what kind of knife do you have?

[Blade55440]

Originally Posted by 9ballprodigy

i hear a lot of good things about the vitrinox fibrox from forchner. mainly that it feels good in the hand, it's cheap, and dishwasher safe.

but people also tell me that it's a pain to resharpen with a stone.

cook's illustrated swears by the knife though.

I can tell you that it does well in all those places, but I've never put it in the dishwasher, so I couldn't tell you for that.

As for the stone, I haven't perfected my technique on that, so I couldn't tell you with any certainty if it is or is not a pain.

[henri]

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[phatch]

The forschners respond well to stones for sharpening. Or crocksticks, even diamond stones, though those are too aggressive for most cases.

Phil

[henri]

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[cheflayne]

For 20 years, I was inseparable from my 11 1/2" Henckels chef knife. About 3 years ago, I decided to investigate Japanese knives as a possible addition to my collection. I went to MAC USA and talked with owner Harold Arimoto. For about an hour, we talked, held, and used knives from their different lines. We even cut and peeled fruit and veg. I now use my 8" MAC professional series dimpled chef knife almost exclusively.

[9ballprodigy]

i do enjoy using the japanese knives over european ones. the lack of bolster makes sharpening easier and the lightweight feel is really helpful in reducing fatigue when i have to slice 15 cups of scallions or something like that. however, i do recommend a 10 inch knife over an 8 in. if your workplace gives you a lot of room at your station. an 8 in. knife gets tricky when you have to bisect a whole taro root or melon. alas, my station gives me about 6-8 inches on each side of me and about a foot of space in front of my board... so 10 in blade is a liability to my co workers. i just got jabbed with someone's 11 in. global "sword" the other day.

[henri]

Have used Forschner for many years but broke tip [not me] of my favorite chefs knife, so looking for a replacement. Found Forschner but am thinking of Wusthof or Henckels, although there are some interesting ones mentioned on this forum! Have read that the Henckels has soft steel compared to Wusthof. Do many folks have the same impression? Some fine Japanese cutlery out there but want to stay with the German steels, particularly because I can see and feel them before buying. Do wish I could do a hardness test first, but expect that would be asking too much to put three little impressions in two of their knives! Am considering an 8-inch chefs knife, but the 10-inch felt so good I might buy a 12-incher.

[cheflayne]

Originally Posted by henri

Have read that the Henckels has soft steel compared to Wusthof. Do many folks have the same impression?

I have never used Wusthof, so I can't comment on them, but my Henckels chef knife experienced 20 years of constant professional use and is still a great knife. During that time I found it to keep an edge well and easy to keep that way with a stone and steel. I think they are great knives. As for a Rockwell comparison number between Henckels and Wusthof, I have no idea.

[Harpua]

Wusthof and my parents also just got us a Ceramic for a wedding gift. I love that thing! Cuts everything like butter! I'm just scared to use it; I might break it.

[johnarmr]

the ceramics are really sharp but very brittle and a pain to reshapren with out spec tools!

[bluezebra]

I have an 8" Henckle that I use all the time and an 11-1/2" Henckle that I use only sparingly.

I got a set of Victorinox/Forschner knives for a Christmas present about 2 years ago and I'm so surprised at how much I love all of them. I have no idea of the price on them but the little 6" chef is one of my all time favorites for summer veggies and so lightweight. And the paring knife fits my hand so well that I don't know why I ever used other paring knives before.

They take a stone nicely and tend to hold their edge as well as my Henckles and my one Wusthof (which I almost never use - boy is it a beast).

[Jannie]

I have only within the last six months become a fan of the Japanese knives. You can get a Wustof or Henkels (German) extremely sharp but nothing like one of the Japanese knives I have...too sharp if you have kids in the house. On mine if you touch the blade, you've probably cut yourself.

The down side with the Japanese knives is that they are wonderfully thin, but that also means that many of them cannot be used on deboning a chicken or a very hard squash shell, the knives can be brittle and chip the edge or even break the blade but I've not heard that one happening very often. You just have to be careful.

I use a 9 1/2" guyto/chef's and 3" paring for 95% of the work in the kitchen. I would also recommend a bread/slicer.

The Wustof Classic and Henkels (German) knives are a good buy if you want a good knife without really getting "into knives". My gyuto (Japanese) was $255.00 and my paring $136.00 but you can get Tojiro DP knives for very little ($60-$80) and the steel is fantastic, the handles are blocky though but I filed/sanded mine down to where I wanted it.
Jannie

[9ballprodigy]

Originally Posted by Jannie

I have only within the last six months become a fan of the Japanese knives. You can get a Wustof or Henkels (German) extremely sharp but nothing like one of the Japanese knives I have...too sharp if you have kids in the house. On mine if you touch the blade, you've probably cut yourself.

The down side with the Japanese knives is that they are wonderfully thin, but that also means that many of them cannot be used on deboning a chicken or a very hard squash shell, the knives can be brittle and chip the edge or even break the blade but I've not heard that one happening very often. You just have to be careful.

I use a 9 1/2" guyto/chef's and 3" paring for 95% of the work in the kitchen. I would also recommend a bread/slicer.

The Wustof Classic and Henkels (German) knives are a good buy if you want a good knife without really getting "into knives". My gyuto (Japanese) was $255.00 and my paring $136.00 but you can get Tojiro DP knives for very little ($60-$80) and the steel is fantastic, the handles are blocky though but I filed/sanded mine down to where I wanted it.
Jannie

i would also like to note that misono, masamoto, and hattori are all considered the creme de la creme of japanese chef's knives. misono being the brand that most professional chefs rave about. about 50% of my kitchen uses them. i just prefer the handle of a shun.

[indianwells]

I prefer Henckel's. I do have a Wusthof chefs knife but compared to the Henckel's it sounds somehow "tinny" when I use a steel on it.
Everyone will have different opinions but I guess it's just what feels right for each individual. As long as it feels good in your hand and does the job you want it to then, well, it's the right knife for you.

[jigz369]

My home set is my first set ever purchased. They are Henkells 4 Star. I now use Victoriaknox in my work kit. Both sets are wonderful. I left the Henkells at home as they fit my wife's hand better than my new Victoriaknox. Never had an issue with holding an edge either.