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Evshrug
3764
Community
Aug 15, 2016
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63 on the Rockwell hardness scale? I usually see 57-59. Obviously these knives will hold an edge longer, but be more difficult to sharpen. I'm not familiar with this steel, is it better than average in avoiding chipping?
Aug 15, 2016
rjones
14
Aug 15, 2016
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EvshrugThat's a great question.
Aug 15, 2016
K-ozDragon
72
Aug 15, 2016
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EvshrugKnives with a higher hrc won't handle impact well; that said, they handle the main enemy of kitchen knives fantastic, edge roll. You shouldn't be slamming these knives into the board, so chipping shouldn't be an issue. However edge roll is the primary dulling method on kitchen knives, especially Japanese kitchen knives. These knives are set at a much thinner bevel than typical European knives (15-17deg per side vs 23-25deg), so this harder edge is a must. It also allows for much higher wear resistance too, which is great. Some Japanese knives do chip (ahem, Shun) but this is more due to the steel they use and not necessarily the hardness.
Aug 15, 2016
Neji
156
Aug 15, 2016
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K-ozDragonI have never had any of my Shun knives chip. I use wood or softer plastic cutting boards. Back OT, this looks like a good deal.
Aug 15, 2016
K-ozDragon
72
Oct 16, 2016
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NejiI work at a knife shop, and almost every time a shun comes in they have Knicks in them or full on chips. It's rare that they don't. That's why I prefer the Kaizen line from Henckels. It just depends on the steel used and quality of the temper. Shun temper is fine, but their steel is very rigid and inflexible.
Oct 16, 2016
Evshrug
3764
Community
Oct 16, 2016
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K-ozDragonThis is sorta off topic but sorta related; part of why I was looking at kitchen knives is the Faberware chef's knife given to us second hand... well, I used a Ruixin knife sharpener, and the knife basically needed reprofiled, and the coarse stone revealed (created?) a lot of nicks in the knife. Seemed like the nicks just stayed or got worse as I kept going, switching to a medium stone helped a bit but the nicks were deep enough not to come out. After 30 minutes with the medium stone, I did the fine and polishing stones and called it a day, need a new kitchen knife.
PS I pretty much just rock-chop veggies on a plastic cutting board. Never, like, actually doing a butcher-chop motion at bones. Or even meat, cuz my Fiancé's a vegetarian and home dinner is kinda depressing.
Oct 16, 2016
K-ozDragon
72
Oct 18, 2016
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EvshrugYour stone just wasn't coarse enough. A natural medium stone is 1500-2000 grit, which is much too fine to reprofile. You generally begin at 100-300 grit to reprofile. Anything over 800 grit is polishing or touch up. Also, kitchenaid is horrible lol. You can get a 28 piece set at Walmart for $30. Do yourself a favor and either buy one of these, or buy a German Henckels chef knife. However, if you buy the Henckels, DO NOT but it from an outlet store!!! Those are made in China (or some other cheap labor nation) and shouldn't even be allowed to be called Henckels. Buy them from a cutlery shop, and make sure they are from Germany (as opposed to "German steel, made in china"). Idk why people don't buy good kitchen knives. Spend the money once for a set that will last a lifetime and perform properly - makes sense to me. Right now you can get a $600+ set of Henckels for $2-300 at any cutlery shop (or possibly online). Henckels only does this sale now during the holidays as a promotional sale. I'd *highly* recommend this. Then add higher end specialty knives to the set as needed 😊
Oct 18, 2016
Evshrug
3764
Community
Oct 19, 2016
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EvshrugIt was a Faberware, not kitchenaide (both not so great, but for free as part of a large number of housewarming gifts to get started, it was still a welcome gift vs not having anything) I started with a green 120 grit stone with full intention of reprofiling each bezel @20° (figuring it was cheap steel), got the new profile all the way to the edge evenly on both sides but observed the nicks, and went through even passes with 320, 600, and 1200 grit stone, gave up on the knife as "good enough till I get a new knife" after that. Sets of five passes on each side to keep the bevels even and very carefull to prevent edge rolling. I think some or all of the nicks were there before I started sharpening, but they were HELLA deep!
Maybe I'll get this Yaxell knife, or ask for a decent knife for now as a wedding gift and save up for those Henckels or something else nice when I finish paying for this wedding and honeymoon!! Ha!
TOTALLY off topic but thanks for sharing your opinion (maybe PM if it's possible?) do you have any pocket flashlight suggestions for moonlit walks on gravel paths? :D
Oct 19, 2016
Deaomega1214
478
Apogee Culinary Designs
Jan 31, 2017
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K-ozDragonHi, not only am I the designer, I'm also the man who started Shun. You are correct when you say that the higher the HRC, the easier it chips. Until now. BD1N is a new nitrogen steel that retains its toughness even at 63 HRC. We have now shipped over 20,000 pieces, and never had a return. That was the whole point. I wanted to build a knife with Japanese performance and German strength.
Jan 31, 2017
Evshrug
3764
Community
Jan 31, 2017
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Deaomega1214Hello! I don't see your name, but it's always cool to have interactions with designers and industry insiders! Your comment about BD1N steel is fascinating, does it use more nitrogen in the alloy or is it predominately nitrogen?
Jan 31, 2017
Deaomega1214
478
Apogee Culinary Designs
Feb 1, 2017
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EvshrugThey add the nitrogen when they are making the chromium creating a new molecule called a nitride. These new nitrides continue to stop rust in the steel but instead of weakening the carbon molecules they bond and support them. This is why we can go to 63 HRC and still be tough. For us in the industry, this is kind of the holy Grail of steel
Feb 1, 2017
Deaomega1214
478
Apogee Culinary Designs
Feb 1, 2017
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EvshrugBy the way, my name is Dennis Epstein and my email is depstein@apogeeculinary.comdepstein@apogeeculinary.co
Feb 1, 2017
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