220mm 80CRV2 Gyuto S Grind pass around
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Re: 220mm 80CRV2 Gyuto S Grind pass around
Its spine is a bit thinner than your gyuto and the hollow takes away a good bit of material on the sides from being pushed through the ingredient, so it will definitely feel different in the cutting!
I noticed some food sticking as well, but it usually slides off fairly easily and doesnt get stuck hard on the sides, especially with wetter foods like potato, zucchini, etc. When I get a more polished finish on it, that usually helps too!
I noticed some food sticking as well, but it usually slides off fairly easily and doesnt get stuck hard on the sides, especially with wetter foods like potato, zucchini, etc. When I get a more polished finish on it, that usually helps too!
Re: 220mm 80CRV2 Gyuto S Grind pass around
I got to make soup using this knife today and it was fun! It is a knife that needs very little encouragement to cut. The size and shape are unsurprisingly comfortable for me due to it's similarity to my gyuto. I did compare them on every ingredient and the contrast was rather interesting. There are things I like about both, and honestly having these next to each other makes me wish I had a better reason to own more full size chef knives.
My gyuto has what I consider a comforting heft to it and is pretty close to being able to keep up with the speed of the k-tip if you use the proper technique, but it is the kind of knife that does best when you have the temperment of a drill sergent. You have to be ready to tell my knife what to do and be the boss. The k-tip on the other hand can cut as fast as my skills permit with not much prompting. It has a bit of the thin edged feel that I still have not become entirely accustomed to after years of western knives, but I don't mean that as a negative, I have just steered toward very sturdy knives due to that being more familiar. Really I think this knife strikes a nice middle ground, it cuts any ingredient I've thrown at it quite without thought, but it still manages to feel sturdy enough that I don't feel I have to be paranoid in use. I think it has pretty ideally balanced cutting charateristics.
Now, here is what I cut: 8 carrots, 4 heads of broccoli, a whole (head?) of celery, and 3 onions.
Pretty much in comparison, due to it's overall thinner nature, the k-tip deffinitely wins out on most of these ingredients in terms of cutting, except for maybe on celery, which was very close, perhaps sligtly favoring my gyuto. I find cutting multiple celery stalks at a time is helped along by a heavier blade, and by that virtue, ironically my Dexter Chinese cleaver might beat both of these out on celery. But celery is pretty easy to cut with anything. What really, really made me happy with this k-tip is how easily it decimated onions. My old Yoshimitsu used to be the best thing I had ever used on onions, but this thing takes the top spot without a doubt. Loved dicing onions with this thing, which counts for a lot, because I cut onions very regularly.
And here is the result.
My gyuto has what I consider a comforting heft to it and is pretty close to being able to keep up with the speed of the k-tip if you use the proper technique, but it is the kind of knife that does best when you have the temperment of a drill sergent. You have to be ready to tell my knife what to do and be the boss. The k-tip on the other hand can cut as fast as my skills permit with not much prompting. It has a bit of the thin edged feel that I still have not become entirely accustomed to after years of western knives, but I don't mean that as a negative, I have just steered toward very sturdy knives due to that being more familiar. Really I think this knife strikes a nice middle ground, it cuts any ingredient I've thrown at it quite without thought, but it still manages to feel sturdy enough that I don't feel I have to be paranoid in use. I think it has pretty ideally balanced cutting charateristics.
Now, here is what I cut: 8 carrots, 4 heads of broccoli, a whole (head?) of celery, and 3 onions.
Pretty much in comparison, due to it's overall thinner nature, the k-tip deffinitely wins out on most of these ingredients in terms of cutting, except for maybe on celery, which was very close, perhaps sligtly favoring my gyuto. I find cutting multiple celery stalks at a time is helped along by a heavier blade, and by that virtue, ironically my Dexter Chinese cleaver might beat both of these out on celery. But celery is pretty easy to cut with anything. What really, really made me happy with this k-tip is how easily it decimated onions. My old Yoshimitsu used to be the best thing I had ever used on onions, but this thing takes the top spot without a doubt. Loved dicing onions with this thing, which counts for a lot, because I cut onions very regularly.
And here is the result.
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Re: 220mm 80CRV2 Gyuto S Grind pass around
I always do onion tests! The vertical and horizontal cuts on the onions tell me a lot of how it feels in the cut. I do sweet potatoes, regular potatoes or rutabage to see how it does in a harder/taller ingredient. Carrots are another good test I found about here, so I do some of them, too. Carrots test penetration/wedging/cracking as well. Some beefier blades will crack more, but if it cuts smoothly through, that is expected due to the thickness of the blade further up towards the spine.
I think Ronnie mentioned that if a knife can do well with onions and sweet potatoes, it should do well with most ingredients, so those 2 plus carrots and Rutabaga are my 4 go to food tests.
I think Ronnie mentioned that if a knife can do well with onions and sweet potatoes, it should do well with most ingredients, so those 2 plus carrots and Rutabaga are my 4 go to food tests.
Re: 220mm 80CRV2 Gyuto S Grind pass around
Got it shipped today.
I did do a quick touch up to deal with a small roll that the edge took using my #2000 Naniwa Super stone, and then couple passes on a balsa strop with 3 micron diamond paste, so it should come with a fair edge on it.
I did do a quick touch up to deal with a small roll that the edge took using my #2000 Naniwa Super stone, and then couple passes on a balsa strop with 3 micron diamond paste, so it should come with a fair edge on it.
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Re: 220mm 80CRV2 Gyuto S Grind pass around
The knife arrived safe and sound, looking forward to turning large pieces of food into smaller pieces of food.
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Re: 220mm 80CRV2 Gyuto S Grind pass around
Another outstanding knife by Taz. The days at work I used it weren’t particularly prep heavy, but was able to put it through a proper amount of product to get a decent idea of what we have on our hands. The profile on the gyuto and size aren’t particularly extreme, fluid enough to rock a usable height before the tip wants to snack on the board, flat enough to chop, and paired with a particularly outstanding tip.
The angle and height of the k-tip coupled with a kiss of beef into a super accurate needle feels natural going through items quetly and quickly. I even used it on turning 10 pounds of unprocessed teres major steaks into 8 oz uniform steaks, removing silver skin and salvaging steak tips. Butchery precision was possible and controllable. Tip draws through vegetables didnt stick and tip chops don’t really launch product, including sticky garlic. From the tip, I’d go as far as to say the front 2/3 of the blade reaches the same level of high performance greatness through product as any other gyuto that’s gone through my hands. Non stick properties are in the good not great realm, nothing mind blowing or capable of the non stick parlor tricks, but not distracting or frustrating.
The middle of the profile and heel into handle weren’t exactly my cup of tea, but I have no reason not to believe it’s more to others taste. There is a spot somewhere in the grind just in front of a pinch grip that would hit and pause on particularly large parsnips. I never got a chance to cut butternuts or oversized sweet potatoes to see if it would happen with other larger, harder things, but am curious if others notice any difference. The tip to 2/3s area zips through any and all product but once the majority of the meat of the knife catches up it bogs down slightly… not in a crack and wedge sort of way, just not on the same otherworldly level of the rest of the blade.
I’m a huge believer in a nice sharp heel so I’ll just chalk the rounded heel up to preference and move on to the handle. The handle and my hand didn’t particularly mesh well. The height of the tang and overall girth of the handle, while not extreme felt somewhat cramped with my over exaggerated pinch grip. I wear size L gloves, have somewhat large palms with relatively short fingers and I couldn’t get a natural feeling grip; however, my sous chef with smaller palms, longer fingers, and a more subtle pinch to her grip raved about how comfortable it was for her.
The steel seems legit, I didn’t really give it an extreme workout torture test edge retention, but it held a respectable edge on par with a good white or blue steel knife in a pro environment. It didn’t jump out as otherworldly good or noticeably bad, perfectly acceptable for professional use in terms of edge retention. I did get a touch of discoloration on some onions early on in my cutting that seemed to mellow out later with more patina forming… nothing as bad as some Iron clad knives I’ve used, but a touch more particular than a hitachi carbon. The knife came to me with a very nice 3 micron edge, so I only touched it up with a roughly 3 micron shapton pro 5k edge lightly stropped with some leather and the edge came back to life with little to no effort. I would’ve loved to sharpen it more but it didn’t really need it.
Overall this is an awesome knife. The tip is easily my favorite part, and the size and shape are a very versatile and suitable to any need, volume, precision, or just plain enjoyable cutting experience it simply works and with few weaknesses. There’s some nuances that aren’t for me but I can get particular over some weird things that others love. All in all I had a lot of fun trying it out and am extremely thankful you trusted me again to try out your work. Keep making great work.
The angle and height of the k-tip coupled with a kiss of beef into a super accurate needle feels natural going through items quetly and quickly. I even used it on turning 10 pounds of unprocessed teres major steaks into 8 oz uniform steaks, removing silver skin and salvaging steak tips. Butchery precision was possible and controllable. Tip draws through vegetables didnt stick and tip chops don’t really launch product, including sticky garlic. From the tip, I’d go as far as to say the front 2/3 of the blade reaches the same level of high performance greatness through product as any other gyuto that’s gone through my hands. Non stick properties are in the good not great realm, nothing mind blowing or capable of the non stick parlor tricks, but not distracting or frustrating.
The middle of the profile and heel into handle weren’t exactly my cup of tea, but I have no reason not to believe it’s more to others taste. There is a spot somewhere in the grind just in front of a pinch grip that would hit and pause on particularly large parsnips. I never got a chance to cut butternuts or oversized sweet potatoes to see if it would happen with other larger, harder things, but am curious if others notice any difference. The tip to 2/3s area zips through any and all product but once the majority of the meat of the knife catches up it bogs down slightly… not in a crack and wedge sort of way, just not on the same otherworldly level of the rest of the blade.
I’m a huge believer in a nice sharp heel so I’ll just chalk the rounded heel up to preference and move on to the handle. The handle and my hand didn’t particularly mesh well. The height of the tang and overall girth of the handle, while not extreme felt somewhat cramped with my over exaggerated pinch grip. I wear size L gloves, have somewhat large palms with relatively short fingers and I couldn’t get a natural feeling grip; however, my sous chef with smaller palms, longer fingers, and a more subtle pinch to her grip raved about how comfortable it was for her.
The steel seems legit, I didn’t really give it an extreme workout torture test edge retention, but it held a respectable edge on par with a good white or blue steel knife in a pro environment. It didn’t jump out as otherworldly good or noticeably bad, perfectly acceptable for professional use in terms of edge retention. I did get a touch of discoloration on some onions early on in my cutting that seemed to mellow out later with more patina forming… nothing as bad as some Iron clad knives I’ve used, but a touch more particular than a hitachi carbon. The knife came to me with a very nice 3 micron edge, so I only touched it up with a roughly 3 micron shapton pro 5k edge lightly stropped with some leather and the edge came back to life with little to no effort. I would’ve loved to sharpen it more but it didn’t really need it.
Overall this is an awesome knife. The tip is easily my favorite part, and the size and shape are a very versatile and suitable to any need, volume, precision, or just plain enjoyable cutting experience it simply works and with few weaknesses. There’s some nuances that aren’t for me but I can get particular over some weird things that others love. All in all I had a lot of fun trying it out and am extremely thankful you trusted me again to try out your work. Keep making great work.
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Re: 220mm 80CRV2 Gyuto S Grind pass around
Thank you for the excellent feedback!! 80CRV2 is one of my entry level steels and I felt it was close to white and blue edge retention wise, but I use it a lot less than you would, so it's hard for me to fully judge it! I took Magnacut and 52100 down to crazy thin levels, but I haven't done a ton of testing with the 80CRV2 yet in the kitchen, so I didn't go down quite as stupid thin at the edge for this one! Next step is thinning it down a bit more for the back half since I know it didn't have any issues handling harder veggies or cutting on the front portion!
The price of 80CRV2 is MUCH lower than Blue #2 steel; a piece 12" x 2" x 3/32" in 80CRV2 is less than $5, Blue #2 is around $37 for the same size piece which is more than Magnacut, which is $34 for the same size piece! It's nice to have a lower cost option in steel that does very well as an alternative to Blue #2, which was one of go to steels when buying Japanese knives before (or AS).
I was waiting for a comment on the handle; it's tall, but not girthy, so it's a bit weird. It's my tester handle, so it's made to fit the tang of pretty much any kitchen knife I make for test cutting purposes as I am grinding it. So yeah, the handle will not be everyone's cup of tea!
I think the drag in front of the pinch grip may have been in the transition area where the hollow grind comes in? I taper it in a little forward of the heel, so there is more meat there. When I pinch grip, I am a bit forward on the blade, so I use the heel a lot less. Not everyone has the same grip, so I need to make sure the grind is thinner far enough back that it doesn't inhibit performance in other grips! So used to making kitchen knives for myself and how I cut, so it's nice getting feedback from a variety of people!
It's going to Mark at CKTG next!!
The price of 80CRV2 is MUCH lower than Blue #2 steel; a piece 12" x 2" x 3/32" in 80CRV2 is less than $5, Blue #2 is around $37 for the same size piece which is more than Magnacut, which is $34 for the same size piece! It's nice to have a lower cost option in steel that does very well as an alternative to Blue #2, which was one of go to steels when buying Japanese knives before (or AS).
I was waiting for a comment on the handle; it's tall, but not girthy, so it's a bit weird. It's my tester handle, so it's made to fit the tang of pretty much any kitchen knife I make for test cutting purposes as I am grinding it. So yeah, the handle will not be everyone's cup of tea!
I think the drag in front of the pinch grip may have been in the transition area where the hollow grind comes in? I taper it in a little forward of the heel, so there is more meat there. When I pinch grip, I am a bit forward on the blade, so I use the heel a lot less. Not everyone has the same grip, so I need to make sure the grind is thinner far enough back that it doesn't inhibit performance in other grips! So used to making kitchen knives for myself and how I cut, so it's nice getting feedback from a variety of people!
It's going to Mark at CKTG next!!
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Re: 220mm 80CRV2 Gyuto S Grind pass around
Bold statement, I cant wait to give it a test drive around the kitchen!!
Home cook, addicted to knives, stones, food and new recipes.
Bill
Bill
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Re: 220mm 80CRV2 Gyuto S Grind pass around
Yeah, I put it through rutabaga and sweet potatoes in my testing. 80crv2 is tough steel! It is used in Swedish Puukko knives, saw blades and in custom swords, too.
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Re: 220mm 80CRV2 Gyuto S Grind pass around
Wait. What? I thought when Mr. Mark got the knife he'd put it in the sale section, marked down as a "return". Boost the bottom line there a bit. Instead, it will be pictured in the "Squash: The not so silent killer of knives" thread! 

Last edited by XexoX on Thu Jan 30, 2025 3:03 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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The thing about quotes on the internet is you can not confirm their validity. -- Abraham Lincoln
All steels are equal if you can't keep them sharp. -- Jeff B.

The thing about quotes on the internet is you can not confirm their validity. -- Abraham Lincoln
All steels are equal if you can't keep them sharp. -- Jeff B.
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Re: 220mm 80CRV2 Gyuto S Grind pass around
Nah, it will be the "Knives, the Silent Squash Killer" thread!
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Re: 220mm 80CRV2 Gyuto S Grind pass around
If I had squash to cut I wouldn’t have hesitated to use it, it never felt dainty… insert standard caveat of I’ve literally cut tons of squash in my life, proceed with caution if you don’t have technique down
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Re: 220mm 80CRV2 Gyuto S Grind pass around
Sharpening this knife was quick and effortless—not that it needed it, since jmcnelly85 sent it sharp right out of the box. Still, I put it through a progression starting with a 320-grit stone, followed by a 1K, then a 5K, and finished with a strop on 1 micron, diamond-loaded leather. It formed a nice, quick burr and took an edge easily, shaving hair once I was done. I didn’t use it long enough to gauge edge retention, but there were no signs of it and no chipping.
For testing, we put the knife through a variety of ingredients, including carrots, broccoli, sweet potatoes, red onions, garlic, green onions, cranberry walnut bread, apples, mushrooms, red peppers, cheddar cheese, and celery. It handled everything well, with only slight wedging on crisp apples—nothing major.
As for the feel, the knife has a stiff, well-balanced profile that should appeal to both push-cutters and rockers alike. The rounded spine is a nice touch, adding to the comfort. The handle felt comfortable and visually appealing, though the choil area made the knife feel slightly clunky in hand.
Overall, this is a well-crafted knife with thoughtful design choices. Great effort! Thanks for letting me test it out!
For testing, we put the knife through a variety of ingredients, including carrots, broccoli, sweet potatoes, red onions, garlic, green onions, cranberry walnut bread, apples, mushrooms, red peppers, cheddar cheese, and celery. It handled everything well, with only slight wedging on crisp apples—nothing major.
As for the feel, the knife has a stiff, well-balanced profile that should appeal to both push-cutters and rockers alike. The rounded spine is a nice touch, adding to the comfort. The handle felt comfortable and visually appealing, though the choil area made the knife feel slightly clunky in hand.
Overall, this is a well-crafted knife with thoughtful design choices. Great effort! Thanks for letting me test it out!
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Re: 220mm 80CRV2 Gyuto S Grind pass around
Next up is Ronnie! I am sure you have his address Mark! Lol.
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