Folks -
It's been certainly an entertaining few days reading along and catching up on all the knife discussions here. I haven't been seriously shopping for a knife in about five years, so I'm finding that I'm relearning some things, and this has been invaluble.
Aside from having a decently stocked knife drawer (does the trick for me, at least), I've decided that I want to try my hand with a carbon steel, French profile chef's knife. I'd like to learn to sharpen my own knives, after taking a rather dull Henckel to a good pro and thinking, "Hm. I could do that." And I'd like to see how carbon steel feels - everything else I use is high carbon stainless.
Why French and not Japanese? Better price points on the Sabs I've looked at, and an irrational disposition towards French culinary tradition.
Why an 8" chef's? It's what I'm used to, and fits the cutting boards I have well. I have a 10" Forschner that I really like, but it's just a bit big for the space I have to work with. This is something of a debate at home, between my desire for large working spaces and thick heavy wooden cutting boards vs. my wife's desire for uncluttered counters and plastic cutting boards that can be stored out of sight.
(I'm trying to head off the questions I might get from BDL, by the way. )
Can I sharpen? No. Will I learn? Yes. On what? Depends on what stones I decide give me the best starting bang for the buck - 1000 and 6000 waterstone, or medium and fine Arkansas, but I really haven't read enough yet on the stones to fully appreciate what that means. (I'm doing well to keep up with the knives.)
Am I organized in prep? Yes, and trying to be more so. Will I care for the carbon steel? Definitely. I'm pretty good with caring for the knives I have now, but investing in a good carbon steel knife will force me to learn better/more obsessive habits.
What do I cut with now? An 8" Global and an 8" Henckel chef (two man, four star, first good knife I ever bought ten years ago), and a 4" Henckel paring (pro-s, for those keeping score) are the main workhorses. Add in a 10" Forschner and a 6" Henckel (pro-s) santoku, and that's about all I reach for.
So, after all that, the question!
What do we collectively think about Mexeur et Cie Sabatier? I think BDL included it once "for completeness" but preferred the edge on K-Sab and TI slightly, but that's about all I could find. The advantage is, if I read the websites correctly, I can walk into a Sur La Table here in Houston and get hands-on with the M&C Sab, whereas I'd be purchasing the others online sight-unseen (and paying S&H). The prices are all comparable, and I haven't been able to find a blasted knife store in town here that sells other Sabs, so I figured I'd check in with the experts before going to the store and playing.
Thoughts?
It's been certainly an entertaining few days reading along and catching up on all the knife discussions here. I haven't been seriously shopping for a knife in about five years, so I'm finding that I'm relearning some things, and this has been invaluble.
Aside from having a decently stocked knife drawer (does the trick for me, at least), I've decided that I want to try my hand with a carbon steel, French profile chef's knife. I'd like to learn to sharpen my own knives, after taking a rather dull Henckel to a good pro and thinking, "Hm. I could do that." And I'd like to see how carbon steel feels - everything else I use is high carbon stainless.
Why French and not Japanese? Better price points on the Sabs I've looked at, and an irrational disposition towards French culinary tradition.
Why an 8" chef's? It's what I'm used to, and fits the cutting boards I have well. I have a 10" Forschner that I really like, but it's just a bit big for the space I have to work with. This is something of a debate at home, between my desire for large working spaces and thick heavy wooden cutting boards vs. my wife's desire for uncluttered counters and plastic cutting boards that can be stored out of sight.
(I'm trying to head off the questions I might get from BDL, by the way. )
Can I sharpen? No. Will I learn? Yes. On what? Depends on what stones I decide give me the best starting bang for the buck - 1000 and 6000 waterstone, or medium and fine Arkansas, but I really haven't read enough yet on the stones to fully appreciate what that means. (I'm doing well to keep up with the knives.)
Am I organized in prep? Yes, and trying to be more so. Will I care for the carbon steel? Definitely. I'm pretty good with caring for the knives I have now, but investing in a good carbon steel knife will force me to learn better/more obsessive habits.
What do I cut with now? An 8" Global and an 8" Henckel chef (two man, four star, first good knife I ever bought ten years ago), and a 4" Henckel paring (pro-s, for those keeping score) are the main workhorses. Add in a 10" Forschner and a 6" Henckel (pro-s) santoku, and that's about all I reach for.
So, after all that, the question!
What do we collectively think about Mexeur et Cie Sabatier? I think BDL included it once "for completeness" but preferred the edge on K-Sab and TI slightly, but that's about all I could find. The advantage is, if I read the websites correctly, I can walk into a Sur La Table here in Houston and get hands-on with the M&C Sab, whereas I'd be purchasing the others online sight-unseen (and paying S&H). The prices are all comparable, and I haven't been able to find a blasted knife store in town here that sells other Sabs, so I figured I'd check in with the experts before going to the store and playing.
Thoughts?