Shun Classic Chef's Knife 20cm

GENERALThe Shun brand which is made by Kai Kershaw cutlery. Shun knives are typical Japanese kitchen knives in terms of their making. Shun, has successfully married western and Japanese styles. Shuns are made using Japanese school style, thin, lightweight, hard steel, thin edges, 16° per side vs. 20°-25° on western kitchen cutlery. Shun's chef's knife is as close to typical German chef's knife as it gets. They'll outcut mainstream western kitchen knives many to one, any day.Their Classic line is made of VG-10 Steel, and their top of the line Pro knives are made out of SG2 steel. As for the general features, this knife is well made, fit and finish are very good. Neither of those 3 knives had any visible defects. Grind lines were smooth and very even. Everything ... MoreGENERALThe Shun brand which is made by Kai Kershaw cutlery. Shun knives are typical Japanese kitchen knives in terms of their making. Shun, has successfully married western and Japanese styles. Shuns are made using Japanese school style, thin, lightweight, hard steel, thin edges, 16° per side vs. 20°-25° on western kitchen cutlery. Shun's chef's knife is as close to typical German chef's knife as it gets. They'll outcut mainstream western kitchen knives many to one, any day.Their Classic line is made of VG-10 Steel, and their top of the line Pro knives are made out of SG2 steel. As for the general features, this knife is well made, fit and finish are very good. Neither of those 3 knives had any visible defects. Grind lines were smooth and very even. Everything fitted together very well and there were no gaps either. So, no complaints in the department. As you'd expect from rather expensive knife it comes in a nice packaging too.BLADEAs mentioned above the blade geometry it of a typical German chef's knife. Because of that the blade starts curving upwards somewhere in mid blade. Therefore, you have lots of belly on the knife. Lots of belly means ease of cutting in certain applications, especially with slicing and rocking motion cutting. On the other hand the blade is rather narrow, which doesn't help at all with rocking motion cutting and in general pinch/claw grip. The blade is 200mm long, and is made using traditional san-mai technology. Therefore, we have a VG-10 cutting core clad with 32 layers of SUS410 stainless steel. Cladding obviously, is much softer and more stainless than the hard cutting core. Providing protection from both, elements and external forces. Damascus pattern on those knives looks very nice. One more important thing is that the blade is really thin, ~2mm thick. Compared to western knives and many Japanese knives as well it's considerably thin knife and pretty lightweight at that.2mm thick blade combined with the factory edge sharpened at 16° per side, i.e. 32° included angle makes a terrific cutter. However, another thing is obvious too, you can't really abuse this knife as you'd abuse average western chef's knife. It's most likely chip badly or break if you try to split lobsters with it or drop from sufficient height. As far as the cutting performance goes, it is very good. Out of the box sharpness is also very good. Mirror polished edge, very sharp. Rarely, you'd find those kind of edges on the factory knives.HANDLEHandles on all Shun knives, except their stainless line, are made of Pakkawood, which is black and quite dense. From the blade side there is a bolster and from the other side its covered with the steel pommel. The pommel typically is flat on Shuns. So, it's kind of convenient to use it as a crusher for smaller item,such as garlic. The other significant feature of those handles is the D shape. Well, it's more of a pointy D. There is a slight ridge on the right side of the handle. As you can guess, that type of the handle is not ambidextrous, so lefties either have to pay leftie panelty and special order left handed knife, or deal with right handed handles as is. In theory that shape and ridge help with the grip and stabilize the handle in hand. In practice I hated that handle. Felt really awkward to me, even though I've handled and used bunch of the D type handled knives. I can't say what was so specific about Shun handles that I disliked so much. Something personal I guess :) Overall, I didn't like the blade width/handle thickness combination is not the best to me. The space between the blade heel and the handle is smaller compared to other gyutos knives I have. May be because this Shun is just 200mm long, and the shortest gyutos I have are 240mm long. In the end, if you prefer wider chef's knives then this isn't the one you want. If the width isn't that important to you, feel free.CONCLUSIONAny knife you use has to feel comfortable for you. So, if 200mm (8") is what you like then may be this is your perfect knife. A lot of people dislike larger knives anyway. On the other hand, longer knives do slice better and you don't have to raise your shoulder as high as with the shorter blades. In the end, it's up to you to decide. However, narrower blade with a thick handle is a drawback for pinch/claw cutting. If you do a lot of that type cutting, then I don't really see that getting better with this knife.That's pretty much it about Shun 200mm chef's knife a.k.a. gyuto. I think it's a bit overpriced compared to performance and what's available at that price out there, Yoshikane and few others are at a better price/performance point, but it's a quality knife, very good cutter and keep in mind a delicate knife too. Tojiro DP offers a similar knife in terms of quality (albeit not cladded and less "fancy") at a cheaper price (Tojiro DP Gyutou - 8.2" (21cm)).

This knife is a workhorse. I use it every single day, multiple times a day; I’ve never sharpened it in the almost 5 years I have owned it, and it still cuts like a dream! There are definitely some nicks in the blade edge from breaking down whole chicken and from who know what my husband used it for, but for the amount of use and minimal care these knives see, they’re still the best knife ever. I will never buy any other knives for my kitchen!

I purchased the Shun Left Handed Classic 8 inch Chef knife. This was well worth the price tag! You really get what you pay for! This knife is such High Quality!!! It's very hard being left handed and not only having a knife that fits comfortably in your hand but also cuts so smoothly and with such ease. This knife is by far the BEST knife I have ever purchased! I absolutely love how this knife fits in my hand! It's so easy to hold and comfortable! This knife is SUPER Sharp and cuts with such ease! FYI: This knife should not be used by kids or people that really don't know how to cut with a knife. This knife is so sharp that u could easily cut your finger off! I really wish I would have found this knife sooner. I went so many years working with garbage knifes that ... MoreI purchased the Shun Left Handed Classic 8 inch Chef knife. This was well worth the price tag! You really get what you pay for! This knife is such High Quality!!! It's very hard being left handed and not only having a knife that fits comfortably in your hand but also cuts so smoothly and with such ease. This knife is by far the BEST knife I have ever purchased! I absolutely love how this knife fits in my hand! It's so easy to hold and comfortable! This knife is SUPER Sharp and cuts with such ease! FYI: This knife should not be used by kids or people that really don't know how to cut with a knife. This knife is so sharp that u could easily cut your finger off! I really wish I would have found this knife sooner. I went so many years working with garbage knifes that dull very easily and don't cut right for me, because I'm left handed. I can't wait to purchase Shun's other knifes!

Anonymous

Love love love these knives they are a little expensive, but they are an investment, and you won't buy any other brand of knife ever again. The weight of the knife and the handle shape means it sits perfectly in your hand giving you cutting confidence with a very sharp blade. I am converted.

Blade quality is disappointing

Very nicely weighted and good, comfortable handle. Good appearance on both the blade and handle as well. I am rather disappointed in the quality as it came from the manufacturer. For the price, I really expected a sharper, better performing knife.

Finally the sharpest knife in the kitchen

I’ve been using my old chefs knife for over a decade. I bought it after I graduated college in 05 and it has honesty become like an appendage. I know the weight, how it’ll cut; we’ve bonded, you know?But as soon as the first stroke of this Shun I knew it was time to put my old blade out to pasture. I cannot be happier and will continue to add to my Shun set.

Great knife, great purchase. (Shun classic 8" chefs)

Knife:Came in immaculate condition. Beautiful, and SHARP. Love the slight asymmetric handle. It's not intrusive, just feels right. Lightweight for an 8" full tang knife. Love the blade shape for how I use it. Belly is good for rocking cuts, but not too excessive for slicing. Point is nice, and useful. Two months with multiple users (my wife is not too picky about knife care by the way, but we have at least kept it out of the dishwasher.). Still what most would call SHARP, no traces of rust, handle fit is still perfect. I sharpened it this morning just for this review and it went fine. (I am a right handed woodworker. I am picky about what "sharp" means, and I frequently sharpen knives, chisels, plane blades.)Purchase:Sur la table web site showed it was in stock ... MoreKnife:Came in immaculate condition. Beautiful, and SHARP. Love the slight asymmetric handle. It's not intrusive, just feels right. Lightweight for an 8" full tang knife. Love the blade shape for how I use it. Belly is good for rocking cuts, but not too excessive for slicing. Point is nice, and useful. Two months with multiple users (my wife is not too picky about knife care by the way, but we have at least kept it out of the dishwasher.). Still what most would call SHARP, no traces of rust, handle fit is still perfect. I sharpened it this morning just for this review and it went fine. (I am a right handed woodworker. I am picky about what "sharp" means, and I frequently sharpen knives, chisels, plane blades.)Purchase:Sur la table web site showed it was in stock and it was.They said it shipped and it did. Got here when they said it would in the condition described above. Cant be more pleased. Why is this so hard for other online venders?

Great shun classic knife

This replaces a really old one I had because I liked it so much. It is the right size for cutting most vegetables. The blade is sturdy and sharp. It keeps sharp for a long time. It was packaged perfectly and protectively, and delivered more quickly than I had expected..

It's Pure Pleasure to Use This Knife

There are few things more satisfying to me than a fine hand tool -- whether for cooking or woodworking or any other task. This knife has fine balance and I love the offset handle. It's also a pleasure just to simply admire the Damascus pattern steel and the beautiful hardwood handle. But like any knife, it's really the edge that counts. VG10 is probably my favorite steel for a knife. When you give it a fine edge the edge lasts a very long time if you take care of it -- fine tuning the edge with a steel and occasionally a strop. Also, like any metal kitchen knife, dry it right after use -- corrosion causes knife blades to dull, and water is an essential ingredient of the corrosion process. Also note that if you are good at sharpening, you can put a better edge on ... MoreThere are few things more satisfying to me than a fine hand tool -- whether for cooking or woodworking or any other task. This knife has fine balance and I love the offset handle. It's also a pleasure just to simply admire the Damascus pattern steel and the beautiful hardwood handle. But like any knife, it's really the edge that counts. VG10 is probably my favorite steel for a knife. When you give it a fine edge the edge lasts a very long time if you take care of it -- fine tuning the edge with a steel and occasionally a strop. Also, like any metal kitchen knife, dry it right after use -- corrosion causes knife blades to dull, and water is an essential ingredient of the corrosion process. Also note that if you are good at sharpening, you can put a better edge on this than the factory provides. I use a series of Japanese water stones, and it takes a while (and some practice to get good at the process). But for me the sharpening process is just part of the pleasure a fine knife provides, and when you feel the results in the kitchen, you'll get your reward for the effort!

The perfect knife for daily use.

We bought this knife as our first "big kid" knife. We've always had cheap knives that make daily cooking a chore. This knife is perfect for veggies, fruit & anything in between. I now want a full set of Shun knives.