Japanese Sekiryu Sushi Santoku Knife, #SR110

I have read several fair reviews, and they are mostly positive, but owning several of them, I feel compelled to point out a couple of oversights by other reviewers.Firstly, I have read several reviews that describe some of the knives as being "too light" or "less sturdy" than others of the same type. They are indeed substantially lighter than many knives of similar style, BUT this is a positive for those folks who actually know how to use a knife. I'm no professional chef, but I know how to use a knife for cutting. These knives are razor sharp, and hold a good edge for a long time when properly used and cared for. They also sharpen relatively easily. That said, if you are looking to cut through bone, get a saw or a cleaver. These knives are designed for cutting flesh and vegetables, not quartering a steer. If you use these knives for cutting up food, they are wonderful. If you use them to chop down walnut saplings in the back yard, there are other, better knives. Think of them as surgical instruments, not hatchets, and they'll serve you well.Secondly, the handles are raw wood. When you get the knife or knives, buy a small can of polyurethane and simply dip the handles and then hang the knife point up, allowing the excess to run off onto a newspaper. leave the knife hanging for 24 hours to allow the finish on the handle to cure. Steel wool the handle lightly with 0000 steel wool, and repeat the dip-hang-cure-steel wool process to get 3 or 4 good coats of polyurethane into the handle. This brings out the beauty of the wooden handles and toughens them considerably as well. It also prevents oils from hands or foods to build up in the wood's grain. I did this to the first of these knives I bought 4 years ago, and the finish is lasting and makes the knife cleaner as well.Lastly, hand wash and then hand dry these knives. They are not for the dishwasher. the hidden-tang handles hold moisture against the blade's tang and will eventually corrode even stainless steel (which is really stain-resistant, not stainLESS). Oil them occasionally with a drop of mineral oil, and sharpen as necessary.With a little care, these knives will be among the finest you own, and after acclimating to the different weight and balance of them, they will quickly become your favorite knives, lasting you for many years.

I like these knives so much I bought one of each in the various styles, Deba, Santoku, Nagiri, etc. As these knives are manufactured similarly and exhibit the same qualities you'll see the same review for each of these knives. I specifically sought out Amazon vendors that offered the "Sekiryu" brand of knives. ( http://www.sekiryu.co.jp/wabou/e-81.htm ). This can take a bit of research here on Amazon but I found that their quality seems to be is slightly better than knives of the same style made by another manufacturer and they don't muck up the blade with a bunch of markings other than some nice kanji. These knives are no substitute for a high end Japanese forged high carbon blades so get past that now. They are simply decent bargain priced representations of the style. The blades are made from a "higher" carbon content stainless steel stock to resist rusting and staining but I've found the edge grinds to be true, and the blade sharp out of the box. The handles are wood, smooth and "D" shaped in cross section for right hand use. A plastic "cup" is used to secure the handle to the tang. I can see where these caps might come loose but easily fixed if that happened. The handle is a bit small for very large hands (like mine) and I'm debating doing a cord wrap for a bit more secure ergonomic grip. The trade off being sanitation when food gets in between cord wraps. Considering these knives were made with a smaller sized populace in mind that doesn't surprise me. Its not a deal killer. The blades sharpen well but like many less expensive blades do need more attention to maintain that edge than say a $200+ blade of similar style. That should be intuitively obvious so buyers shouldn't come back crying about how one needs to sharpen these blades on a more regular basis. Its the nature of the metal. For entry level examples of various Japanese cutlery styles I can recommend the Sekiryu products unreservedly.

Let me clarify something. This knife is designed to cut vegetables without sticking to the blade. It is not made from hard Japanese steel, the blade is on the softer side. With that, if you paint the handle and and resharpen blade on the flat stone it will make it a beautiful vegi santoku knife. Again this is not hard still but it does what it suppose to do.

It's ok for the price, it's cheap, nothing special it doesn't hold an edge too long but it's 20 dlls.

great knife for vegetables.......bay now.its cheap and work very wellI work like sushi maker . this knife help me a lot

I am so glad I got this knife it is razor-sharp out-of-the-box and you can tell that this knife will last for a long time and the holes inside the blade prevent suction and sticking to items that you cut. For people that are used to cooking a lot you know exactly what I mean.

I did not expect much for the price, and I got what I expected.Too flimsy for any practical purpose.I will relegate it to camping equipment or some such task,not suitable for the kitchen.

A sharp and accurate knife, more than happy I purchased it!Recommend to annoyone looking for a serious knife and not able to spend humdreds!!!

Once I got used to the very thin blade, instead of the thicker blade of my chef's knife, this knife does a very good job in food prep. The holes in the blade as well as a raised edge on one side means food slices don't stick to the blade. Good knife for the price

added it to the rest of my Japanese knives i havenot Damascus but SHARP,if you care for it (get a sharpening stone for it) you will have fun for years. i have some more than 10 years. only thing that wears out is the handle from washing it in the dishwasher

+Anti-Haft funktioniert+scharfe Klinge-zu flexible und zu dünne Klinge (Wurzelgemüse oder Kürbis nicht ordentlich schneidbar)-scharfe Kanten am schwarzen Plastik und sehr scharfes Eck am Beginn der Klinge-schlechter Griff

Pour moi le Couteau japonais SekiRyu SR110 est « le » Couteau de Cuisine Professionnel et Multifonctionnel que j’attendais. Ce couteau typique est aussi polyvalent. La lame peut couper facilement les légumes, les fruits, de la viande et du poisson. Hachés et tranchés.Ce couteau japonais est le meilleur choix que je pouvais faire. Je suis très satisfaite de mon achat.

great!