Review Sabatier 5" forged serrated utility knife

[roaduck]

I ordered this little knife weeks ago and forgot about it until it turned up the other day.
It was only £17 delivered and is not bad quality for a budget model.
Of course it is made in China but is nevertheless heavy for it`s size at 69 grams or roughly 2 1/2 ounces.
It is full-tang 3 rivets with a black plastic handle.
I have a Kuhn Rikon 5" serrated that is not as well built, lighter and more expensive than this one.
I`m guessing the steel is about mid 50`s HRC which is a budget Chinese steel called X45 Cro Mo V15
so should be reasonably durable.

The K Sabatiers made in Theirs, France are much better but are 4-5 times the price.
So how does it perform - not too bad actually.
It can slice a ripe mini plum tomato into 4-5 slices for something that is less than an inch thick which will do me.

 

[Aardvark]

I can't comment on the quality/usefulness of the knife. I do think it's slightly deceiving to use the "Sabatier" name. Very much seems like a trap for the uninformed or unwary.

This is in no way a judgment against your buying and liking the knife.

 

[roaduck]

I totally agree Aardvark Sabatier sold off the rights to use their trademark name many years ago and a few other manufacturers use the Sabatier name like Richardson knives, Taylors Eye Witness, Samuel Staniforth knives etc.
The dead giveaway is the lack of a small letter "R" in a circle which denotes a registered trademark which is legal and enforceable.
Yes I know about knock-off fake copies - many of us have fallen into that trap.
Finding a new genuine made in Theirs, France Sabatier knife is not straightforward and is a minefield for the unwary and / or inexperienced potential buyer as you so rightly point out.
I would be looking for knives from a reputable retailer/ chef supplies outlet or even new old stock carbon / stainless with a verifiable provenance if I was thinking of investing say over $150 plus.
I knew I was getting a Chinese wonder at that low price although I have seen the identical knife for 3 or 4 times more than what I was charged.
A friend just bought a Tefal "Eversharp" 8 inch Chef`s knife for £22 from Amazon based on the 5 star reviews.I did try and advise her years ago - honestly !
If she had read the foreign 1-3 star reviews it would have revealed a blunt knife that rusted and snapped at the hilt after only weeks of domestic use and the self sharpening scabbard disintegrated in no time too.
I will give her a decent, handmade Japanese stainless Guyto or Santoku for a Christmas pressie and keep it sharp for her - of course it will cost many times the price of the Tefal Chinese budget effort but will last for decades with a little care.

 

[Another Shepherd]

How do you sharpen those serrations without sharpening them out of existence?

 

[Grasshopperglock]

How do you sharpen those serrations without sharpening them out of existence?

They're still in existence. Just the other side is sharpened. Then a rough strop across a pine board.

But wait, there's more. The serrations are at a different angle then the smooth side. And to save the teeth. Only the serrations are at a steep angle.

Once you sharpen the smooth side. If the knife didn't steer before. It'll drive off the table after.

I recently did a Henckels serrated chef. Saving the serrations and it steers through food at deviation of a 1/4 inch. Practically unusable.


Serrations are for steak knifes and glass plates. They're worthless for anything but cutting bread or the plastic wrapper on ground sausage.

That Henckels is sitting on a shelf in the garage. It's not allowed back inside.

 

[roaduck]

Usually I just bung serrated knives in the bin when they`re done G Grasshopperglock - can`t be bothered sharpening them.

 

[Another Shepherd]

Serrations are for steak knifes and glass plates. They're worthless for anything but cutting bread or the plastic wrapper on ground sausage.

I like Victorinox serrations. They can be sharpened fairly easily. But I use them mainly for slicing bagels.

 

[Grasshopperglock]

I like Victorinox serrations. They can be sharpened fairly easily. But I use them mainly for slicing bagels.

Rocking the knife type cuts. Chopping things as the tip of the knife never leaves the cutting board. Push cut through a potato.


They market it to people who either can't or don't want to, sharpen the knife. Never gets dull.


It's just so much horseshit.

 

[roaduck]

These Appalachian fiddle bow knives are unsurpassed for bread with a 1/75th of an inch thick blade - 50 BESS sharpness - like commercial bakery slicing blades.Hardly any crumbs either and blades used domestically last decades.I have two - one with a wider gap.
You can tell that these budget Chinese ones are only half tang - bless them for trying.

This stainless Japanese Tojiro is made for frozen gear and it is like a wide toothed butchers bone saw.

 

[Dr. Rayeye]

I have three serrated knives. My Victorinox clone paring knife has teeth, fitting in well with my American "sawing" approach to cutting. It is not a knife I will ever sharpen. Going tooth by tooth would be a real nightmare--and the clone only cost a few dollars.

My two Shun 6" utility knives are a different story altogether. Both of them have rounded hills and valleys (no teeth)--with sharpening on one side only--but with very different frequencies. The low frequency ultimate utility has only 13 "hills" and a rounded tip--sometimes it's called a sandwich knife. The high frequency 6" is a modified, very narrow, petty knife with many tiny hills.

After a few years of use, I finally realized that Kai was introducing us Americans to the concept of a single bevel knife--disguised cultural fusion. When I started using them like I used my deba--and learned to steer--that serrated petty knife became my most used smaller knife. I had been using the ultimate utility to slice bread--but now I could steer it straight much better.

Both knives can be sharpened with my loaded strop--digging into the leather as I pull it through. My UU could also be sharpened with a circular diamond file--but it's not been necessary for me to try so far after five years.