Some Suggest In knif's

You posted this under "Culinary schools/Culinary students", so I am assuming that you will be bringing these knives (a knife ALWAYS has an "E" in it's spelling, O.K.?) to school and later to work.

With that assumption in mind, may I suggest: Forschner (a.k.a Victorinox) or Mac. Yes, they are inexpensive, but not cheap. They are good knives, well made, have a good mnfctr's warranty, take a beating well, and are comfortable.

It's kinda like learning how to ride a motorbike: You can spend big bucks on a really nice 750cc model and THEN learn how to take corners, ride in the rain, do regular maintainence and take a good chance on screwing up the bike, or you get a decent 125cc, ride the crap out of it, and then apply what you've learned on a nicer bike.

Hope this makes sense

If you want to buy expensive knives, leave them at home.

Why?

1) Expensive knives get ripped off, (especially at school) some eejit "borrows" them when you're not looking and ruins them, or they get lost. (and this can even happen at home depending on how many people live there) Half a month's salary down the terlet and you still need a knife to work with for tommorow. The inexpensive knife is a good working tool, if it gets lost or abused, it won't cost you a half month's salary to replace.

2) Guaranteed, someone at school or someone at work will buy fancy expensive knives. Wait a week. Listen to the owner either brag or whine. 50% chance the knife is "wrong": Handle not comfortable, too heavy, too light, needs frequent sharpening, etc. etc. etc. Even some of the braggers will wnat to give you a "deal" and try to sell yo the knife they bought a few months ago for half the price. Let the other people spend their money, and then listen to them. If you hear the same things from 4 or 5 different people, THEN plunk down your cash.

Cheftalk has a great section on knives
Cooking Knives - ChefTalk Cooking Forums



From: How to Buy a Knife : Recipes and Cooking : Food Network

A good knife is a worthwhile investment. If you buy a quality one and take care of it, you will have it for a lifetime. A good knife will pay for itself over time. Cooking will be much more enjoyable, so you'll spend less money on restaurants and takeouts. A good knife is also safer, so you'll spend less on bandages.

Before you buy knives, learn their anatomy. Knives are made up of four parts: the blade, the handle, the bolster, and the tang.

The blade can be made of stainless steel, carbon steel, high-carbon steel or ceramic. Metal blades can either be stamped (pressed out of metal) or forged (molded under high heat). Forged knives are heftier and tend to last longer, though stamped blades are useful for lighter work like filleting.

Stainless steel knives are inexpensive, but cannot be sharpened once they lose their edge.

Carbon steel knives hold their edges remarkably well, require careful cleaning and drying, and will eventually discolor, turning black over time. There's nothing bad about the discoloration; it's a matter of preference.

High-carbon steel gives you the sharpen-ability of carbon steel without the discoloration. Most professional knives are made of this material.

Ceramic knives stay sharp the longest but can break easily.
The handle can be made of wood, plastic, rubber or metal. Though wood can be beautiful, the other materials are more durable. The handle can either be riveted to the blade or molded around it. Riveted ones are believed to be the strongest, but the most important thing about a handle is that it feels good in your hand and you feel comfortable holding it.

The bolster is the thick ridge between the blade and the handle. It's standard on forged knives and rare on stamped knives. It's usually ground down towards the bottom to make sharpening easier.

The tang is the part of the blade that extends into the handle. "Full-tang" knives are made out of one piece of metal that extends all the way back to the handle. This is the heftiest and priciest option, but the tang shouldn't be a deciding factor unless you plan on regularly using the knife for heavy-duty chopping (say, bones).

for school i would go with the forchners or like that. just buy what you need add on to your set as you need it/ want it. if your trully into knives japanses and way knives perform japanese are the way to go, but depending on your school i woudnt spend the money on japanese knives to use at school too many stick fingers if you know what i mean. if you looking for a set i have my school knives i dont use any more, send me a pm if interested.

I personally wouldnt pay 350 bucks for a knife! I bought a good global for around 80 and its outstanding in excellent condition and i have been using it professionaly for almost 2 years.

Strangely enough, I have a $20 Chicago Cutlery chefs knife and I like it just fine, in fact, it's my favorite knife and I got it from Walmart of all places. I think what it comes down to is the best knife for a person is one that's comfortable to use and is kept sharp. Price and name really have little to do with it.

whatever knife you end up getting just make sure you have a way to keep it sharp, a 300 dollar knife and a 20 dollar knife can all dull just make sure you have a way to sharpen. theres nothing more anoying than a dull knife.

Get a cheap $30 medium sized knife and a cheap pairing knife. At this point, you don't need the fillet knifes, bread knifes, vegetable knifes, etc. Even in professional work, if your not a executive chef, you will only use certain knives rarely (ok a fillet knife is nice sometimes but thats it)