cheaper japanese cutlery

bradk31

has anybody bought some of the cheaper Japanese designs?  I would love to have a shun, but we are a long way from Christmas and the wife would kill me if I just bought out right now!

HeavyG

What do you consider cheap?

Photo Egg

What size and style of Japanese?

fishlessman

if the name ginsu does not make you run look into the hanaita series. vg-1 core which is right up there with the shun vg-10.  the difference is the ginsu is a light weight knife, i prefer the weight over the heavier shun for alot of things. mines got to be 6 or 7 years now used every weekend at camp, havenot sharpened it yet but it could use it now. these are sharpened to 10 degrees, maybe a little more care is needed than the shun. cheapest ive ever seen if they are really in stock

https://www.wayfair.com/added.php?sku=GSU1332

Eggcelsior

Tojiro White #2 is pretty good. It can have some rough geometries, but the steel takes a good edge. The are Carbon Steel so they will rust if they even sniff water and you don't keep them wiped down. 

Their DP series uses the same VG-10 steel as Shun does for just a bit more(5-10 dollars for the same knife). They are not as "pretty" as Shuns and have Western handles.

That is is probably one of the more popular "gateway" brands of Japanese knives. The other question that needs answering is what kind of knife do you want? Do you need stainless or is reactive steel ok? Reactive carbon steel knives are typically easier to sharpen.

I have a bunch, 1 Shun Chefs knife, 1 Takayaki Wa-gyuto with AEB-L "swedish steel", a kikuichi utility/paring in Warikomi Damascus, a Konehiro Nakiri in Aogami Super Steel, and a Goku Damascus gyuto. I like having multiple steels and have a Gesshin whetstone set for sharpening.  

fishlessman

always watch chefknivestogo, this was a steal in the 99 dollar price range, another super thin light weight, goku gyuto, this one i use at the house, 240 mm, big, its light enough to use as a paring knife

Eggcelsior

fishlessman said:

always watch chefknivestogo, this was a steal in the 99 dollar price range, another super thin light weight, goku gyuto, this one i use at the house, 240 mm, big, its light enough to use as a paring knife

This is the one I have in a 210mm length. It is a fantastic knife and a laser at that. Makes my Shun feel like I'm chopping with a brick due to the weight difference.

fishlessman

Eggcelsior said:

fishlessman said:

always watch chefknivestogo, this was a steal in the 99 dollar price range, another super thin light weight, goku gyuto, this one i use at the house, 240 mm, big, its light enough to use as a paring knife

This is the one I have in a 210mm length. It is a fantastic knife and a laser at that. Makes my Shun feel like I'm chopping with a brick due to the weight difference.

i stopped thinking about the heavey shun after getting this knife, it just feels right and the d shaped handles really work for me. the ginsu i posted works just as well, only down fall for me is that heavy bolster on the bottom side, i like the blade thin all the way back

HeavyG

fishlessman said:

Eggcelsior said:

fishlessman said:

always watch chefknivestogo, this was a steal in the 99 dollar price range, another super thin light weight, goku gyuto, this one i use at the house, 240 mm, big, its light enough to use as a paring knife

This is the one I have in a 210mm length. It is a fantastic knife and a laser at that. Makes my Shun feel like I'm chopping with a brick due to the weight difference.

i stopped thinking about the heavey shun after getting this knife, it just feels right and the d shaped handles really work for me. the ginsu i posted works just as well, only down fall for me is that heavy bolster on the bottom side, i like the blade thin all the way back

D shaped handles suck!

Says the left-hander.

Eggcelsior

HeavyG said:

fishlessman said:

Eggcelsior said:

fishlessman said:

always watch chefknivestogo, this was a steal in the 99 dollar price range, another super thin light weight, goku gyuto, this one i use at the house, 240 mm, big, its light enough to use as a paring knife

This is the one I have in a 210mm length. It is a fantastic knife and a laser at that. Makes my Shun feel like I'm chopping with a brick due to the weight difference.

i stopped thinking about the heavey shun after getting this knife, it just feels right and the d shaped handles really work for me. the ginsu i posted works just as well, only down fall for me is that heavy bolster on the bottom side, i like the blade thin all the way back

D shaped handles suck!

Says the left-hander.

Yep. This is another thing to pay attention to. For the Goku and Shun I have, I modify my grip to pinch the blade between my thumb and index finger, a bit more than I do with my regular Wa-handles. In addition to the handle, look at the edge grind. Most are 50/50 but some are single edge or 70/30 right bias. If you are R handed, this is a moot point.

fishlessman

Eggcelsior said:

HeavyG said:

fishlessman said:

Eggcelsior said:

fishlessman said:

always watch chefknivestogo, this was a steal in the 99 dollar price range, another super thin light weight, goku gyuto, this one i use at the house, 240 mm, big, its light enough to use as a paring knife

This is the one I have in a 210mm length. It is a fantastic knife and a laser at that. Makes my Shun feel like I'm chopping with a brick due to the weight difference.

i stopped thinking about the heavey shun after getting this knife, it just feels right and the d shaped handles really work for me. the ginsu i posted works just as well, only down fall for me is that heavy bolster on the bottom side, i like the blade thin all the way back

D shaped handles suck!

Says the left-hander.

Yep. This is another thing to pay attention to. For the Goku and Shun I have, I modify my grip to pinch the blade between my thumb and index finger, a bit more than I do with my regular Wa-handles. In addition to the handle, look at the edge grind. Most are 50/50 but some are single edge or 70/30 right bias. If you are R handed, this is a moot point.

ive got a really odd beveled one, about 15 degees to the right, its fully hollowed on the left to maybe -5 degrees.  other than slicing tuna strips, it pulls hard to the left

gdenby

You might try out Kai "Wasabi" knives. Same company as Shun. Very much day to day consumer prices, but the deba I have is one of my standard knives.

Then, I would recommend spending a few weeks (or months) reading up on the all the variations available.

There's the type of knife, and what it was designed for.

There's the steel, reactive carbon or "stainless"

There's the heat treatment.

There's the edge bevel, and how hard or easy it will be to maintain.

Expect to spend $$, but it should be worth it. My first was an Hattori VG-10 petty for $150. I use it continually, and rarely have to do more than strop it.

bigbadben

I have been a big fan of the tojiro ITK line. I would avoid the tojiro color series. I have chipped the heck out of them. I also like the Richmond Artifex line at Chefknivestogo. I have been rehandleing my knives.