Hey folks, I've been skimming the boards here for a while before diving in. Ive been researching Japanese made Western style chefs knives for the last few weeks and Im a little lost narrowing down to my final choice, and thought a few expert pointers would help. Sorry to those who read across several knife forums - I've posted this on another forum, but feel there's value in getting as much input as possible to make a decision.
Im looking to purchase a 8 chefs knife for home use, and it will be my sole chefs knife. I'd like something that has exceptional fit & finish, and something that can cover different uses rather than needing to purchase multiple knives. In the past Ive been using Wusthof Classic, Henckels 4 star II, and Global G-series chefs knives, but Im looking to step into the Western-style Japanese knife world. Ive attached the knife questionnaire below.
I would like something that is great for home use, typically cutting mostly vegetables and a little meat. It will get some heavier use from time to time cutting squash in fall etc, but heavy use will be relatively rare. My plan is to sharpen it myself and intend to buy a 1000 & 5000 stone. Ive done a small amount of sharpening previously, but Im really a beginner and will need to expand my skills here.
Its very important to me that the knife I purchase has excellent fit & finish, and so my short list is focussed accordingly. My preference would be to spend around the ~$100-120 mark for the knife, however if there was a significant improvement then I would be willing to jump up to the $150 mark.
At this point I'm leaning towards one of the first couple of options (Suisin Inox Western vs Misono 440), but would like some input before ruling other options out.
Id be really interested to hear from people whove used the knives below, and what theyve found in terms of performance. Does the step up to the ~$150 mark get a significantly better knife than the $110 options? If not, I'd likely steer towards the cheaper option, especially as a starter Japanese knife. How different in terms of performance and sharpening is something like the AUS-8 or 440 steel is compared with the other options like the VG steels? Are these steel types going to have very significant differences that would steer me towards a particular choice?
Heres my short list at the moment:
$100-$110 - Id be really interested to know what people think of the comparison between these two in particular as theyre top of my list at the moment.
- Suisin Western Inox 210mm Gyuto. Seems well regarded. Excellent fit and finish. Some questions about the AUS-8 steel. I can get this pre-sharpened from Korin.
- Misono 440 210 Gyuto. Theres not a lot of comment about this one either in terms of usability or steel. I dont know where the semi-stainless 400 steel falls compared with the Suisin steel. Wouldnt come with a pre-sharpening from where Im looking to buy.
$140-160
- Mac Pro 8.5 chefs. Well regarded for the shape/usability and the steel seems respectable too. Good F&F.
- Mac Pro 8 chef with granton edge. Not sure which is more recommended out of this and the 8.5 Mac knife.
- Masamoto VG 210. Seems well liked, although perhaps over-priced. Now with plastic handle unfortunately.
- Sakai Takayuki Grand Chef 210. Generally good reviews, but perhaps not superior to the Mac options.
Possibly interested in these but there doesnt seem to be a lot of history regarding the performance and F&F:
Knives in $130 - $150 range - F&F questionnable??
- Gonbei AUS-10. From the images online the F&F looks pretty poor, so Im probably going to rule this out unless others have good experiences with performance and F&F.
- Kanehide PS60. Seems to get decent reviews for performance, but again, not sure whether performance warrants this over the other options. F&F looks better than the Gonbei from what I can see, but perhaps not up to the Suisin or Misono options?
Some of the most recommend knives Ive ruled out completely based on poor or average F&F:
- Tojiro
- Fujiwara
Questionnaire:
What country are you in? US
Knife type/size? 210mm Chefs Knife/Gyuto
Are you right or left handed? RH
Western handle, at least as a first Japanese knife.
Do you require a stainless knife? (Yes or no) Stainless, or at least semi-stainless
Budget? $100 to ~$160. Prefer the lower end, unless theres a standout/big jump in performance.
KNIFE USE? Regular home use, mostly vegetables, with some meat.
What knife, if any, are you replacing? Have been using Wusthof classic 8, Global G-2
Do you have a particular grip that you primarily use? Use combo of pinch and racket depending on what Im cutting.
What cutting motions do you primarily use? Variety - will plan to learn whatever techniques suit the new knife.
What improvements do you want from your current knife? - Sharp edge, comfortable, holds edge for good amount of time, can sharpen at home.
Aesthetics? The F&F must be excellent. Overall style/look not as important.
Edge Retention (i.e., length of time you want the edge to last without sharpening)? I dont know whats possible. Interested to hear.
Do you use a bamboo, wood, rubber, or synthetic cutting board? Yes
Do you sharpen your own knives? Have done a little. Will learn.
Other requests: Fit and finish must be excellent.
Apologies for the long post...
Im looking to purchase a 8 chefs knife for home use, and it will be my sole chefs knife. I'd like something that has exceptional fit & finish, and something that can cover different uses rather than needing to purchase multiple knives. In the past Ive been using Wusthof Classic, Henckels 4 star II, and Global G-series chefs knives, but Im looking to step into the Western-style Japanese knife world. Ive attached the knife questionnaire below.
I would like something that is great for home use, typically cutting mostly vegetables and a little meat. It will get some heavier use from time to time cutting squash in fall etc, but heavy use will be relatively rare. My plan is to sharpen it myself and intend to buy a 1000 & 5000 stone. Ive done a small amount of sharpening previously, but Im really a beginner and will need to expand my skills here.
Its very important to me that the knife I purchase has excellent fit & finish, and so my short list is focussed accordingly. My preference would be to spend around the ~$100-120 mark for the knife, however if there was a significant improvement then I would be willing to jump up to the $150 mark.
At this point I'm leaning towards one of the first couple of options (Suisin Inox Western vs Misono 440), but would like some input before ruling other options out.
Id be really interested to hear from people whove used the knives below, and what theyve found in terms of performance. Does the step up to the ~$150 mark get a significantly better knife than the $110 options? If not, I'd likely steer towards the cheaper option, especially as a starter Japanese knife. How different in terms of performance and sharpening is something like the AUS-8 or 440 steel is compared with the other options like the VG steels? Are these steel types going to have very significant differences that would steer me towards a particular choice?
Heres my short list at the moment:
$100-$110 - Id be really interested to know what people think of the comparison between these two in particular as theyre top of my list at the moment.
- Suisin Western Inox 210mm Gyuto. Seems well regarded. Excellent fit and finish. Some questions about the AUS-8 steel. I can get this pre-sharpened from Korin.
- Misono 440 210 Gyuto. Theres not a lot of comment about this one either in terms of usability or steel. I dont know where the semi-stainless 400 steel falls compared with the Suisin steel. Wouldnt come with a pre-sharpening from where Im looking to buy.
$140-160
- Mac Pro 8.5 chefs. Well regarded for the shape/usability and the steel seems respectable too. Good F&F.
- Mac Pro 8 chef with granton edge. Not sure which is more recommended out of this and the 8.5 Mac knife.
- Masamoto VG 210. Seems well liked, although perhaps over-priced. Now with plastic handle unfortunately.
- Sakai Takayuki Grand Chef 210. Generally good reviews, but perhaps not superior to the Mac options.
Possibly interested in these but there doesnt seem to be a lot of history regarding the performance and F&F:
Knives in $130 - $150 range - F&F questionnable??
- Gonbei AUS-10. From the images online the F&F looks pretty poor, so Im probably going to rule this out unless others have good experiences with performance and F&F.
- Kanehide PS60. Seems to get decent reviews for performance, but again, not sure whether performance warrants this over the other options. F&F looks better than the Gonbei from what I can see, but perhaps not up to the Suisin or Misono options?
Some of the most recommend knives Ive ruled out completely based on poor or average F&F:
- Tojiro
- Fujiwara
Questionnaire:
What country are you in? US
Knife type/size? 210mm Chefs Knife/Gyuto
Are you right or left handed? RH
Western handle, at least as a first Japanese knife.
Do you require a stainless knife? (Yes or no) Stainless, or at least semi-stainless
Budget? $100 to ~$160. Prefer the lower end, unless theres a standout/big jump in performance.
KNIFE USE? Regular home use, mostly vegetables, with some meat.
What knife, if any, are you replacing? Have been using Wusthof classic 8, Global G-2
Do you have a particular grip that you primarily use? Use combo of pinch and racket depending on what Im cutting.
What cutting motions do you primarily use? Variety - will plan to learn whatever techniques suit the new knife.
What improvements do you want from your current knife? - Sharp edge, comfortable, holds edge for good amount of time, can sharpen at home.
Aesthetics? The F&F must be excellent. Overall style/look not as important.
Edge Retention (i.e., length of time you want the edge to last without sharpening)? I dont know whats possible. Interested to hear.
Do you use a bamboo, wood, rubber, or synthetic cutting board? Yes
Do you sharpen your own knives? Have done a little. Will learn.
Other requests: Fit and finish must be excellent.
Apologies for the long post...