Wat/Toyama are not Raquin. I tried to think of a way to play the western/Japanese knife maker matching game in a way thatās more accurate, but didnāt really come up with much.
Raquin makes sort of rustic looking wide bevel knives that people say cut really well, and which have really nice grippy, comfortable handles. Marko Tsourkan makes knives with fancy fit and finish in either work horse grinds or slight S grinds. Shehan Prull makes very Japanese/traditionally inspired (he apprenticed with Ashi) knives with great middle of the road all purpose grinds and very good heat treatment. Kippington makes knives in a variety of styles that are amazing cutters ā he really knows his grinds and shares a lot of that knowledge on KKF. I really like the 1095 steel on the one I have too. Will Catcheside makes great cutters and is particularly well known for his āforged geometryā series, in which only the (rather small) wide bevel is ground, and the rest of the geometry is done with the hammer. (Raquinās knives are like this too.) These knives are rustic looking and often have a bit of a torpedo shape. (Long flat spot, high tip.) Murray Carter makes rather expensive knives, often with dramatic lamination lines. Iāve only ever held one of them, but I hear a lot of them are very thin and cut well.
Iāll let others comment on Kamon and Dalman, for instance, since Iāve never seen their knives in person.
