Kansui ink patterned knives ????

L

lesoleilnoir

Joined
Jun 15, 2001
Messages
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I'm considering one of these knives as a gift for a friend who is fed up with her Henkels gear.

Does anyone have any experience? Are they better or worse than "blue steel" japanese knives?

I am looking for an all purpose Santoku style blade, one that can chop veggies and dissasemble a chicken ;)

Thanks in advance,
Dan
 
I have looked at them as well. For a gift, I think they are a better choice as they have such eye appeal. :)

For pure function, Murray Carter! I have two of his knives and love them. The Muteki line doesn't have the huge eye appeal but, boy do they cut! :D :D :D
 
Thanks Sid,

Trust me, if I could afford Murrey Carter knives, I'd buy a set for myself :D

I have to agree that the pure eye candy factor would make a great gift, I'm just hoping that they can "walk the walk"

Anyone else?
 
The Murray Carter Muteki line of knives are not that expensive. In fact I got a pair of them for right at $100. One is about 4 inches the other about 6. Both are well worth the slight premium over the Henckels German line (don't even compare to the Henckel International's).

Book prices for these knives run from a low of about $40 to high of about $65. These are plain handled white Hitachi steel center stainless outer layer knives. Sweeeeet :)

While these are not the truly all hand forged blades an ABS Master Smith would make and put a stamp on, they are certainly of a similar quality at a fraction of the cost. His true hand forged blades are super sweet and, I will probably get some one day but, right now, I am very happy with the Muteki knives.

Once you use these light weight super sharp knives, you may never pick up a Henckel's again ... I know ...

Stay Sharp,
Sid

p.s. Done worry Trace, my THR TTKK is still seeing kitchen duty :D
 
Dan...

I am looking for an all purpose Santoku style blade, one that can chop veggies and dissasemble a chicken
Click to expand...

My concern is only with that last part about the chicken. This means the blade might occasionally hit bone and it's not uncommon to find warnings about keeping a fine Japanese blade away from bone. In general the edge of a santoku is quite thin (superb for slicing veggies and boneless meat) and very hard (RC 60+). I just worry about the possibility of chipping the santoku blade when disassembling the chicken. Of course a more purpose built boning knife (the honesuki) would be best against the chicken but you lose out on the veggies.

Instead of the santoku, perhaps a gyuto (Western styled chef's knife) is better. I think these have a slightly thicker edge but still cuts extremely well. Alternatively, a santoku with a tougher steel and appropriate heat treat would work well. Here I'm thinking of the Fallkniven K2 in VG-10 at 59 RC. But it's a bit lacking in eye appeal (probably looks too "tactical" for the women).

The Kansuis look nice but I've not tried them before. Of course, Carter's stuff is amazing (but again I worry about the edge vs chicken). The Hattoris are excellent and look good too but their santoku is again very thin and not advised for deboning chicken, the gyuto is better.

Basically, the santoku might not be the all purpose (that's the keyword here) knife that you're looking for. Check the thickness of the edge, some might be thicker. The gyuto is more all purpose I think. Most Japanese manufacturers have a gyuto in their lineup.
 
I have a set of Murray Carter's Muteki kitchen knives. These are extremely sharp knives that take and hold a great edge. However, as has been mentioned, I have experienced very minor chipping and dings on the edge when the edge has contacted bone or another utensil (carving fork, for example) during larger carving jobs.

Still, they are a wonderful set of knives and were purchased at a very reasonable price considering the quality and materials.

standard
 
Thank guys! I think I'm going to go with a totally different gift. But it is customary to give oneself a xmas present, right :rolleyes:

In which case, that Fallkniven looks pretty sweet!! Thanks Chong. Who could resist a VG10 kitchen knife???

Will someone post a link to a place that sells the Murray Carter kitchen knives.

My gratitude,
Dan
 
Chong,

Not to be a cheap bastid, but how much of a price difference is there, when dealing direct with Carter?

Blues, is that knife with the burled wood handle a custom request of sorts?

Dan
 
Murray was nice enough to use nice maple scales on that knife. I didn't know about it until I had opened the box. Unlike the others, that is a heavy, full tang knife to be used like a cleaver for chopping through bones etc. It is still sharp enough to slice cleanly through anything I've put it to work on despite its heavier build.
 
Dan...

This is a price comparison on the Muteki series:

Muteki 5.5" Wabocho
Kellam - $72.50
Carter - $52.00
 
I got my 2 Murray Carter knives from Murray at Blade West. If you can wait until June, Blade East is in Atlanta which isn't too far away from D.C. I'm pretty sure Murray Carter will be there.

If you don't want to wait for Blade East, I can recommend dealing direct with Murray Carter via email and the postal system.
 
I came in way late on this thread, but can't help commenting.

First, a properly "disassembled" or deboned chicken should not involve cutting bones. Except, perhaps, tiny rib bones when cutting the back.

Second, I wouldn't give a nickel for a knife that would chip when accidently contacting bones or a carving fork.

I have expensive knives and a bunch of not so expensive knives. None of them have ever chipped cutting up a chicken. My 2 cents, YMMV.
 
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