# Tsuchime finish



## steelcrimp (Jan 28, 2018)

Hey guys, I was wondering if anyone has any experience with a knife that has a Tsuchime finish. Does this type of finish also help with food release like hammered finishes do? It looks interesting and theres a knife from Yoshimune on Epicurean Edge that has it on sale.. 

http://www.epicedge.com/shopexd.asp?id=97533


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## milkbaby (Jan 28, 2018)

Tsuchime finish is a hammered finish. Sometimes the hammer marks in a hammered or tsuchime finish are made with a shaped hammer to leave a certain pattern or type of mark, instead of being the remnants from forging to shape. You'll see Yu Kurosaki use lightning bolt, triangle, square and other shape hammer to leave different hammered surface on his knives.

The theory is that the irregular surface should result in air pockets between the blade face and the cut food and enhance the food release, encouraging it to fall off easier. But it depends a lot on what you're cutting and what kind of pieces you're cutting off. I wouldn't necessarily buy it hoping it's a solution for food sticking problems. I do personally like the look.


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## steelcrimp (Jan 29, 2018)

Ahh I see, Thanks much for the info!


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## Steel+Fire (Jan 29, 2018)

Steelcrimp- I have the knife you are looking at. I got it at the beginning of this month as an early birthday gift. I have the 240mm with the custom handle offered by EE. Great knife. Nice tall profile and more solid than my other JK's.

The finish is mostly cosmetic and makes each knife a bit different. The hammer low points have the carbon scaling left on so they give it an really cool contrast. The White #1 gets insanely sharp and I just ran it on a 8000 grit stone to polish it up. For being such a stout blade it has a very efficient grind and the finish along with the grind help tall stuff like potatoes or cucumbers from sticking so much to the sides. Small stuff like garlic or radishes still stick like they do on most knives I have used. I have 2 other blades by Kurosaki with tsuchime finish. This Yoshimune has better food release than either of those knives. That said the finish is likely more for aesthetics than function.

The handle is pretty nice. Especially for the price and is way better the cheapo handles that Yoshimune usually use. Sounds like Kawamura-san is sending out most stuff without handles to meet higher demands as he has a couple US retailers carrying his work. Also the tip on this particular blade is pretty nimble and works great for small stuff and detail/garnish work.

I am pretty happy with the knife. I have cooked 10-12 meals this months with it and have enjoyed every experience thus far. Edge steel is less reactive than I anticipated and just took on a nice easy petina that changes a bit depending upon what it is used on. I had been eye balling one on CKTG but they went out of stock quick. To my surprise EE had them in which was great since it gave me a rare opportunity to check it out first since EE is local. Solid knife and for under $300 it is hard to beat.

Hope that helps with your decision.


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## Steel+Fire (Jan 30, 2018)

steelcrimp,

I actually own that knife which I have had about a month. The hammer finish is more for aesthetics that function but it does help keep taller product like potatoes or cucumbers from sticking to the sides of the blades bad. I have a couple of knives with different hammer pattern style, a 180mm nakiri and a 210mms gyuto. The Yoshimune is the best of the 3 for food release but they all do well.
 
The knife is really solid. Feels very nimble but has enough mass to feel rock solid when going through harder products like beets or turnips with no cracking or splitting. The tip is very well suited for detail/garnish work while the heel is a good height allowing nice board clearance. The hammer finish makes the knife look very unique and really cool in my opinion. The low spots on the hammering have the carbon scale from forging left on to give them the dark to shiny contrast. The blade steel is white #1 and using an 8000 grit stone I was able to polish it to a razor edge; it came with a pretty sharp edge as well. The edge has formed a nice patina which changes slightly depending on the product I am cutting but has not been as reactive as I expected.

I was looking at this knife for a while but CKTG sold out very quickly and it has not come back in stock. EE is local for me and I was delighted to find Kawamura-San's knives in stock there. It allowed me a rare opportunity to check it out before I purchased it. The custom handle is good, definitely better than the handles that come from Yoshimune which often look bad in the fit and finish department from what I have seen online.

Very pleased with the knife and given that the maker is getting old and has no apprentice there may be few opportunities to get his work in the future. Hope this helps.


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