Originally Posted by Great Expectations:
I bought this J.A. Henckel block set 10+ years ago and it has been great. The forged steel is great; international basically means that it is made in China instead of Germany. Might not be as good as the German made, but it sharpens quickly and holds the edge well.
Japanese knives are great. The metals they use will hold an edge for a very long time and the blade edge is generally at about 15 degrees so they are extremely sharp. That said, some of the carbon steel products require some care or they will end up looking crappy and stained.
The Victorinox line of knives is quite good and relatively cheap as blade production is done from a sheet of steel rather than via forging processes.
We have some Japanese knives and recently bought some Victorinox knives too (BTW, their blade edge is at 15 degrees so they’re nice and sharp).
I would recommend looking at the Cutlery & More website as they carry quite a few lines of knives (several Japanese lines) plus they carry the Victorinox line.
PS. I also really like the MAC line of knives too (it’s a Japanese line) and their bread knife is generally rated as the best bread knife made.
PS.PS. Feel free to mix lines as there is no rule about sticking with one line.
Originally Posted by Baby Lee:
An underappreciated benefit of Cutco is the forever guarantee. My 'starter set' is now 30 years old, and over the years I've picked up some newer and some even older pieces. Have about 20 in all. Mom has another 10-15 or so, and sis has 4-5 as well [all of theirs, and most of mine after the starter set, came from estate sales and flea markets].
Every 18 months or so, I send it all to Cutco for them to inspect/repair/replace. If they can't return any piece to new condition, they'll just give me a new one.
I have a nearby retail center, so I can just drop them off and come back for them later. If you don't have a retail center, you have to mail them back to the Olean NY factory and pay for return shipping. But otherwise, not many things I've used and abused daily for 3 decades that is literally as good as new today.
I lost the small steak knife and the scissors. Losing the scissors was a big loss. Those suckers could turn a penny into a corkscrew. :-) [Reply]
I use a 12” chef’s knife by Henckle for vegetables and regular items. I use an 8” filtering knife for cutting up meats. I have a serrated slicer for bread and ham and roasts. I used to have a paring knife but it snapped and I just never got another one. I miss it at times.
If I ever had enough $, I’d seriously consider buying a knife from Bob Kramer:
kramerknives.com
A 10” chef’s knife of his with Damascus steel would be gorgeous and highly functional. But I have a lot of other things to spend $ on [Reply]
Cutco is a great deal. Really good steel that holds an edge for a long time, and can't beat the CS and warranty.
Shun is just a superior knife in all respects. I've had one for about three years now, and it's still as sharp as it was when I took it out of the box (used daily).
Victorinox is a much better knife than its price tag. Fit and finish of the handle scales and bolsters aren't top-of-the-line, but the steel will take an edge relatively quickly and hold it almost indefinitely.
Henckel (mine is an older model from about 20 years ago) is a solid no-nonsense German steel blade. High quality steel that holds an edge very well. Better than average fit and finish.
If I were on a budget, no question I'd have a set of Victorinox kitchen knives. Probably the best deal out there in terms of bang-for-your-buck.
If I could afford a bit more, I'd get a set of Cutcos. The CS and warranty make the extra bucks worth it over the Vs.
If I just wanted a really great performing set of knives that also looked really good, I'd get the Shuns (or similar Japanese steel blades).
I'm not familiar with modern Henckels so I can't offer an opinion on them right now.
My knives are a mix and match set that I've put together over the years. I have several 8-10 inch kitchen knives, a couple boning knives, four fillet knives, a few paring/utility knives, etc. If I had to pick one knife for each task it'd look something like this:
Bought a knife from a niece in 2nd or 3rd grade. Nice knife but it came with a sharpener. A good one.
Still got the knife and I have sharpened a lot of blades.
Can butcher a bird at thanksgiving.
Sec [Reply]
Benefits: they are badass, sharp, comfortable and ergonomic, it's hard to cut yourself, warranty
Cons: they have to be sent in to sharpen, they are expensive as shit [Reply]
I have a wustof set. They’re good steel. Good balance. Good ergonomics.
Whatever you buy here’s my advice:
1. Don’t buy a set. Buy like 3 chefs knives and 4 paring knives. That’s pretty much all I use. Admittedly I’m not some master chef but I don’t use all the other shit. Maybe a bread knife if you’re a bread guy.
2. Over the course of time I’ve accumulated a bunch of knives. The wustof ones are the only ones any good. I’d rather have A few good knives than a bunch of bad ones. That keeps them from getting beat to shit, etc.
3. Hone that shit. Every time you use it. Bar none. I don’t have to sharpen a good knife if I hone it regularly. I use them hand wash them and hone them. And everyone freaks out that my knives are sharp and theirs aren’t. Seriously, it takes like 15 seconds to hone a knife. [Reply]
Originally Posted by loochy:
I sold Cutco in college for about a month.
Benefits: they are badass, sharp, comfortable and ergonomic, it's hard to cut yourself, warranty
Cons: they have to be sent in to sharpen, they are expensive as shit
That’s no shit but I’ve had mine for 20+ years & they are still great. [Reply]
