What metals are best for kitchen cutlery.

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bslakh

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Dec 26, 2001
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I am interested in buying a quality set of kitchen knives. I have read about the many different materials, and I can't decide wich would be best suited for kitchen use. I read about super hard and brittle metals, like D2. I also read about softer tougher metals like 440c.


I am looking for a set of knives that won't chip or break, that will hold an edge, and that is not to hard to sharpen. I would rather sacrafice corosion before toghness or hardness.

Does anyone have any ideas of a good metal to use, and where would I be able to find these knives.
 
440C heat treated to Rc57 and cryo treated makes a quality kitchen knife, harder by a long shot than the "big name" factory products to hold an edge for a long time, and still tough enough to resist edge and tip chipping.

There are other steels out there that are better at edge holding and others that are tougher but as a general purpose knife steel 440C is very good. A 440C chef's knife can be expected to hold an edge for a full year before needing sharpening if used daily.
 
All knives need sharpening sooner or later. If the edge is maintain daily, using a steel, you will only have to sharpen the knife once - twice a year. (This of course depends on use). Your cutting surface will also determine how often you will need to shapen your knives. I prefer Wood but "soft" plastic cutting boards also work well.

I like Messermeister, Trident, and Forschner brand kitchen knives all made with a proprietary Steel, similar to but not the same as 440B and 440C.

Each knife has a specific use. If you use a chef knife to chop through bone it will break, and I'm not talking about chicken bones.

Purchase brand name knives and maintain them on your steel. I belive this to be the best method for long term use with minimal Aggravation.

most major brands can be found in major department stores. if you have trouble let me know and I can fix you up.
 
It may not be the most economical material to buy or find, but you can't go wrong with:

Stellite 6k

With Stellite, you not only get unsurpassed edge retention, but also ease of sharpening, and corrosion resistance.

Look for a George Young kitchen knife. I don't think they are available on the web though. Sorry.

Anything Talonite would be a good second choice, also easier to find.
 
I am having a hard time finding the type and hardness of the steel of the Wusthof-Trident. Does anyone know the Rockwell of these knives? I found a paring, chef, slicing, and steel for $158. This sounds like a good price to me counting the metal quality is good. Does anyone have any inpute.
 
these are the best if you like trdiinal style. global from japan are the best production culinary out ther in my book. i agree with geogre on 440c but i also use ats-34 for pro grade chef knives due to increased edge retention.
 
I just found out the Wusthof-Trident has a Rockwell of 56. Is this to soft to hold an edge. Also I read about the Global. They all seem to rate 60 or higher on the R. I read metal will chip very easy at this hardness. Does Global do something to prevent chipping.
 
My choice would be 440c. Very good stain resistance with good edge holding. Rc of 56/57 would sharpen with more ease. Thinner edge for cutting, thicker edge for chopping.
 
I can highly recommend george tichbourne Great quality and a great price.

I too looked at the various premium "German" lines and found them to be over-priced for what you get (assuming new retail purchase from a major chain store) This is not to say a Henkel's Pro-S knife is not a good one though.

I have a Trace Rinaldi TTKK in BG-42 which I used for about 3 years in the kitchen during my craze to purchase seldom used 'field' knives. After a while I finally came to my senses and looked pretty hard at custom kitchen knives and compared them to Sabatier, Global, and others including the popular German lines.

I have found the George Tichbourne's knives to offer an excellant value for what you get. Yes, ATS-34 or BG-42 may offer a better performance in some kitchen uses but, at what cost? 440C has a lot of stain resistance (I have stained ATS-34 but, so far the 440C has none). If you really pay attention and take great care of your knives, neither ATS-34 or 440C would be the best (there are good carbon steel custom knives out there if you really want 'toughness' and edge holding and can live with the stain/rust characteristics).

For real world use, I have been very pleased with the performance of 440C. This steel is pretty forgiving in the kitchen use arena. Properly heat treated, it won't be brittle like some of the German brands or mass produced and heat treated ATS-34 knives. It is also relatively cheap so, your knife cost doesn't get to be excessive for a set of Kitchen knives.

Don't deny yourself the pleasure of owning and using a few custom kitchen knives. Take the ~$300 dollars a block set would cost and spend it with George Tichbourne. Get a knife that is made to fit your hand, not the average hand for the mass market. In my case, I also had a lanyard attached for safety (these are really sharp knives after all and, I have suffered through grip stength and other issues related to repetitive stress injury). These won't give you the name recognition and brag factor at work for water cooler chit chat but, will provide decades of of satisfied use. When your heirs settle your estate, you will still have a knife that will be a joy to own and use. Let's see, Grand-Pa's college ring, my father's Masonic ring and, Sid's custom kitchen knives.....not a bad legacy for your children.

Can you tell I'm happy with my George Tichbourne kitchen knife purchases :D
 
bslakh, give us a price range that you're looking for. Most kitchen cutlery is made from lower carbon stainless so it can withstand going through the dishwasher and soaking in the sink, etc. The lower carbon stainless steels actually hold an edge quite well since you're not encountering anything hard if you're using a soft plastic or wood cutting board.

I haven't had to sharpen my $30 Forschner chef's knife yet and I've been using it for years. I just true it with an ordinary chef's steel to align the edge regularly, and it still shaves after cutting all those non-challenging onions, parsley, beef, pork, and chicken. You don't need supreme hardness unless you are cutting more than food or work in the profession.

Once you leave the common world of low carbon, very stainless steel, your choices quickly dwindle to customs and high end knives. Why you would need to go there in a home kitchen is beyond me, however a chef at a restaurant who might make 1000 cuts a night would apreciate not having to wash and true his knife several times a night.

If you were going to go for a high performance knife, then carbon steel will hold the harder edge without any risk of chipping. I can't see justifying moving to a less stainless 440C to gain only on point of hardness over a much cheaper Trident.
 
Personally, I really like ATS34 in kitchen cutlery. The edge is very suitable for cutting kitchen type materials. I have a 440C knife and an ATS34 knife in my kitchen, and I greatly prefer the performance of the ATS piece. The ATS does rust a little if it goes for a ride in the dishwasher, but that is to be expected. My wife leaves it lying wet in the sink, and it holds up really well.

I gotta make one out of BG42 and see how that works.

One thing I have found is that some customers have chipped the edge using them as prybars and screwdrivers. People in general are used to pretty soft kitchen cutlery. The edge in both cases was easily repaired, and the customers were happy. In one case a 8" chef's knife sees daily use in the kitchen, as well as some commercial work, and has only been sharpened once in three years. The only reason it was sharpened was to take out a chip, caused when someone had pryed something that bent the blade permanently about 10 degrees.

I sure can't make a knife to compete price-wise with the premium european brands of kitchen knives. Don't wanna either. If someone wants a custom kitchen knife, I'll make them something beautiful and enourmously useful. If they just want an ABS-handled kitchen knife, I'll send them to the mall knife store.
 
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