Wife Wants a New Set of Sharp Kitchen Knives...

S

srmd22

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Oct 19, 2009
Messages
112
...and, actually, so do I. She has an old set of german knives, good brand, I think Henkels. I sharpened them up myself, and they are actually pretty good and pretty sharp (even though I fairly well suck at sharpening, but I used an electric sharpener, and it did a pretty good job-- I know I'm gonna catch some flack here for that, lol).

Anyway, they are ok, but it is time for a new set, according to the boss, and being a bit of a knife knut, I can't say I oppose.

So the question is, recommendations? I would like to keep it in the $3-400 range, and it needn't be more then four to six knives. I also am not averse to paying that much for a larger set, if the quality is good. Conversely, I would pay a bit more per knife, and build a set up over a couple of years, although my impulsive nature is not so much attracted to that plan. (Immediate gratification-- shopping is one of the few aspects of my life where I can practice it).

I have come across a few names other then Henckels, such as Wusthof and Forschner. I also hear Kershaw makes decent cutlery, and I like their folders. But having never shopped cutlery before, I am a bit of a noob.

Any advice to get me started will be much appreciated!
 
You should check out the Kitchen Cutlery forum on here--there are a lot of knowledgeable folks that hang out in there. I'm too new to the field to give you any suggestions other than Victorinox and Shun
 
Cool, I should have posted in that forum-- didn't think to look for it :( We'll see what kind of response we get here, and I'll browse that forum-- thanks for the tip!
 
I love my Wusthof chef's knife.
I've also heard good things about Shun and Global.
 
First bit of advice is to take the knives you already have to the local butcher and have him sharpen them. Shouldn't cost much.

Second bit of advice is to put your wife on. This is one you can't win. If she's using the knives, she should do the picking. Whatever you pick is going to be wrong. We'll steer her right on quality, but only she will know what she uses the most and how the knives should feel.
 
I replaced all the Wusthofs with three Fujitake VG-10 blades... couldn't be happier.

They're even easier to sharpen. Once a week with a strop with green compound and they continue to slice molecules.
 
We started building a set of these:
http://www.agrussell.com/ag-russell-10-professional-chefs-knife/p/AGKK-10/

They've been great for our regular kitchen needs, and we replaced our old Chicago's with them. They're not at the level of Shun's or some of the other higher end pieces available, but they take a great, fine edge and hold it for a while. When I was doing restaurant work, a good 8" Chef's knife was what I used for 90% of my cutting, so we started building the set with that.

thx - cpr
 
Shun > Cutco any day. Sg2 or VG10 (depends on model) is far superior to 440A and the "Doube-D" edge is nothing but a gimmick.
I say Shuns because they are a better value and superior.
Cutco is a company based on marketing, not product.
 
Thanks for the brand names guys, I am in the market too. My wife has a Cuisinart set. OK, I am setting myself up. The main reason I am posting is to opine the OP to get a set of razor sharp paper wheels, a grinder motor 1750 RPM preferred over 3500, and learn to sharpen on the wheels. Throw that electric sharpener away, it is blasphemous. The learning curve is fast, and the scary sharp edges will be worth the 90 or so dollars you spend on the set up.
 
Captain Spaulding said:
Unless of course you like knives.



X2
Click to expand...

What is it that bothers you about Cutco? Honest question. I have been using my set thoroughly for 2 years and have no problems whatsoever. In fact, I want more. I WILL agree that there are better sets out there like Shun, but that does not mean that Cutco is automatically bad. Plus their warranty is great. Just as good, if not better, as ESEE, Snap-on, etc.
 
keep the heavy western style blades and jsut add one or 2 nice thin Asian knives
that way you have knives for working around bone and also great veg. knife or 2

now then the whole needs to look part of a set thing. well most will no one set will have all the best for you knives and worse is that they often have more knives then you need. in the long run you are better to build as you go.

the book
an edge in the kitchen by chad ward is $ well spent in helping buy and care for the knives you are lookoing for
 
cutco are barely a step up from grocery store knives is the problem not that the current german line ups are really any better outside of the very top end of their lines like the miyabi 7000mc.

for simple easy to find home knives that are pretty nice and have a good warranty I'd pick shun. Where you said you aren't all that good at sharpening you can send them back to kershaw for sharpening once in a while too. While the service isn't amazing like what some skilled sharpeners can achieve the factory edge is solid and that is the threshold for kershaw's sharpening service. They also look pretty nice on a counter which I am sure is a consideration.
 
butcher_block said:
keep the heavy western style blades and jsut add one or 2 nice thin Asian knives
that way you have knives for working around bone and also great veg. knife or 2

now then the whole needs to look part of a set thing. well most will no one set will have all the best for you knives and worse is that they often have more knives then you need. in the long run you are better to build as you go.
Click to expand...

+1 This is what I would do.
We have old Henkel set and I bought 8" Kanetsune Gyuto Damascus with VG10 core about two years ago. It cuts like laser. Totally different cutting experience to compare with Henkels. Great on veges and fillet. Favorite knife without doubt. Added later paring knife. Please, do not use electric sharpener on nice Japanese knives. They deserve better.
You can use old heavy German knives to break down chicken or fish or buy Deba later.
 
I would consider Cutco to be the overpriced and over-hyped Shamwow of the knife world.



I own Shun and Global and as a professional that puts miles on my knives a day both have been absolute soldiers. I use my Shun for the slicing tasks and the 7" Global Oriental Chef Knife is my workhorse until I find something with the same blade profile with a slightly thicker handle.
 
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