Shun Classic Blonde 7" Santoku Knife, Handcrafted Japanese All Purpose Knife, VG-MAX Core with Damascus Stainless Steel Cladding, Pakkawood Handle, Versatile Japanese Cutting Tool

So far this is the best knife. I do like German steel but I prefer the the VG-Max Japanese metal a bit more. The knife is perfect weighted with great balance. Here's a couple things to note for knife nerds: the blade comes with an aggressive 25+ degree angle. It took me about 20 mins to get it to my preferred angle of about 18. It holds a great edge sharpened at that angle; I use a diamond spray and strop about every week and get about a month before I need to put it on the stones. The VG-Max, does chip slightly more than German Steel due to HRC being higher, but for me its no problem. I cannot attest to what it does at a more aggressive angle as it comes from the factory at. So far, this is my favorite knife for the kitchen.

My wife is an awesome cook, self taught. As her skills have improved her tools have improved. She has several Birchwood high quality knives. She was a little disappointed this wasn't Birchwood but that was my fault I knew the handel wasn't Birchwood. I was interested in the steel and the sharpness. I sharpen her tools using Arkansas oil stones; soft, medium, hard and Surgical Black stones. This knife arrived equally or better then my sharpening level. The wife liked the size of the knife. She has small hands so a 7in blade knife is a big knife for her. We both prefer smaller blade versus a chef knife length. The handel is shaped identical to her Miyabi Handel, but different wood. She likes it.

Great for everything

My friend, the chef, loves Shun, as did celebrity chefs Alton brown and Bobby Flay. I love the shape and size of this life as an amateur I’ve always felt an 8 inch weight was too long, and a 6 inch utility knife too small. Most of my shopping is with onions or vegetables and General kitchen used. So 7 inches seemed perfect. The wood handle it’s so much more comfortable than cheap plastic handles and being blonde wood as a touch of class! Highly recommended, I think I will be trying out a paring knife next

I've owned shun knives many years And have found them to be the best knives on the market today. Warranty and resharpening is the best in the business.

This knife is made very well and is crazy sharp. It great for slicing and dicing but not chopping. If you chop meat and hit a bone it could chip the blade. This is normal for this kind of steel. It’s a professional tool use it as one.

Love the craftsmanship. A super sharp knife that brings so much more joy to cooking!

This is my first high-end knife. I was a big fan of the appearance, the Damascus steel texture, the blonde handle (very beautiful compared to plastic handles).Santoku shape means it's best for a up-down chopping motion (vs rounded blades are more of a rocking motion). I've predominantly used a chef's knife up to this point so it is a slightly different technique and taking a tiny bit of getting used to.The knife is wicked sharp, and the steel is noticeably harder than my other knives. I'm hoping this means it'll keep its edge longer, but I believe Shun does free sharpening as well so while I baby this knife, I'm not too worried. Works really well for cutting vegetables- my first use was to dice some onions and it was very enjoyable how smoothly and effortless it cut in.The handle and ergonomics are good, feels very comfortable in hand. The handle is actually asymmetrical, so I think this is built for a right handed person (and fits very comfortably for that). If you're left handed, might be something to watch out for, since it might fit kind of awkward and might be better to default to a symmetrical knife.The handle has a mildly unpleasant odor, hence 4 stars. It's not really a big deal and I'm not sniffing my knife that often, but something to be aware of. I'm hoping it goes away with time.