# mac vs tojiro looking for a knife...



## halmstad (May 17, 2010)

i'm looking for a decent utility knife for home and have always wanted to get a mac and a tojiro knife. both are somewhat cheap knives and both get great reviews. i am leaning toward the tojiro, but everyone i know loves macs....

any and all opinions are appreciated

thanks


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## boar_d_laze (Feb 13, 2008)

Hi Halmstad,

What do you mean by "utility?"
What purposes are you planning for it?
Which MAC series? Do you have a particular model in mind?
Which Tojiro series, DP? Do you have a particular model in mind?
Do you already have a waterstone set? If not, how are you planning to keep your new knife sharp?
BDL


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## halmstad (May 17, 2010)

by utility i mean a 6" paring/sandwich knife

mac prof series

tojiro dp

i will use it a lot. i already have a wustof utility that i use all the time, but am going to bring it to work and need one for home. i do have waterstones.

i just want to try out a different brand of knife and have heard good things about both mac and tojiro.

thanks


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## duckfat (Aug 7, 2008)

If the Tojiro DP is still on sale at Korin I would go that route.


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## boar_d_laze (Feb 13, 2008)

Tojiro DP is something of an entry level knife.  MAC Pro is pretty much "top of the line."  Tojiro DP is "hon-warikomi" (clad), with a hard, stain-resistant hagane wrapped in soft stainless jigane.  MAC Pro is "monosteel" (probably Takefu VG-5).  MAC Pro has a better handle.

I don't like cladded knives for chopping, they feel "dead" to me.  However, that's (a) less apparent slicing; and (b) a sensation which doesn't bother most people;  or (c) one they don't notice.

They both have good edge characteristics.  Neither sharpens well on oilstones, so you'll need your waterstones. As long it isn't profiled too asymetrically the MAC can be maintained between sharpenings on a steel.  The Tojiro hagane is on the edge of being too hard side for a rod-hone.

Tojiro costs less, MAC is worth the extra tariff.   

BDL


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## halmstad (May 17, 2010)

I've been leaning toward the mac and I think that's the way I'm gonna go. Thanks for the opinions.


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## vdb1909 (Jul 6, 2010)

boar d laze i was wondering what knives you use


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## boar_d_laze (Feb 13, 2008)

Hey vdb,

Thanks for asking.

All of my main knives are currently Sabatier carbons from assorted Sabatier manufacturers -- K-Sab, TI, "Nogent," "Canadian," etc. -- and of various vintages -- ranging from about WWI to a couple that are only 10 years old.  I also have a few Forschner paring knives, and an old Chicago Cutlery carbon cleaver from the early seventies. 

Over the years, I've sharpened, tried and owned a lot of different knives. 

I keep two separate sharpening kits.  The oilstone kit consists of Norton coarse and fine Indias, and Hall's ProEdge soft and surgical black Arkansas stones; I don't use them with oil though.  The waterstone kit includes a Beston 500, Bester 1200, Naniwa Chocera 3000 and a Naniwa SS 8000.  The oilstones actually seem to work better for tough, relatively soft, stainless knives -- like most Europeans.

I also have and use two rod hones (i.e., "steels"), an old worn-down Henckels extra fine, and a Hand American borosilicate.  The HA borosilicate is used for deburring and truing, the Henckels goes to work when the HA doesn't do quite enough to refresh the edge.

More often than not, I deburr with a wine cork, but sometimes use wood endgrain, felt, cardboard, or whatever.

And more often than not, I use a Scotch-Brite to clean my knives -- sometimes with baking soda for the carbons.

Again, over the years, I've tried and owned a lot of different sharpening gear.

BDL


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