Review on 🔪 ZHEN Japanese VG-10 67-Layer Damascus Steel 8-Inch Slicer Chopping Chef Butcher Knife/Cleaver: Superior Quality for Large Cutting Tasks by Adam Grady

Background (1): I'm not Asian but have been using Chinese cleavers for over 30 years. I used to own a restaurant and when I first started cooking I gravitated towards Chinese cleavers (a little unusual for a white man); I just thought they had a very handy common sense design to pick one up and use. (The wide blade makes it much easier to keep the blade aligned with the knuckles of your hand holding the food so you don't cut yourself; it also allows you to pick up what you cut so you can easily move the food to where you want it want.) Background (2): I have used a Chinese Dexter/Russell Cleaver for many years. After that, I bought a Japanese-made Mac Chinese cleaver (about the same dimensions as Dexter) for Martin Yang, which I really liked; But I broke the blade that cuts frozen chicken and couldn't find another one since they stopped making it. Since then I have bought about 10 Chinese hatchets - Martin Yang; Joyce Chen; knife master; Forshner; powerful Chinese cheap ($6) for bone punching; and some others. But I've never bought the super expensive ones (like one of the Japanese ones sold at JCK, some of which sell for around $400). The most expensive Chinese cleaver I own is the Kershaw Shun DM0712, which currently sells for around $200. The Shun is very well made, but it is small, heavy for its size, and poorly balanced due to the weight of the blade. Now for Zhen Damascus, my first impressions are: (1) it's very, very spicy; (2) It's extremely and surprisingly light for its size - light to the point where I'm a little worried it might be brittle. (Only time will tell.) The blade is thin at the tip (less than 2mm) and tapers sharply towards the edge - almost like a razor. However, there is no taper on the crest from heel to toe. (3) Craftsmanship good to very good, but not obsessive/perfectionist like Japanese lace craftsmanship; (4) It's well balanced and well thought out (again, assuming it lasts); (5) The grip is very comfortable, but that can be a matter of personal preference; (6) Overall, this is pretty much what you should expect given the description and price. $130 for a knife isn't cheap; but it's less than half the price of similarly styled Japanese knives. And Zhen is clearly a copy of Kershaw Shun - a similar metal in the blade; similar handle design. But the dimensions (from the big one I bought) are very different from Shun; and the build quality is not very good. The blade out of the box, although razor sharp, had tiny ridges on the sides of the blade. I felt them with my fingernail. They could easily be removed with a sharpening steel or a thin stone, but this is something a top-notch Japanese craftsman would never miss. Likewise, you can feel a little where the rear pad attaches to the grip - it's not perfectly smooth. And where the bolster is welded to the blade, it is not as uniform and beautifully made as Shun's. I attribute these minor imperfections to the fact that this is a $130 knife, not $330. If I paid $330 and the knife was made in Japan I would be seriously disappointed, although none of these things affect the functionality of the knife. That's all I can say after a day of use. I personally like this particular grip design - I find it very comfortable (similar to the Shun but without the palm curve). So far the knife has been easy to use, although I'm still getting used to its size. (It's about 8" x 4"; other cleavers I own are about 3" wide, but many of the best and commercial Chinese cleavers are 4" wide or more.) My biggest concern is that the blade becomes brittle. (Although I don't plan on cutting bone with it, I expect it to hold up with proper use. And I have faith in Zhenya that the knife is indeed made of top quality Japanese steel. I hope they're telling the truth, but who knows?) above the fragility of the blades: I used to be surprised. I have found that the blades on my Dexter/Russels warp and break easily. But my master knife's blade, which I bought on E-Bay for $40 a few years ago, seemed very thin and light, so I was concerned that even though it was made in Japan, it might be brittle. But I was surprised that this thin and innocent looking blade was actually very strong. Because it was only $40, it became my workhorse and I've kept pushing it to see what it can do. I eventually started using it to cut chicken bones (both raw and cooked) including leg bones and the blade doesn't bend or rattle or anything. Pretty amazing.] Anyway, the point of Zhen Damascus is that it looks well designed; it is very, very sharp; workmanship is good but not perfect; It's too early for me to speak about the quality of the blade; and finally, the price seems reasonable compared to high-end Chinese cleavers at $129. UPDATE - 6/15/12 Well I've been using my new Zhen knife for about a month now. Overall I'm very happy with it. I was very cautious for the first few weeks; Messer and I got to know each other. Among other things, it is so sharp that it tends to stick to the cutting board when picking up vegetables. (The cure is to scoop with the spatula at a very, very low angle.) But it wasn't until a few days ago that I realized I was becoming very comfortable with a knife. In the beginning I would feel more comfortable using one of my old knives because I'm used to it. But now I prefer the new one to my other knives - a good sign. As with any razor sharp blade, the blade will dull over time. But I managed to keep it sharp with a few strokes on a stone (my main stone is softer Arkansas) or, what I like best, on a ceramic sharpener. I still find the grip very comfortable. And I love the extra width - it's great when you're slicing something big, like Chinese cabbage or watermelon. And that also means I can pick up a lot of stuff with a spoon. That being said, if you've never used a Chinese hatchet but are thinking of trying it, I don't think it's the best choice. I say that because the 4 inch wide blade is really quite large and blade width definitely makes a difference in ergonomics. All of my previous Chinese cleavers had 3" wide blades. If you are thinking about trying a Chinese cleaver, I would suggest getting one with a 3" wide blade first. There are many to choose from. Getting used to the 4" " Wide blade makes the knife look big. Ergonomics Note: Watch chefs and cooks doing Chinese cooking when you get a chance. Chinese kitchens are very ergonomic, but differ greatly from standard Western kitchens. In terms of chopping and cooking, work surfaces are usually lower to make room for (1) a large, thick, round spruce tree, which is a Chinese chopping block, and (2) a broad Chinese cleaver. On a standard American kitchen table, you'll find (depending on your height, of course) that the 4-inch blade of a large Chinese cleaver requires you to raise your hand and wrist higher than you're used to. this can negate one of the advantages of the Chinese cleaver - you don't have to "squeeze" the knife hard, as the weight of the cleaver does most of the work.