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IsoJ

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Sujis don't get too much talk here so I thought I would like to hear what are other peoples preferences with the sujis, the lenght, height, stiffness, all carbon/stainless,s clad? what do you use it for? Is suji only for slicing protein or do you use it for other products, tasks or tricks too?

And yes I know that yanagibas do exist but I would like to keep this thread with sujihikis(double bevels).

I am planning to get 300mm suji later this year, so nothing wrong with some good suggestions:)
 
Mainly just for slicing and portioning purposes..
For me 265 hits the sweet spot. Good enough for raw fish and raw meat also can carve cooked meat
 

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all carbon, 270, normal height, stiff. prefer thick grind for raw protein, thin grind for cooked. quite a few people use suji for other tasks, but i mainly use for slicing/portioning duty only.
I dont know much about suijs as ive never owned one but Ive heard from a couple of my chefs that its the opposite where you want a thin one for raw protein and a thicker one for cooked. Any reason you like it the other way around?
 
Mainly just for slicing and portioning purposes..
For me 265 hits the sweet spot. Good enough for raw fish and raw meat also can carve cooked meat
Nice looking blade, who is the maker?
 
all carbon, 270, normal height, stiff. prefer thick grind for raw protein, thin grind for cooked. quite a few people use suji for other tasks, but i mainly use for slicing/portioning duty only.
Do you have any favorite steel just for the suji, sharpness over retention?
 
I dont know much about suijs as ive never owned one but Ive heard from a couple of my chefs that its the opposite where you want a thin one for raw protein and a thicker one for cooked. Any reason you like it the other way around?
Sticktion is way more prevailant on raw and thicker grinds have way less sticktion.

Edge retetnion doesn't matter in a suji, there is very little board contact. I always value ease of sharpening over retention.
 
Panda kinda hit it on the head.

I have a 270 Yosh skd and a 270 Kono w#2.

I round it out with a 210 Ittinomonn v2, and a 12" Forschner scimitar.

300mm is cool, but doesn't travel well; often sticks out of a knife roll, especially with saya.
 
I have a 300mm suji (custom from Dakota Willison) and love it for slicing up briskets, whole pork bellies, etc. It's nice and stiff, with a pretty thick grind per my request since I only use it for cooked proteins anyway. IMO heel height isn't super important as it's used with a finger down the spine for slicing.

I appreciate that it's always long enough :)
 
I think distal taper is also very important. If you have Suji with thick grind and trying to do a pull cutting motion the tip area will get in the way and you will have to put more pressure to force through the protein(also the other hand you use to hold the protein would apply more pressure to the protein to try holding it in place) . In that case the the cross section of the cut protein would not be as straight and smooth.
I’m more used to use a chefs knife to carve cooked protein but if I were to have one I’d say Toyama or wat with a thinner tip.
 
For home, a 300mm W2 wa Ginga, mostly for slicing, which I love. I have a 270 Kanehide SK that's asymmetric, more of a yanagi from the factory, for travel.
 
I have a used & dull Wat Pro 240mm that's quite thick behind the edge, but I haven't had a chance to really sharpen or play with it.

What grit do you put your suji on? And do you want your suji to be super thin behind the edge like a gyuto?
 
I have the Gesshin Ginga 270mm stainless suji:

https://www.japaneseknifeimports.com/products/gesshin-ginga-270mm-stainless-wa-sujihiki

I like the thinness, it's easy to sharpen and works well. I don't feel like I can get it quite as sharp as shirogami or aogami steel, but it's definitely sharp enough for its intended purposes.

There's a 300mm version, but looks like only the yo-handle 300mm is in stock.

I think it will work well during the zombie apocalypse too.
 
I'm a bit suji stupid. I've sold a couple and I think I'm down to 5. That does not include cimitars, or "butcher" knives, The group includes a Gengetsu, stainless clad white, an AEBL DT, and a Heijii carbon, all in 270mm. Also a 285mm Wat Ame Kintaro and a 300mm Stainless Kono.

The Kono, 140g, (and still 300mm) is the lightest of the bunch. It will cut most anything but is a little flexi. It has found a home as a knife for cutting wedding cake at catered events where every mm counts.

The Gengetsu, 155g and DT, 150g, are at their best with smaller roasts, tenderloin and raw protiens. Both have a little flex. They are quite versatile, either could be your "only" suji but would not be my first choice for cooked protiens.

The Wat, 209 glorious grams. My favorite of the bunch. I could sell the others and still be a happy camper - but who's gonna sell a Gengetsu or a Devin? It's a stiffy in any application yet nimble enough for detail work.

The Heiji is the biggest dog of the bunch. 229 gr. Between the grind and the weight, stuff just falls apart. Best of the bunch for making big things into little things. Not long on nimble. Not a subtle blade. Panda sold me this one (at a great price) a couple years ago and I still thank him every time I use it.

All this is leading to a point. I find the weight on the suji to be almost as important as the grind. Shop for one from a regarded maker. Make sure it's thin behind edge but not necessarily at the spine. No lasers unless it's your second (at least) suji. If it's your only, I'll suggest 165g as a lower limit. In a well built knife the weight and amount of flex will correspond pretty closely. And flex is not a good thing. 270mm is a good length. I've not had to cut anything with a 270 that caused me to wish I had a 300.

Had a SIH that I liked but was a little too light for my preference. Had a Toyoma, excellent knife, that someone wanted it more than I did. Same thing with a Wat Pro. Next suji will probably be an HSC Zwear. Great application for a steel that holds an edge forever. Want to try a Gesshin Heiji for the steel. May have to get on Tillman's list and beg for a Nilox one day.

And a little porn for those stuck at home.

Marko scimitar
Haburn "Butcher"
The Wat
Heiji
DT
Kono
Gengetsu

Suji Fest.jpg
 
I'm a bit suji stupid. I've sold a couple and I think I'm down to 5. That does not include cimitars, or "butcher" knives,

In your experience, how do sujihiki's differ in use vis-a-vis cimeters, bullnose-knives, and other butchery-knives?
 
Suji are much better for portion sized, uniform, slices. I use the scimitar sometimes when portioning loins while catering - makes for a good show. If I'm in the back, slicing for plated table service or hotel pans / buffet, it's suji all day.
 
I have two. A hiromoto as wa 270, and a Tillman Leder 210. Honestly I don’t use them. For me, at home, they are redundant. I stick to gyuto, typically a 210 or 180.
 
I will use the suji at home 1-2 times a week depending if it is bbq season or winter. Now I use mainly Kippington 267mm heavier laser for bigger protein. It does the Job okei for me but still want the extra inch or so in lenght and luxury of dedicated knife. Heji is custom order in 300mm I believe?. Does Wat make sujis anymore? who else makes a little heftier sujis? I had 270 ss clad toyama and it felt way too light(around 140-150gr) for me.
 
I will use the suji at home 1-2 times a week depending if it is bbq season or winter. Now I use mainly Kippington 267mm heavier laser for bigger protein. It does the Job okei for me but still want the extra inch or so in lenght and luxury of dedicated knife. Heji is custom order in 300mm I believe?. Does Wat make sujis anymore? who else makes a little heftier sujis? I had 270 ss clad toyama and it felt way too light(around 140-150gr) for me.
Shigehiro suji looks pretty baller if you want a little heft.

https://carbonknifeco.com/collections/shigehiro/products/shigehiro-sujihiki-270mm
 
I've not spent the hundreds of hours behind various Sujihiki that pros do... However, I've spent enough time with my 240mm Zakuri Suji to have learned a few things from it...

1. You can almost never have a big enough Suji. Don't waste your time on 240; go 270+.

2. If your goal is to achieve paper thin slices for deli-style sandwiches, thick, wide bevel knives steer too much to make this possible. Better off with an asymmetrically ground blade for this purpose. Furthermore, heavy wide bevel Suji's aren't the most versatile knives if you want to use them for non-meaty things, as they wedge ferociously due to lacking the height to compensate for their thickness. However, they do work well for thicker portioning cuts in roasts, and suchlike.

3. Hot proteins, especially red meat, can actually have quite a profound effect on the edge retention of simpler carbon steels. Poly-boards, also… For this reason, I actually think Suji’s are one of the applications where very wear resistant steels are quite suitable.

4. As for edges, when cutting red meat, I like the edge to be as coarse as I can get it and still deburr. I finish my Zakuri on a Naniwa Pro 600, typically. Poultry, I can get away with it being a bit finer; 1-2K. If I was cutting fish, I’d take it to 6K+, but this knife doesn’t feel ideal for that application.

Hope this helps...

- Steampunk
 
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