Spine not in line with handle

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petefromNY

petefromNY

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Hey guys i am getting a 240mm wa gyuto re handled and i received a email today from the handle maker. He informed that the spine of the blade is not uniform with the handle itself. I have no idea how to post pictures so the best way to describe it as the knife "bows" Is this done by the maker to enhance the blades performance du to the curve of the knife or is it due to someone making a mistake.

Also he asked if i wanted to change it so the spine is directly in line with the handle.

I wanted to get your opinion before emailing back and making the decision.

Thank you all for your time

-Pete
 
Ideally you would want the spine in line with the handle. However, if it's a few degrees out I do not feel it would causes any performance issues. It certainly was an accident otherwise he would not have offered to fix it. What it comes down to is if you can live with it or not. I personally would give the knife a try to see if I liked its feel and performance before I had it cut off.
Just my opinion.

Karl
 
I'd have to see better pics, but that doesn't appear to be a fresh handle from my perspective. Did you supply him with a used magnolia wa, and he's mounting it for you? It might just be the poor resolution in the pic, and if so, excuse my above comments. Besides that- it does look like the butt is a tad high.
 
No I guess I stated this wrong. The maker of the handle pointed this out to me before he installed my new handle. This is the original handle still on the knife. He wanted to know if I want it to sit differently when he puts the new handle on.
 
Ouch! Looks very crooked or the original handle was installed with no care
 
its not that simple... there is a decent bit of preference involved when installing handles. There are some who like it up like that, others who prefer it a bit dow. Its high for my tastes, but inst flat out wrong.
 
I've a 240 Gyuto with a upturned handle like that. It does not work for me - feels like stroking an old water pump. As Jon noted others like it. Did you use the knife before you sent it for the re-handle?
 
I like straight, and have never known anyone who preferred an angle. Except Alton Brown. :D
 
Last edited by a moderator:
after much deliberation lol ive decided to have it straitened out.

Actually now that this has been pointed out to me, on my daily search for knives online ive seen quite a few higher end knives set like that.
 
If the person who is installing the new handle has offered to "fix" it I would have it fixed. If nothing else, I believe most people would see an upturned handle as a negative, and if you ever want to sell this would likely be seen as a negative.

I once had a shun (I think) knife that the upturned handle was sold as a breakthrough design. I hated it, although the handle itself was comfortble.
 
I dont get it? the old handle is somewhat upturned but this is going to be replaced right?

so just mount the new handle in a straigt line,,,problem solved?

What is there to fix?
 
You have to hammer the pin tang once you have removed the handle. That's what is causing it to sit upright. Basically need to hammer it to bend it a tad. Very easy fix.

Just be careful, I made the mistake of holding it and doing it wrong my first time. Blade cut through the cardboard sleeve and through my leather gloves and gave me a nice cut.
 
@sabaki he was asking me if I wanted to straiten it. I was asking you guys if there was any reason why it would have been mounted like this in the first place.
 
Is that a Kohetsu AS from cktg? What will you do with the old handle? If it's in good shape would you consider selling it ?
 
Maybe I am misunderstanding the OP, but it seems like the custom handle maker is referring to the actual spine shape of the knife. Which, for the Kohetsu AS sweeps upwards from the spines mid-point to tip. "Straightening" sounds like it would require the removal of quite a lot of metal.

Although, the handle instal does appear to be angled as well.

Mowgs
 
As I said the reason it is set like that is the tang. It is slight bent or curved. May have been cut wrong or that's the way they designed it.
 
My tanaka r2 looks just like that. I don't mind the angle.

It also may depend on your height and the height of your countertops. If you're already reaching a bit then it might not be the best choice. Jon's right though, it's personal preference in the end. I don't think I would want to change mine.
 
@charon yes it is, unfortunately my guy said that the stock handles sometimes have to be destroyed since they use epoxy to keep it in. Hes going to try to get it off in one piece but cant guarantee it. I will let you know tho if it is in one piece id be down to sell it

the new handle maker is going to do further inspection once the stock handle is removed to give me a more clear answer if it should be straitened out or not
 
Plenty of knives have handles like that. Whole line of Macs are similar. It looks like the design of the knife , not a flaw. Did you ask Pete?
 
petefromNY said:
@charon yes it is, unfortunately my guy said that the stock handles sometimes have to be destroyed since they use epoxy to keep it in. Hes going to try to get it off in one piece but cant guarantee it. I will let you know tho if it is in one piece id be down to sell it

the new handle maker is going to do further inspection once the stock handle is removed to give me a more clear answer if it should be straitened out or not
Click to expand...

place the knife in the owen for 15-20min at 100celsius makes it much easier to remove the handle
 
@sabaki thanks man good to know

I just got a email and my knife is connected to its new handle. There was nothing wrong with the tang or anything like that, Apparently thats just the way the knife is made.

@charon He didnt say if he got the og handle off in one piece. I just emailed him asking him and if he did your the first one to know
 
glad to hear there was nothing wrong with the tang sounds like its all good
 
petefromNY said:
@sabaki thanks man good to know

I just got a email and my knife is connected to its new handle. There was nothing wrong with the tang or anything like that, Apparently thats just the way the knife is made.

@charon He didnt say if he got the og handle off in one piece. I just emailed him asking him and if he did your the first one to know
Click to expand...

for what its worth, its not that things are wrong with the tang when the handle is installed like that, but by adjusting the tang, you can control how the handle will sit. This is the kind of adjustment done for the up/down and side/side adjustments. Rotation is fixed while burning in.
 
thanks for the info jon.

i will post some pics when i get it back on saturday. pretty stoked on it
 
Hi Pete

Thank you. Like I said in my message I have to withdraw, my better half doesn't want a rehandle on her knife :sad0:
I'm looking forward to seeing some pics of the new handle though.
 
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