Knife Thread

ik9000 · 26 Jan 2021 at 14:20

ok folks, say you had permission from the family boss to replace all the kitchen knives, brand Victorinox standard/fibrox (not classic or modern) so they dishwash and match the few decent ones (what they call a tomato knife) that we're keeping. What would you go for?

We need knives that will get through big parsnips/butternut squash etc
cut meat joints thinly and not squidging them
deep enough blades to learn how to chop finely at pace
one or two blades that will let us joint meet/break down bigger joints into smaller portions (there's only 2 of us here, but the bigger joints are much better value)
a couple of decent pairing knives for vegetables, cutting cheese, fruit etc.

I guess I'm thinking we don't need all that many knives, but that a smaller selection of cherry picked ones might be the way forward.

ik9000 · 26 Jan 2021 at 14:24

SoliD said:
My Mum got asked for ID last year for a knife delivery, she was 68 at the time.

I don't mind ID at point of collection/delivery where they look at it like in a shop. I object to online orders by credit card to your billing address requiring a digital copy of your driving licence, passport or birth certificate in order to despatch. That is stupid and leaving people open to fraud. The shop even said "oh we don't keep a copy". Then why ask for it? Call me a cynic but I just don't trust a digital system to not keep a copy, even inadvertently in some cache somewhere. No no no.

bazzabear · 26 Jan 2021 at 14:50

I bought my wife a Robert Welsh Santuko knife as one of her Christmas presents.

It's got impressive weight to it, and cuts very nicely. The one sort-of complaint I'd have would be - it went in the dishwasher once, was taken out again very soon after the cycle had finished, and already had some rust spots on it.

The website did say they recommend hand washing for best results, but didn't say it isn't dishwasher safe.

It's not a problem as such, we can indeed just hand wash it from now on. But I was certainly not expecting such an immediate response to the dishwasher. Luckily I was able to get all the spots back off it with a bit of elbow grease (and accidentally cutting a slice into our dishcloth

).

ik9000 · 26 Jan 2021 at 15:36

Rust spots are a risk with carbon hardened blades, even if the parent metal is stainless. To get hardness you quench the hot metal to form iron carbide crystals within the wider lattice at the surface. These carbide areas can be prone to pitting corrosion in the presence of salts, water, and the process is accelerated in high temperatures. Dishwashers give the perfect conditions. There are various tricks and alloys that can be used to help inhibit this but unless your knife manufacturer is very forthcoming with tech info it's hard to know what you're buying sometimes.

Rust staining and streaking is either from the initial onset starting, but residue smearing off, or occasionally spray from something else, like a rusty rack in the dishwasher.

You can also get bimettalic corrosion from different types of steel (even between different types of stainless steel) in contact with each other in wet conditions. This is why good dishwashers have the cutlery and knife racks at the top where each piece is held in place vs cheaper models where you shove everything in a basket (and where they can rattle together). You'd need to leave things in contact for a while for this to really kick in (unless they're massively dissimilar metals)

EH75 · 29 Jan 2021 at 19:12

In the market for a new set of knives. Currently making do with some horrible cheap things we have had for about 6 years which are visibly gouged and chipped on the cutting edge. I guess I will need a chefs knife, a smaller paring knife and a bread knife (make a lot of home made bread so this is a necessity). To be honest at the moment I can probably get away with just those 3. Ideally I would love some Wusthof Classics but to get those 3 knifes plus a magnetic block to hold them on is probably gonna be over 200 quid which I can't really justify at the moment. Ideally I don't want to be spending much more that 30 quid on each knife. What's good out there on that sort of budget? I was having a look at Lakelands own brand and I also see that whustof have some budget offerings? Then there's many on amazon but I don't know what's good at that sort of price and what is cheap tat from China with lots of fake reviews.

Also I am left handed but the girlfriend is right handed so need something that will work well for both. I'm sure I read somewhere that some knives are angled to be be better for right handed people which obviously is no good for me!

Any advice?

ik9000 · 30 Jan 2021 at 03:04

A double beveled knife will work for both hands, just check the blade is symmetrical. Check more carefully for Japanese blades santoku, nakiri etc as they tend to be ground on one side only for a sharper blade

firstborn · 30 Jan 2021 at 20:05

EH75 said:
In the market for a new set of knives. Currently making do with some horrible cheap things we have had for about 6 years which are visibly gouged and chipped on the cutting edge. I guess I will need a chefs knife, a smaller paring knife and a bread knife (make a lot of home made bread so this is a necessity). To be honest at the moment I can probably get away with just those 3. Ideally I would love some Wusthof Classics but to get those 3 knifes plus a magnetic block to hold them on is probably gonna be over 200 quid which I can't really justify at the moment. Ideally I don't want to be spending much more that 30 quid on each knife. What's good out there on that sort of budget? I was having a look at Lakelands own brand and I also see that whustof have some budget offerings?...

Any advice?

My main knives are Whustof Ikon classics and have been great, but the budget offerings were far from good in comparison.

I have 3 Procook knives from their Nihon range - free with a load of Procook stuff I bought last year. Pleasantly surprised - comfortable and have hel their edge well and bought new they fall within your budget.

Raikiri · 31 Jan 2021 at 17:22

If anyone's after a good but cheap bread knife: https://heinnie.com/victorinox-fibrox-slicing

Dave85 · 31 Jan 2021 at 18:58

Thanks thats a good deal grabbed one with the yellow handle

broona · 31 Jan 2021 at 23:51

Without reading through the entire thread, would anyone be able to recommend me a £50'ish set of 3 to 5 knives for general kitchen duties, just cutting veg, etc?

We've got a couple of blocks of 15yr old knives, and I'd like to get rid and replace them with one half decent set, preferably on a magnetic stand. Thanks.

ik9000 · 31 Jan 2021 at 23:57

Procook x50 3 piece £50 or with block slightly more.

https://www.procook.co.uk/product/procook-professional-x50-knife-set-3-piece-boxed

I haven't got them myself but good press in the thread

broona · 1 Feb 2021 at 02:56

ik9000 said:
Procook x50 3 piece £50 or with block slightly more.

https://www.procook.co.uk/product/procook-professional-x50-knife-set-3-piece-boxed

I haven't got them myself but good press in the thread

Thank you, I like the look of that set with the block, great reviews on the site too - https://www.procook.co.uk/product/p...-set-3-piece-with-santoku-and-oak-micro-block

broona · 2 Feb 2021 at 08:10

So, in typical fashion, I've decided to spend a little more, and also go for a 3 knife set as my wife and I often prep together, so a pairing and utility should work well.

Looking at the following sets, any more advice is much appreciated :-

https://www.hartsofstur.com/henckels-four-star-3-piece-set-35048-000.html

https://www.hartsofstur.com/wusthof-classic-3-piece-set-paring-utility-cooks-knife-1300160301.html

anihcniedam · 2 Feb 2021 at 11:36

Both are good knives from respected manufacturers and I'm sure you would be happy with either, I would go with the Wusthof as they are slightly harder so should keep the edge a little longer, I personally prefer the handle design too.

I managed to get a Mr Itou R-2 custom damascus gyuto last year, its a wonderful knife and still razor sharp after 5 months but the magic is in the damascus on the blade (please escuse my afwul photos) it replaced an I O Shen that I've had for about 12 years.

I'm just looking into getting some whetstones to keep the gyuto in tip top condition,

Raikiri · 2 Feb 2021 at 14:31

Makes the Shun look naff in comparison! Nice.

broona said:
So, in typical fashion, I've decided to spend a little more, and also go for a 3 knife set as my wife and I often prep together, so a pairing and utility should work well.

Looking at the following sets, any more advice is much appreciated :-

https://www.hartsofstur.com/henckels-four-star-3-piece-set-35048-000.html

https://www.hartsofstur.com/wusthof-classic-3-piece-set-paring-utility-cooks-knife-1300160301.html

I would suggest trying one if you can, or at least a similar design. Personally I cannot stand the large bolster on these knives, however they are very well made and will last forever if taken care of.

Have a look at Tojiro, you can get a 21cm chefs knife (gyuto) and a 120mm utility/petty knife for under £150. I consider them to be much nicer to use and slightly higher quality.

anihcniedam · 2 Feb 2021 at 16:03

@broona project creep established, gone from a £50 set to a £150 set to now wondering about a Japanese knife

Tojiro-japan are good knives also Shiki, Misono, Kanetsugo or Fujiwara have very reasonable forged Japanese blades, maybe have a browse HERE

Raikiri · 2 Feb 2021 at 16:38

anihcniedam said:
@broona project creep established, gone from a £50 set to a £150 set to now wondering about a Japanese knife

Tojiro-japan are good knives also Shiki, Misono, Kanetsugo or Fujiwara have very reasonable forged Japanese blades, maybe have a browse HERE

Yeah, Misono are great too, as are MAC and Kanetsune (I've used a Kanetsune as my main knife for 12 years).

broona · 2 Feb 2021 at 21:16

Thanks again, some lovely things on that site!

broona · 3 Feb 2021 at 11:47

And here we go again...

After looking through our 2 knife sets this morning, I've realised that I use the 120-130mm utility knives 90% of the time, so I'm just going to buy 1 of those for now, and possibly a bigger chef's or santoku knife at a later date.

What would people's recommendations be there please?

anihcniedam · 3 Feb 2021 at 12:55

broona said:
And here we go again...

After looking through our 2 knife sets this morning, I've realised that I use the 120-130mm utility knives 90% of the time, so I'm just going to buy 1 of those for now, and possibly a bigger chef's or santoku knife at a later date.

What would people's recommendations be there please?

If having matching knives is important I would look for both now so when you do get the second the first matches.

I would definitely recommend forged over stamped but as to what knife type or brand that choice is really up to you, maybe do some research on brand history choosing one that appeals to you the most, you will be very happy with any knife you get from a quality manufacturer.