MAC Superior SB-105 10.5” scalloped slicer

This is one smooth slicing serrated (well scalloped) edged knife, it’s the shape of its serrations that interacts with food presenting a round face instead of a pointed teeth as with regular serrations that slices and the ‘valley’ in between to aid the scallops engage into crusty products instead of biting and ripping away.

So if you’re slicing something like a Cordon Bleu, a regular serrated knife will leave ripples in the metal; the scallops will give a much cleaner cut… but a regular, sharp chefs knife should be able to cut through breadcrumb crust without unsticking it. The scallops help a lot for tough crust items like roast pork with thin crackling, the heavily reduced ripping effect will also reduce crumbing when slicing real bread and cake sponge.

I paid USD$54 + USD$7 postage for this knife via JCK, Everten Online is trying to selling them for AUD$100.

This knife is my work serrated knife, I’ll get a second one for home use and add a leather washer handle to it.

Original post: 20OCT08

Yoshihiro 270mm yanagiba

Yoshihiro 270mm shiroko (White steel) yanagiba, with Magnolia wood D-shape handle and black water buffalo ferrule and it also came with a wooden saya. I bought off eBay for roughly the same price as a Masahiro Bessen (plastic ferrule) and I get a saya included as well.

Good to see they rounded and polished the choil which you don’t see much. It came with a very small micro bevel, thus making it very easy to fix and fully sharpen the edge to my personal preference.

Original post: 19OCT08

Suisin HC 270mm sujihiki

Suisin HC 270mm sujihiki, I suspect is a SK variant HCS, fitted with a stainless bolster and pakkawood scales.

I’ve gotten some patina onto it or else it might have taken forever to form a resilient patina. I’ve also thinned it a lot behind the edge, a lot.

I haven’t used this knife much, I figure I can slice most items with a long gyuto. And if it’s too delicate for a gyuto, it’s not going to hurt a yanagiba’s edge.

Before I sell it off, I think I find a nice piece of wood for this knife, have 2x SS corby screws and epoxy and add tang extensions to lengthen the handle.

Original post:19OCT08

Victorinox 10" Fibrox Chef's knife

Victorinox 25cm Fibrox Cook's knife

A great bang-for-buck knife that's easy to find to almost everyone, Joe Average probably goes for smaller sizes.

Here’s it with a little upgrade, I rehandle it with Grey Ironbark, laminated with Mangowood…

KF post on the rescaled knife

Original Post:07JUL07, Updated:19OCT08

Tojiro DP 270mm Gyuto F-810

High quality stainless steel chefs knife from Tojiro DP series, softer stainless cladding over a hard core steel. This is my backup stainless steel knife to my go to Hiromoto HC 270mm gyuto.

Nice big handle, with Tojiro’s signature blocky shoulders on the knife’s handle; scaled with “ecowood” staminawood which suppose to be resin impregnated wood but it’s looks and feels like plastic but even more brittle and susceptible  to chipping. Still one of my favourite handle shapes though.

 

 

Went straight from the box in the vice for rescaling.  Red-Black Linen Micarta, 3x SS corby screws, epoxy bonded and bolster reshaped.

KF posts:

• Tojiro DP 270mm gyuto rescaled
• The tutorial posted on KF on the process

Original Post:17OCT08

Hiromoto HC 270mm gyuto

My current go to chef’s knife, made of solid SK-4 high carbon (tool?) steel with a stainless steel bolster and riveted with pakkawood scales.

The HC series has been discontinued from production by Hiromoto, and I will miss this series’ ability to offer a great; easy to sharpen to a fine, clean edge; for a bargain price and acceptably high levels of fit and finish.

I paid USD$49.05 for it from JCK and is more or less that one would pay for in a Victorinox Fibrox locally, what an excellent deal. And they like to make them thin…. goooooood!

Photos of the knife new in the box and oiled up.

I had force patina on this knife by slicing lemons, then wrapping the blade in lemon juice soaked paper towel and cling film for an hour, which resulted in a ‘tiger stripe’ pattern patina development.

After 3/4 of a year’s use; patina set, spine and choil rounded, name and other markings engraved, rebeveled and sharpened to my liking.

Rehandling ideas: Exhibition Grade Desert Ironwood scales, 3x SS corby screws with Mosaic Pin inlaid over, Nickel Silver bolster brazed on, Black Canvas Micarta spacer and DIY pinless saya.

This grand old girl’s replacement will some distant day be a 270mm Fujiwara Kanefusa FKH gyuto also western pattern and a nice, bigger handle and the same SK-4 steel; itself to be rescaled with Lignum Vitae scales, Mosaic pins and brazed on tang extensions.

But superseded by a custom Moritaka Hamono Blue #2 300mm wa-gyuto next year, damascus cladding is a maybe since it will drive the price up from JYN13,500 to JYN26,000 from the kurouchi version… still a bargain for what you’re getting.

Original post:24SEP08, Updated:20OCT08

F Dick 10" Superior Chef's knife

Part of the Johnson & Wales tool kit.

A nice 10" Chef's knife from F Dick, part of the stamped Superior series. A nice large handle which I prefer to the Victorinox Fibrox and has a slightly lighter to my feel compared to the Victorinox.
A very nice knife to use.

Edit: In the process of being rehandled; African Blackwood with Mangowood spacers in the style reminiscent of the 1905 series done hidden tang.

Original post:26DEC07 , Updated:16OCT08

F Dick Superior Serrated Slicer

Part of the Johnson & Wales toolkit. Currently the most used item in the set, a 10" F Dick Superior Serrated Sicer. Fairly gentle serrations more of a meat carver than crusty bread knife, but it's gentleness helps on super soft white bread outer sandwiches.