Which Knives To Buy?

K

KitchenFaves

Joined
Dec 5, 2005
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I am about ready to make a huge investment and am vascillating between Henckles and Wusthof. Any suggestions?
 
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I myself own a wusthof set, and I very much like them. I have no experiences with Henckel, but the next set I get will be shuns.
 
The only kitchen knives I've used have been stainless made in China sale specials from Walmart and Kmart. I've been looking at a set of Forschner Victorinox from Smoky Mountain for my parents, although my family has gotten by for years with the cheap crap. I would like to see everyones replies to this.
 
G'day,
I like the Australian designed Furi knives. While the steel isn't up to the top Japanese it sure beats most of the European knives I've used. The handles are truly great--and the design is registered! I think the website is www.furitechnics.com.au
Greg
 
Here is what my manager/store's sharpener has to say:
Henkles and Wustof are both great. Both offer superb balance. The key difference is that Wustof runs harder than Henkles. If you are sharpening by hand, then you will have an easier time with the Henkles. The Wustofs pretty much require a belt grinder.

This is said when comparing the Wustof Trident series with the Bolstered, German line from Henkels. That's the Pro S, 4 Star, and Twin Cuisine.
 
I've got some relatives in the resturaunt trade and Victorinox/Forcshner is the top choice. It's what I use in my kitchen, and I've had some of the high end German stuff that people gave me as gifts. It did not cut that much better than the Vic's and I gave them away. The Victorinox will do any kitchen work you put them to. Very good knives.
 
The Forshner are preferred among people in the industry. They are much cheaper, and exponentially easier to maintaine/sharpen. However for home use, People usually like blades with better edge holding. That's where Henkles and the like come into play.

The other main advantage to Henkles/Wustof over Forshner/(most) Messermeister, is the bolster. It allows for a more ballanced blade that is more friendly to use. Also on many Forshners, there are gaps where the handle should meet the stamped blade. This is an area that bacteria can easily get into. A properly forged knife does not have this problem.
 
Wusthof. I've four of their steak knives, still great after three years and they still take a scary sharp edge.

Consumer Reports, Checkbook, did comparisons between Henckles and Wusthof and Wusthof won in each case....by a small margin. Either one is a winner.
 
Personally, after I have used Tojiro-Pro knives, my Henckels and other Euro-knives have gone bye-bye.

If you are serious about kitchen knives, you really should look into the Japanese offerings before deciding.

Check out the offerings at:

http://www.japanesechefsknife.com/products.html

for a selection of the better stuff coming out of Japan these days. I'm sold on them because they are far and away the best cutter knives I've ever used in the kitchen. This is just my home kitchen, BTW, I'm not a pro chef or anything. Also, check out the kitchen knives forum over at Knife Forums. These guys are fanatical about the best kitchen cutlery they can get. Friendly bunch, too.

Hope this helps!
Mike U.
 
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