Everything Isamitsu

Shop Knives and stones on ebay
Japanese Knives - by Tokushu Knife
Kitchen Knife Forums

Help Support Kitchen Knife Forums:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
The handle does have quite a bit of weight. It balances at the first kanji. I think the heavier the knife gets a more neutral balance feels more comfortable to me so I’m alright without too much forward balance here.
 
Homechef said:
The handle does have quite a bit of weight. It balances at the first kanji. I think the heavier the knife gets a more neutral balance feels more comfortable to me so I’m alright without too much forward balance here.
Click to expand...
Did you specifically ask for a bolsterless full tang handle?
 
Corradobrit1 said:
I thought KKFer's loved bigguns. Personally speaking I'm a 220-230 kinda guy. We can't all be endowed with big hands.
Click to expand...
I've heard this a number of times now. Out of curiosity, is it that I am able to grasp and hold a larger bunch of product?
 
Homechef said:
I’m having such mixed emotions right now. The knife came today and I’d say it’s beyond my expectations. Specs are good 230x53 (230x55 requested). Total beefcake at 310g! Handle size is awesome - I had asked them to leave it a little thicker and it fits in my hand perfectly. Does have more of a continuous roll to the blade vs extended flat spot and that might be the only thing I’d change on the profile.

But the tip…oh the poor poor tip. The knife managed to jump the little handle ledge in the box during shipping and that was not a good thing for the tip…

I did cut up a sweet potato as my preferred tester and it went through quite smoothly - enough to be a commonly reached for blade in the collection. Not as smooth as my 240 TF fine finish, but this is 60g heavier and 10mm shorter.

Here are a few pics of everything. (They aren’t live unboxing shots so the knife in box is how I think they intended it to be.)

I do my knife shopping almost exclusively on bst and rarely order new. Any tips of how to approach with Gaku and Yhuki? I ordered back in Feb and don’t want to send it back and wait another 6 months! It’s not awful, but it is something…I’m not even really sure what a fair remedy is here.
Click to expand...
In all honesty, the gaps in the handle would annoy me much more than the broken tip. In fact, that would make me angry.
 
Corradobrit1 said:
Ok, it wasn't appropriate to pose this question in the FS listing but its got me thinking. If that was an iron clad AS Denka with those specs it would have sold immediately IMO. Yet this Isamitsu still appears unsold a day later. Sign of economic times or is it the lack of TF wabi sabi, finger notch etc thats to blame. Certainly can't be the price as a Denka would be a few hundred $$ more. All metrics say the Isamitsu is the same blade (optimized AS HT, inhouse forged) only better, with more attention paid to the grind, profile and especially the handle.
Its too big for me and a Wa which is what holds me back but the specs of this blade seems to be in the KKF goldilocks zone, so it has to be something else.
Just curious about people's thought process.
Click to expand...

I was pretty tempted, but forced myself to abstain after having already planned/accommodated for any other purchases to see me out to 2024.

It was also a little bit too long and a little bit too tall for my preferences, and the grind looked slightly hollow (although it’s hard to tell for sure from just a choil shot, but I was happy to give myself a reason to stand back).

I was surprised it wasn’t insta sold though.

Homechef said:
But the tip…oh the poor poor tip. The knife managed to jump the little handle ledge in the box during shipping and that was not a good thing for the tip…
Click to expand...

Crikey, there’s tipping and then there’s that! I hope you get a resolution you’re happy with, and good on you for getting that thing straight on the stones to sort out.
 
Alright Gang….I’m the guy that got the Isamitsu off of @ashy2classy. I am new to the TF gang as I also recently obtained my first Denka 240. I used both knives tonight and figured I’d explain some things I noticed

1. Being new TF and Denka’s, I decided to get one that had been de-wabi-sabi’d by Ryan at DC Cutlery. I did a progression on stones to get the edge to my preference (Shapton 320, 500, 1000, Aizu, Aawatani). After this progression, I could immediately see what everyone described as TF’s Aogami Super. It was a super sharp but also very toothy edge. Doing “S” cuts through paper towel was suddenly possible.

2. The Isamitsu 260 immediately stood out to me as a lonely island knife as I would categorize it in the heavy midweight or even WH category just by the weight and heft of it (280g I think). Should I ever end up on a lonely island and need a knife that could handle heavy duty and light duty…this might be the one. I would categorize the Denka 240 as a middleweight knife but the Isamitsu just had a heavier, more robust profile.

3. The edge on the Isamitsu was just as it came BNIB and was probably 6-7/10 as I had no problems cutting items but it wouldn’t cut through paper towel without tearing. I’ll have to put it on stones and see what I think.

4. F&F was top notch for the Isamitsu as the cladding in the blade was at the same level as the Denka. I didn’t notice much if any wabi-sabi

5. I think the octagonal handle is very comfortable on the Isamitsu and doesn’t bother me except for one thing. What does slightly bother me is that the handle seems to be a bit shorter than most other knives I’ve used. It’s not short enough to cause any balance or usage issues but it was noticeable for me.
 
Last edited:
NickMinton said:
Alright Gang….I’m the guy that got the Isamitsu off of @ashy2classy. I am new to the TF gang as I also recently obtained my first Denka 240. I used both knives tonight and figured I’d explain some things I noticed

1. Being new TF and Denka’s, I decided to get one that had been de-wabi-sabi’d by Ryan at DC Cutlery. I did a progression on stones to get the edge to my preference (Shapton 320, 500, 1000, Aizu, Aawatani). After this progression, I could immediately see what everyone described as TF’s Aogami Super. It was a super sharp but also very toothy edge. Doing “S” cuts through paper towel was suddenly possible.

2. The Isamitsu 260 immediately stood out to me as a lonely island knife as I would categorize it in the heavy midweight or even WH category just by the weight and heft of it (280g I think). Should I ever end up on a lonely island and need a knife that could handle heavy duty and light duty…this might be the one. I would categorize the Denka 240 as a middleweight knife but the Isamitsu just had a heavier, more robust profile.

3. The edge on the Isamitsu was just as it came BNIB and was probably 6-7/10 as I had no problems cutting items but it wouldn’t cut through paper towel without tearing. I’ll have to put it on stones and see what I think.

4. F&F was top notch for the Isamitsu as the cladding in the blade was at the same level as the Denka.

5. I think the octagonal handle is very comfortable on the Isamitsu and doesn’t bother me at all. What does slightly bother me is that the handle seems to be a bit shorter than most other knives I’ve used. It’s not short enough to cause any balance or usage issues but it was notice
Click to expand...

How would the Denka compare before it was worked over by Ryan? That had to remove some amount of weight and alter the geometry to some degree.
 
NickMinton said:
Can confirm it’s concave slightly
Click to expand...
Cool. This actually helps me out because I bought a TF second hand that was originally purchased from DC, business card still in the knife box. Knife cuts great but I never knew for sure if it was worked on by Ryan originally or not, plus it had very deep grind marks. Definitely not concave ground
 
I have a 240 Kiri-Gyuto in Wh #1 on the way. I had been searching for a gyuto/hakata hybrid and I nearly spit out my coffee when I found this. I really didn't think one existed and I was going to have to have it made, but lo' and behold, here it is and from Isamitsu no less. I cut with a TF but never owned one. I wish it was AS, but this will have to do. I have the Moritaka and Shiro Kamo K-tips and they are good, but didn't have the hakata tip I was looking for. I have pretty high expectations for this one.
 
pitted_soul said:
I have a 240 Kiri-Gyuto in Wh #1 on the way. I had been searching for a gyuto/hakata hybrid and I nearly spit out my coffee when I found this. I really didn't think one existed and I was going to have to have it made, but lo' and behold, here it is and from Isamitsu no less. I cut with a TF but never owned one. I wish it was AS, but this will have to do. I have the Moritaka and Shiro Kamo K-tips and they are good, but didn't have the hakata tip I was looking for. I have pretty high expectations for this one.
Click to expand...
Pics or it didn’t happen. :coffee:
 
NickMinton said:
Alright Gang….I’m the guy that got the Isamitsu off of @ashy2classy. I am new to the TF gang as I also recently obtained my first Denka 240. I used both knives tonight and figured I’d explain some things I noticed

1. Being new TF and Denka’s, I decided to get one that had been de-wabi-sabi’d by Ryan at DC Cutlery. I did a progression on stones to get the edge to my preference (Shapton 320, 500, 1000, Aizu, Aawatani). After this progression, I could immediately see what everyone described as TF’s Aogami Super. It was a super sharp but also very toothy edge. Doing “S” cuts through paper towel was suddenly possible.

2. The Isamitsu 260 immediately stood out to me as a lonely island knife as I would categorize it in the heavy midweight or even WH category just by the weight and heft of it (280g I think). Should I ever end up on a lonely island and need a knife that could handle heavy duty and light duty…this might be the one. I would categorize the Denka 240 as a middleweight knife but the Isamitsu just had a heavier, more robust profile.

3. The edge on the Isamitsu was just as it came BNIB and was probably 6-7/10 as I had no problems cutting items but it wouldn’t cut through paper towel without tearing. I’ll have to put it on stones and see what I think.

4. F&F was top notch for the Isamitsu as the cladding in the blade was at the same level as the Denka. I didn’t notice much if any wabi-sabi

5. I think the octagonal handle is very comfortable on the Isamitsu and doesn’t bother me except for one thing. What does slightly bother me is that the handle seems to be a bit shorter than most other knives I’ve used. It’s not short enough to cause any balance or usage issues but it was noticeable for me.
Click to expand...
Any additional thoughts you can share after using these two knives more (if you have) since September?
 
HumbleHomeCook said:
How would the Denka compare before it was worked over by Ryan? That had to remove some amount of weight and alter the geometry to some degree.
Click to expand...
Just because a Denka is bought from District doesn’t mean Ryan worked on it. That is a service he charges for.
The Denkas he sells new have not been modified unless you request it and pay for it.
 
parbaked said:
Just because a Denka is bought from District doesn’t mean Ryan worked on it. That is a service he charges for.
The Denkas he sells new have not been modified unless you request it and pay for it.
Click to expand...

Yep. I've watched some of his videos and he's quite clear in his preference to honor the maker's work and not modify the blade.
 
pitted_soul said:
I have a 240 Kiri-Gyuto in Wh #1 on the way. I had been searching for a gyuto/hakata hybrid and I nearly spit out my coffee when I found this. I really didn't think one existed and I was going to have to have it made, but lo' and behold, here it is and from Isamitsu no less. I cut with a TF but never owned one. I wish it was AS, but this will have to do. I have the Moritaka and Shiro Kamo K-tips and they are good, but didn't have the hakata tip I was looking for. I have pretty high expectations for this one.
Click to expand...
Interesting! Did you give them any specific wishes or just order it as is from their website?
 
Corradobrit1 said:
Acquired taste for sho

Seems to compliment the handle facets quite nicely though.
Click to expand...
It's an interesting profile and I am curious if I am going to like it, but it is what I was searching for. I like hakatas because they use that curve in the spine to make the k-tip more pronounced. I don't know if the utility of the hakata k-tip will translate into a 240 gyuto, but I am willing to find out! I like the pentagonal monowood handle on this one more than the cedar octagonal I am getting but I got it for an excellent price from Tetogi. I think it is coming in today, so I will report back. We'll see how it compares to my Eddworks coming in, about the same size.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest posts

Back
Top