Any knife nuts here?

[MrBoat]

some Shun knives on sale on Amazon today (I own some and they are best knifes I own)
https://www.amazon.com/Shun-DM0701-Classic-Utility-Knife/dp/B0000Y7KFY/ref=lp_2600485011_1_1?srs=2600485011&ie=UTF8&qid=1532220006&sr=8-1
https://www.amazon.com/Shun-TDM0723-Premier-Knife-6-Inch/dp/B0046053HA/ref=lp_2600485011_1_9?srs=2600485011&ie=UTF8&qid=1532220006&sr=8-9
https://www.amazon.com/Shun-Premier-Santoku-Knife-7-Inch/dp/B003B66YK0/ref=sr_1_31?srs=2600485011&ie=UTF8&qid=1532220092&sr=8-31

More here:
https://www.amazon.com/Shun/b/ref=w_bl_hsx_s_ki_web_2600485011?ie=UTF8&node=2600485011&field-lbr_brands_browse-bin=Shun

I own Kai brand, and I own the equipment from a pro sharpening service so they are always razor sharp at the correct bevel. Most will leave my knives alone, but I have to tape notes to them after I sharpen them so they don't take off their fingertips.

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

... I own the equipment from a pro sharpening service so they are always razor sharp at the correct bevel. Most will leave my knives alone, but I have to tape notes to them after I sharpen them so they don't take off their fingertips.

Yes, they are that sharp from the factory. I can confirm - it's no joke

 

[Bucknekked]

I'm a butcher! Where has this thread been hiding?

View attachment 21181

From the top:
10" Foreschner breaking knife with a Granton edge
6" (was 6") Foreschner skinning knife
5" Geisser skinning knife
All 3 have Victorinox fibrox handles. Durable and easy to clean. Textured grips too so they don't slide in your hand, which is especially useful on the kill floor.

View attachment 21182

My breaking knife is my favorite knife to use. It can effortlessly slice through a whole primal with one knife stroke, cut full cut steaks off of loins and ribeyes, and even do some pretty work with trimming the final product. A very versatile knife. I do a lot of cutting by hand instead of running everything through a saw.

View attachment 21183

You can see they've all been used and sharpened a few (one more than a few) times. The breaker is my newest knife (about 2 years old) and the skinners I've had for 25 years or more. The blade in this last pic is still sharp enough to shave with. I sharpen all my own knives on a 3 sided stone (mainly the finest one). I started practicing when I was in my early teens.

I've had many more knives than that, and more variety too. I used to have 6" straight and curved boning knives, an 8" Foreschner with a Granton edge and a lamb skinner too.

I haven't worked in a slaughter house for a couple decades and with meat coming in smaller, boneless primals I found I don't need the boning knives so much any more. Stuff got misplaced and lost with moves and transferring to different stores through my career. I just recently said good bye to the trade after 30 years in the business. It was kinda bittersweet taking pics of these knives.

Pogre
There is much to like about you. Knives ? Now there is even more to like.
I should have known with your butcher background.
I have the Foreschner (Victorinix) 8 inch chefs and a set of their steak knives.
I have been looking for a boning knife over the last month or so. Carving up those briskets ! I've been watching a lot of BBQ guys carving on those briskets and they all have some pretty wicked looking boning knives. I think I'm in the market for one. I'm enjoying the shopping

 

[Bucknekked]

some Shun knives on sale on Amazon today (I own some and they are best knifes I own)
https://www.amazon.com/Shun-DM0701-Classic-Utility-Knife/dp/B0000Y7KFY/ref=lp_2600485011_1_1?srs=2600485011&ie=UTF8&qid=1532220006&sr=8-1
https://www.amazon.com/Shun-TDM0723-Premier-Knife-6-Inch/dp/B0046053HA/ref=lp_2600485011_1_9?srs=2600485011&ie=UTF8&qid=1532220006&sr=8-9
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00TQZV2IY?ie=UTF8&_encoding=UTF8&tag=bensbargaicenter&linkCode=ur2&camp=1789&creative=9325
https://www.amazon.com/Shun-Premier-Santoku-Knife-7-Inch/dp/B003B66YK0/ref=sr_1_31?srs=2600485011&ie=UTF8&qid=1532220092&sr=8-31

More here:
https://www.amazon.com/Shun/b/ref=w_bl_hsx_s_ki_web_2600485011?ie=UTF8&node=2600485011&field-lbr_brands_browse-bin=Shun

BSA:
If you wouldn't mind, can you give the the lowdown on Japanese knives and steel? I have read a ton of articles, but most of them seem authored by someone that has something to sell. Hence I have a wee bit of reticense.
I mostly have a need for a boning knife for reducing packer briskets to edible forms to smoke/bbq. That's the true "need". Mostly, I just want a knife upgrade and that's one I can point to I don't have. The next "upgrade" would be my 8 inch chef's knife. I have the 8" Victorinix and have been using it for over a decade. Love it.

My only "problem" is upgradeitis. Japanese knives have caught my fancy. Shun is by far the most famous of the bunch, but, don't know if that's like being the Foster Beer of Australia.

Any thoughts of your own? Brittleness? Chipping? Delamination?

 

[Bucknekked]

I own Kai brand, and I own the equipment from a pro sharpening service so they are always razor sharp at the correct bevel. Most will leave my knives alone, but I have to tape notes to them after I sharpen them so they don't take off their fingertips.

MrBoat:
I didn't see this post til after I wrote one to BSA.
You are more than welcome to chime in on Kai knives, japanese steel, and what sounds great.
I "need" a boning knife for carving briskets, and I'd like a new chefs knife, just because.
I don't have problems. My Victorinix knives have been working for a decade.
I'm just in the mood for an "upgrade". And Japanese knives have caught my eye.
It isn't just audio that drives the upgrade bug.

 

[MrBoat]

MrBoat:
I didn't see this post til after I wrote one to BSA.
You are more than welcome to chime in on Kai knives, japanese steel, and what sounds great.
I "need" a boning knife for carving briskets, and I'd like a new chefs knife, just because.
I don't have problems. My Victorinix knives have been working for a decade.
I'm just in the mood for an "upgrade". And Japanese knives have caught my eye.
It isn't just audio that drives the upgrade bug.

Kai are likely to Japan about what Forschner or Dexter Russel might represent here in the states with commercial use, at least.
I bought them (8" Chefs/4" Pairing) some years ago as beginners and I ended up liking them because they do a lot of things well. As was stated by BSA above, they do come razor sharp from the factory. This is no super fine grind, but the chefs knife survived razor sharp 2 years with no more than a leather strop!

I make knives, so I know a knife's limitations, and even my most used tools last longer than average. Japanese steel is great. I like the multiple layers like the Kai, for the core being that which is easily sharpened yet tough enough to hold an edge, with the outer layers offering corrosion resistance. One thing I have noticed about the particular finish of the steel is, onions and potatoes don't seem to stick to it too much like other knives I own. Perhaps it is a slight convex that makes it so. The Kai Chefs knife I own is really a blend of a western/Asian type knife. Japanese styled blade, with a western type handle. It was also relatively inexpensive. I could do better but the thing is so damned sharp all the time I don't think to upgrade. The knives I do like tend to be ridiculously overpriced. They charge hand forged prices for knives that a machine stamps out thousands of at a time. Not this ol' boy. I'll buy a set of Old Hickory first and customize the edges and they can go scratch.

German (Solingen) steel and domestic is great tool/knife steel too. I cannot say any one is superior, because like audio, we're talking about barely noticeable differences. What I like about the Asian types is the style, at least for home kitchen use. I like the Chinese cleaver styles and you can process some vegetables like a machine with those. I have Dexter Russel and Kershaw for fish/game/outdoor use and they are tough too.

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

BSA:
If you wouldn't mind, can you give the the lowdown on Japanese knives and steel? I have read a ton of articles, but most of them seem authored by someone that has something to sell. Hence I have a wee bit of reticense.
I mostly have a need for a boning knife for reducing packer briskets to edible forms to smoke/bbq. That's the true "need". Mostly, I just want a knife upgrade and that's one I can point to I don't have. The next "upgrade" would be my 8 inch chef's knife. I have the 8" Victorinix and have been using it for over a decade. Love it.

My only "problem" is upgradeitis. Japanese knives have caught my fancy. Shun is by far the most famous of the bunch, but, don't know if that's like being the Foster Beer of Australia.

Any thoughts of your own? Brittleness? Chipping? Delamination?

Jeez, You're asking quite hard questions. At the very basic, the biggest difference between european knifes and asian is (forgive my usage of improper terms) is angle of sharpening. Asian edge is much smaller angle (about 15-17 degrees) while european/us knifes are around 25-30 degrees angle. This has pros in much shaper edge, but con in the need to hone it much more often as result.
Shun premier knives use folded damascus (style?) steel which looks pretty, but I'm not sure about tangible results. I could tell you than I use my shun santoku 8" only on most annoying things to cut, like yum or butternut squash. I own it for 3-4 years and it holds it's edge very well.
My biggest disappointment are ceramic knife - that thing held most amazeballs edge new, but rather quickly lost it without being abused. I tried diamond tools to sharpen it, without much luck. I refuse to purchase ceramic only sharpening gadget.

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

To be honest my kitchen go to workhorse for light to medium sized stuff food prep is a cheap Kai Wasabi 6" knife. I use the crap out of it and only needed occasional honing. that's all folks. Cheap and cheerful (wish the handle would be a bit heavier, but otherwise - excellent knife)
https://www.amazon.com/Kai-Wasabi-Black-Utility-6-Inch/dp/B001DZNQWA/ref=sr_1_1?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1532233599&sr=1-1&keywords=kai+wasabi+6"&dpID=31bbLcoCKKL&preST=_SY300_QL70_&dpSrc=srch

 

[shadyJ]

You guys might find this interesting: Making an extremely sharp knife out of jello.

Probably not the most durable knife, but it looks really sharp.

 

[MrBoat]

To be honest my kitchen go to workhorse for light to medium sized stuff food prep is a cheap Kai Wasabi 6" knife. I use the crap out of it and only needed occasional honing. that's all folks. Cheap and cheerful (wish the handle would be a bit heavier, but otherwise - excellent knife)
https://www.amazon.com/Kai-Wasabi-Black-Utility-6-Inch/dp/B001DZNQWA/ref=sr_1_1?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1532233599&sr=1-1&keywords=kai+wasabi+6"&dpID=31bbLcoCKKL&preST=_SY300_QL70_&dpSrc=srch

The 4" pairing I have is similar to that with the same style handle. The 8" chef knife has a western style handle and a 3 layer blade, or, a high carbon steel core, clad in stainless steel. When I was cutting these ribs, I missed and actually cut about 2/3 of the bone through lengthways without a splinter. I had just sharpened it 2-3 days before.

I hide these knives in my room when not in use. For one, they are too sharp for the uninitiated, and two, people will not always take the time to get out the cutting board. They get to use the Farberware knives.

This is the 8" chefs. As cheap as it was, I still take care of it like it cost much more. I keep forgetting it's a value brand.

 

[Midwesthonky]

Late to the party. But a good kitchen knife/knives is so worth the investment. My main implement is the 8" Wusthof Classic cook's knife. First time I used it, I swear I had a chubby. It fits my hand well and I can wield it like some people wield a 3" paring knife. I don't let the kids use it though as I keep it sharp.

I've seen some reviews and you don't need to spend a lot of money to get a great knife. Just need to maintain it properly. Speaking of which, my kitchen knives are due for sharpening. The paring knives are getting dull again but then, my kids and wife use those a lot and it's better they are not at risk of losing a finger.

 

[Alex2507]

Eddie of the deck gave me a small Smith and Wesson folding job that he found on the ground. It was sharp. Then I took it to a surgical hardness stone. It was then able to shave/cut hair. Then came the hone and finally it was stropped. Now I have a few bald patches on my forearm and thigh.

The cheapo Milwaukee got similar love after I unknowingly tried to cut through braided steel cable covered in black vinyl. Luckily the steel is soft and easy to sharpen/hone.

The little Smith and Wesson is better steel that won't require much in the way of maintenance. It's a 'going out to dinner' knife while the bigger Milwaukee is a daily carry. Both have the pocket clip but the S&W wins that contest as well.



The fungu on the Milwaukee blade is from an orange I ate a couple of days ago. What? Vitamin C is important.

 

[highfigh]

One of my gripes about kitchen knives is when they don't hold an edge and I use a Maple cutting board with no metal debris in it. I bought a set from a department store a long time ago and they hold their edge just fine, but when I decided that a Chicago Cutlery knock off should be decent- it wasn't cheap, after all- I was dead wrong. It looks OK, but goes dull quickly. Chef's knife and boning knife- both are only OK. The knives I got after my parents passed hold an edge like crazy- one is a very thin, flexible paring knife made of Sheffield Steel and it must be close to 65 years old. Not sure who got the carving knife but I think it was a match- it would cut meat very thin with no tearing.

I carry a Gerber Crucial- the Phillips screwdriver tip is too hard and it fractured but the rest are good, aside from the knife blade not holding an edge as well as I would expect. Fortunately, it has a lifetime warranty so it will go back as soon as I can part with it again. The reason I wrote 'again ' is due to the fact that it was confiscated as I walked into Lambeau Stadium in August- they don't allow knives. A little over a month ago, when I had decided that I really needed it or something like it,. I decided that the price for a new one had risen too much for me to be OK with it, so I decided to find out if they keep what they take, or if it's sold/tossed. I found out that they keep it if it's not perishable and when the guy from Lambeau called the next day, he was holding it in his hand and he asked for my address, so he could send it to me. It was here the next day!

That think is like my cell phone- I almost feel naked without it.

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

I seem to misplaced my 8yo EDC knife, Kershaw Leek (410 steel handle, assist folding, Sandvik 14C28N 3" blade)
Decided to upgrade a bit with Kershaw Blur with S30V steel 3.4" blade and black anod. handle.
Amazon being amazon again - watch out - all other "flavors" of this knife are made with steel maters other than S30V.
I based my choice on existing experience with the Kershaw locking system and blade material based on this guide:

Guide to the Best Knife Steel

Check out our essential guide to knife steel as we discuss the most popular steels and the key factors to consider in choosing the best steel for your knife.

knifeinformer.com

Hopefully, I made a decent choice.

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

So my Kai Wasabi 6" Utility knife broken the handle. I was disappointed to learn that it isn't full tang.
It lasted since 2013 so not a complete pos.
This is the replacement:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005LRYIYG/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Used it for a few weeks now and very happy with it. Quite sharp and holds its edge very well.

 

[cpp]

Wow nice thread. I've used a few MAC knifes with good results.

 

[Mr._Clark]

So my Kai Wasabi 6" Utility knife broken the handle. I was disappointed to learn that it isn't full tang.
It lasted since 2013 so not a complete pos.
This is the replacement:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005LRYIYG/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Used it for a few weeks now and very happy with it. Quite sharp and holds its edge very well.

I've had one of the Victorinox 8" breaking knives with a rosewood handle for years. No issues so far. These are definitely full tang.

I use it to clean bigger fish and to skin salmon fillets.

https://www.amazon.com/Victorinox-8-Inch-Curved-Breaking-Rosewood/dp/B0019WUL8Y

 

[highfigh]

My everyday carry is a Kershaw Onion Blur with a smooth blade and I love it. It's the fastest assisted opening knife that I've ever owned. My dress clothes knife is a Kershaw Scallion with a Damascus steel blade. But being a knife nut I just had to buy a Ka-Bar Becker BK9 Combat Bowie for my bug out bag. Huge but surprisingly light and sharp enough to shave with. The perfect survival knife. Note the sheath in the Amazon photo is incorrect - it's nylon not kydex.

Do you need a permit in your state for the K-Bar, or do you just hide it well?

 

[Pogre]

My pocket knives. There's just something about a Tanto edge that makes a knife look brutal or wicked.

I don't often carry the top one because it's kinda bulky. I bought it first, then went back and got the smaller one for daily carrying. Of course my little one is always on my keychain. I never go anywhere without a pocket knife. Such a useful tool to always have handy.

 

[Pogre]

I've had one of the Victorinox 8" breaking knives with a rosewood handle for years. No issues so far. These are definitely full tang.

I use it to clean bigger fish and to skin salmon fillets.

View attachment 45601

https://www.amazon.com/Victorinox-8-Inch-Curved-Breaking-Rosewood/dp/B0019WUL8Y

I loved my 8" breaking knife, then I moved to a 10" breaker. Foreschner/Victorinox make some of the best knives for work.