tostadas
Hobbyist / Craftsman
Zwilling Kramer 8”, 52100 Carbon Steel, African Blackwood Handle
I got this new as a gift from a family member last month. The edge was not very sharp, so I sharpened it on a 2k -> aoto, and then used it to cut a total of one onion and two decent sized carrots. The 52100 carbon steel sharpened easily, and did not seem to have much reactivity when cutting the onion.
Based on choil shots I’ve seen, I expected it to be extremely thick, but in reality, this knife is far from it. The actual grind on this blade is thinner than any other knife I’ve owned; thinner than a Takamura R2, Kono HD2, or even a CCK 1303 (see below for measurements). It tapers very aggressively to the tip. It went through the onions and carrots like nothing. The “choil” shot is a bit deceiving because the blade only gets thick for the last 2-3mm at the back. So you can think of it as more like a bolster for comfort than a choil shot that represents the grind. There is also a decent flat spot at the back which sweeps up to the tip. The balance is right in front of the bolster.
Fit and finish on this example are clean. The pins, bolster, spine, and handle scales are flush at all connections with no gaps that I could find. Spine and choil are mirror polished from the factory, comparable quality to the finish of my Konosuke. The handle would be perfect for someone that has medium to large hands. I wear Medium size gloves and found it to fill the palm of my hand with no pressure points when cutting.
$215 shipped & insured to your door CONUS (sorry no international)
Includes original box with a little bottle of (unused) camellia oil
Dimensions
Edge length: 200mm
Height at Heel: 61mm
Weight: 262g
Spine Thickness
Heel: 3.8mm
Mid: 2.5mm
1cm from Tip: 0.7mm
Thickness Behind Edge at Midpoint
@ 1mm: 0.25mm
@ 5mm: 0.45mm
@10mm: 0.73mm
@20mm: 1.25mm
Note: The "choil" shot is actually more like a bolster. The blade is actually super thin (see measurements above).
I got this new as a gift from a family member last month. The edge was not very sharp, so I sharpened it on a 2k -> aoto, and then used it to cut a total of one onion and two decent sized carrots. The 52100 carbon steel sharpened easily, and did not seem to have much reactivity when cutting the onion.
Based on choil shots I’ve seen, I expected it to be extremely thick, but in reality, this knife is far from it. The actual grind on this blade is thinner than any other knife I’ve owned; thinner than a Takamura R2, Kono HD2, or even a CCK 1303 (see below for measurements). It tapers very aggressively to the tip. It went through the onions and carrots like nothing. The “choil” shot is a bit deceiving because the blade only gets thick for the last 2-3mm at the back. So you can think of it as more like a bolster for comfort than a choil shot that represents the grind. There is also a decent flat spot at the back which sweeps up to the tip. The balance is right in front of the bolster.
Fit and finish on this example are clean. The pins, bolster, spine, and handle scales are flush at all connections with no gaps that I could find. Spine and choil are mirror polished from the factory, comparable quality to the finish of my Konosuke. The handle would be perfect for someone that has medium to large hands. I wear Medium size gloves and found it to fill the palm of my hand with no pressure points when cutting.
$215 shipped & insured to your door CONUS (sorry no international)
Includes original box with a little bottle of (unused) camellia oil
Dimensions
Edge length: 200mm
Height at Heel: 61mm
Weight: 262g
Spine Thickness
Heel: 3.8mm
Mid: 2.5mm
1cm from Tip: 0.7mm
Thickness Behind Edge at Midpoint
@ 1mm: 0.25mm
@ 5mm: 0.45mm
@10mm: 0.73mm
@20mm: 1.25mm
Note: The "choil" shot is actually more like a bolster. The blade is actually super thin (see measurements above).
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