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Kitchen Knives

Junkyard said:
Since it appears that the OP has received the best of recommendations and chosen a set to start with, can I semi-hijack the thread and ask a related question: I understand that keeping a knife sharp is job 1, so for those of you with knives that you've had for years how often are you sharpening them? My understanding is that you should hone a knife on its steel before/during every use, so at what point are you actually sharpening?

I'm curious because I have a set of Chicago Cutlery that dulls just by me looking at them. I'm definitely going to look into Wusthof, but if I'm going to spend the money I want to be able to maintain them
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I use the steel on my knives, but they haven't needed sharpening yet. When they do, I'll either see if I can find somebody in town who does a good job of it, or invest in the needed supplies and do it myself.

We have one of those electric knife sharpeners - I've told my wife she's free to use it on the old kitchen knives, but keep it away from mine.
 
Snowman said:
I use the steel on my knives, but they haven't needed sharpening yet. When they do, I'll either see if I can find somebody in town who does a good job of it, or invest in the needed supplies and do it myself.

We have one of those electric knife sharpeners - I've told my wife she's free to use it on the old kitchen knives, but keep it away from mine.
Click to expand...

We have one of those electric knife sharpeners - I've told my wife she's free to use it on the old kitchen knives, but keep it away from mine.

Really? Wifey got me one for Christmas and every knife in my kitchen is now a razor blade. All knives dull. Keeping them sharp is the key and this thing is so quick and simple, it just takes a few swipes occasionally and they never get dull.

What's your negative history?
 
Junkyard said:
Since it appears that the OP has received the best of recommendations and chosen a set to start with, can I semi-hijack the thread and ask a related question: I understand that keeping a knife sharp is job 1, so for those of you with knives that you've had for years how often are you sharpening them? My understanding is that you should hone a knife on its steel before/during every use, so at what point are you actually sharpening?

I'm curious because I have a set of Chicago Cutlery that dulls just by me looking at them. I'm definitely going to look into Wusthof, but if I'm going to spend the money I want to be able to maintain them
Click to expand...
I steel my knives every time I use them and when they need to be sharpened I use this kit,
 
We have gotten years of good use out of Wustoff knives---I keep them sharpened using the Warthog V-sharp classic. Best sharpening system that I have used.
 
Try this, phenomenal knives, handmade. I believe they may still do warehouse Wednesday specials that may save a few bucks. Currently what’s in the home knives.

towncutler.com

Products

towncutler.com towncutler.com
 
Junkyard said:
Since it appears that the OP has received the best of recommendations and chosen a set to start with, can I semi-hijack the thread and ask a related question: I understand that keeping a knife sharp is job 1, so for those of you with knives that you've had for years how often are you sharpening them? My understanding is that you should hone a knife on its steel before/during every use, so at what point are you actually sharpening?

I'm curious because I have a set of Chicago Cutlery that dulls just by me looking at them. I'm definitely going to look into Wusthof, but if I'm going to spend the money I want to be able to maintain them
Click to expand...


I use a couple of different grit stones to sharpen. Depending on usage but and what you’re cutting but I will hone mine after 2-3 uses
 
NEhomer said:
We have one of those electric knife sharpeners - I've told my wife she's free to use it on the old kitchen knives, but keep it away from mine.

Really? Wifey got me one for Christmas and every knife in my kitchen is now a razor blade. All knives dull. Keeping them sharp is the key and this thing is so quick and simple, it just takes a few swipes occasionally and they never get dull.

What's your negative history?
Click to expand...
I think the problem with those is not so much that they don't keep a knife sharp as it is that they take away more of the blade when sharpening it than a professional or using another method would. Just shortens the life of your knife more than it should.
 
NEhomer said:
We have one of those electric knife sharpeners - I've told my wife she's free to use it on the old kitchen knives, but keep it away from mine.

Really? Wifey got me one for Christmas and every knife in my kitchen is now a razor blade. All knives dull. Keeping them sharp is the key and this thing is so quick and simple, it just takes a few swipes occasionally and they never get dull.

What's your negative history?
Click to expand...
What @Renren89 said above - and also, from reading a lot of knife stuff, if the electric sharpener isn't set for the right blade angle for your knives, it can screw up the edge. In all honesty I'm not sure if that's cork-sniffing/urban myth or not, but I've stuck with it after seeing more than a few people who supposedly know stuff about knives say it. Since I don't know what blade angle that sharpener uses, I've just avoided it. I won't argue that it gets her old kitchen knives nice and sharp, though - I've just avoided chancing it with mine.

It also puts some really ugly grind marks on the blade, so it's just an aesthetic thing for me too.
 
Shun.

Can do 99.9% of everything, with 3 knives. Not cheap, but amazing.

20200503_141447.jpg
 
Snowman said:
What @Renren89 said above - and also, from reading a lot of knife stuff, if the electric sharpener isn't set for the right blade angle for your knives, it can screw up the edge. In all honesty I'm not sure if that's cork-sniffing/urban myth or not, but I've stuck with it after seeing more than a few people who supposedly know stuff about knives say it. Since I don't know what blade angle that sharpener uses, I've just avoided it. I won't argue that it gets her old kitchen knives nice and sharp, though - I've just avoided chancing it with mine.

It also puts some really ugly grind marks on the blade, so it's just an aesthetic thing for me too.
Click to expand...


I have about 10 different knife sharpeners including wet stones, ceramic, and a couple electric ones. I bought this one a couple of years ago and love it. You can set the angle from 15*-30* in 1* increments. It takes some skill to use compared to other electric sharpeners such as a Chef’s Choice, so I’d practice on a cheap knife if you don’t have much experience with a belt sharpener.

0865EDE7-EABD-45CE-A6F4-4F4854E5051F.jpeg
 
My in-laws gave us a set of Cutco knives... they've had theirs for decades and swear by them.

I have to say, they're excellent. Hold a great edge and if anything ever goes wrong, or even if you want them sharpened (especially the serrated knives) you send them back, they will do the work and return them promptly. I haven't had to send ours back for any reason, at this point, but i know my MIL has and she's been thrilled with the results. While they are expensive, and not what I'd call sexy looking, I'd say they offer excellent value for the money.
 
We got roped into the Cutco deal as a good friends kid was selling them. The wife went in deep and has delivered numerous offerings to our kids as they have set up their homes. They are good knives. This is the wifes domain and I'm not gonna encroach.
 
For those who are handy, and don’t mind properly caring for your knives, check out Ron Hock’s kitchen knife kits. Hock is well known in the woodworking world for making high quality plane blades. His kitchen knife kits just need scales which are pretty easy to make.

Hock Tools - Lee Valley Tools

www.hocktools.com www.hocktools.com

I’d own these myself, but O1 steel will rust if it’s left wet. I can’t get my wife to stop leaving knives in the sink or putting them in the dishwasher, so we stick with the Zwilling knives my mother bought for us.
 
Alot of the overhyped culinary knives you see on facebook or Amazon are carbon steel knives. They havent been totally finished/ground/polished to give it a rustic look. These knives, depending on what steel the makers used, perform well but are prone to rust and can be high maintenance.

Brands like Henckels, Wushtof and Shun are all well known brands and use stainless steels that are much less maintenance but still perform very well.

If you have some time, wait until the first weekend of december and watch for Shun products to go on sale.
 
I've bought two 8" knives from here:

bernalcutlery.com

Bernal Cutlery

We are a full-service cutlery shop offering sharpening services, Japanese and Western culinary knives, vintage knives, outdoor, pocket and craft knives, cooking tools and accessories, knife skills and sharpening classes, and more. We are proud to serve kitchen professionals, knife enthusiasts...
bernalcutlery.com bernalcutlery.com

Guy who owns it is an acquaintance. Many San Francisco chefs shop here and bring their knives in to get sharpened by them.

For me, it was kind of eye opening that a really high quality 8" knife takes care of a lot of business. Did the same, bought the first knife for my wife, she loved it. Bought the second knife for my father-in-law because we cook at his house a lot and once you have a quality knife chopping and such becomes labor w/out one.

This link on their site has a Knife Buying 101:

bernalcutlery.com

Knife Buying 101: How to Choose?

Here at the shop, we often get customers who are new to cooking and have many questions about how to approach a new knife purchase. The knife world can be complex and esoteric, but it doesn’t have to be - at the end of the day, a knife is a tool used to help you cook delicious foods. We offer a...
bernalcutlery.com bernalcutlery.com

Maybe there is a shop like this near you? It's a frickin' eye candy droolfest going into this shop, and the folks that work there deal in sharp objects only so they're super knowledgable and helpful.

Good luck in the hunt.
 
I have not used these, but they seem to be high quality for the money and worth a look. I am considering replacing a knife or 2 with these.

misen.com

Premium Kitchen Knives for All Your Cooking Needs | Misen

Discover Misen's high-quality kitchen knives designed for maximum versatility without breaking the bank. Elevate your cooking experience today.
misen.com misen.com
 
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