when is a knife at it's useable end of life

[MarcelNL]

As I'm currently looking for a Shig, used or new, I might need to be able to judge how much life is left in a used one and how that affects price.

Let's assume a 210 BNIB sits around 2.5-4.5 $ per mm, (depending on finish), do you downgrade according to length or is the height at heel more important and if so how?

I figure both are important as tipping makes you lose length and grinding lose length and height. Is a knife spent when the height decreases by 2mm , 3mm , 5 mm ? I don't have a clue, let's assume a typical height at heel for a 210 of ~42mm.

 

[RDalman]

If there's core steel to spine and you have use for a fillet knife...

 

[M1k3]

If there's core steel to spine and you have use for a fillet knife...

Or paring depending on remaining size.

 

[esoo]

I found 150x36 is quite usable as a board knife when I had a TF petty that size.

 

[dafox]

Chef Morimoto's knives:
https://images.app.goo.gl/szYCERPXmAUSntcE9

 

[inferno]

shigs and katos lose approx 50% value if they're not BNIB.

its best to keep them BNIB imo. and that might not be ideal if you are intending to actually use the knife. you know cutting food and stuff.

 

[AT5760]

How has the knife been maintained over the years? Has the owner thinned it when sharpening? Is the initial geometry still intact? Those are the types of questions I would ask if I were buying a heavily used, normally rather expensive knife.

 

[inferno]

oooor just use the crap out of the knife as intended. knives make ****** investments.

 

[ma_sha1]

You have nothing to worry about, really.
This is my Shig. Nakiri at end of its life:

 

[MarcelNL]

I fully intend to use the crap out of any knife, be it that my use won't likely make it disappear into slurry fast. I want to get a feel for what is heavy use to a knife so I can spot it, and what is end of life. End of life has been sortof answered, depreceiation once used has also been answered and I'm starting to think that buying BNIB is best.

 

[esoo]

BNIB gives you an idea of what the smith had in mind for grind. If a knife has been thinned by someone other than the smith, you'll never know what the smith meant for the blade.

On the other side of that, you may find a thinned knife to actually out-perform the grind the smith put on it.

 

[inferno]

I fully intend to use the crap out of any knife, be it that my use won't likely make it disappear into slurry fast. I want to get a feel for what is heavy use to a knife so I can spot it, and what is end of life. End of life has been sortof answered, depreceiation once used has also been answered and I'm starting to think that buying BNIB is best.

many people want to keep the original height, so for some people maybe 5-10mm lost there would mean that they simply get a new one of the same model.

 

[josemartinlopez]

shigs and katos lose approx 50% value if they're not BNIB.

That's quite a generalization. Data?

 

[Corradobrit1]

shigs and katos lose approx 50% value if they're not BNIB.

Don't agree with that statement. Hard to find Kato's Shigs and Ashi's if bought for retail are worth more on the secondary market even when used. Heck you can even break even on nice Denka's.
Same goes for any number of western makers, like Rader, Comet, Raquin etc

 

[inferno]

That's quite a generalization. Data?

it was a joke

 

[MarcelNL]

BNIB gives you an idea of what the smith had in mind for grind. If a knife has been thinned by someone other than the smith, you'll never know what the smith meant for the blade.

On the other side of that, you may find a thinned knife to actually out-perform the grind the smith put on it.

agree, with Shig it's pretty well defined I'd say so looking up stats on the net gives a good impression.

 

[Corradobrit1]

it was a joke

Must have missed the funny face