Tanaka 240 Ironwood suji looks thick at the edge

[rick alen]

This choil shot of a Tanaka 240 Ironwood suji doesn't give the impression that this knife is anything like a laser. Can anyone honestly disabuse me of the apparent appearances here? I am interested in this knife, but this apparent thickness discourages me.

Rick

 

[AllanP]

Are Sujis suppose to be "thin behind the edge" like Gyutos, never owned one but I assume they operate differently and should have different standards in edge geometry

 

[chefcomesback]

"Laser" is one of the most used and bastardised description of a knife IMHO . Is it laser ? I don't think so , is that going to make it inferior cutter ? No way , there is lot more to cutting performance than choil shot can suggest . Look at kato , shigefusa and other sanjo makers knives . They are not your anorexic thin blades but they will cut and release better than those "lasers"

 

[RobinW]

In my opinion thickness is more of a problem cutting hard veggies etc. At least i use a suji for soft proteins and there I do not find the thickness to be a problem

 

[chefcomesback]

I had a yoshikane suji thicker than this , struggled to cut an apple but was a benchmark for a suji for the intended purpose of suji ( portioning large primals , portioning and skinning fish etc )

 

[DamageInc]

One of the reasons I love my Toyama suji so much is that I can go straight from cutting large pieces of meat to hard root vegetables and onions. It is not thick behind the edge at all and that makes it much more versatile in my opinion.

 

[berko]

In my opinion thickness is more of a problem cutting hard veggies etc. At least i use a suji for soft proteins and there I do not find the thickness to be a problem

+1

 

[rick alen]

I prefer a suji for most all fine slicing and sectioning tomatoes, I much prefer the feel of a suji, I use a gyuto considerably less. I'm not going to be sectioning primals or carving large crusted briskets. I really do want a thin edge here, and a 240. Unfortunately I see many knife makers do 270 and larger. Krikes, if Tanaka is going to make a 240 at least ya'd think he might do this one thin.

Any other suggestions for a thin 240, I really would prefer R2 steel.


Rick

 

[Keith Sinclair]

Rick check out A-Frames. The Ikkanshi Tadatsuna Inox Sujihiki is pretty thin. It is a nice blade the saya is above average too. Just treated a Gyuto Wa Handle & Saya with Tung Oil & Clear Shellac mix.

Sujihiki's are slicers, they are less tall than a gyuto so less room for thinnest than a tall gyuto. As Chef mentioned for protein slicers a thicker blade will perform well. In production kitchen like Gyuto's for tomato's. Suji's have a tendency to wear out faster in a busy kitchen because much less steel.

For home use that is not the case a Suji can last many years with little wear. They are versatile slicers and you can find some thin ones out there.

 

[Keith Sinclair]

Japanese Knife Imports also has a good selection of rather thin Suji's. The Gesshin Ginga Stainless Wa-Sujihiki is thin & has quality stainless steel. Also Suisin Inox Honyaki Wa Sujihiki. I will help you spend your money

 

[daveb]

I have the Tad 240 suji and it's easily among my favorites. Slicing, portioning, are what it lives for. Dicing, chopping, not so much. It has traditional suji proportions and is too short (for me) for comfortable board work. Do like the saya as well.

 

[Keith Sinclair]

Yeh I always liked 270 carbon suji's wore a few down to spikes at work. Now retired thought about getting a stainless sujihiki as hardly use my Yanagiba at all these days. I like the Tad's nice knives. My carbon roots still pull even though I know for home use quality stainless works cuz getting old & lazy.

Picked up a Sabatier Nogent Ebony fish slicer at Best Things. Made from pre war forgings. Say they are prone to irregularities. My flexible fish blade is 2oz or 57g talk about light. The French were making some featherweight blades back in the day. Nice blade only 89.00 for the 8" slicer.

 

[rick alen]

Short knives are not a problem for me as despite large hands I have no difficulty using a modified pinch grip to keep my knuckles out of the way, no fatigue issues here for home cooking, and that's all actually irrelevant as this knife is not going to see any serious board work.

Thanks for the suggestions Dave and Keith, I was aware of those knives, was actually considering the Ginga, but as I mentioned to Jon my mind is stuck at the moment on PM steels (tech-nerd needs amongst others), R2 in particular for this one as it appears to be the finest grained of the bunch. Well I'll have to wrestle with this one.


Rick

 

[Keith Sinclair]

Understand your desire for PM steel. The Tanaka is pretty & with R2. Think if you are slicing tomato's a thin blade will work better. Have the 240 stainless Ginga gyuto, it is fine for slicing tomato's. Keep it sharp as is my better half's favorite knife. I like the steel, sharpens up easy, burr forming & removal a piece of cake.

Thing about thin suji's like the Tad & Ginga, they can slice vegetables, fruit & meats. Good luck with your search let us know what you end up with.