Is this kitchen knife worth the money??

A friend of mine, and avid collector John Fischbach uses the only loveless kitchen knife set ever made...:eek: --Joe
 
There's no Mr. Hattori. It's a factory.
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There is indeed a Mr. Hattori, full name Ichiro Hattori. Excerpt from the Seki-cut website:

"Ichiro Hattori, 63 years old craftsman, was involved with knife making at the age of 18 when he joined his father's knife company "Masahiro". In 1971, he has opened his own workshop and started producing high quality Hunting knives for export with buyers brands including Kershaw, Browning, Beretta, Tekna etc."
 
I own one of these knives. There are about 6 of them in the US.

I would check with Daniel on the relationship between the mass produced Hattori knives and these kitchen knives. It's my understanding that these are essentially custom knives made by Mr. Hattori.

They are easily the most beautiful kitchen knives I've seen. They take a wonderful edge and are very easy to sharpen.

However, they are not very durable in the face of family kitchen use. Unless you are the only person who uses this knife, it will get damaged. A guest in our house let the knife sit for four hours with lemon juice on the blade (argh) and the damascus etch wiped right off (admittedly it was easy to re-etch with ferric chloride from Radio Shack). Another guest (argh #2) put it through the dish washer, and the knife edge rusted badly, regardless of what it says about being stainless.

I hope this helps.
 
Originally posted by Gabe Newell
I own one of these knives. There are about 6 of them in the US.



However, they are not very durable in the face of family kitchen use. Unless you are the only person who uses this knife, it will get damaged. A guest in our house let the knife sit for four hours with lemon juice on the blade (argh) and the damascus etch wiped right off (admittedly it was easy to re-etch with ferric chloride from Radio Shack). Another guest (argh #2) put it through the dish washer, and the knife edge rusted badly, regardless of what it says about being stainless.
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Wow.....If it were my $1,200 kitchen knife I would break leather and double-tap those house guests so fast that.................

Nah, it's only money :D
 
If you are going to just, like, hang it on your wall, as a piece of art, perhaps it is worth the price of a masterpiece painting. ;)

If you want a real kitchen knife, yeah, get a Henckels or Global. (Of course, I'm biased, since our store also sells kitchen knives ;) But I do know a thing or two about kitchen knives.)

You're paying for the Damascus steel. It isn't any "better", only "prettier" than regular high-carbon stain-free steel.

Regarding carbon-steel knives... They are great if you take care of them. All it takes is a little mineral oil to keep the blade from tarnishing.

~ashes
 
I was going to question the damascus reacting with food, but I read the whole thread first and see it's SS damascus. I say if you can afford the knife get it and enjoy using it.
 
Hattori kitchen knives come in 2 variants:

(1) The ultra expensive KD-30 series (what Gabe has). Cowry X core with 121 layer nickel damascus outer. Micarta handles. These are entirely handmade as I understand it.

(2) The more affordable Unryu series. VG-10 core with 63 layer damascus outer. Pakkawood (or equivalent) handles. These involve both hand and machine operations in making.

Both are not full damascus construction, more like a san mai. I have not seen any non-damascus Hattori kitchen knives.

It's been mentioned that the Fallkniven K1/K2 are made by Hattori. These are full VG-10 blades, but I don't like their black coating.
 
Gabe... ouch! I can sympathise with you. The edge on my Kanefusa santoku got chipped because someone used it to hack a chicken (!@$!#).

In general I find that Japanese knives aren't meant for the average kitchen user. Their thin and very hard edges don't take as much abuse as a German knife (which is what most people are used to). Moral: don't let 'em close to your Japanese knives! :)
 
Originally posted by DumboRAT
Right -- but why the Henckels when a Cutco which costs half as much will do the job just as well?

I have the former in my kitchen so that when I entertain, someone using my kitchen set might notice, and might say "hey, nice knife --do you like blades?"

=)

It's tonyccw's point again.

Why bother spending $50K for a BMW whwn a $25K Honda will do everything just as well? Why spent $120K on a Mercedes S-Class when a $60K Lexus will again completely fill the bill?

Why $50K for a 'Vette Z06 or $150K for a Ferrari when a $30K tuner Honda or Dodge would go just as fast?

We all place different values on different things -- my wife won't blink an eye to spend a few thousand for a custom tailored dress, but I cringe every time I don my hand tailored tux or even an expensive tie.

Others here routinely carry $400 Sebbies as their EDC -- but I fear losing the folder as I must oftentime change into scrubs for school/work, so my EDC's are around half that, yet, at the same time, I have no problem carrying around a flashlight that's a coupla hundred dollars as an EDC while others are plenty happy with their $12 Photon's or Mag Solitaire.

We all have our own comfort levels and our own perceived level of "want/need."

=)

Allen
aka DumboRAT
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Interesting point, if Cutco really was only half the price. Cutco tells their naive sales recruits Henckels costs more than it really does.
 
How many of you who say it is not worth the money had held one, or even seen this knife? If you haven't, on what are you basing your opinion? Sour grapes?

The people who are making comments about the steel: What is your experience with Cowry X steel? Do you know how it is made? Do you know that it is a powdered metal that has been HIPed four times! The CPM steels are HIPed once. Cowry X may be the finest grained and best stainless ever made. It can be polished so it looks like mercury. Ken Onion made a knife from it. He cleaned four animals and the edge was not affected. It passes the brass rod test at 64 Rockwell. The raw steel costs more than most kitchen knives. I wish Cowry X were still being made.

I've held the knife. It is one of the best kitchen knives I've held or seen. The knife is a good example of something made with the best materials without regard to costs. If I had the money I would buy one.
 
One more perspective (not much different than those offered).

I make some kitchen knives. I put as much work into them (and more) as a custom hunter.

Using top quality stainless (S30V) and premium materials (like stabilized burl) you get something functional and that you can be proud of. Henkles et al are soft steel. Easy to sharpen - easy to dull.

The reports I get back are that my knives become the instant family favorites. Once you use a real knife in the kitchen it's hard to go back. Not just mine, but any well made custom knife.

But here I'm talking in the $200-400 range. So if you are talking custom vs. production, I think the twice the price is easily justified - if you want something usable and unique.

Now if a blade is $1,200 I think we are talking a different thing. At the Reno blade show someone bought a Bill Moran-built waking stick. It was just a stick, but Bill added his famous silver-wire inlays. The stick sold for $1,900. Why? because of who made it. The value in this knife is in the maker's name.

I know I didn't say anything new. But I do want to point out that for those that can afford them, custom kitchen knives are worth their salt (both in use and pride). And for those that collect 'names' $1,200 is nothing.

Steve
 
Originally posted by John Chong
There is indeed a Mr. Hattori, full name Ichiro Hattori.
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John: my answer was in reference to the question whether Hattori was a person that makes each of those knives, not in the sense that the name is fictional. I highly doubt Mr. Ichiro Hattori hand makes each blade that comes out of his factory.

If I wanted to spend that kind of money on a Japanese cooking knife, I'd make a pit stop down Warren Street in NYC and get some handcrafted ones.
 
tony...

Definitely I don't expect Mr. Hattori to hand make each blade out of his factory. Hattori produces a lot of knives and the majority of them are by his workers. But I would not be surprised if Mr. Hattori gets "his hands dirty" on the high-end Hattori knives, like the KD-30 series.

Yeah, those Japanese knives at Korin are something else aren't they? Even for these handcrafted knives, I sense a difference between those produced by an atelier and those by a "named smith".
 
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