nolaegghead said:

all you need is one good Chinese cleaver

Tru dat. It's the only knife hundreds of millions of Asians ever need.

I agree with @Acn , I highly recommend you go into a store and see how it feels in your hand before you buy!  Knives should be an extension of your hand and should feel balanced and natural.  The sets that are sold are made up to sell slower selling products that you will not use.  The 3 knives I use daily are my chefs, pairing and maybe a bread knife.  Good quality knives should last you a long time, save your money after finding out what you need.  

I do a shun/cutco mix at my house. You only need certain knifes

Block kits are okay if that's what you want.  I prefer individual knife purchases.  I do have a "set" of steak knives.  Most of my knife work is accomplished with 3 knives. Chef knife, pursuit or utility and a paring knife.  It should feel ergonomically comfortable like an extension of your own hand.

Tspud1 said:

stlcharcoal said:

Tspud1 said:

stlcharcoal said:

Keep giving me your money......come get some Shun and KAI.  I sold my set of wusthofs after I got the Shuns.

Where to buy Shun? Remember, I live in BFE

Come down to my place.  I have about 10 different ones in stock you can play with, or I can order any of the others and ship them to you.

Which one knife do you use the most or suggest. I have a good Wustof chef knife

I really like the Kiritsuki (6 & 8 inch) over a Chef's or Santuko.  I also have the Asian Cook's Knife which is similar to the Chef's, but not as much of a curve and the point angles down more like a Santuko.  I was never good with a Chef's knife since so little of it touches the board or cuts unless you have a really good rocking motion.  With a flatter blade you can use more of a linear slicing motion than a rocking.  I've always been jealous of how Jacques Pepin can chop parsley with a chef's knife--it's memorizing to watch.

Also, there's a little 4.5" Asian "multi prep" knife I really enjoy over a pairing knife.

Then I have the brisket slicing knife, the boning/filet knife, and the flexible filet knife.

Next time I order, I'll probably get some Nikiri's too......I've seen enough people mention them here, I should probably have them in stock.

BTW, all these are in the CLASSIC line.  I can get the Premier's if you want to pay the extra $$.

Just come down and you can take them all in the kitchen.  I've always got a bunch of apples, carrots, etc in there.  Play around and see which ones you like the best.  @Shawnodell83 that goes for you too!!

odie91 said:

Jpierce01 said:

I do a shun/cutco mix at my house. You only need certain knifes 



Just curious, Do your shuns hold an edge much better than the cutco?

MUCH BETTER.  Cutco's are stamped or laser cut blades.  Shun is 68 layers of Damascus steel that's hand forged. 

If you're just using the Shuns on meats, fruits, and vegetables on a good cutting board, they'll rarely ever need to be sharpened.  And when you do, it's free--you just pay the return shipping which is $5 for the first knife, then $2 for each additional.  

Not saying Cutco is junk or anything, but Shun is definitely a step above.  You just have to be more careful with the Shun--don't chop nuts, hack through bones, or use them on really fibrous veggies.  I kept a few Victorinox knives for that stuff.

EDIT:  Here's Shun info:  https://shun.kaiusaltd.com/technology

There is absolutely no reason to spend a lot of money on knives. (and I'm not planning any Kill Bill type uses).  I have picked up several great chef knives at thrift shops and spent 5 minutes sharpening them. For some, it's designer name obsession.  Mine cut just as well for pennies on the dollar.  As several said above its more about sharpening skills and handling skills.  

Don’t forget that the difference with high quality knives is often the materials used. My pricey knives hold their edges infinitely longer than those from the cheap knife block I have. They also take a much sharper edge. Personally, I feel that the return has been high on the money I’ve spent on my high end knives. I do not regret parting with that cash one bit. 

Botch said:

The other advantage to keeping only three knives is that you have don’t have to sharpen a whole set. 

BRA-A-A-AP!!  Wrong answer.
The fewer knives you have, the more they're used, and the more often they need sharpening, so your net # of sharpenings, for a given tonnage of produce, should remain the same (I've done statistics through several of my jobs over the years).
I have eleven or so knives, use them all, but just a few I use the most, they have had the most steeling/sharpening.  I do have at least 3 knives that I've yet to sharpen, but that I use occasionally.  
Hope that makes sense.  

Pretty sure he meant you only have to sharpen 3 knives rather than 20 knives. 

Komokaegger said:

I’m curious what some of you do to sharpen your knives? I have some older Henkles that need dealt with. I was thinking I’d take them to a local sharpening centre but would like to learn to do them myself. I have a large Japanese 4000 grit water stone that I can do a finish edge with but think I should get a 1000 grit stone for reconditioning the edge. The stone I have was for mainting my wood carving tools.
Are the electric sharpeners good to use on good blades?
I just threw out a couple of Henkles that I never liked and found the edge to chip easy....when I looked closer I realized it was made in China.

@Komokaegger I'd say the overall consensus here on the forum would be the Ken Onion Work Sharp. 

https://youtu.be/h8Yl_Z-oRkU

I think you can F up a knife with any sharpening system, it just happens a lot faster  with something motorized.

^^^ Good Idea, thanks.

Agree with @WeberWho on buying cheap dollar knives at Thrift store, and then use with a new powered sharpener.  That’s how I learned 30 years ago, and I screwed up a lot of blades before I got good at it.  Ended up building a few ”custom” knives after that, which I sold at Gun Shows.