i picked up some 1k and 4k shapton glass, mainly because they fit in my knife bag... but have come to love their rather business-like attributes: fast cutting, HARD, long lasting, splash-and-go so no soak needed.

wusthofs are a great knife btw. touch up on a 1k brick and steel as needed.

in pro kitchens the hard and thin Japanese knives are all the rage, and for good reason; but i guess like anything expensive and precise they can be temperamental if mishandled.

i have a 240 richmond ultimatum in swedish stainless that does lots of things well, and some wa handled kohetsu's in HAP40 powdered steel.

i guess it's like riding tubulars. re-glueing is a total PITA, but life is short so why the hell not.