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Equipment & Gear: Kitchen Knives
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TheMadRonin
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PostPosted: Fri Apr 14, 2006 6:39 pm    Post subject: Shun knives and lefties Reply with quote

Michael -

I have to disagree with your statement that the d-shaped handle on Shun's knives are not suitable for lefties. I have several Shun knives in my collection and I can use them without any problems despite the fact that I am left handed. In fact I find the d-shape to fit my hand quite nicely. I enjoy them so much that I prefer my Shuns over most of the other knives I use.

Regards,

TMR
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AlanSellers
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PostPosted: Wed Apr 19, 2006 7:07 pm    Post subject: Chef Knives Reply with quote

Hey everyone,

Found this forum really interesting as I am a chef of 4 years and have been slowly putting together a knife set to last a lifetime (hopefully) and have tried a lot of different brands.

At the moment I have mainly Wusthof, Kershaw Shun, Giesser and a few Sabatier Deglon and Perrier.
The Shuns are thinner blades and I like the Santoku for basic veg prep and light meat work, I find the hollow edge version stays sharper and reacts better to gentle steeling (although the difference is fairly marginal), I like the weight but then I have always favoured slightly lighter blades.

My Wusthofs are from the 'Silverpoint' line and are thinner blades than the forged line and I find these are good solid knives that perform well, although I have only a boning, fillet and palette knife from this line so I can't speak to how they would stand up to the regular daily use of a Chefs knife, edge retention is what you'd expect from fairly priced Wusthofs.

My Sabatiers are good and react well to steeling, they've taken all the abuse I've given them and kept coming back for more, but they are not the most beautiful things to look at and are quite heavy compared to shuns, the blades are quite thick so not the best for veg prep.

Geisser are knives from Germany on the same level as Victorinox, and about the same price as well, the chef knives from this range have deeper blades and I like this about them, edge retention is very good and they sharpen very easily, I find they out perform the Victorinox knives I have used and so they have become my preference.

As far as sharpening goes, I use a steel maufactured by F.Dick, called a Dickoron Titan, see it here:

http://www.cutleryandmore.com/details.asp?SKU=4154

This steel gets a good edge on all my knives and is made by a respected company, for a long time I found Steel sharpening very frustrating as some resources advised methods that didn't seem to work for me and I ended up thinking I was doing it wrong, If you have a similar experience try and be patient, don't go and buy lots of different steels like I did, It won't help. Steeling is not an exact science and not something that can always be taught, too an extent it's about how your knives react with your steel, what kind of edge you have ground on your knives and how you use your steel, be patient, it comes over time, but if you have your knives proffesionally sharpenend ask them what angle they sharpened at and that will help you use your steel effectively, if you steel at a different angle you will have wasted your money and blunted your knife.

I also use an electric sharpener too restore my knife edge every few months, I did extensive research to make sure I bought a machine that would sharpen safely and effectively without hurting my knives through losing too much metal or heating the blade, this website is very extensive and you will see that they know thier stuff, the machine I bought does as good a job as a proffesional sharpener, but it is extremely expensive. Have a look and decide for yourself.

http://www.catra.org/products/sharpening/CATRASHARP.htm

I hope some of this helps somebody out there, enjoy good knives and good food.
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AlanSellers
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PostPosted: Sat Apr 22, 2006 10:06 am    Post subject: Hattori KD Gyuto - Cowry X steel Reply with quote

Hey again everyone,

I am looking at buying one of Hattoris custom made damascus chef knives from the Epicurian Edge, does anybody have one or any experience using one?, they are very expensive and I was wondering whether or not there are any problems with them, what is the edge retention like? are they balanced well?, is it true there are 160 layers of steel on these knives?

any advice will be appreciated.
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jagstyle



Joined: 08 Aug 2005
Posts: 45
Location: CA

PostPosted: Sat Apr 22, 2006 6:14 pm    Post subject: Re: Hattori KD Gyuto - Cowry X steel Reply with quote

AlanSellers wrote:
Hey again everyone,

I am looking at buying one of Hattoris custom made damascus chef knives from the Epicurian Edge, does anybody have one or any experience using one?, they are very expensive and I was wondering whether or not there are any problems with them, what is the edge retention like? are they balanced well?, is it true there are 160 layers of steel on these knives?

any advice will be appreciated.


They are generally regarded as the best western style knife one can purchase. Very few people actually own them so it may just be the $1000 price tag that makes everyone think they are the best. I suggest that you go to one of these forums and ask the same questions as there are actually a couple of people who own them and can relate their experiences:

http://www.knifeforums.com/forums/showforum.php?fid/26/
http://www.foodieforums.com/vbulletin/forumdisplay.php?f=6

This page has some information on how they are made:
http://www.japanesechefsknife.com/KDSeries.html

When knifeforums.com was asked to design a line of knives, we had the one member with a Hattori KD trace his knife and make minor adjustments:
http://www.knifeforums.com/forums/showtopic.php?tid/750818/

Trace of Hattori KD to show balance point (balanced for pinch grip used by professional chefs):
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PostPosted: Thu May 11, 2006 9:15 pm    Post subject: Sharpening Stones Reply with quote

Like just about everyone out there, I've tried many knives. I try to stick to some of the good common names (Global, Wustof and Shun) and try to avoid some of the brands that used to have a good name but are now making different level knives (Henkel comes to mind). I understand not everyone can afford a great knife but I just don't like it when companies try to pass off their new cheap stuff under the same name.

When it comes to actually using knives, sharpness makes all the difference (regardless of brand). I hate to see some guy bragging up his expensive knives only to see that his knives are dull as a spoon. A sharp junk knive will outperform a good but dull knive any time. No doubt a sharp good knife is even better and will stay sharp much longer.

I just keep a few stones handy and use them when my knife starts to feel dull.
Bench Stones:
http://www.sharpeningsupplies.com/Bench-Stones-C1.aspx
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PostPosted: Thu May 25, 2006 4:09 pm    Post subject: Shun knives and the left hand Reply with quote

I am left handed and I agree with TheMadRonin that the knifes are comfortable. I really have no comparison (since my right feels unconfortable no mater what shape the handle is), but I like having the raised portion of the handle against my fingertips rather than in my palm. It feels far more comfortable than a knife without the ridge, and I actually enjoy holding it.
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PostPosted: Thu Jun 01, 2006 7:11 am    Post subject: cutco comments Reply with quote

I have been a professional chef for >10 years and i have never seen a single chef who uses cutco knives. The reason for that is they are not quality.
Henkel, Wustoff and Victoria knox are pretty much the most popular standard western knives.
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Guest
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PostPosted: Fri Jul 21, 2006 5:17 am    Post subject: .. Reply with quote

what abt Mundial Knives? They any good?
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Anna Guest
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PostPosted: Wed Oct 18, 2006 2:46 pm    Post subject: need advice Knives Reply with quote

I'm about to get my first "for life knives", well, i'm asking for them at least, and plan to purchase the ones i don't get. can i get some opinions? am i missing something? are these good (especially the bread knife, i like the different shape, but is it effective)?

wusthof Super Slicer


wusthof Grand Prix II Santoku Oriental cook´s knife 17cm (for slicing fine things)


wusthof Utility knife 10 cm (to be used as paring knife)


wusthof Cook´s knife 20cm


thanks for your comments
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GaryProtein



Joined: 26 Oct 2005
Posts: 535

PostPosted: Thu Oct 19, 2006 12:43 am    Post subject: Re: need advice Knives Reply with quote

Anna Guest wrote:
I'm about to get my first "for life knives", well, i'm asking for them at least, and plan to purchase the ones i don't get. can i get some opinions? am i missing something? are these good (especially the bread knife, i like the different shape, but is it effective)?

wusthof Super Slicer


wusthof Grand Prix II Santoku Oriental cook´s knife 17cm (for slicing fine things)


wusthof Utility knife 10 cm (to be used as paring knife)


wusthof Cook´s knife 20cm


thanks for your comments


You asked for comments, so here goes:

1) DO NOT, DO NOT, DO NOT get the Wusthof super slicer. They are essentially unsharpenable unless you have the same equipment at home that is used to manufacture it and the price is high. Get a 10 inch (26 cm) Granton edge (hollow ground edge) slicer instead if you intend to slice meats. Use a steel or stone (your preference) to sharpen and maintain, and you've got it made. Also since you want to use the super slicer as a bread knife, get a bread knife if that is what your use will be. A bread knife has concave scallops with points between the scallops to penetrate the crust. The convex scallops on the super slicer are more for meat that doesn't have a crust like bread. The concave scallops on a bread knife are NOT good for cutting large cuts or slices of meat. Any good sharp knife can be used for cutting bread if you don't have a dedicated bread knife. Also, a concave scallop you can sharpen at hone with a round ceramic stone, scallop by scallop if you are patient. The convex scallops cannot be sharpened by reasonable means.

2) I am not particularly enamoured by the Santokus, but if you like the 17 cm model, that's fine. I would use a 20 cm cook's knife for that purpose.

3) A 10 cm utility knife is too small to cut sandwiches or a salami. If you want to use it for paring, it might be a little too big, but it is in the ballpark. Get a 6" (16 cm) utility knife and 3" (8-9 cm) parer. The short paring knife isn't expensive, so just get it as an extra knife.

4) The 20 cm cook's knife is fine, although if you have a 17 cm Santoku, I would opt for a 26 cm cook's knife instead.

I like the Wusthof knives and own many of them. Some get used much more than others. I could go on, but in the final analysis, you must decide what is best for you.


Last edited by GaryProtein on Thu Dec 28, 2006 3:17 pm; edited 1 time in total
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PostPosted: Sat Nov 18, 2006 4:20 pm    Post subject: Kiwi! Reply with quote

A non-mention is the ridiculously cheap Kiwi knives from taiwan.

I mostly love them because they are cheap, but they are also light, have a nice thin blade, and sharpen up fast, staying fairly sharp, unless you really are just pounding away on your knife all day long. I pay 5 bucks or less for them at my local Asian market, and I don't have to worry about them getting stolen at work. If it gets to dull, or someone borrows it and screws it up, gets dropped, etc... I don't cry about it, and it perform fairly decent.

All my nice knives are at home though, and you just have to pick which ones fit you and the tasks you use. I like my wusthof santoku, I don't do a lot of jobs at home that require my chef's knife. I have a 12" chefs knife i picked up for those large tasks though, and it has its times it is nice. I agree with the pick of victronix for cheap little parers you are going to lose or beat up.

And please learn to sharpen your own knives, most "professionals" will chew up quite a bit of your blade. Hone it every time you use it too.

Oh, and cutco is damned good at that brainwashing. My dad sold knives for them in the 60's and for year he thought his were good. Then I brought home my knives and he was forced to repent and chunk his in the trash. Teasing
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Dean
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PostPosted: Sat Nov 25, 2006 1:55 am    Post subject: Asian cleaver Reply with quote

I completely agree an Asian cleaver is the best single knife to have. I purchased mine from an antique store. It was $65, my wife thought I was crazy. This $65 purchase very soon replaced my Top quality $600 German steel knife set. My expensive set simply sits in the kitchen looking pretty and waiting to be dusted
.
Not only is the versatility of this cleaver second to none. I think of all the many hands that used it before I. I am 6ft 5inches with very large hands. This knife although fits my hand perfectly, it certainly was not owned previously, or was not designed for someone my size. Most Asian cooks I have seen are no where near my size. I strongly would recommend If you only can have one knife, make it an Asian cleaver!

The one pictured is the same design style as mine, it must be good, I know the design has worked for over a century, as mine is older than that.
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guest
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PostPosted: Thu Dec 14, 2006 11:57 pm    Post subject: shun for lefties Reply with quote

I just wanted you left handed chefs to know that shun knives do come in a left handed grip, when you buy it ask for a left handed one. If you order it from a site they shuld have left or right handed grips as an option. This is a great knife !
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tias
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PostPosted: Tue Dec 26, 2006 6:11 pm    Post subject: the perfect gift Reply with quote

I gave my husband a Hanzo Hattori KD-34 for christmas.Iv'e got it ingraved on the blade even thou i was afraid it would ruin the look.But it didn't. Mr KOKI IWAHARA at JapaneseChefsKnife.Com was truly and angel this christmas and i highly recommend their service.
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rads
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PostPosted: Thu Dec 28, 2006 4:54 am    Post subject: whetstone grit Reply with quote

Just a word on whetstones. Grits are different for different Materials. Ceramic vs. diamond vs. natural vs. aluminum oxide. A 600 grit aluminum oxide stone is comparable to 2000 grit ceramic stone. If you are a novice or if you regularly pay to have your knives sharpened, check out the edge pro apex. It basically sets the angle for you and is pretty dummy proof. If you don’t know what you are doing with a whetstone you will kill you blade. The Apex is pricey but not as pricey as having your knives professionally sharpened all the time.

http://www.accuratesharp.com/edge-pro.htm
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