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wind88

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I'm aware there is another active thread (Teruyasu Fujiwara personnel change?) this topic but thought I would start a dedicated Isamitsu thread as I'm very intrigued by where Gaku & Yhuki will take this to.

Please feel free to share anything Isamitsu related here be it what you already have, ordered or plan to order.

For myself, I have a custom profile 300mm suji in AS on order and can't wait for it to show up.

I will post some pictures & feedback once I have it on hand.
 
Good idea to have a dedicated thread here! They are just gonna make more and more.

Here is my 300mm ktip suji in AS. It's definitely a keeper, it has a pretty thin geometry right behind edge and the bevel is a joy on stones right out of the box!

hguWYp2l.jpg
 
Good idea to have a dedicated thread here! They are just gonna make more and more.

Here is my 300mm ktip suji in AS. It's definitely a keeper, it has a pretty thin geometry right behind edge and the bevel is a joy on stones right out of the box!

hguWYp2l.jpg
That's super sexy! It's very similar to what I have on order. Would be interested to hear you feedback on this :).
 
So, i'm in the process of ordering a K-Tip Gyuto ("Kiritsuke") from Isamitsu. Wanted to get your opinion on one thing: I asked for an ebony wa handle, Gaku said they have them, but it will be approximately 15.000Y (100 USD/EUR) extra for one.
Do you guys think it will be worth it? I know there isn't the one definitive factual answer, opinions will do :)
 
So, i'm in the process of ordering a K-Tip Gyuto ("Kiritsuke") from Isamitsu. Wanted to get your opinion on one thing: I asked for an ebony wa handle, Gaku said they have them, but it will be approximately 15.000Y (100 USD/EUR) extra for one.
Do you guys think it will be worth it? I know there isn't the one definitive factual answer, opinions will do :)
At one hand, it's only slightly more than a KnS ebony and it will come preinstalled (maybe with wabisabi?). I think the TF ebony handles actually look fairly nice.

On the other hand, yanagiknife sells ebony handles for ~30 bucks.
 
So, i'm in the process of ordering a K-Tip Gyuto ("Kiritsuke") from Isamitsu. Wanted to get your opinion on one thing: I asked for an ebony wa handle, Gaku said they have them, but it will be approximately 15.000Y (100 USD/EUR) extra for one.
Do you guys think it will be worth it? I know there isn't the one definitive factual answer, opinions will do :)
Get a photo and then compare to TF's offering. That was a 13,200 yen upgrade ($97 at todays exchange rate).
 
I think their wa handles are hideous due to the split in the middle. The ferrule should be ~1” long. I’d likely rehandle anything they ship. I have been considering purchasing something from them but I like TF hammer finish and traditional wa handles over what they are offering. Can anyone comment on whether their finish is draggy or hard to clean?
 
So, i'm in the process of ordering a K-Tip Gyuto ("Kiritsuke") from Isamitsu. Wanted to get your opinion on one thing: I asked for an ebony wa handle, Gaku said they have them, but it will be approximately 15.000Y (100 USD/EUR) extra for one.
Do you guys think it will be worth it? I know there isn't the one definitive factual answer, opinions will do :)
can you get a discount on no handle? If yes sounds like a good plan.
 
I have a 180mm nakiri (the one they posted on their IG) and it's OK - didn't blow my socks off, but it's a good knife and no issues with wabi sabi.
What specifically didn't impress you? Were expectations too high based on some of the IG hype posts.
 
That's probably the bulk of it - the constant comparisons against TF make it difficult not to compare to my 195mm Denka nakiri, which is admittedly unfair given the Isamitsu is lighter and Shirogami 1.

Nothing in particular didn't impress me, it's just "ok". The finish is highly reminiscent of my Yu Kurosaki Fujin gyuto, so even the finish doesn't feel particularly special (which again is probably just disappointment from the hype).
 
I'm coming to a realization that the finger notch, rustic Ku skin and random hammer finish is what really sets my TF Denka's apart from the rest, visually and in hand. Most of the random TF wabisabi wonkiness is quite easily addressed. Putting a nice Jnat kasumi polish on my TF's has improved performance too.
 
Gaku still owes me a custom knife from his TF days.

Still deciding what I am going for 🤔
Still waiting for that God blade? Did you pay upfront? I had a custom TF on order but they wanted payment upfront with no idea how long it would take.
 
For that much extra cost I would rather consider going the custom route if that's an option.
 
That's probably the bulk of it - the constant comparisons against TF make it difficult not to compare to my 195mm Denka nakiri, which is admittedly unfair given the Isamitsu is lighter and Shirogami 1.

Nothing in particular didn't impress me, it's just "ok". The finish is highly reminiscent of my Yu Kurosaki Fujin gyuto, so even the finish doesn't feel particularly special (which again is probably just disappointment from the hype).
I agree with you on the finish. I'm not a big fan of those hammer marks that's why I went with just plain ku finish.
 
I’m curious what the plain finish will look like on a gyuto with bolster
My guess is it may look very similar to ku TF hisamoto. I will share some pictures after receiving mine. It’s waiting for finishing/sharpening.
 
5 of the 6 TFs I’ve own(ed) came from bst instead of direct or a vendor. Just seems to make more sense to 1) buy at a discount 2) avoid ridiculous wait time 3)avoid poor communication+customer service 4) have the first owner put in hours of thinning work for you before he gives up to save you some time 😂
 
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Well, I just did it. Ordered the 240 AS Kiritsuke from Isamitsu with iron cladding, extra height, a straight back and an extra high-up shinogi line. Should be interesting. Oh, and I went for the ebony handle, even though they didn't have pics of one yet. I thought, whatever... Wallet is bleeding, but this should be good.
I might post a comparison between Denka, Moritaka AS and Isamitsu AS soon. Soon means, approximately April.
 
Well, I just did it. Ordered the 240 AS Kiritsuke from Isamitsu with iron cladding, extra height, a straight back and an extra high-up shinogi line. Should be interesting. Oh, and I went for the ebony handle, even though they didn't have pics of one yet. I thought, whatever... Wallet is bleeding, but this should be good.
I might post a comparison between Denka, Moritaka AS and Isamitsu AS soon. Soon means, approximately April.
Very much looking forward to your thoughts on these knives and how they compare to tf aswell as moritaka! How did you find dealing with them to custom spec a knife for you?
 
@tag98, indeed! Should be quite interesting. Somehow ironclad just has a special place in my heart.
I found the whole process quite good. Gaku obviously took effort to adress my wishes. His replies were short and concise, sometimes a tad minimalistic perhaps. But I got answers to all my questions. For example, I asked them to make the knife with a straight back instead of the curve their Kiritsuke normally has, and he was very accommodating.
At one point, I didn't receive an answer for two weeks and then sent him a kind reminder. That was answered promptly. He also highlighted several times that waiting times are long. And since I had trouble with their Japanese shop system and the translator didn't work, he immediately agreed on taking my order via e-mail. Like I wrote, I got quite a list of special wishes, and the only thing that made a difference from the stock price was the 15k Yen for the ebony wa handle. None of the other wishes did raise the cost. Of course, the AS 240 knives are very expensive to begin with lol. So all in all, it was very good.

My experience with custom orders is limited. So far I had contact to TF (4 knives), Zakharov (2 knives) and now Isamitsu. All of them were very forthcoming and helpful, beging non-native speakers (like me). Ironically, the only maker I didn't go through with an order because communication was too difficult and I wasn't sure we were on the same page was a maker from Britain.


One thing that might have been interesting is what the fine finish for 7700Y will give you. He wrote "hand finished cutting edge", which is not something I would have needed to spend money on. But for a nice FnF with a well-done Kasumi, I'd have paid this in an instant. But this uncertainty is on me, since I didn't ask.
 
Excellent choice going with ironclad :).

I think his fine finish is for hand finish on stone so the bevel is stone ready or very close to it.

Perhaps @Luxman can chime in as I believe his suji has the fine finish option.
 
Excellent choice going with ironclad :).

I think his fine finish is for hand finish on stone so the bevel is stone ready or very close to it.

Perhaps @Luxman can chime in as I believe his suji has the fine finish option.

yes, the fine finish on my suji is 85-90% stone ready. The remaining is very easily adjusted as they are super shallow.
 
Hmm... I ordered without that. I hope that a knife that's 95k Yen, I can simply get even bevels even then. I hear, even TFs tend to have those quite often nowadays...
I don't need perfectly beautiful homogenous kasumi-ready bevels - it would be ok to pay extra for it. But just proper worksmanship is something I would hope for at that price.
 
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