# Misono Molybdenum vs Masamoto CN



## shinsaber2109 (Apr 14, 2015)

Hi everyone,

Currently I have a friend who is studying in Japan and I have asked him to ship me a gyuto 240mm. I have narrowed down my choice to 2 knives with fairly same price but I couldn't decide between them.

1st one is the Misono Molybdenum Stainless, highly praised by chefs for its sharpness, requires knowledge about sharpening to bring out the full potential of the knife

http://global.rakuten.com/en/store/newworldnet/item/misono-no513/

Price: *£ 55.17*

2nd one is Masamoto CN5024, a mysterious opponent from the famous Masamoto brand, very little details on the internet, I've been told that the CN series is actually the bolster-less CT series with same steel (Takefu V2) but no one confirms that.

http://item.rakuten.co.jp/subaru/cn5024/

Price: *£ 56.98*

As you can see they are both famous brand knives with roundly same prices. I wonder which one is the better choice in the edge (retention of sharpness) and sharpening.

Thanks for helps,

Quan


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## millionsknives (Apr 25, 2014)

You're comparing a carbon steel (V2) and stainless.  The carbon steel will be easier to sharpen and should hold an edge longer, but you have to manage the reactivity. 

The profiles look similar. I don't know about the grind on either to comment. Whether you want to learn to deal with carbon steel or not is probably your deciding factor though.


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## ordo (Mar 19, 2009)

I would not buy a bolsterless gyuto. I own a Masamoto CT and it's a superb knife with one of the best geometries out there. Real wood on the handle and great F&F. Here's a pick of mine.





  








Masamoto CT.JPG




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ordo


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Sep 25, 2015


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## shinsaber2109 (Apr 14, 2015)

ordo said:


> I would not buy a bolsterless gyuto. I own a Masamoto CT and it's a superb knife with one of the best geometries out there. Real wood on the handle and great F&F. Here's a pick of mine.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Isn't bolster now is only for aesthetic? And bolsters don't help but hurt balance of thin knives. It looks like the CN is a bolsterless version of CT.


MillionsKnives said:


> You're comparing a carbon steel (V2) and stainless. The carbon steel will be easier to sharpen and should hold an edge longer, but you have to manage the reactivity.
> 
> The profiles look similar. I don't know about the grind on either to comment. Whether you want to learn to deal with carbon steel or not is probably your deciding factor though.


Yeah, you are right. I have a Naniwa waterstone 1000/3000 for sharpening knives, though I'm just an amateur in the technique. As far as I know, the 1000 grit is for daily sharpening and 3000 is for polishing.


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## ordo (Mar 19, 2009)

shinsaber2109 said:


> Isn't bolster now is only for aesthetic? And bolsters don't help but hurt balance of thin knives. It looks like the CN is a bolsterless version of CT.


The welded bolster helps to prevent water and liquids in general to intrude the tang, which is not a good thing.

Besides, in yo knives, you want a more backward balance, not so much to the blade. May be you need a wa gyuto.


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## shinsaber2109 (Apr 14, 2015)

ordo said:


> The welded bolster helps to prevent water and liquids in general to intrude the tang, which is not a good thing.
> 
> Besides, in yo knives, you want a more backward balance, not so much to the blade. May be you need a wa gyuto.


Then in your opinion, I should go for the Misono Moly rather than the Masamoto CN? Wa Gyuto is expensive for Masamoto and I don't think I can find one in this price range on Rakuten :|


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## ordo (Mar 19, 2009)

If the choice is limited to those two knives, i would buy the Misono. But as MillionsKnives pointed you must, first of all, decide whether you want stainless steel or carbon steel.


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## shinsaber2109 (Apr 14, 2015)

ordo said:


> If the choice is limited to those two knives, i would buy the Misono. But as MillionsKnives pointed you must, first of all, decide whether you want stainless steel or carbon steel.


Well, of course the stainless steel is handy in maintenance but the carbon steel is better in sharpening. In my situation, I would love to buy a stainless one cause it is easier for me to hand but I don't mind the carbon steel cause it is from Masamoto itself.

My choice so far are those 2 but if there is another knife under £100 with same quality like Misono and Masamoto then I can consider it.


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## shinsaber2109 (Apr 14, 2015)

Benuser said:


> Masamoto is inconsistent in Fit&Finish. High prices and lack of quality controll.
> Better have a Misono. I would prefer the 440-series. A bit harder.


As far as I know, Misono series 440 is considered as overpriced and not much better than the Moly one. Normally when it come to Misono, everyone would recommend the UX10 and I too love that knife but it is so expensive. About Masamoto, I'm not sure if this is the issue for Westerner chefs but Masamoto is very popular with sushi chefs in Ginza, which is the reason I choose their knives.


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## ordo (Mar 19, 2009)

shinsaber2109 said:


> As far as I know, Misono series 440 is considered as overpriced and not much better than the Moly one. Normally when it come to Misono, everyone would recommend the UX10 and I too love that knife but it is so expensive. About Masamoto, I'm not sure if this is the issue for Westerner chefs but Masamoto is very popular with sushi chefs in Ginza, which is the reason I choose their knives.


For some reason you are always trashing Masamoto brand (and praising Hiromoto). That's neither my experience nor some friend's experiences who own Masamoto knives.

That said, i concur with you about buying the Misono in this case.


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## shinsaber2109 (Apr 14, 2015)

ordo said:


> For some reason you are always trashing Masamoto brand (and praising Hiromoto). That's neither my experience nor some friend's experiences who own Masamoto knives.
> 
> That said, i concur with you about buying the Misono in this case.


Huh? I do not trash Masamoto brand, and I did not say any words about Hiromoto. Maybe you are mistaking me with Benuser? I'm a big fan of the wa gyuto made by Masamoto but too bad it is so expensive for me.

Misono and Masamoto is my fav so far which is why it is hard for me to choose between them.


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## ordo (Mar 19, 2009)

shinsaber2109 said:


> Huh? I do not trash Masamoto brand, and I did not say any words about Hiromoto. Maybe you are mistaking me with Benuser? I'm a big fan of the wa gyuto made by Masamoto but too bad it is so expensive for me.
> 
> Misono and Masamoto is my fav so far which is why it is hard for me to choose between them.


Very sorry for the confusion. I quoted wrong. I mean this post by Benuser.

_Masamoto is inconsistent in Fit&Finish. High prices and lack of quality controll.
Better have a Misono. I would prefer the 440-series. A bit harder._


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