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We've seen a couple comments here about gaps between the tang and handle opening, but we don't see any photos of them here and only have two support tickets for any kind of defect. It seems like this has only affected a handful of units, but we'd really like to see photos so that we can understand this issue and address it for individual members with refunds or replacements as needed, and/or present our vendor with this info so we can address any warranty issues.
We've also seen a few members expressing dissatisfaction with sharpness. This is also something that we checked for during QC, and I was able to shave with any part of the edge on all the units we inspected. I've also been using mine at home to cut paper-thin slices of cucumber, tomato, and other veggies. If yours wasn't this sharp, I can understand how that's disappointing. While we do want every product to be perfect out of the box, if yours is not as sharp as you think it should be, Apogee does offer free lifetime sharpening which they do by hand here in the US. You can contact them directly (sglassen@apogeeculinary.com) or contact support and we'll help you to get that done.
Our understanding from speaking with industry experts is that a 3% return rate is expected for most kitchen knives. So far, we have 2 support tickets out of 580 units sold. We do see the comments and reviews, and I think I've addressed all of them, but we really need members to contact support and provide photos so that we can evaluate them in context and truly understand if the problem is minor or major and what percentage of members are affected - we absolutely will act on the community's behalf in holding vendors accountable, but we can't do that unless we have the support tickets and photos to show them.
So if you are among the 570ish people who got your knife and are enjoying it, that's great and we'd love to get your comments and reviews as well. If you're among the 10ish people (so far) who are not happy with your knife, then definitely send a support request so we can get you sharpening or a replacement or refund, and also report any issues to the vendor with some facts to back up the claims.
Thanks for helping us to make sure we are delivering what we promised and what you expected, and also for making sure that Massdrop and our vendors are both accountable to the community. -- Jonas
CC: @Benjabooly @Suitepotato @Keepod @Hygaard @method_burger
Also, I'll attach my images to the thread so that people can see what I'm talking about and provide images if theirs are the same.
Let's talk about cost and perception. You guys have gone out of your way to create the perception that this is a super high quality knife, made for professionals AND that it is made in Japan. Given that you have not taken a single step to make it clear these are made in China one can only conclude that you 1) want to hide that they are made in China and 2) you know they are cheaply made but want to perpetuate the misconception that they are equal to say something like a Shun layered/Damascus style knife. They are not.
I have no problem with buying a knife that is good quality, China made or not. What I do have a problem with is a company that uses the trust established with it's customers over several years to pander lower quality products at a high price hoping to deceive the unwary.
Massdrop needs to rethink how it presents products and how honest it wants to be... especially about products it attaches it's name to.
As to this knife it should have had a tapered flange where it entered the handle and it should have been fitted much better. It's a very uncomfortable blade to use due to the sharp transition edge not to mention it's HIGHLY unsanitary since the tang/handle union will be super prone to bacteria AND loosening as I believe others have stated here already.
Thanks for posting pics, I can see how this would be disappointing. You asked, "what's being done about this?" and that's a reasonable question. While we have seen a number of comments about this issue in the discussion, we are also seeing about 4-star average reviews from 23 members and less than a dozen support requests for this issue (from 600+ delivered). Massdrop and Apogee stand by the warranty for this knife, and we're glad to setup a refund or exchange if you feel you got a defective unit (and if you say there is blade play, that could mean you). If you haven't already done so, you can click "Contact Support" for this order in your Transactions - https://www.massdrop.com/transactions
Or if you prefer to keep the knife, Apogee will sharpen it free of charge - just email sglassen@apogeeclulinary.com
We've also spoken to Apogee about paying special attention to the gaps in the handles that you noted during manufacturing and QC for all future Takumi production (this includes Takumi and the Paring and Petty now offered). Most people don't seem to have this issue, but I'm sorry if yours did and I think this will eliminate any instances of the same thing happening on any more knives in the future.
Thanks for the detailed post and please do submit a ticket if you haven't yet so we can resolve this for you.
Also, something to consider, you might want to do like a 'first 100 batch' early shipment (like a month before the bulk shipment) because I'm sure the massdrop community would not mind doing free QC for you!