Recommendations for low-priced, but good kitchen knives

J

JSR

Joined
Apr 4, 2006
Messages
338
Newbie here, so hello to everyone. I'm looking for some new kitchen knives. I'd appreciate your opinions on the following kitchen knives and offer any others that are in the same price range:

Spyderco Santoku and Utility knives
- How's the MBS-26 steel? Never heard of this steel before.

Kershaw 6600 (aka Wasabi)
- Never heard of Daido 1K6 steel before either, how is it?

Kershaw 9900
- AUS6A steel.

Henckels International set from Costco
- What kind of steel does it use?...420HC?

Thanks.

JSR
 
I see you're looking at some Kershaws. While a little more expensive, you should really check out the Kershaw/Kai Shun Classics. They are an amazing knife, and just two or three could handle all of your kitchen needs. Well worth the extra money imho. :thumbup:
 
Far and away the best low-cost kitchen knives that I've ever used are the Victorinox/Forschner line. I would actually take them over much higher-end stuff like Henckles and such.
 
I have a set of Hoffritz knives that are pretty darn good. I think one of the other Big Names actually makes them, I'm not 100% sure though. Great price.
But, still....
You can get great deals on kitchen knives off eBay.
 
Stay away from Henkels.

Dexter knives are a great value. Their veggie usuba is excellent they use something like 440c. I have had that usuba for 4-5 years and it still cutting great. Priced at around $20.

victorinox has awesome paring knives for 5 bucks each. I have about 4 of them. They have excellent edge retention.
 
JSR, I guess your definition of low-priced is different than mine. Do you have any Asian supermarkets nearby you? I used to look for a decent chef's knife, bought a bunch of them, didn't like a single one. Then I picked up this knife in a local Asian market, Ranch 99. It was made by a Thai company Kiwi Kom-Kom. It was a 6" chef's knife. Price $2.39. Laugh if you want. As long as I slide a steel along its edge a couple of times when I cook, it is sharp, it cuts great, and has a profile I like. There is also a bigger version of it, about 7", much wider, less universal but useful for some things. I've also since bough a cleaver and a bunch of other knives from them, and I use them all the time.

I know, sounds weird, but there you have it. Oh, they have wooden handles, too, which I like.

I saw one online, but the price was 6 times what I paid locally. No clue why.
 
This will probably only get a chuckle but here goes.

Go to K-Mart. Look at the Martha Stewart forged blade, riveted handled chef knife for under $10. Pick it up and hold it. Then go shopping for stuff that costs 10 times as much. Pick them up and hold them.

I stumbled across these on the way to camp when I forgot to bring some from home.

Here is what Cliff had to say in a test.

http://www.physics.mun.ca/~sstamp/knives/martha_stewart_chef.html

Here is a picture of them.

http://www.epinions.com/Martha_Stewart_Everyday_Full_Tang_Basic_3_Piece_Set_Cutlery

These are hardwood handles, full tang, forged.
 
Thanks for the suggestions guys. I do have a Kmart and multiple 99-Ranch markets around me, so I'll take a look at those. There also other asian (chinese, korean, and japanese) markets near me (and they all have quite nice looking knives, but I'm not sure how well they cut) so I'll check those out too. It'll be nice to feel the knife first before purchasing. A friend of mine is much more into cutlery/knives than I, and though he didn't say these lower cost, readily available ones from local stores were bad, he gave me the impression goods ones would cost quite a bit. It's good to know I can find a good knife locally for cheap. I'll look into all the suggestions you guys/gals provided. Thanks!
 
Victorinox and Dexter - definitely the best bang for the buck out there in kitchen knives.

My Victorinox Fibrox 10" chef's knife gets plenty of regular use. Although my Messermeister is my favorite the Victorinox is still very good and is MUCH less expensive.
 
Victorinox is coming out with forged knives very soon, I saw some at shot show in vegas, at a very good price, I'd wait to see these before I made a serios descision. As for the Henckelsl Intl from Costco they are exclusive to Costco, if you compare the handles to normal Henckels Intl they are diffrent, this means that warranty issues have to go thru costco not Henckels,Just FYI
I sharpened lots Hnkls Intl their made in Spain or Brazil NOT Germany and I think thier average. You might want to look at the Cold Steel Kitchen series., If you don't mind a rubber grip these knives have been oustanding.
 
Frosts of Sweden makes some very nice sturdy knives for a low price. I think they are mostly used in commercial kitchens, and I have only seen them for sale once at a wholesale place, but they perform well and have a nice feel to them, although their handles are plastic and whatnot.

Travis
 
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