# Sakai Takayuki Grand Chef 240mm Wa-Gyuto



## Vic Cardenas

I thought I'd share some pictures of my main knife. A Sakai Takayuki Grand Chef (or is that Cheff?). I adore this thing. It may not be revered around here but I think it's a great knife for the money and could rival other lasers for far less money. It is really thin at about 1.8mm at the heal. I don't have a weight but it's really, really light as I'm sure you can tell. The spine has a really nice rounded polish on it. The choil is cut nicely. There isn't very much flex in it for how thin it is. It sharpens up very nicely and feels great on the stones and de-burrs very easily. The AEB-L really is a great steel but I think the biggest downside is it's finished at 58hrc. But the edge retention is about on par with my other knives in the 60hrc range. Anyway, enjoy!


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## berko

thanks for the pictures.


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## marc4pt0

Nice pics!


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## Lefty

The Grand Cheff has long been a knife that we accept as a "damn good one". Thom, over at FF turned me onto them about three and a half years ago. When I think Grand Cheff, I always imagine the Western handled version, with the huge cullens and massive English Text (oh, and the typo on "Cheff"). I want one....


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## Vic Cardenas

What I heard is the western handled version is a little thicker. Maybe someone can confirm that?


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## Frater_Decus

Vic Cardenas said:


> What I heard is the western handled version is a little thicker. Maybe someone can confirm that?



Confirmed! Also, I just sharpened mine up, so I'll contribute some in-progress pics for comparison:


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## harlock0083

Did the knife come mirror polished?


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## Frater_Decus

Mine came with a very smooth satin finish (which scuffs very easily). Using a camera, I found that the finish appears to be mirror, if you angle the blade correctly.


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## harlock0083

Ah, I see. Thanks for the response!


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## EdipisReks

Same profile as other Sakai lasers, right?


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## Vic Cardenas

harlock0083 said:


> Did the knife come mirror polished?



Mine is pretty well mirror polished, stock. You can see in a few of the pictures fairly well. I'd say it's polished better than a jail mirror. 
I don't seem to own any buffing compound that is as fine as their factory polish. 



EdipisReks said:


> Same profile as other Sakai lasers, right?



Seems to be. I'd really like to compare this to other stainless lasers to see how they compare. I think for $180 this knife is a bargain.


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## Frater_Decus

The tip looks a bit different from the Yusuke, if that is your comparison--
Here's the Yusuke:


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## Frater_Decus

Vic Cardenas said:


> I'd really like to compare this to other stainless lasers to see how they compare. I think for $180 this knife is a bargain.



Mine is a fantastic performer, especially after opening up the edge. I just took it to a King 1000 followed by a Naniwa 5000 superstone & a quick strop on newsprint, and now it's screaming sharp. Definitely a great value for the money, though I have to raise an eyebrow at their choice to go with 58 HRC instead of the 62-63 which the steel is capable of with cryo.


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## Vic Cardenas

Agreed. The edge is much much better when you put a 90/10 bevel or similar. I'm finishing mine on an arashiyama 6000 (as pictured) and then stropping on CrO loaded split leather. The factory edge was terrible. It was like a 30 degree 50/50 when I got it. I've never seen a worse factory edge. It sure benefits this knife to modify the edge. My edge I can get on this is about 99% of what I can get out of a white #2 knife. 

I actually like how they left it a bit soft. The edge retention is pretty good for such a soft knife. Its really easy to repair dings on this knife... (Caused by somebody else) It just goes right back into shape like nothing happened. This is a great workplace knife.


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## harlock0083

Vic Cardenas said:


> Agreed. The edge is much much better when you put a 90/10 bevel or similar. I'm finishing mine on an arashiyama 6000 (as pictured) and then stropping on CrO loaded split leather. The factory edge was terrible. It was like a 30 degree 50/50 when I got it. I've never seen a worse factory edge. It sure benefits this knife to modify the edge. My edge I can get on this is about 99% of what I can get out of a white #2 knife.
> 
> I actually like how they left it a bit soft. The edge retention is pretty good for such a soft knife. Its really easy to repair dings on this knife... (Caused by somebody else) It just goes right back into shape like nothing happened. This is a great workplace knife.



Oh there's plenty of bad factory edges... never say never.


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