# IKAZUCHI AS 210mm fron JKI



## Keith Sinclair

I told a cook friend to check out these cuz he was looking for a 210mm line blade. He brought it to me to treat the handle & saya. I use Stepan's mix because I used a few of his handles at work & his finish holds up really well. Found it works good with Ho wood. Tung Oil waterproofs & the clear shellac speeds the drying time.

















This is the thinnest san mai blade I have seen with a quality AS core. Not that good at taking choil shots don't know how the speck got there not part of the blade. But you can get the general idea this is a thin blade. The handle seems a little small, but it does look good for the 210mm. I figure the 240mm handle may be slightly larger. It is a light knife.

I etched the edge to see the clad pattern. Then sharpened it on 4K gesshin. 3% thinning bevel & 15% final. Stropped on leather.






Started out with vine ripe tomato. Then cut potatoes, carrots, bitter melon, onions, fresh garlic going to make some shrimp curry tonight. This blade cuts very well, little sticking on potato expected for a laser type blade, it glides through different vegetables with ease including carrots.

The saya was not drilled I like pins so drilled it. At 180.00 for the 210mm and 200.00 for the 240mm feel that these are a good value. The grind is thinner than other AS clad knives.

Do this quite a bit for cooks. this is Ho wood not scrubbed after 3 years in the trenches






Couple handles after treatment


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## skiajl6297

Photos not working for me! Thanks for the write up!


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## ThEoRy

Some were working but now all of them are not.


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## Keith Sinclair

They are loading for me don't know what the problem is.


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## augerpro

How is the weight? Is this essentially a laser?


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## daveb




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## James

you may have to change the permissions for these pictures on your google album


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## Castalia

Yes, I have a 240mm gyuto and it is a laser. Light and very thin all around. Don't have the specific weight at the moment. I added some Tru-Oil to the raw ho wood handle. I also etched mine and it looks quite dramatic at the stainless cladding border. :doublethumbsup:


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## Zwiefel

I saw a side-by-side choil shot with a Ginga and unless my eyes deceived me--which they love to do--it was noticeably thinner than the Ginga...so, yes on the laser....even though it wasn't attached to a shark's forehead.


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## SolidSnake03

Castalia said:


> Yes, I have a 240mm gyuto and it is a laser. Light and very thin all around. Don't have the specific weight at the moment. I added some Tru-Oil to the raw ho wood handle. I also etched mine and it looks quite dramatic at the stainless cladding border. :doublethumbsup:



Any pic's of that etching? Curious to see how it turned out


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## chinacats

keithsaltydog said:


> They are loading for me don't know what the problem is.



First three are not but next three are, maybe there is a difference in how they are posted?


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## Keith Sinclair

It is little thicker at the spine than Ginga, bottom 1/3 of blade is very thin. I put my Gesshin Ginga stainless side by side the Ikazuchi is thinner behind the edge. 

Don't know what is going on not a tech dude load pics from google chrome. Insert, paste on thread they load. Both threads I can see all the pictures but no else can??


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## skiajl6297

Still nada for me.


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## SolidSnake03

same, can't see a thing


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## Castalia

Sorry for the bad iPhone photos, but all I have at the moment.


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## Castalia

A little better focus on the thinness. I really need a photography lesson.


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## skiajl6297

Those I see! Wow.


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## augerpro

Any chance you could weigh it? (Manufacturer's spec are often off a lot) And give an idea of the balance point?


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## JBroida

for what its worth, the weight we list on the site, is an average of a few different blades, which is usually more accurate. Where it gets off is when the next batch they send is different (in the case of kochi, for example, where we have constantly provided feedback in order to improve what we were doing). In this case, the weight will not be changing for a wide variety of reasons.


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## Keith Sinclair

augerpro said:


> Any chance you could weigh it? (Manufacturer's spec are often off a lot) And give an idea of the balance point?



It is an overall light knife both the handle & blade are light. As mentioned my example was oversize at 216mm it weigh 134g on my scale. The 240mm on Jon's site is 143mm. My Gesshin Ginga 240mm Stainless is 134.2g.


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## Keith Sinclair

I meant 143g


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## Castalia

My 240mm Ikazuchi gyuto is 135 g. In comparison I just weighed my shigefusa 210mm gyuto and it was 172g.


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## augerpro

I imagine the ho wood handle helps tilt the balance forward which IMHO helps with momentum chopping. So bottom line, more weight than a laser, but a thin grind that performs well, and good steel and price? So if you don't need a weighty knife for chopping, a pretty fantastic knife at the price?


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## JBroida

Its notable taller than the gesshin ginga, which explains the weight and how it is able to be thinner behind the edge.


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## chinacats

JBroida said:


> Its notable taller than the gesshin ginga, which explains the weight and how it is able to be thinner behind the edge.



I'm confused...on the site I see both @ 48mm? :scratchhead:

How tall are the ones you folks are seeing?


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## JBroida

i think our ginga measurement is a bit off then, because side-by-side, its pretty clear... i will have someone check that while i am in Japan


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## chinacats

JBroida said:


> i think our ginga measurement is a bit off then, because side-by-side, its pretty clear... i will have someone check that while i am in Japan



Sorry, didn't realize you'd already started your trip. Enjoy your travels!


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## daveb

FWIW - This is from most recent "batch". GG Stainless. (It would convert you Jim)


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## chinacats

daveb said:


> FWIW - This is from most recent "batch". GG Stainless. (It would convert you Jim)



Not so sure about the stainless part, but looking to add a true laser at some point. Love the new Ikazuchi line but can't quite get past the stainless cladding. Been planning on a mono White 2 from the GG line and so far this is still leading the pack. Don't you have or had a Tadatsuna for comparison?


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## JBroida

interesting... i'll have to take a look when i get back. In the meantime, i have someone re-measuring stuff at the store.


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## daveb

chinacats said:


> Not so sure about the stainless part, but looking to add a true laser at some point. Love the new Ikazuchi line but can't quite get past the stainless cladding. Been planning on a mono White 2 from the GG line and so far this is still leading the pack. Don't you have or had a Tadatsuna for comparison?




Had a 240 SIH. Totaled truck. Knife was in truck. Knife no more. Was looking to replace it, Tad was in running but the most recent GG's came in stock. It was Providence.


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## JBroida

seems i misspoke... after having someone measure a bunch, the 240mm's are the same height. The 210mms are not.


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## cheflife15

I had one of these in my cart for a while. I think its time to pull the trigger.


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## daveb

In your cart for a year? Dude you got will power...


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## skewed

Raleighcook15 said:


> I had one of these in my cart for a while. I think its time to pull the trigger.



It is a nice laser. Amazing it is san mai and that thin.


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## gregcss

I took delivery on one of these today. This is my first Japanese chef knife. This thing looks great and feels great in the hand. Can't wait to put it to use. Thanks Jon!


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## gregcss

Also, should I seal the handle and saya? I think I've read folks using oil and/or waxes. I have mineral oil and boos board cream (oil/wax mix) that I use on my boards. The boards do leave a little bit of oily feel in the hands so I would not want to use mineral oil on the knife handle or saya.


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## JBroida

board wax should work fine... i dont always use it right off the bat, but when the wood starts to feel or look dry, i give it a light coating


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## gregcss

JBroida said:


> board wax should work fine... i dont always use it right off the bat, but when the wood starts to feel or look dry, i give it a light coating



Thanks. I applied the board cream to the saya and handle as preventative maintenance. Wiped off and will let soak in over night.


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## KrutoyNozh

I have the 240mm Ikazuchi and it's been an amazing knife so far; some cucumbers have had their way with the core steel, and there it now sports a mild patina. For the handle and saya, I've used the JKI saya and handle wax. It's been wonderful for this and all of my other knives, and adds a noticeably darker, richer color--which I really appreciate--in addition to whatever its protective qualities may be. So a huge thumbs up (albeit from a novice!) on both the knife and the wax.


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## gregcss

KrutoyNozh said:


> I have the 240mm Ikazuchi and it's been an amazing knife so far; some cucumbers have had their way with the core steel, and there it now sports a mild patina. For the handle and saya, I've used the JKI saya and handle wax. It's been wonderful for this and all of my other knives, and adds a noticeably darker, richer color--which I really appreciate--in addition to whatever its protective qualities may be. So a huge thumbs up (albeit from a novice!) on both the knife and the wax.



I've had mine for a few months now. It's my first j knife and like it. Tomatoes seem to be a minor challenge but the performance there is directly related to my sharpening.


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## Sharp-Hamono

augerpro said:


> I imagine the ho wood handle helps tilt the balance forward which IMHO helps with momentum chopping. So bottom line, more weight than a laser, but a thin grind that performs well, and good steel and price? So if you don't need a weighty knife for chopping, a pretty fantastic knife at the price?





Castalia said:


> My 240mm Ikazuchi gyuto is 135 g. In comparison I just weighed my shigefusa 210mm gyuto and it was 172g.




I have an Ikazuchi 240mm and it's the lightest gyuto I own, but the balance is so much farther forward of where I'd normally grip that it really does give the knife a good weighty feel on the cutting board. Mine comes in at around 144 grams on my (cheap) postal scale. Mine also measures a bit longer than some other 240's. The length of the edge is about 1/4" longer than the edge on my Tanaka 240 and almost 3/4" longer than on my Gesshin Uraku W#2 240 (which seems to run a little short itself).


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