LOOKING FOR NAKIRI

[gregre45]

I’M A HOME COOK
WANT TO BUY A NAKIRI
NEED YOUR ADVISE ON SIZE & BRAND OF THE KNIFE
KNIFE SKILLS - FAIR
DON’T WANT TO SHARPEN

THANK A LOT GREG

[CacahuateSommelier]

If you don’t want to sharpen i sugg at getting the most durable/long-lasting Steel you can..... HAP40 or ZDP189 (but ZDP can be hard to find and $$$$$$$).... that way it lasts Longer between the times you need to send it in to the sharpened......

If you don’t mind carbon steel... go Aogami Super

Or have a custom blade made from M4 or M390 but these are crazy $$$$

Sort by steel &!Take a look around the website and see what tickles your fancy

[CacahuateSommelier]

The Gihei HAP40 is OOS so that leaves just the Kohetsu with either Wa or Yo handles

https://www.chefknivestogo.com/kohana17.html
https://www.chefknivestogo.com/kohana16.html

[nevrknow]

Had my eye on that Gihei for awhile now......

[CacahuateSommelier]

Be sure to add on the finished sharpening service

https://www.chefknivestogo.com/inshse.html

[Cutuu]

Moritaka makes some great AS steel with excellent edge retention. I haven't tried his nakiri though. His profiles tend to be really flat. Some people really like his knives and some people really hate them. I had a santoku and a cleaver. I liked them both.

[jbart65]

You either need to learn to sharpen or have someone you can trust to sharpen your knives. An expensive Japanes knife is not much better than a Rachel Ray Chinese knockoff once it gets dull. Knives need to be sharpened at least once or twice a year depending on use. Think of how much money that will cost over time.

For the price the Gihei cannot be beat:

https://www.chefknivestogo.com/gibl2na16.html

An upgrade would be the Yahiko Nashiji. Very easy to sharpen, even for beginners. White steel and a straight blade means you can sharpen it yourself in no time.

https://www.chefknivestogo.com/yawh2nana16.html

[gregre45]

Thanks a lot everybody

As per sharpening - I have few Shun knives, which I'm sending to the factory ones a year.
What do you think about Shun?

Thank you,

Greg

[Afjagjones]

GREG,

I LOVE YOUR ENTHUSIASM!

Jk, welcome to the fold! Nakiri is my blade of choice.

[Bob Z]

Hi Greg: i started with some Shun Kaji gyutos which are powdered hard SG2, and two paring knives made from VG10. They all looked awesome and were very sharp for a bit of time and after that kinda sharp for a long time. When i learned to sharpen they are difficult to sharpen and never seemed to stay sharp that long. Getting a Ceramic honing rod sure helped keep then sharp I found out. BUT...
Your are paying alot for the name, the appearance and while the sharpening is free, whats that about 20+ bucks per knife to send off? Without stropping/honing rod etc you knife isnt going to stay sharp for a whole year. Not gonna happen!

Im a nakiri person myself and have a few now, and the next one im going to get is this one:
https://www.chefknivestogo.com/kaanasna16.html
Its only a few bucks more than the Gihei but much better looking (in my opinion)

You either need to learn to sharpen or have someone you can trust to sharpen your knives. An expensive Japanes knife is not much better than a Rachel Ray Chinese knockoff once it gets dull. Knives need to be sharpened at least once or twice a year depending on use. Think of how much money that will cost over time.

Jbarts point about white steel and ease of sharpening is what i discovered also. Gave me alot of confidence after easily getting my inexpensive Tojiro nakiri real sharp in no time! You will be using your new Nakiri all the time and yearn to have it super sharp again like when you first got it.

[gregre45]

I was trying to sharpen my knives long ago without success
That's the reason I want it to be done on the factory
I'm still using a honing rod, which does not require special skills
Is Shun the only brand, which offers sharpening?

Thanks a lot for your time
Greg

[jbart65]

None of the brands sold on CKTG offer sharpening, but CKTG itself does.

I learned how to sharpen a few years ago. Only took me a few tries at it to get white steel quite sharp. So much easier to sharpen than the bigger commercial brands.

[CacahuateSommelier]

The edge you get from sending it to shun is only a 6/10..... maybe a 7/10 at best..... a respectable edge, but no where near the quality edge you can attain from ussing waterstones with just a bit of effort & practice

[Bob Z]

I think Shun is the only one that offers it. I used to think naively that the supermarket sent the knives to get sharpened but some guy with a cheap sharpener does it. Nothing good there!
You probably had the same issues I had trying to sharpen shuns, it just didnt seem to happen. I gave up until i had played with some white #2 knives (Tojiro hairline gyuto and nakiri) and had success making them sharp. I went back and it was tough (since i dont sharpen much) and actually got two of the shuns decently sharp.

[gregre45]

Thanks everybody for your time and sharing you expertise

Greg

[Cutuu]

Shuns are not that fun to sharpen. I have sharpened them up very nicely. But sometimes I think was a pita. Get something that sharpens up easier and see if you still don't want to sharpen like a kanehide tk nakiri. I didn't see a budget for you so I don't know what to quite rec.

[nakneker]

Thanks everybody for your time and sharing you expertise

Greg

If you tried sharpening without success I would suggest you think about a second try. Nakiris are one of the best to learn on simply because the edge has very little curve. You might be surprised how easy they can sharpened. White steel tunes up quickly and if you make a mistake it’s not hard to correct. There a lot of helpful videos here on the forum. If you try it and get stuck you’ll find forum members are eager to help with tips and suggestions. If you’ve made up your mind sharpening is not for you I get that too. In that case I would suggest buying the Nakiri of your choice here and sending it into Mark for sharpening, you’ll find the edge far superior to what your use to from Shun.

[pecanbery]

The Takeda Nakiri (https://www.chefknivestogo.com/tastclnala.html) might be suitable. It comes very sharp out of the box and holds an edge forever. I also found it easier to sharpen than my other knives thanks to the flat grind and kurouchi bevel line, it's very easy to tell if you're messing it up or on the right track. If you do choose it, just read into what a flat grind is and it'll make sense why it's so easy to sharpen.

[gregre45]

I want to remove my sharpening task from our discussion and focus on 'substance'.

THANKS A LOT FOR YOUR TIME

[Nmiller21k]

I want to remove my sharpening task from our discussion and focus on 'substance'.

THANKS A LOT FOR YOUR TIME

Unfortunately sharpening and knives go hand in hand.
Which is why I haven't commented or suggested on this thread.

If you're going to send out the knife for sharpening, are you willing to pay for it? Or do you want a "free" service?
Suggesting a knife without knowing how you plan to maintain it is a lot like recommending a car to someone that doesn't want to change the oil.

Based on how you plan to maintain the sharpness will greatly influence knife recommendations, along with a budget as well.