Top Three (Right Now)

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enjay
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Top Three (Right Now)

Post by enjay »

From Nobody Asked But Why Not Dept:

Here are my three most frequently used blades in the last couple months. Hopefully some of you will find this interesting enough to share your own.

1) Mazaki 180 W2

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Stout little bastard: thick and tall. The first choice to crush and dice garlic. Destroys shallots and mushrooms with ease, although not the best for bigger onions. Not much reactivity once the patina settled. Also has the distinction of being the only one that I have tipped, luckily with minimal loss of steel or blood.

2) Shibata Kashima 220 R2

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Slick travel companion. I hosted and helped out on a number of summer cookouts, and the Kashima was the slicer of choice on steaks, peppers, octupus, where its short height and long-enough length shined, along with its obvious benefit of being stainless. At home, it's often used on thick carrots and tough turnips.

3) Raquin Workhorse 240

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Large home prep bulldozer. It mauls bundles of celery and scallions. Large onions, big peppers, and beef roasts are sliced and diced. Thick heel and tall height chops everything in sight, while the skinny tip breezes thru vertical and horizontal cuts.
Radar53
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Re: Top Three (Right Now)

Post by Radar53 »

Not sure what happened above - the post took off all by itself??

1) Shibata Kashima 240 https://www.chefknivestogo.com/shckex24gy.html
2) Kikuichi Swedish Warikomi Damascus Gyuto https://www.chefknivestogo.com/kiswwadagy24.html
3) Konosuke Swedish Stainless Gyuto 240 https://www.chefknivestogo.com/koswstgy24eb.html

Three minds with but a single thought I know & I do have other quite varied blades that I also love. I'm more of a sharpener than a knife wielding expert, but of those for me the Kashima is a definite step ahead and the Kikuichi and the Konosuke run close to each other.

When I first got the Shibata it felt & sounded a bit "fragile", but it's certainly not, especially when you consider that it is ground really finely behind the edge and Shibata-san has sharpened it at about 9 dps. Just a testament to his treatment and the quality of his R2.
Cheers Grant

Just because you're not paranoid doesn't mean they're not going to get you!!
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Altadan
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Re: Top Three (Right Now)

Post by Altadan »

"Large home prep bulldozer.
It mauls bundles of celery
and scallions. Large onions,
big peppers, and beef roasts
are sliced and diced.
Thick heel and tall height
chops everything in sight..."

This reads like one of my kids' Heavy Machinery / Construction story books :) :P

Such concise, and succinct write up! Great recs.
That Raquin has shown up twice on the classifieds this week, both times in "bulldozer" size.
Do you know what the handle is made of, and what sort of treatment it got?
“If we conquer our passions it is more from their weakness than from our strength.”
― François de La Rochefoucauld
AlbuquerqueDan
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Re: Top Three (Right Now)

Post by AlbuquerqueDan »

I'll play!

Shi-Han 260. White 2/wrought iron. Perfect grind.
Kochi 240. Blue 2/iron. Just feels right in my hand.
Xerxes Primus 230. Laser! The tip is impossibly thin.
20190814_193006.jpg
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Kit Craft
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Re: Top Three (Right Now)

Post by Kit Craft »

Mmh, hard choice.

Masamoto KS (250) If I could only have one J knife based on the knives I have owned thus far, this would be it. It just makes me happy to use. I do wish it was taller though. Well balanced, for me, grind that falls between a laser and a light-middleweight.

Kono HD2 (235) This knife is probably the most practical I have used to date. It flies through food, never wedges, and does not have awful sticking for how thin it is. Super easy to sharpen and takes an aggressive edge.

K-Sab (228) Perfect profile, forgiving and easy to sharpen. No edge retention to speak of but it can be kept in shape with a steel for a long time (for me). I could use this knife for anything.

Honestly though, there are things I love about all of these knives and have been thinking about talking to someone about getting a custom with those aspects in mind.
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jbart65
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Re: Top Three (Right Now)

Post by jbart65 »

I change up quite a bit, but the three I've used the most lately are

1)Tetsuhiro Hammered W1 240

2)Tanaka Nashiji B2 210

3) Masakage Koishi AS 240
Jeffry B
Igalor
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Re: Top Three (Right Now)

Post by Igalor »

Last couple of weeks

Ryusen blazen 240
Tanaka r2 210
Mizuno 150 petty
salemj
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Re: Top Three (Right Now)

Post by salemj »

Oddly enough, I've been using some high-end carbon knives a bit more frequently over the last two weeks or so (often I use more stainless for day-to-day cooking).

I've been working on my Nubatama, so it has seem more use than normal these last few weeks. It is a 240 in "black steel," but really it is about 227x46mm. I still have one minor correction to make to the profile to adjust it from a flat, killer push-cutter that doesn't rock so well to something that can execute a shallow mince effortlessly, but otherwise, this knife is finally starting to enter exclusive company in every regard. Working on this knife has been a real test in how much the slightest nuances can change the feeling of a knife.

I've also used my Konosuke B1 Fujiyama 240 a couple times in the last few days. I nearly sold it after recently purchasing a similar version in FM and almost recently purchasing another with the same shinogi-style grind. I realized I shouldn't sell such a knife until I remind myself of what I might be missing.

And third is two knives: my two new Kono Damascus B1 FMs. I haven't used either that much, but I keep pulling them out for cuts here and there to compare them to other things (including the B1 above). Both are top performers, but it is strange how different they feel. The 210 feels nice and robust even as it has that magical Fuijyama cutting ability, while the 240 feels quite large and unusually tall but also very thin and nimble.

One thing that has been on my mind a lot was the decision not to purchase a Konosuke B1 damascus with shinogi because I had the exact same steel+smith+sharpener+handle combo in my non-damascus B1...but I've still felt like perhaps I missed out...hence the comparison between the above knives. Unlike some others on the forum, I definitely do not think the shinogi grinds are somehow "better;" sometimes I admire them more, and sometimes I find the non-shinogi grinds to be better performers. Another thing on my mind is whether I should try a Konosuke YS, so I've also been trying to decide if I would even have the opportunity to use or appreciate it, so the MMs have come out recently as the closest thing I have to such "sanjo" style blades.

Fun times!
~Joe

Comments: I'm short, a home cook, prefer lighter, thinner blades, and own mostly Konosukes but have used over a dozen brands.
cliff
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Re: Top Three (Right Now)

Post by cliff »

The travel set is a Misono dragon 270 gyuto (could do with just this one), a UX10 santoku, and a Mac paring knife. At home, a Wat 270 Kurouchi (I love the combination of power and control), a Kono 240 HD2, and a Takeda 210.
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Re: Top Three (Right Now)

Post by Mowgface »

I like Cliff's approach a lot.

Home set:
1) Gesshin Ginga W#2 240
2) Gengetsu W#2 240
3) Itinomonn StainLESS 240 or En Ginsanko 240

Travel Set:
1)Wakui W#2 240
2)Tsukiji Masamoto V2 240
3)Tanaka Ginsan 180

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Re: Top Three (Right Now)

Post by Steel+Fire »

Currently I have been rotating between my Kono FM 240mm Blue#2 and my Kono MM 240mm Blue#2. Just have been enjoying them both a lot. I call on the Kurosaki 240mm AS Shizuku often as well, it is just such a complete knife.

My Yoshimune has been getting neglected lately so I think I am going to make an effort to use it all weekend. I am only at 7 gyutos but I already have run into feeling like I am not using tools I really like. Not sure how you guys with 20+ knives even get a feel for all of the knives you own if you don't use them professionally. :lol:
ButlerHoosierChef
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Re: Top Three (Right Now)

Post by ButlerHoosierChef »

Right now my top three for using is:
Ikeda 250mm KS Damascus Aogami super
The more I use that knife the more the knife grows on me. Besides it being brutally reactive it is starting to die down and I absolutely love it. It is definitely punching way above its weight class. I would put it in the Fujiyama FM category.
Next is Kikuchiyo x Kyuzo B2 240mm.
This is my middleweight knife that has all the right junk in all the right places. Super thin behind the edge and just a pleasure to work with on any type of food. Very forgiving and just does the job well no matter what.
Sukenari HAP40 Ktip 240mm
This knife is basically a workhorse with a thin grind. I can cut squash watermelon anything hard with ease. It blows through everything.
Kinda off the beaten path comparatively speaking to everyone else. Haha.
Kalaeb
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Re: Top Three (Right Now)

Post by Kalaeb »

Right now...the three on the rack are:

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From left to right, Markin, Thomas, Kochi.
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