn't hard, as it sharpens almost too fast.) the wire or 'foil' edge does tend to deform a bit before it disintegrates. Shirogami is just typically a slightly less brittle steel due to its very fine grain, and can support ridiculously thin apexes - including wires and burrs - without crumbling.

A contributing factor is also that every person has a sharpening style that is comfortable to them, favorite stones, and certain steels that suit that style and those stones the best. Blue steel just fits me really well in terms of how I like to sharpen; another person might prefer white over blue, it really depends...

- Steampunk
 
Interesting. I ask because I was recommended to buy a blue or blue 2 kataba knife for professional use, by a few people now, which goes against the "common wisdom" or so I thought.
 
Well, I just ordered one. Finally noticed that the 6.5" santoku I got the girl is kinda short for some tasks, so got the 8.25" gyuto. Can't wait for a nice patina.

And if I can handle the 70/30 and want more length, it'll be dragon time...
 
I have the slicer in the 270mm size. I like it a lot but it is a hard comparison to make when you are discussing gyutos. I like it a lot because it is quite stiff, that being said it doesn't taper down very gracefully. This isn't such an issue for me since a slicer isn't very tall and I am mostly cutting cooked meats with it during service. The edge retention is good but my knife doesn't see much board contact. I generally sharpen all my knives at least once a week on a very busy week I may sharpen my slicer twice but the great thing about carbon steel is I can go from kind of sharp To a nice fresh edge in 10 minutes.

Hope you enjoy your purchase.
 
Thanks. I will see what I think and report back - I'd like to pick up a Misono Dragon gyuto next, but I want to see if I like the 70/30 grind (as on this one). Also, I want to get used to the length before jumping up another size category. It'll obviously be better than my (lowest-level) Chicago Cutlery eight-incher, and if I don't like it I'll just sell it on.
 
DanHumphrey said:
Well, I just ordered one. Finally noticed that the 6.5" santoku I got the girl is kinda short for some tasks, so got the 8.25" gyuto. Can't wait for a nice patina.

And if I can handle the 70/30 and want more length, it'll be dragon time...
Click to expand...

pics bro
 
spoiledbroth said:
pics bro
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Even my 70-300L isn't big enough to shoot it in transit. :detective:

I'll definitely take pics when it arrives. Will have a big shoot and take the pics I've been meaning to of my Chambriard steak knives, while I'm at it.
 
Due to arrive Friday. It's crazy how much Amazon Prime has spoiled me; that feels like an eternity now, but when I was growing up it would have been great. And it doesn't really matter, because I tend to do most of my prep for the week on Sunday, so it'll be here for that.
 
spoiledbroth said:
pics bro
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You asked...

26353506620_beb2711f45_c.jpg


I'm a little disappointed, honestly. The edge seems sharp (hair-poppingly so - I had to try), but not as good at actually cutting as the Takamura red-handle santoku I got for my girlfriend - wedgier and less able to just fly through produce. Then there are the F&F issues with the handle. The scales are slightly too small, so the tang extends out just enough to feel as ridges in your hand. Also, the bolster isn't quite even on each side, so the scale on one side sticks up a little higher than the other.

26600623396_ae0d59698d_c.jpg


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Finally, the (potentially) big issues: on each side of the bolder, there's what looks like a little void, or divot, that shows up as a little black spot:

26561363951_7f2de83661_c.jpg


26353507250_c699fa10a4_c.jpg


Are those anything to be worried about, or just cosmetic?
 
You don't have to name names but did this come from a reputable vendor or a "knives-r-us" shop?

It kind of looks like crap. You put enough energy into getting this knife, if you ain't happy now, don't see you getting happy.
 
Comparing to a takamura r2 might not be fair that's one of the better lasers available and plus I think this blue 2 knife is probably aimed at a working professional market. All other issues I have seen on tojiro dp and my 'jiros have never fallen apart or failed me. Give it some time! Maybe practice thinning. As soon as I work on a knife it's mine.
 
It is probably fine, but I'd likely send it back if it was me just for peace of mind. None of my knives have those spots...
 
daveb said:
You don't have to name names but did this come from a reputable vendor or a "knives-r-us" shop?

It kind of looks like crap. You put enough energy into getting this knife, if you ain't happy now, don't see you getting happy.
Click to expand...

KitchenVirtue, for whatever that means. Much discounted from what some of the other places charge, but I figured it'd be the same as the same model bought elsewhere. Are those divots issues, or just cosmetic?
 
Tang can be fixed with ten minutes and some wet dry sandpaper! Seriously I know these knives are not a steal in terms of price but at least it's not something impossible to fix like severe overgrind !
 
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