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lukisan
11
Nov 9, 2018
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Hi guys, I see there is an interesting debate happening that I can miss:) I am a professional full-time sharpener at SharpEdge and I sharpen daily a lot of different knives, also a lot of ZDP-189. In fact, I gave this Bunka to my wife last year and I can explain some simple facts. First, about the brittleness. It is brittle, and my wife would be the first to tell the tale, as she doesn't care much about the proper usage. She opens cans, cuts through bones, basically all the things you shouldn't do.. :) Probably because I can (and do) repair her knife all the time..But still. comparing it to other, shirogami and similar steels, it's actually not so terrible, like VG-10 or so. The knife is still here and holds an edge:) Sharpening - I sharpen the Bunka by hand on whetstones, steel rods are out of option (think ceramic rods), but on stones, there are no problems. With normal sharpening stones of medium/high quality and basic sharpening knowledge, there are no issues sharpening it. 20% of Chromium should be more than enough for normal steels to get it pretty much stainless, but with powder steels, like ZDP-189, it's a little bit different. With normal use, this Bunka will not develop a patina. In more extreme situations it can get a very light patina, but only with chefs like my wife, who truly ignore all knife maintenance tips. Let me give an example. My wife's Bunka got some small spots after cleaning the fish on the beach in a bucket full of a salty water, and then she left it overnight not wiping or cleaning it at all !!!:( Also, after cutting a large number of lemons, we didn't clean it too... But don't worry, I just cleaned the knife and rubbed it with a cloth and it was nice and shiny again. In short, we abused the knife and we didn't get to see it rust. And one more thing about the ZDP-189 steel and its performance. I sharpen all the knives from our kitchen arsenal, but this black beauty stays sharp looong. Very long. And that's the beauty of powder steels! Try it. Luka
Nov 9, 2018
Experimental
10
Nov 9, 2018
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lukisanMaybe you could answer some of the questions more recently posted as well about the laminate steel and the edge angle(s) and the full handle materials? I'd also love to see a picture of your knife with some delicate patina on it if you have time, I think a knife with this aesthetic would look great in a lovingly worn in state!
Nov 9, 2018
lukisan
11
Nov 9, 2018
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ExperimentalHi guys, Just got home and found the knife in the kitchen sink all wet and dirty:):) Here are som photos, its basicaly no patina,n the only tine i got so shame spots was after the whole night salty water incident. On the photos you can also see kurochi black part of the blade worn a little bit after about 1,5 year ob abuse.
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Nov 9, 2018
Experimental
10
Nov 9, 2018
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lukisanThat is a very pretty knife. As a Chef, and a follower of all things kitchen knife related, I am going to endorse this! Why? Well, it is made out of the new super premium ZDP-189, it is made in Japan by a small group of actual craftsmen, it's rustic finish and overall shape provide an amazing aesthetic, and by these pictures, the junction from the blade to the handle looks perfect even after 1.5 years use. All that with a heavy discount including saya and free shipping.
Nov 9, 2018
Kavik
5531
Dec 21, 2018
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lukisanHi Lukisan, As a full time sharpener at SharpEdge, I'm hoping you can answer a question for me? Can you describe the process used for sharpening the new knives before they go out? The reason I ask is that my edge on the knife I just received is very....i dunno, weird. It's one of the sharpest factory edges I've ever received, which is great, but the best I can describe it is to say it looks like it was finished on a buffing wheel. It has sort of a convex edge on it for most of the blade, with no discernable bevel that can be seen with the naked eye. Except for up near the tip, on just one side, there's a spot with a flat bevel.... But it looks as though it's a VERY different bevel angle from the rest of the knife I'm used to having to sharpen new kitchen knives as soon as they arrive, so I'm not really all that thrown off by this, and will use it as is until it needs sharpening anyway, but I'd just like to hear about the process that resulted in this edge. I expected more like your pictures, where a nice flat bevel can easily be seen even in small, low resolution pictures
Dec 21, 2018
Kavik
5531
Dec 22, 2018
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Kavik@sharpedge Hi Grega, maybe you could answer the above question about the factory sharpening processes?
Dec 22, 2018
sharpedge
220
SharpEdge
Dec 24, 2018
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KavikHi Kavik, I talked to Luka, he'll send you his answer today. Glad to hear you received the knife before Christmas! Cheers, Grega
Dec 24, 2018
Kavik
5531
Dec 24, 2018
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sharpedgeThanks Grega, appreciate that :) Btw, got to use it a little bit yesterday. Initial impression of its performance was overall pretty positive. A little concerned about the thickness of the blade (a personal preference, i tend to like super thin knives), but i didn't have any veggies on hand suitable for testing for wedging. The one thing I found rather disappointing though was the kurouchi finish. After just 1 washing with a soft sponge and mild dish soap, the black finish has already turned to a very light grey. I've only owned one other knife with this finish, and it was something I ended up thinning and reprofiling like crazy, but that one took time flat grinding on the stones before it faded as much as this already has from just a sponge. Is that normal for these knives to change so drastically so quickly? It's not really what I expected after seeing Luka's year and a half old knife above Other than that though, the blade height is very nice, food release is good. The out of the box edge (though still unusual looking) was gliding through veggies with just the weight of the knife. Can't really comment about steering yet for the same reason i can't comment on wedging yet. Will need to pick up some carrots and potatoes and stuff to really run it through the paces after the holidays
Dec 24, 2018
lukisan
11
Dec 25, 2018
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Kavikhi @kavik, Thanks for your questions, and sorry for a late answer - Christmas days are busy for us.. :) I’ll address all questions here, also those you asked Grega later one. Alright - the sharpening process. First, we have to separate two processes in the production - one is grinding and the other is sharpening. Grinding:
When grinding, Yoshida first creates a long bevel which is a little concave. It is made on very big grinding wheels approx 1.2m radius. The intention is for both sides to have an easy, long concave shape so we can create a very thin edge at the end of the blade which will stay thin for a longer time than if we would have a flat edge. Very long, thin edge is very sharp and it can withstand a lot more sharpening session by not getting thick.

Sharpening:
The micro bevel on the end of the thin concave edge is asymmetrical to help with the cutting process. The knives are sharpened on the flat stone wheel 1500 grit, then the burr is removed on the leather buffing wheel. Osamu-san (head blacksmith of Yoshida Hamono smithery) also believes the micro bevel is better to be flat or slightly convex. The little convex micro bevel is created by working the knife a little bit longer on the buffing wheel after the stone sharpening.

As you are aware, most Japanese knives are not fully sharpened by blacksmiths so the final edge can be put on by the end user (as per their needs/liking). Majority of our customers are just getting familiar with Japanese knives, and thus they expect a super sharp knife out of the box, so we decided it is better than Yoshida already puts a final edge on the knife. This makes the J-knives rookies happy, but more advanced users can, of course, can put a different edge on it.

The edge that you have seen on my wife's old knife is bigger and longer because this knife was sharpened a lot of times and was never re-ground, so now is actually much thicker than when it was new, but in our case this works just fine because my wife is a heavier user. :) About the kuro-uchi finish - it is the most sensitive with the first or two washes, then it will not fade away much anymore. I would recommend to give another strong wash with a bit of kitchen soap and rub it with a sponge, clean it with a dry cloth and then should be ok. Glad to hear your feedback and first experience, looking forward to hearing more once you use it a bit more and when you will sharpen it for the first time. Have a nice holiday! Luka
Dec 25, 2018
Kavik
5531
Dec 25, 2018
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lukisanThanks Luka, that clarifies a lot for me 😁 These are really the kinds of details they should be sharing in the descriptions of these drops. The large diameter hollow grinding, the asymmetrical bevel, the fact that it's fully sharpened and then polished/stropped on a leather wheel.....these are all things that go a long way in explaining the cost of the knife, beyond just the expensive steel. No worries about the delay in response, i only tagged Grega back into it because I wasn't sure if you were still frequenting the site Happy holidays to you as well!
Dec 25, 2018
kangster
85
Mar 20, 2019
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lukisanthis deserves way more up votes. im surprised that you're ok sharing the cons of the steel given your job and that makes the review a lot more valuable (and the steel less scary). thanks!
Mar 20, 2019
sharpedge
220
SharpEdge
Mar 21, 2019
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kangsterThanks man! Yeah, there's no perfect knife so it's important to share both the pros and cons so potential new customers know what they're getting. ✌️
Mar 21, 2019
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