LOL Thanks for saving me. I am always with only right headphone in my right ear and I was so confused - there's no voice on the right channel, not even 1% volume, while there is some quiet music on the left channel. I thought the person is mute or something. Got soooooooooo confused.
Well presented and informative, and you picked a great selection of knives to show off what you were talking about. However would be even better without the background music!
And one other thing - as has been mentioned (less politely) by others, technically 'Damascus' is not a 'finish' it is a different production method for the cladding (pattern welded from 2 materials), and is worth clarifying. For instance, it took me a while to realize that Damascus knives were not 100 layer *including the edge* foldings like mythical Japanese swords - but a single hard cutting layer with the Damascus pattern cladding folded around it. I.e - Damascus does not make the knife sharper!
@@maximelrod4976 Yeah. I do video so I notice this immediately. Everyone perceives it and subconsciously takes points off. The content and shooting are excellent otherwise. Just take that audio to the next level. : )
KURO-UCHI as in BLACK HIT/HAMMERED. I think hiring a Japanese tutor to research Japanese resources and brush ya up could be helpful. Happy to help if you need.
Bro, fix your sound...3 out of 4 of your videos that I've watched just now don't have either a R/L balance or stereo at all...really horrible to listen to if you have headphones on. Nice video, but that's really annoying and made me skip half of it...
Echo what others are saying: I try to focus on your voice and the riff or whatever punctuates and throws off my concentration. So it's not so much liking the music or not--it's that you're actually interrupting yourself.
I'm a recent addict still exploring what I like and don't, so this is fantastic content for me. I think knowing the names and what they mean actually helps you to see and think about what's in front of you. I'm sort of a slut, I like highly refined knives and I find the traditional styles compelling in a different way. Overly fancy doesn't do it for me, it offends my sense that this is a tool after all, but everything else can work on its own terms. Please keep working on content that gets into the aesthetics of it all, because not everyone can communicate that and it's really where it lives for a lot of us, I'm sure. I can go around the corner and buy a knife that cuts, but those wa handles and cool rustic finishes are just wow.
Informative video. I have a preference for Damascus Japanese knives but own several with various finishes. I do agree the background music is disruptive to the video. Thanks for posting
I believe it's not easy to find one favorite, because every finish is different - depending on the maker. I personally like Damascus, Nashiji, Tsuchime and Migaki finishes. Most of my knifes in my collection are Damascus knifes. But if I ask for a winner, it depends on the actual knife. In the selection of the video I would pick the Damascus from Shigeki Tanaka. This is definitly my actual personal favorite over all japanese knifes! I would definitly go for it! But it has a huge price tag and in Germany I have to consider allot of tax to pay, because I could only find it by vendors in North America. But yesterday I bougtht a knife with a nashiji finish from Sakai Takayuki, which I believe is absolutly stunning in a shop in netherland. I am really looking forward to hold it in my hands. So you see it depends on the knife.
In my opinion the finsih plays a bigger role for food release on larger ingredient, but the result are very different because also the grind plays a big role in that case. I all depend on how the blades smith build up there finish not only what kind of finish they use. For me it's all basically a question of asthetics and ease of maintenace a user perferred!
I like them all really. the Blackened Matsubara's I got from your shop are my best knives so far, reactive cladding and core steel make for a superb patina. Did not get the music downer like some did, great video and very clear information.
In like the video. But I have one point. I am a blacksmith myself and Damascus can definitely bring some advantages to a knife. You can bring two different steel types together and change the hardness or flexibility and so on of the knife in a heavy way.
For me Tscuchime, nashiji and kurouchi share the 1st spot, got a Kurosaki 240 gyuto that is both kurouchi and tsuchime and it's a beautiful beast. Damascus is starting to wake up on me, got my eyes on a 300 Sakimaru Takobiki by S.Tanaka...gotta save!
Fede Solano I'm with you, I prefer the simpler more natural clad/Sanmai finishes, I have a Naoki Mazaki kurouchi Shirogami 2 bunka which has a nashiji finish underneath and it is ,to my eyes, truly stunning. I've also got a Kurosaki Shizuku Nakiri in SG2 which comes from the opposite end of Japanese knife making, (powdered metallurgy steel and a spectacular cladding) it's a type of Tsuchime and it's beautiful but I find it a bit too bling nowadays as it has a migaki polished finish.
The only time the finish will apply to this is a kurouchi over an iron cladding, as it will help protect from rust but isnt fool proof, it is also the only finish that wears away over time, some smiths are a little longer lasting that others. As for the maintenance as long as you are caring for your knife well (no dishwashers, no abrasive cleaning tools like a scouring pad) then you shouldn't have any issues.
I only have one hammered finish knife. It does release food better but since it's a convex blade it's hard to say if it's due to convex geometry or the hammered finish. My guess is both.
Also, damascus is a catch-all name that originated from mixing types of steel, specifically from Syria. Mokume-gane is the japanese name of this similar method, maybe even influenced, but either way, let's keep it japanese!
Hi Gage, Damascus is a little bit more complicated! There are different kind of damascus knifes. Damascus Honjaki or true Damascus vs. Damascus clad knife. You are totally right concerning Damascus cladding. The cladding contributes to the asthetic, maybe a litte bit to the stickiyness of the blade, depending on the type of etching. Because primarily the core steel determines the edge performance. But true Damascus is another thing. If the cutting edge contains two different types of steal the performance can be different. For example: VG10 and VG2 folded together in true Damascus. And this blade combined with a differential hardening.... But this is more popular for hand made european blacksmith knifes.
And none is actually damascus. Just like no kitchen knives are tamahagane. I'm not sure why japanese just don't use their own name. Mokume-gane, besides the word damascus, is popular and familiar.
... damascus* / stickiness* / steel one knife, multiple knives* / types of steel* (steal = illegally take away without asking) - don't type away like a decapitated chicken and spell-check before posting!
If its a damascus clad knife. Which is usually a hi carbon like 1095 cvr or other it is actually a better knife ad it can be sharpened thru its life w no issues as the blade its self is mono steel and just has a sexy pattern on the out side!
Metallurgy has come quite a far way, steels today are more consistent than they've ever been. Cooking isnt about feel, its about edge retention and ease of sharpening. We're I to be charging into battle 700 years ago it would be a different story.
Very nice and informative except for one glaring exception. Lose the annoying and distracting hipster background music which adds nothing (unless you’re trying to be a hipster) and is makes it hard to concentrate on what you’re saying.
Is Hammered finishing less sticking? I would Like to buy a takamura gyuto and I think that the less sticking finishing is hammered. But this would be my first japanese knife, so I don't hace any experience.
@@reductancioposeso5042 I personally don't own a hammer finished knife, so hard for me to say. But my best cutting experience is actually with a Migaki finished knife. There's far less friction when cutting, so it "feels" way more precise to use compared to the more organically finished knives.
I would say there is a slight correlation between finishes and food release. I have a 210mm yoshihiro kiritsuke and hand polished it till mirror finish just for the fun of it and kinda regretted it, especially during prep time, most of the veg that has lots of water content tends to stick more than if i were to use a out of the box victorinox chef knife with similar geometry and thickness. One this to consider is also the angle of the bevel, western knives tend to cleave its way through veggies and pushes them apart, whereas most japanese knives have thinner blade that feels like it just goes between, rather than separate them
I'm hugely attracted to Japanese knives because I make soups and stews from around the world all the time and I'm always chopping onions. I used to use a clunky cheap utility knife and I'm done with that. I'm looking for a knife that makes it easy and efficient and when I find it I'm going to marry that knife and be happy ever after.
Hi, excellent information. I was overwhelmed by these decorations but this helps a lot. I am trying to get into buying artisanal knives. I am completely new but would you please recommend me a good artisan whose prices are reasonable (less than 300 per knife?). I am interested in Damascus and hand hammered aesthetic with traditional handles. Thank you so much!
Hey Abhi! In that price range some of my favorites come from Kato-san or Shigeki Tanaka. Both offer damascus and hammered patterns and perform super well, also Makoto Kurosaki has a unique small tsuchime pattern that I absolutely love and you can find R2 Gyutos from him for under 300 which is pretty darn hard to beat!
That background music is incredibly annoying. Please consider avoiding background music in a video where you're trying to explain information to viewers.
Food release is going to have more to do with the knifes finish, and the grind of the blade. Tsuchime helps a lot with food release, and so does a convex grind. That being said for extra tricky and sticky ingredients hold your heel higher off the board and go tip down and drag it through so that while youre cutting the product as little knife is in contact with the product itself. This is how I cut things like avocado or cucumber into super thin slices and get it to all stay on the board where I left it so that you can fan it out nicely later!
I have a Yu Kurosaki Fujin Petty 150mm which is a Damascus forged knife with Tsuchime finish. So they definitely exist! I don't know from the top of my dome if there are other bladesmith's or brands who make Damascus knives with Tsuchime finish, but I wouldn't be surprised if there are a few.
Damascus certainly has its strengths, but many of those strengths were a lot more important when making swords and other tools to resist impact, in a time when steel was much less consistent than it is today, which the san mai technique covers for most Japanese cutlery today. There are some beautiful and high performing Damascus knives that are usually made by smaller smiths or custom shops, but they are few and far between, very expensive, and best case they perform as well as a well heat treated mono steel, albeit more beautiful depending on preference!
Go for a 'sandwich' knife - has hard steel on the outside (bread) for overall blade strength, and on the inside hard brittle steel for sharpness. Cuts really well and a long lasting knife, cheaper than a damascus too. Nice irregular wavy line where the outside strong steel and brittle inside steel meet.
This video is old and you maybe won't read this anyway, but I still want to comment, since you encouraged sharing experiences. I have to disagree with your opinion on damascus. GOOD Damascus will provide a lot of benefit to your blade, choosing 2 different kinds of steel can give your knife good capabilities of both steels, like high edge retention and good durability at the same time. A Damascus blade also wears differently from a normal blade. While a normal blade will wear realtively even, which is great for super clean cuts (onions etc.) the different steels will wear unevenly, creating a micro-serrated edge, which might feel less sharp on onions, but really helps with cutting tomatos for example. A damascus knife is not necessarily better, but it is definetly different.
@@deathbyastonishment7930 not really no. Yes there are damascus cladded knives, but there are also a lot of full damascus knives, so I wouldn't say that most japanese knvies are. And even if the majority of them is cladded, it's important to note that there is a difference between a damascus cladding and a damascus blade. On damascus cladded knives, yes damascus is purely cosmetic, but that can't be generalized to all damascus knives.
You just have to look at most damascus patterns to know that you're not in a micro scale so you won't have a micro serrated edge, steel doesn't work like this under a microscope. For a micro-serrated edge or a very polished edge, everything is determinated during sharpening. You can have a toothy edge with high carbon steel and high carbides volume, the edge retention will last "forever". Vanadium carbides are king for edge retention and with whatever sharpening finishes (maxamet steel and rex121 steel (modern powder-metallurgical tool steels but very uncommon in japanese cuttlery)). Check Knife Steel Nerds website for more info about steel : knifesteelnerds.com/2019/07/15/carbide-types-in-knife-steels/ Concerning Japanese blades finishes : kuro ichi ("satin" finish with grind marks), migaki, damascus, nashiji, tsuchime.
I love the Kurouchi on my knives. I like knives that look rugged as fuck with some hand hammered ness like the tsuchime, but looks like messed up charred metal with the Kurouchi. Rugged and raw over pretty shit. Mirror finishes are for pretty boys and cocaine, or both. I also hate myself and don't think I deserve pretty shit.
why the loop of music?? i like knives. not this dj re-mix nonsense that's louder than your voice- the same loop for over 14 minutes. for the love of knives, wHy??? sorry but i gotta go. let me know if you repost. I didn't get past 6 minutes before calling Cut.
Man, I like your content but come on! The music in the background made me quit half way through. Plus your talking is only in my left ear. So if you want me to come back to your channel, drop the horrible background music and make sure you record your talking in both channels. Thanks.
Would not even call the first two styles "finishes" as they look totally cheap and unfinished. Tsushime looks as if someone heavily abused the knives. And skip the background music next time, it's irritating and annyoing.
Damascus is a *_type of steel,_* more properly called wootz. Those knives have *_pattern-welded_* steel. Commonly used all over the world, back when you only had "uneven" steel. *_Neither_* have anything to do with the *_finish._* (they're typically finished in a way that prominently shows the patterns, but that's beside the point)
You're totally right! But this style of finish is almost exclusively referred to as Damascus in the North American market, so I thought it best to explain to people what they're getting if they purchase this type of knife. Thanks for the comment!
@@SharpKnifeShop You still shouldn't refer to it as "damascus", but as something like "pattern-welding, often erroneously called damascus" ..and, as I said, it's not a type of finish, at all.
I think the (real) distinction between actual Damascus vs Pattern Welded is gonna be lost on most folk. What I think should have been mentioned is that the 'Damascus' in modern Japanese kitchen knives is purely a *cladding decoration* and the cutting edge is a single piece of high end Japanese steel (VG10, SG2, White#2, Blue#2, etc).
@@markir9 Just because it'll be lost on most people, doesn't mean it's okay to lie. That people claiming to be knowledgable and to educate, should get away with saying things with certainty, that is utter and complete nonsense. Even if you mix up pattern-welding and wootz, and call them both Damascus (which, for a supposed source of information, people who have ever possibility *_and responsibility,_* to research the subject before making their proclamations), conflating the two... *_neither could possibly be called types of finishes, by any possible stretch of the imagination!_* These people are not only *_shockingly incompetent,_* but they are also clearly *_LIARS._* Saying "but that's what people tend to call it" is merely stupid, but to say "yes, you're completely right *_that it isn't a finish,_* but also I'll _*keep calling it a finish.*_Thank you very much for that comment that I neither paid any attention to, nor give a shit about, much less will listen to (not to mention agree with)"... Yeah, that's just pure dishonesty and disrespect. (also, dishonesty is, in itself, also disrespectful) Either, by itself, completely disqualifies them from being people one should listen to, or whose words should hold *_any_* weight, whatsoever. All, combined...
Im going to hve to downvote because this is like the 4th video i have watched where the audio only goes through my left headphone. Also music is way too loud and doesnt fit the vibe.
Hey! We get a lot of comments about the audio on our old videos when we were still figuring everything out and we've put a lot of effort in to upgrade our production value, why don't you check out our page and give one of our more recent videos a shot, we've come a long way, but were keeping the old ones up until we can redo them!
@@SharpKnifeShop Understandable! Video is very challenging to do at a high level, especially audio, and you already have day jobs. : ) I do video so believe me I know. Be glad to try to answer any questions on the basics, and steer you to RU-vid gurus who can really help. It's not hard when you know how.
