[rick alan]

You only need to understand Iceman's frustration here as so many of his "responsible" posts have been deleted. The world is simply not a fair place, and it is only illegal if you get caught.

Dave there are many shapes and grinds available in Japanese knives, and just buying this japanny is not really going to give you a good idea of what high-performance cutlery has to offer. And high-performance is really what you are actually looking for here. As example of the incongruities your post presents, many Japanese gyuto are actually modeled after the French Sabatier. The knife you are considering has a very flat "looking" profile, though it just may be a very shallow and continuous curve running to the very low tip, the combination of which might not be what you are looking for at all.

Then there are degrees of spine thickness, convexity or wide bevels and special finishes for good food release, various degrees of thinness at the edge, etc. And the types and heat treat of the steel of course.

What exactly is it you think you are looking for in a new knife? Knowing this we can be of much more help.

 

[rick alan]

The Shun is actually a clunker compared to the typical entry level Japanese knife.

Iceman says piece of junk for the Japanny, I've no personal experience with the knife but have no problem taking his word here. For this Japanny hand-made is a very relative term. The faux damascus comes in 12' rectangular sheets right from the mill, it is laser of water-jet cut into a blank then embossed/shaped and finished on robotic machinery. Hands are used to place it in its packaging.

The Tojiro above is a rather crude piece with a bulbous handle, and the iron cladding known for being a bit more reactive than many, lots of pros use them though. This Masahiro is a good place to get a feel for carbon:
https://tinyurl.com/entry-level-carbon

 

[rick alan]

Handles that are bulbous up front like the Tojiro shiro are about the only thing that erks me. Other than that just use the pinch grip and realize that the ring and pinky fingers are your power fingers, and keep everything else relaxed in the cut.

Were you given any idea on the wait for the Masamoto? Some have been waiting a couple years at this point as I have been led to believe.

Wakui and Watanabi are 2 very nice blades in white 2, one a little less expensive and the other a bit more.

 

[rick alan]

Not question anything from me, with the number of times I've managed to misstate the facts?

Well you know the OP came here looking for help getting started with jknives, moving on from original considerations is usually the way here, and always nice to see someone who can start from zero and make up there mind quick.