Customer Reviews

Shun 7-3/4-Inch Stainless Steel Chinese Chef's Knife

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I recently purchased the Shun 7 3/4 Chinese Chefs knife to replace my very very old carbon steel 10" french chefs knife which had developed a cracked, loose handle. I own the stainless version of the Shun instead of the "classic" version with the composite wood handle. I was slightly apprehensive about ordering a knife with an all metal handle because I thought it might become slippery when wet or greasy, however the wonderful asymmetric shape(for my hands at least) and lightly sanded finish provide a very secure grip, perhaps better than my old knife. Quite a few other reviewers of Shun knives said that their knifes came razor sharp but mine at least did not. No commercial knife I have ever owned has been sharp out of the box so I'm not faulting the manufacturer. It had a beautifully ground edge that was very precise and defect free but it was simply not sharp. I was able to put a "scary sharp" edge on it in about 2 min with my extra fine whetstone and a few strokes with my ceramic steel. The steel in this knife seems very hard compared with my old chefs knife which makes it a pleasure to sharpen because it grinds precisely and forms only a very small burr.

This is my first Chinese style knife and it really amazes me how great this design is. Its very wide slightly curved blade, medium weight and high handle make it the most ergonomic knife I have ever used, vegetables just fall into the most perfect pieces with the least amount of effort, chicken and beef slice into perfect strips with even less effort. This knife is so easy to use compared with my chefs knife it has already cut my prep time to 2/3 of what it was. I highly recommend this style knife for anyone who does not mind learning some new knife skills.

Now for the Ugly part of this knife. The spine of this knife is simply too sharp out of the box. It is ground square with the blade and was sharp enough on my knife for me to worry about cutting my fingers on it. In order to make my knife usable I had to carefully grind the edges off the spine with some 220 grit wet/dry sandpaper (keep the paper wet while you grind and be sure to clamp the knife securely so you don't have an accident.) For me it was fairly easy and took me only about 20 minutes, however I cannot recommend that anyone use this knife in its stock form without rounding the edges or getting someone to do it for you. The rest of the knife was finished beautifully so I'm not sure why they overlooked something as important as this on an otherwise flawless knife.

Pros:
Ergonomic cleaver design makes short work of food preparation
Nicely shaped stainless handle that doesn't make the knife uncontrollable when its wet or greasy
Extra hard stainless steel blade sharpens easily and stays consistently sharp with a small amount of steeling
Requires much less cutting space than a traditional chefs knife
Easily used as a spatula to move food off the cutting board
The layered steel looks really nice on this knife, it is assembled and ground very nicely and feels solid
It is very easy to clean because of its one piece stainless steel design

Cons:
The Spine on my knife came much too sharp to use without modification
The hollow metal handle is slightly cold when you first pick it up
Requires a different cutting technique from a western or Japanese chefs knife
If your left handed you need to order the left handed version because the handle is asymmetric

Please never use a knife like this on bones, that is what a western style cleaver is for. This is a fine chefs knife, treat it as such.

I picked up this knife during a freak 70% off Amazon Shun sale, making it an irresistible deal. Like all Shun knives, it's beautifully crafted. I was apprehensive of purchasing an all-metal knife without the traditional wooden handle, fearing that the knife might slip in a greasy situation. However, the handle is quite comfortable to hold, and is pretty slip-resistant. My knife did not have the sharp spine as the other reviewer noted, so your mileage my vary.

This comes extremely sharp out of the box, so no further sharpening is needed. It's sharpened only on one side, so be sure you keep that in mind when you're sharpening it, or dropping it off at a professional's. Or, if you'd like to ship it back to Kershaw-Shun for free lifetime sharpening (with free return shipping) you may send it back to this address:

Kai USA
Attention warranty
18600 SW Teton
Tualatin, OR 97062

Remember, this is a Chinese cleaver with a very fine edge. Do NOT use it for chopping through bones- save that for the Western style cleaver. However, for all other uses, this cleaver excels. In fact, it doubles as a garlic press and grater. It can julienne, coarse cut, scoop, etc... A perfectly utilitarian knife for the kitchen- don't let that big blade scare you.

This cleaver cuts through hard root vegetables (yams, taro, carrots, etc..) like a hot knife through butter. It's very sharp, and that's with the factory sharpened edge!

Just try not to hack off any fingers...

I bought this for my Mom, and she told me that this was the sharpest knife she had ever used, and she stopped using all her other Chinese cleavers.

This is not a knife for everyone, but for those who like this kind of knife, it's wonderful. It took me a while to start using it and then a while longer to use it correctly and now it really is my goto knife for almost everything. I think it is just wonderful.
I bought this initially to cook Chinese food mainly and it is wonderfully sharp and well-balanced. When my in-laws (who are excellent Chinese-food cooks) come over to cook -- they like to do this every now and then -- they go straight for this knife, and absolutely love it. They grew up using large knives like this and say it's the best they've ever used. It's really sharp and has a beautiful blade. Since it's all one piece, it's also easy to clean (Although I sometimes wish it had a wooden or molded more ergonomic easier-to-grip handle. It's a trade-off). It is a big knife and excellent for slicing and chopping, but not for a beginner chef, in my opinion. It is though, a really fantastic knife and I'm so glad to have it. Anyone who juliennes veggies and meat a lot can really get a ton of use out of it. It's wonderful for Chinese cooking.
I'm still learning to use it and I have to be very careful with it because it is huge. Used correctly, that huge cutting area is AWESOME. I can understand why some people have trouble holding it and feel like it's sharp on their hands. I felt that way too until I was shown "the correct" way to hold it by my mother-in-law. I don't know if I would have figured it out without her. She actually holds the sides of the blade with her fingers so she's not just gripping the handle
Another thing to be aware of: it's large, so it doesn't fit upright in most drawers in a drawer knife holder, so either a magnetic wall knife holder, or space in a drawer lying flat are needed.
I give it 4 stars because I prefer the molded or wooden handle grips and it's heavy and difficult to hold correctly.

I purchased this knife for my wife. She absolutely loves it!! Let me warn you that it comes very sharp out of the box. This is our first Shun.....we liked it so much we bought the 8" Chef knife as well. Well worth the money.

The quality of this knife is Shun quality. It just doesn't have the nice wooden handle, but is just as functional as the more expensive Shun blades. It holds its edge great, and looks beautiful.

Very sharp knife out of the box. Light, and thin. No need for sharping before use. However, be careful not to cut yourself since it is very easy to do.

The chinese blade originated from battlefield when soldiers needed a durable, easy to sharpen blade for cooking; so they broke a sword in half, and created the modern chinese cleaver. Modern chinese blades reflect those traditions because the chinese knives are heavy and have a thick spine to break bones, or to tenderize meat. A short handle is all that's needed to control the blade. Tradition blades come with a plumpy round wooden handle as a grip. Long length and large surface area to be used as a food scrapper, so those were important factors for the basis of this comparitive review.

The shun knife is a Japanese made designer blade which I've been using for more than 6 months in my kitchen. I'm impressed by the light weight and sharpness of the blade, and the aesthetic beauty of the solid heat-pressed VG-10 steel. The length of handle is unnecessary because control is located at the blade, gripping the entire handle is impractical and dangerous because the user would lose control of the weight of the blade. The weight of the blade is too light, so it's good for home chef for light-duty cooking. The blade is extremely sharp, so sharp that I've chipped the blade when cutting chicken. I understand that chef's would rather treat the Shun blade as a chef's knife, but it would take away the original practicality of the chinese blade and there are better alternatives from japanese chefs knives.

The reason why I rated it so low is because:
1) VG steel is very hard to resharpen
2) Long and thin handle is good for small hands, but impractical med-large hands.
3) It's too light for its use
4) The primary blade is a bit short for practical use

Overall Shun knives are great blades, exotic, elegant, and a great collection for a home chef. The Shun chinese blade however, can endure light use in the long-run. There are other great choices out there, so look around.