# Leder (Rottman) 270 mm gyuto in Niolox



## tk59 (Oct 2, 2011)

A while back, I posted a review of a 210 petty that was madefrom a broken 270 mm gyuto. A couple of months ago, I received the the 270gyuto I originally asked for. It was to be super thin (1.8 mm at its thickestpoint) and tapered dramatically toward the tip (under 0.7 mm 3 cm from thetip). I also asked for a flat left side and the convex right side. Over 2/3 ofthe edge was to be dead flat and then the tip was to sweep up some. The knife Ireceived was exactly what I asked for. The only flaw was a slight recurve inflat portion of the profile. The grind was excellent and the performance of thesteel was consistent with the first petty: very wear resistant (moreso than theA-type), good edge taking (the edges seem to be a shade less keen than AEB-L)and excellent edge holding (I cant think of anything that is significantlybetter in stainless.).

The best part about this knife is the cutting performance.It isnt for everyone. Part of the reason I like asymmetry is most people wantto put my knives down after a single cut. It keeps my collection looking fairlynew (patina not withstanding). Anyway, it is easily in outstanding territorywith respect to tip work. I LOVE how the tip works in every way. There is verylow resistance and the point makes fine work doable although I dont really dothat much with a 270. Ive really enjoyed using the huge flat area for mincingand shredding large amounts of material. Its also been great for dicing andfood release is excellent toward the tip and very good over the flat area. 

The fit and finish, is outstanding just as it was with thefirst knife. All of the edges are rounded and the handle is essentiallyflawless and true to specs.

In all, Im once again, very impressed with Tilmans(Rottman) ability to deal with very thin, convex grinds without overgrinding. Ialso like the stainless steel hes chosen to use. When I asked for this knifeto be made, the plan was for it NOT to be an all arounder but Ive put it intomy rotation since it is quite simply an awesome cutter and there is just toomuch joy in using it for it to be called upon merely for spot duty. 
I've attached my usual crappy pics.  I gotta figure out how to do this better...


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## heirkb (Oct 2, 2011)

Woah, that knife has an awesome profile. Is it at all flexy (since it's so thin)? 

Why did you opt for the asymmetry on the whole knife? I don't really know what effect that would have on cutting since my knives are all fairly symmetrically ground.


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## EdipisReks (Oct 2, 2011)

interesting. i like asymmetrical edges too, though i don't have to worry about other people using my knives at home so much.


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## memorael (Oct 2, 2011)

Damn, that knife looks really sexy. I like the grind a lot and the geometry looks killer. The only thing I don't like is the shape near the tip, I would have shaved a bit more on the top to make it look more spear like, but that's just me.


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## tk59 (Oct 2, 2011)

heirkb said:


> Woah, that knife has an awesome profile. Is it at all flexy (since it's so thin)?


 Thanks. I have to say, dead flat areas are tricky to use. If I had to do it all over again, I'd put a very slight curve in the edge. It is somewhat flexible but it doesn't bother me. 



heirkb said:


> Why did you opt for the asymmetry on the whole knife? I don't really know what effect that would have on cutting since my knives are all fairly symmetrically ground.


 I like asymmetry because it allows a thin knife to be more convex where it counts for food release. I also feel that my cuts are more precise. What I don't like about asymmetry is the steering which can be difficult to control when cutting large, hard objects. It wouldn't be my first choice for cutting a butternut squash into perfect cubes.


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## tk59 (Oct 2, 2011)

memorael said:


> ...The only thing I don't like is the shape near the tip, I would have shaved a bit more on the top to make it look more spear like, but that's just me.


 That's what Salty said. I figured "What does that cheesehead know about knives, anyway?" But yeah, in retrospect, I would have made some small changes in my design, that being one of them. Actually, that's a really easy mod to make with a belt grinder. I might just do that.


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## tk59 (Oct 2, 2011)

EdipisReks said:


> interesting. i like asymmetrical edges too, though i don't have to worry about other people using my knives at home so much.


 I just realized you wrote "edges." The edge is asymmetric but the big deal is the one convex face vs the flat on the other side.


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## memorael (Oct 2, 2011)

tk59 said:


> That's what Salty said. I figured "What does that cheesehead know about knives, anyway?" But yeah, in retrospect, I would have made some small changes in my design, that being one of them. Actually, that's a really easy mod to make with a belt grinder. I might just do that.


 
Cheesehead lolz. I don't know if it does anything to the performance but spear like tips look sexy IMO.


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