I've been using this as my "daily driver" in the kitchen for a couple months now and I must say it is excellent. It is very sharp out of the box (not beard shaving razor sharp but more than sharp enough for the average kitchen chef like me). It is as sharp out of the box as the previous knife that I've sharpened with a whetstone by hand, which is impressive. It can chop any regular meats, vegetables, and fruits with ease and passes my "magazine paper" test with flying colors. 10/10 appearance - Don't have to elaborate on this too much, the appearance is great. It comes with a cool looking box and a sheath which is great for displaying, but that's not too important to me. 10/10 durability - After frequent use (average 10 minutes of chopping, etc. per day for a couple months) of meats, vegetables, fruits, and fish (through bone and everything), there has not been any visible damage to the cutting edge. All I do for maintenance is use a honing rod every couple days to keep the fine edge alignment good. With proper honing with a steel rod, I have not noticed any dulling of the blade after couple months of use. I don't plan on actually sharpening this blade for a very long time with a whetstone due to how good it performs and how well it retains its edge. 10/10 functionality - It is sharpened all the way to the base and has a sharp tip and slightly rounded cutting edge. For "push" cutting style (which is how I chop 90% of the time) it feels amazing especially ending the cut in the middle to base of the knife. For "draw" cutting or slicing (meats and tomatoes mostly) it feels great as well both at the tip and towards the base. For the "rocking" chop I don't have too much information on since I don't often chop using that style, but I reason it would work quite well. If price is not an issue, then based upon my experiences I would recommend this product to any home kitchen enthusiast or anyone who cooks at home frequently. It makes chopping food way more enjoyable than with a dull knife that's for sure! Read more
extremely sharp. Scary sharp. The weight of the blade is perfectly balanced. The handle is beautiful quality. The rocking of the blade is a little weird though. Read more
Excellent quality for the price. I am not an outright expert, but I own a-lot of higher end knives (benchmade balisongs, Sog etc.) and only buy good quality tools. Most people do not usually buy higher end kitchen knives without trying them out in my hand first, but the reviews of these knives and my need for a new Santoku led me to taking the leap. I was highly impressed right out of the box with every aspect of these knives. I bought 3 (8" chef, 7" santoku and 5" santoku). I am writing this generic review for all 3 because I'm lazy and I type slow. These knives feel great in the hand, they promote a natural pinch grip, are weighted very well, are extremely sharp, were a great value for the steel quality and overall build quality and are truly beautiful. They are heavy enough to provide plenty of chopping power, but not so heavy to fatigue your hand or wrist after a long prep. They zipped through everything I wanted to cut and provide clean small cuts with ease. The first time I used the 7" santoku I was cleaning it with a sponge and was applying almost no pressure but I moved the sponge across the blade accidentally and the end of the sponge fell off. Eventually I got overconfident with the 7" santoku and inevitably cut myself, I didn't even notice the cut until I was a couple inches down the vegetable I was cutting, it is that sharp out of the box. Great product and I intend to stay with this company in the future as I upgrade the rest of my knife block. Read more
I purchased this knife four years ago and will review it based on my experiences with it. Arrival/packaging: The knife arrived in a beautiful white rectangular box inside of a sleeve with the companies insignia printed on the front of it along with the 'Shogun series' logo. Upon opening the box itself on the top the box you're greeted with summary of the knife specs and materials used, and nestled in a fitted felt mould is your new 8" knife inside of an awesome looking sheath, along with a FAQ booklet, a polishing cloth, and a lapel pin which looks really nice, I would definitely present it on my chef coat if I wasn't so concerned with it becoming weathered and dirty, it just looks so great in its packaging that for the time being I prefer to preserve it. Overall, the presentation of opening the box, really gives you the feeling like you purchased a high-end item that you're going to enjoy for a long time. The knife itself: From the stainless steel, engraved end cap, that supplies a perfect counter balance, through the ergonomic full tang G-10 Garolite handle with a unique copper pin that adorns the center rivet, all the way to the tip of the 8-inch Japanese AUS-10V super steel blade, with amazing hammered finish, I can't say enough good things about this knife. When I pick up and use coworkers knives, I scoff at the inferiority of the build quality of these supposed 'high-end' knives. There's just no competition in this category of knife, you get exactly what you pay for, a sharp, precise instrument that wont let you down. Overall: This is a 5 star knife, from the packaging presentation, to the craftsmanship, to the performance, it is just second to none, I have recommended this knife to many people, and actually had a co-worker purchase a Dalstrong knife from their gladiator series, and he loves it. I would buy every knife from the Shogun series if I had the spare funds to do so, but this knife is so versatile that if its the only one I ever own from the series, I'm okay with that, because it does everything I ask it to. Read more
