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Knife Buying Blog

Varmint

By Varmint
in Kitchen Consumer

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CRUZMISL

CRUZMISL

Posted
Posted
It feels great, it's well-balanced, and noticeably sharper than the Ryusen/Hattori equivalent

Oh Man! Now I have to buy one..........wife's gonna flip. I didn't think it could get sharper than the Hattori's.

:-)

Joe

Varmint

Varmint

Posted
  • Topic Starter
Posted

They're here!!!!!

Initial impressions: I think I like the feel of the Shun more than the Ryusen. The "D"-shaped handle is a fantastic configuration and is very comfortable in my hand. It's wild to have the blade be slightly off center from the handle, but I like it! Also, the tang on the Ryusen is slightly noticeable in the hand, unlike the Shun, where it is buried. I love the lack of bolsters in both knives. The Shun's weight, taking into account its larger blade length, is proportionately a bit heavier than the Ryusen. I think that's because of the handle and the blade width. The height of the Shun's blade is larger than the Ryusen. God, I want to use these suckers!!!

Dean McCord

VarmintBites

Varmint

Varmint

Posted
  • Topic Starter
Posted

The 9-1/2 inch Ryusen would add about 0.6 ounces and make the blade height slighly broader than the Shun. I'm torn. The Shun I have sells for $116. The larger Ryusen sells for $184. But I really think I like this D-shaped handle.

Dean McCord

VarmintBites

Chad

Chad

Posted
Posted
The 9-1/2 inch Ryusen would add about 0.6 ounces and make the blade height slighly broader than the Shun. I'm torn. The Shun I have sells for $116. The larger Ryusen sells for $184. But I really think I like this D-shaped handle.

The Shun is a great knife. If the handle fits your hands, go for it. The Ryusen is theoretically a "better" knife. It has 63 layers of damascus to the Shun's 16. So what? The damscus is largely decorative. The core of both knives is VG-10 hardened to about 62-63Rc, so the cutting edge is going to be exactly the same. This was my dilemma late last year. I wanted the Shun. I ended up with the Hattori/Ryusen because I found a really great deal.

If I recall, you mentioned that the Ryusen is sharpened to a steeper angle (13-15 degrees?). BFD. It'll have a slightly better out-of-the-box sharpness than the Shun (15-17 degrees), though you'd be very hard pressed to tell the difference. And the edge angle is really up to you. Ahem. There is a sharpening tutorial, you know :raz:.

Damascus, VG-10 and esoteric angles aside, go with what feels good in your hands.

Anyway, if it were me, I'd keep the Shun and spend the extra money on a Spyderco 204 sharpening system.

Chad

Chad Ward

An Edge in the Kitchen

William Morrow Cookbooks

www.chadwrites.com

robyn

robyn

Posted
Posted
Robyn, you mistake my intent, I think. My point was that the vast majority of "professional" knife sharpeners, just aren't professional kitchen knife sharpeners. You, obviously, have found one of the good ones. That's a joy. Treasure him. He and his ilk are few and far between.

A good knife sharpener will have, if he's under 50 or so, a Tormek grinder with integral blade guides, a slack belt sander for convex edges, a paper wheel for finishing edges, and numerous other toys with which to ply his trade. Older sharpeners might have a less elaborate setup, but be able to get more out of it by dint of their experience. Again, that is a rarity. Most itinerant sharpeners deal mainly with garden tools rather than high end kitchen knives. The professional sharpener who deals primarily with restaurants and discriminating customers is a dying breed. When I said to tip him well, that was a way of saying that you have found one in a million -- keep him happy. It's like finding an artisanal cheese maker.

Chad

Don't worry - I will try to keep him very happy - without doing anything that would upset my husband :smile:. Robyn

Varmint

Varmint

Posted
  • Topic Starter
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I just talked to Daniel O'Malley, and I'm keeping the Shun. Off to the market to get some good veggies to chop. I'll take pictures.

Dean McCord

VarmintBites

AzRaeL

AzRaeL

Posted
Posted
In addition to not being able to test drive a knife in stores and the lure of exotics (like those Hattoris posted recently) only available via mail order, I would hate to move to a Japanese knife and then in 3 months wish I had the heft of a German style knife. Has anyone had regrets in this area or felt the need to use a heavier knife frequently?

How important is heft?

i use a 6" Santoku which is very light. When i need to cut something reallly firm, like a Galangal, i whip out the Chinese Chopper (no. 1 size, weighs damn near a pound or more).

Do not expect INTJs to actually care about how you view them. They already know that they are arrogant bastards with a morbid sense of humor. Telling them the obvious accomplishes nothing.

bobdavis

bobdavis

Posted
Posted (edited)
The 9-1/2 inch Ryusen would add about 0.6 ounces and make the blade height slighly broader than the Shun.  I'm torn.  The Shun I have sells for $116.  The larger Ryusen sells for $184.  But I really think I like this D-shaped handle.

I have never held a Ryusen, but I have a 10" Shun chef's knife - and love it. I use it all the time, rarely picking up one of the others I have (unless the nature of what I'm doing really calls for something different). The handle is wonderful. I love how it feels in my hand.

If you keep it - you'll be happy.

(edit - I see you're keeping it - you'll love it)

Edited by bobdavis (log)
Varmint

Varmint

Posted
  • Topic Starter
Posted

Oh, I kept the Shun, and I used it tonight. I diced potatoes and tomatoes. I minced garlic. I sliced zucchini and did a chiffonade of parsley. What fun!!!

Dean McCord

VarmintBites

Varmint

Varmint

Posted
  • Topic Starter
Posted

I took pictures last night, but I couldn't get the lighting right.

I used the Shun last night, and it's wonderful to have a knife that really works. It does have a bit more of a German feel to it than the Ryusen, but I ultimately liked the handle a bit more. Give me some time with it, and I'll try to give y'all some details. I still almost sent both knives back to get the big Ryusen, but I ultimately decided that the only reason I'd be doing that was because Shuns are so much more common than Ryusens -- it was an elitist thing. And I shun elitism (sorry, I couldn't help).

Dean McCord

VarmintBites

bilrus

bilrus

Posted
Posted (edited)
And I shun elitism (sorry, I couldn't help).

Not surprising considering the following quote from jhlurie on another hot thread:

Dean McCord ("Varmint") is whatever is the exact opposite of a food snob.
Edited by bilrus (log)

Bill Russell

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