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.
Get more detail about Shun 7-3/4-Inch Stainless Steel Chinese Chef's Knife.
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