Which knife I should buy?

[Wiktor1312]

Hello Guys, lately I've changed a job and right now I'm prepping A LOT of food, so I'm looking for another knife to meet my requirements.

LOCATION
Poland



KNIFE TYPE
What type of knife are you interested in (e.g., chefs knife, slicer, boning knife, utility knife, bread knife, paring knife, cleaver)?
Gyuto

Are you right or left handed? Right

Are you interested in a Western handle (e.g., classic Wusthof handle) or Japanese handle? Both

What length of knife (blade) are you interested in (in inches or millimeters)? 210/240mm

Do you require a stainless knife? (Yes or no) No, but preferably stainless or semi stainless

What is your absolute maximum budget for your knife? Around 150$



KNIFE USE
Do you primarily intend to use this knife at home or a professional environment? Professional

What are the main tasks you primarily intend to use the knife for (e.g., slicing vegetables, chopping vegetables, mincing vegetables, slicing meats, cutting down poultry, breaking poultry bones, filleting fish, trimming meats, etc.)? (Please identify as many tasks as you would like.)

Mostly vegetables and meat

What knife, if any, are you replacing? Takamura VG10- too fragile

Do you have a particular grip that you primarily use? (Please click on this LINK for the common types of grips.) Pinch grip

What cutting motions do you primarily use? Push cut, rocking.

What improvements do you want from your current knife? A little bit better edge retention and strength

Comfort (e.g., lighter/heavier knife; better handle material; better handle shape; rounded spine/choil of the knife; improved balance)? Steel matters for me

Edge Retention (i.e., length of time you want the edge to last without sharpening)? A week should be fine



KNIFE MAINTENANCE
Do you use a bamboo, wood, rubber, or synthetic cutting board? (Yes or no.) Plastic

Do you sharpen your own knives? (Yes or no.) Yes

So right now I have mentioned Takamura VG10 210mm, Fujiwara Nashiji petty and Hinokuni Gyuto 240mm. I'm looking for something that's less brittle than white steel and VG10. I don't mind touching it on the stones for every three or four days, but I'm a little bit tired with white steel that requires a lot care. Also Fujiwara has a much better edge retention and is easier to sharpen than Hinokuni, is that because of the heat treating? The thing is shop must be from Europe because I don't want to pay any custom service for that cheap knife.

I'm thinking about these knives:
https://hamono.pl/product/sakai-kikumori-nihonko-gyuto-240-mm/https://tetogi.com/products/hitohira-imojiya-kf-stainless-gyuto-210mm-pakka-handlehttps://japonskienoze.pl/tsunehisa-aus10-damascus-noz-szefa-kuchni-21-cm.htmlhttps://japonskienoze.pl/tsunehisa-gingami-red-black-noz-szefa-kuchni-21-cm.htmlBut obviously I'm open to other suggestions.

Also I want to buy a honing rod and what are you go to guys? Ceramic or diament? Price don't matters acutally.
And the last thing - stones. I have set of Shapton Glass - 500 and 1000, Atoma diamond plate 400 and King 6000. I found that 6k finish is too fine for me, I was thiniking about Morihei 3000 or maybe do you have other types?

Thank you for responding, cheers!

 

[tostadas]

The nihonko is not stainless. Id recommend the Kaeru stainless from Japanese natural stones (currently on sale) as a no nonsense stainless workhorse. Comes a bit rough around the edges, so you may want to take into account a little bit of sanding of the edges if stuff like that matters to you. But the sld steel is plenty durable and the knife is bulletproof.

As a step up in refinement from the sp1k, try out the sp2k also. It's cheap and feels significantly better as a toothy finisher compared to the 1k. Another step up in refinement, but still on the toothy side is the jns red synthetic aoto (2-4k) which I also really enjoy. If you order from jns, you can grab both and call it good.

 

[Wiktor1312]

I mean, I don't mind reactivity in the knife, even if it's stainless I wipe it down every time I stop using it. Patina on Fujiwara is not bothering me at all, but Hinokuni is w#1 and it's quite too reactive for kitchen's use for me. Thanks for suggestions, I'll check that out

 

[MowgFace]

I really like @tostadas recommendation of Kaeru SS. i agree with all his points on this. Of your choices, i would personally go for the Sakai Kikumori Nihonko. I have really grown to like SK for workhorse knives, and @63HRC you should expect pretty solid edge retention for this simple carbon. Expect the knife to be rough around the edges like the Kaeru, though at this price point most knives will have some "quirks."

Note that W#1, and all core steels for that matter, are not all that reactive in the grand scheme of reactivity. Iron cladding is really the culprit of what people complain about. That being said, obviously they are still reactive,.

 

[Benuser]

If you were to choose for a carbon, it will benefit from a higher grit finisher, around 3-4k. A Belgian Blue could do a great job, and be all you need for touching-up. Ardennes Coticule Belgian Blue Whetstone200 x 40 mm
The fun about the SK steel is it will keep its bite.
About a rod: I have been told, a diamond one has some use with soft, very abrasion resistant stainless. With a carbon it will destroy any edge with a single stroke. An excellent ceramic one is the Sieger LongLife, made of sintered rubin. It delivers an edge in the 2-3k range, which is finer than any other one I know. Still wondering if you don't better touch-up with your finest stone, but I realise that's not always an option in a professional environment. Deburring on a rod requires some practice.

 

[Wiktor1312]

Note that W#1, and all core steels for that matter, are not all that reactive in the grand scheme of reactivity. Iron cladding is really the culprit of what people complain about. That being said, obviously they are still reactive,.

okay, I haven’t got a clue about this, thanks!

About a rod: I have been told, a diamond one has some use with soft, very abrasion resistant stainless. With a carbon it will destroy any edge with a single stroke. An excellent ceramic one is the Sieger LongLife, made of sintered rubin. It delivers an edge in the 2-3k range, which is finer than any other one I know. Still wondering if you don't better touch-up with your finest stone, but I realise that's not always an option in a professional environment. Deburring on a rod requires some practice.

Sometimes I have time for touch-ups, but mostly don’t. I won’t use it heavily to avoid sharpening, but to just maintain sharpness for a day or two maybe.

What about silver#3 steel for a knife like that?

 

[Jovidah]

I mean, I don't mind reactivity in the knife, even if it's stainless I wipe it down every time I stop using it. Patina on Fujiwara is not bothering me at all, but Hinokuni is w#1 and it's quite too reactive for kitchen's use for me. Thanks for suggestions, I'll check that out

Nothing wrong with preferring stainless, and there's plenty of good stainless options.
But just to point something out here; difference you're noticing in reactivity is not due to the core steel (both are white steel), but due to the cladding. The Fujiwara has stainless cladding, the Hinokuni has iron cladding, and in my experience iron cladding tends to be quite a lot more reactive than the actual core steel.

 

[Wiktor1312]

Nothing wrong with preferring stainless, and there's plenty of good stainless options.
But just to point something out here; difference you're noticing in reactivity is not due to the core steel (both are white steel), but due to the cladding. The Fujiwara has stainless cladding, the Hinokuni has iron cladding, and in my experience iron cladding tends to be quite a lot more reactive than the actual core steel.

Definitely I like carbon steel a lot more, but probably I’ll go with ss cladding with higher carbon steels. And yeah, that iron for sure is more reactive, on the core I have nice blueish patina, but slightly higher there’s coming rust very quickly.
How about takamura r2 for example? Is it too chippy knife or do you guys consider it as a prep knife?

 

[Jovidah]

Takamura R2 is quite delicate feeling; thin, light and flimsy. I don't think it's all that different than the VG-10 in that regard. Edge retention would be really good though... definitly better than the carbon steels. In that sense SG-2 would be a step up steel-wise, but within your budget you're hard pressed to really find any; the SG2 / R2 knives usually start at around 200.

What comes to mind is the Sakon Ryuga sold by bluewayjapan (currently out of stock): Sakon Ryuga SRS15 Powdered High Speed Steel Japanese Gyuto Knife 240mm | eBay
It's otherwise known as the Akifusa, in SRS-15 PM steel.

Edit:
Tsunehisa SRS-15
Akifusa PM | Chef knives with superior edge retention
The same series under a different name... with a few different blade options.
All 3 are the same knives by Hokiyama.

But if you buy it in the EU it's more expensive, even if you factor in potential customs / shipping costs. Although cleancut has fairly decent pricing.

 

[Wiktor1312]

I don't mind spending a bigger amount for a knife, but for now I'm just looking for a good prep knife, that will go through a lot of food, will sharpen easily and I won't be too crazy about caring for it. So from all that options I'll go with Kaeru or Kikumori SK steel. Thank you guys for your advices

 

[Wiktor1312]

Hi members, I've found one more shop from EU that's quite interesting and I wanna ask you about further suggestions comparing to this Nihukou SK Gyuto:
https://www.thesharpcook.com/product/kanetsune-kc-172-pro-series-gyuto-210mm/https://www.thesharpcook.com/produc...gyuto-chef-s-knife-aogami-200-mm/#descriptionHow about them ?