"good" Kitchen knives

[jeffinsgf]

When I was demonstrating Tormek sharpeners 32 weekends per year, I always wanted a big chef's knife to add a little drama to the demonstration. I started out going through a couple Henkels every year, then switched to Forschner (which is now Victorinox). I went from grinding away 2 knives per year to getting two years per knife. Granted, my technique improved over the years, but I really love the steel in the Forschners. It takes an edge well and holds it. I have one from my demo days that I still use. Another brand that I consider an exceptional value in a Western knife is Mora -- or any of its Swedish brethren (Frosts, Fallkniven, etc.). I have a fixed blade Morakniv in my shop that takes some serious abuse, yet is always razor sharp with just a little touch-up on the Tormek.

 

[flair woodworks]

The latest kitchen knife I acquired is branded Kiwi. It's a smaller knife, with a 6.5" stainless steel blade that is super thin, and the knife is very light weight. I find that I reach for it more than any other knife (including my previous favourite handmade Japanese knife that cost me several hundred dollars, and European style knives.

This one cost me $6.55.

 

[afish]

Well my 8" Dexter/Victorinox showed up the other day and it was much sharper out of the package than the Henkels which kind of surprised me.  I didnt even bother touching it.  The handle was more comfortable than it looked in the photos.  So I ordered the offset bread knife and paring knife too.  Kind of messes up having matching set but my OCD will have to get over it, for now at least.  8" chef knife made in USA for around 40 bucks is hard to beat. Im sure I will get many good years out of it.  This whole knife thing has sent me down the sharpening rabbit hole now.  [huh]

 

[smorgasbord]

Kind of messes up having matching set but my OCD will have to get over it, for now at least.

I'm actively looking at different models and brands for the different knives on purpose. Nothing worse than a block of 12 knives and the handles are all the same so you don't know which is what!

  ... This whole knife thing has sent me down the sharpening rabbit hole now.  [huh]

I've just gone down that same knife/sharpening hole.

Changshan's "Thomas Keller" series is very good, and Amazon has the 8" Chef's and a pairing knife set in a cool walnut block for $93.

This site has lots of good reviews.

There's everything from Rockwell hardness (higher is harder but also more brittle so more likely to chip), to balance, to sharpening angle, to looks to consider. In general, the German brands go with relatively low hardness (~57) and lower sharpening angles (16-20 degrees), but that makes them easier to sharpen/hone and less likely to ship. The Asian brands go for higher hardness (~62) and sharpening angles (10-14 degrees), which is great if you don't cut bones or frozen things. For handles, chefs often use a "pinch grip" which means their thumb and forefinger are gripping the actual blade, so that affect handle design. Finally, there's whether the knives have bolsters, which help with safety (blade vertical edge near the handle) but make it harder to sharpen.

The Tom Keller knife set I linked about is a middle ground - pretty hard (61), and pretty steep angle (16º).  There are better and worse knives, but for that price it was too hard to pass up (cheaper doesn't save much and you'd have to spend 3X or more to get anything noticeably better, IMO).

For sharpening, I'm looking at the Horl rolling knife sharpening thing (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08JYKN185 ). It's two pieces: One is a wood block with embedded magnets to hold the knife at the sharpening angle (I'd cut my own block to match the knives I'm buying) and the other is a cylinder where the two ends are diamond plated. You just put the knife against the magnetic block, edge up and in, and then roll the sharpening cylinder past it. Kind of pricey for what it is, though.