What's better than a Miyabi Birchwood gyuto?

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DitmasPork

DitmasPork

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My friend wants to buy her son a good, all around, Japanese chef's knife—he mentioned doing "stew prep, meat cutting, all around utility in the kitchen". He's been looking at the Miyabi Birchwood, $299 at Sur La Table. He sharpens occasionally, ...though don't know if by hand, pull through, or electric.

Any suggestions for a suitable stainless in the sub-$300 price bracket that might be better than the Miyabi Birchwood, SG2?
 
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For someone not experienced, the Birchwood is not too bad of a knife. The steel is tough (I watched the wife spatchcock a chicken with the one I had with no chips). They are handle heavy even though it is a wa style handle. It's pretty much flat ground, so not a super performer.


If someone is not going to nerd out over edge performance and grind, it's not a bad choice if it can found at a good enough price.
 
Kanehide PS60. Good balance of performance and toughness. That one site has some in stock.
 
Matt Jacobs said:
https://shop.opticsplanet.com/drago...WlHBeP7IIKeUR7cJ1VilYEXTurOjFzXkaAmuHEALw_wcBI purchased one of these Dragon's by Apogee cutlery , the owner used to work for Shun and Kershaw. You can find them for pretty cheep, they are BD1N steel and hold an edge forever. I keep one year round in my travel trailer and love it.
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I’m bit dubious of the claim they made on home butcher…
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blokey said:
I’m bit dubious of the claim they made on home butcher…
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I dont disagree and the owner was kind of pompus, however I have probably owned the knife for 5 years and I forget about because its in my trailer but it takes serious abuse and I really never have to sharpen it. I think its a great knife for non-knife people and it really out performed my Miyabi I used to own. His philosophy may be why he wen out of business....
 
Matt Jacobs said:
I dont disagree and the owner was kind of pompus, however I have probably owned the knife for 5 years and I forget about because its in my trailer but it takes serious abuse and I really never have to sharpen it. I think its a great knife for non-knife people and it really out performed my Miyabi I used to own. His philosophy may be why he wen out of business....
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Are these made by Yaxell? Kind similar to their BD1N line
 
Matt Jacobs said:
I dont disagree and the owner was kind of pompus, however I have probably owned the knife for 5 years and I forget about because its in my trailer but it takes serious abuse and I really never have to sharpen it. I think its a great knife for non-knife people and it really out performed my Miyabi I used to own. His philosophy may be why he wen out of business....
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I had one of his Yaxell-made Dragon Fire knives and it was pretty good for what it was. But, I had one vendor tell me he dropped Yaxell, moved production to China, slashed his costs but continued charging the same price. I could chalk that up to capitalism and let the market decide but they also said they had concerns about the facility he'd chosen to work with.

I have no firsthand knowledge there. Just relating something I was told.

I do know his Apogee Knife website shut down not long after all that.
 
Matt Jacobs said:
I dont disagree and the owner was kind of pompus, however I have probably owned the knife for 5 years and I forget about because its in my trailer but it takes serious abuse and I really never have to sharpen it. I think it’s a great knife for non-knife people and it really out performed my Miyabi I used to own. His philosophy may be why he when out of business....
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It’s more the BD1N is the best bit, it’s a nice steel, I have it in my Spyderco, takes a fine edge and last pretty long, but definitely not as long as something like SG2 or SRS series, more like a VG10 that takes a better edge for me
 
blokey said:
Are these made by Yaxell? Kind similar to their BD1N line
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I had a friend get the Yaxell version. I am sure they are made by the same company but the Yaxell doesn't have the engraving on it. It takes a big hit as far as food stiction without the engraving but still a good knife and you can find them for pretty cheap too.
 
Pretty hard to define 'better' when you don't really know the guy's preferences.
And if aesthethics play a role that's always a personal preference that's very hard to argue with.
Plenty of people seem happy with the Miyabi birchwoods so I don't think they're complete junk. Neither is SG2 steel.
 
DitmasPork said:
My friend wants to buy her son a good, all around, Japanese chef's knife—he mentioned doing "stew prep, meat cutting, all around utility in the kitchen". He's been looking at the Miyabi Birchwood, $299 at Sur La Table. He sharpens occasionally, ...though don't know if by hand, pull through, or electric.

Any suggestions for a suitable stainless in the sub-$300 price bracket that might be better than the Miyabi Birchwood, SG2?
Click to expand...

Is he righty?
 
I owned a Miyabi birchwood gyuto and found it be a good performer, but I ultimately gifted it away after finding myself reaching for lighter better performing Japanese knives. No doubt the Miyabi is stunningly beautiful and a perfectly good knife. At that price there are many other options I think are better balanced, lighter, and have blade geometries that will slice even better. Shiro Kamo for example makes a great SG2 gyuto at about the $300 price point. Another thing to consider for someone who is less experienced with Japanese knives is to go with a softer steel that is more forgiving and a bit easer to sharpen like VG10. Here there are many fine options. My personal favorite is VG10 lines from Masakage like the Kiri and Kumo series. Best wishes on your buying journey.
 
Miyabi is one of the better Shun-Lites but for me the handles are too small. If giftee has large hands, may be best to look for another.
 
flgman said:
I owned a Miyabi birchwood gyuto and found it be a good performer, but I ultimately gifted it away after finding myself reaching for lighter better performing Japanese knives. No doubt the Miyabi is stunningly beautiful and a perfectly good knife. At that price there are many other options I think are better balanced, lighter, and have blade geometries that will slice even better. Shiro Kamo for example makes a great SG2 gyuto at about the $300 price point. Another thing to consider for someone who is less experienced with Japanese knives is to go with a softer steel that is more forgiving and a bit easer to sharpen like VG10. Here there are many fine options. My personal favorite is VG10 lines from Masakage like the Kiri and Kumo series. Best wishes on your buying journey.
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Cheers. Although, I’m not buying—just asking for a friend who’s buying for her son. Seems the Miyabi is a decent enough knife based on comments. I’ve never held/used one, since 95% of my knives are carbon.
 
DitmasPork said:
My friend wants to buy her son a good, all around, Japanese chef's knife—he mentioned doing "stew prep, meat cutting, all around utility in the kitchen". He's been looking at the Miyabi Birchwood, $299 at Sur La Table. He sharpens occasionally, ...though don't know if by hand, pull through, or electric.

Any suggestions for a suitable stainless in the sub-$300 price bracket that might be better than the Miyabi Birchwood, SG2?
Click to expand...
I paid just over $200 for my 8" birchwood chef knife about six years ago. Still a joy to look at and use. The only drawback has been that it's so beautiful, I'm reticent to challenge it too much. It's been a great performer.
 
Our 8" birch Miyabi isn't getting any love. Wife has been gravitating to a lighter, Anyru bunka.
Been thinking of swapping it out for a Takada No Hamono gyuto, if I could find one.

​

 
At $200 (if you can find), not a bad value, but I hate the weight and the balance of that knife and the handle. I also own the two knives that Jedy 617 showed above which I bought maybe 6 years ago. I now use the petty as a steak knife, but I really wouldn't recommend the gyuto. Around $300, if 200mm is enough, maybe this from cleancut. The 230mm version is about EUR30 more. If the person is willing to try ginsan, Kagekiyo is hard to beat. I think KTH (reputable shop in HK) has the best price.

https://www.cleancut.eu/butik/knifebrands/sukenari/gyuto_sukenari-sanmai-detail
https://www.kingtakhong.com.hk/Defa...8f3937f496cd&Name=Kagekiyo Ginsan Gyuto 240mm
 
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