High Edge Retention Kitchen Knife??

M

Morkte

Joined
Oct 16, 2011
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243
Hey Guys,
My uncle has asked me to find him an 8 and a 10 inch kitchen knife. His knives knives are only going to be sharpened every 6 months (approx), so long edge retention is a must (Its his top criteria). He is willing to pay up to $150 per knife. What are your guy's recommendation. What are your recommendations??
Thanks in advanced
-George
 
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Well he can't have both. I really like the carbonext series from japanese chef's knives for carbon and the Richmond Artifex and Laser with their AEB-L razor steel for edge retention and durability. Both would be very easy to touch up on a leather strop or a steel but the AEB-L is unbelievably easy to touch up on a strop and is highly chip resistant, the main issue that would require real sharpening. Carbon steel or VG10 (many chef knives) will chip more easily.
 
Didn't think he'd be able to get both, I just posted what he asked for. I will be the one to sharpen his knives and I don't mind sharpening hard steels. He won't strop it so it will need to be able to hold a decent age for about 6 months (not unnecessary shaving sharp but a decent working edge).
Thanks again
-George
 
I only have experience with the Shun Classic series and I do not like any of the edge qualities of their steel, nice handles and f&f though. Global might be a good bet if you can retain the convex bevel (I have used Global knives extensively but never owned or sharpened one).

The knife in my kitchen that actually holds the best long-term edge is the Henkels 6" Utility, I actually meant to come back and mention this knife.

The Ryusen Blazen and Tsuchime knives are both pretty and have great edge edge retention (I own a Blazen but have only read about Tsuchime).

It would be nice to know more about what he will be using the knives for, does he want the same profile on both? Western or Japanese?
If I were getting an 8" and 10" I would get a 240mm Gyuto and a 210mm Nakiri or Santoku, but I have a 270mm Sujuhiki as well so he might prefer a 270 mm gyuto...
 
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I will go with the 210 mm Hiromoto AS core stainless clad.

Best of both worlds, durable longer lasting carbon edge, stainless clad for easy maintanence. Bit on the heftier side so it can do a bit more abuse, and comes in under your 150.00 price tag.

And the patina looks wicked once it sets in with a great contrast to the stainless.
 
justsomedude said:
It would be nice to know more about what he will be using the knives for, does he want the same profile on both? Western or Japanese?
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^that, plus type of cutting board, grip style, cut technique, et.. ??? More info to better select a knife with appropriate steel+profile+geometry.

Mean while, lookup these knives, maybe one of them hit the right note:

Gesshin Uraku stainless 210mm wa-gyuto at Japaneseknifeimports
V2 - Kumagoro Hammer finish gyuto 210mm at Epicureanedge
SKD- Yoshikane gyuto 210mm at Epicureanedge <= semi-stainless will patina, stupid long edge retention
AS - Moritaka Gyuto 210mm at ChefKnivesToGo <= a small chance of requires a little DIY to correct un-even grind
 
kalaeb said:
I will go with the 210 mm Hiromoto AS core stainless clad.

Best of both worlds, durable longer lasting carbon edge, stainless clad for easy maintanence. Bit on the heftier side so it can do a bit more abuse, and comes in under your 150.00 price tag.

And the patina looks wicked once it sets in with a great contrast to the stainless.
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:thumbup: a very good choice. Would be perfect if it has an octagonal wa-handle.
 
Strongly asymmetric, right biased, blade right side convex, left one flat, small V bevels, proportion 70/30 (right/left), angles some 10-12 degree right, 15 degree left. Use a J400-500 to set the bevels in order to deal with tungsten carbides.
 
In addition to the ones mentioned by Kalaeb and bluntcut, the Aritsugu A-type supposedly is made from some sort of tool-steel on steroids. Ubber crazy edge retention, but may come unsharpened and has been known to give experienced sharpeners heartburn.

I'm with justsomedude on the Shun VG-10 (classics).
 
anybody know if the hiromoto AS is anywhere near a Takedasan blade? Because that is my grail kitchen knife.
 
justsomedude said:
anybody know if the hiromoto AS is anywhere near a Takedasan blade? Because that is my grail kitchen knife.
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Not even close. The only similarity is the AS steel, even then, they perform at different levels. The Takedas really don't have great geometry, except that they are usually so thin, it matters little. The Takeda will feel more nimble, despite being a "larger" knife, and the Takeda will flex(not in a bad way). The Hiros, while great cutters out of the box can really use some thinning to reach better potential.

The Takeda is a great "grail" knife. You may buy many others, but they always seem to be in rotation.
 
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