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Steve Yun posted:http://www.ebay.com/itm/Professiona...509314849392172 I have something like this, and while it works it has problems. Most notably the notches on the adjusting rod are WAY off: what the manual says is 20 degrees is in fact 38 degrees, leading to a 76-degree inclusive angle on your knife. That's like cutting something with the corner of a building. You need to use a protractor to actually get the angle you want, and you can't do really acute angles like under 17 or so because of the way it's built.
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Jul 4, 2013 16:58
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Fo3 posted:Suprising to read the angle marks are way off, I thought that was just an issue with the cheap chinense ebay ones. I just used an app on my phone.
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Jul 11, 2013 03:14
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Fo3 posted:Just for comparison does your phone app say about the same? Does it read 18deg to be about midway between the green and red markers? I set mine for 20 degrees, which about halfway between the lowest and second-lowest notch. My chinese knockoff didn't offer the luxury option of color coding. deimos posted:Accelerometers are innacurate as poo poo: What that article says is that they're useless as a level, since they need to be calibrated. Once I calibrate to the base and set that as zero - whether it's truly level or not - my phone very accurately tell me the difference in degrees between base and arm. So, perfectly useful for this purpose.
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Jul 11, 2013 21:49
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I'm getting to the point that I'm ready to tell people to get just about whatever knife - as long as you learn to sharpen. I just bought an acquaintance's used Wusthof Classic 9 inch for 25 bucks after they bought a pricy new set of Shuns. They're now raving about how much better the Shuns are than the Wusthofs - and they're right in the sense that the Wusthof I got couldn't cut butter. I fixed that in 15 minutes, but they opted for the $300 replacement strategy. At least I got a quality knife out of the situation for peanuts.
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Sep 28, 2013 18:39
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GrAviTy84 posted:you can get almost anything "sharp". The thing that changes is how sharp and how long it holds that edge. Shuns are stupid overpriced though so this is a bad example, and they probably bought significantly more knives than they actually need. Oh, I agree - I'm not seriously advocating people use honed-down tin cans instead of good steel. I just keep meeting people who buy decent, overpriced knives (like Shuns and Wusthofs), then keep them in a drawer and cut on ceramic plates or glass cutting board, complain when their knife becomes unusable, and move on to the next brand.
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Sep 28, 2013 20:27
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I think a lot of the German vs Japanese kitchen knives is becoming subject to internet hyperbole. I'm fine with people preferring one to the other, but it seems it seems that hivemind thinking is going towards "Japanese or bust" and not really sticking to the facts while getting there. One thing that gets overblown is knife hardness. Yes, german knives are softer (usually Rc 57-58 or thereabouts). No, that's not exactly a buttery consistency. It's within the normal range you'd find in high-end pocketknives for instance. Contrast to Japanese knives, where Rc 60-62 is more common. Yes, that's harder. But it's not exactly a difference of night and day either. Sharpening angle is another difference. German knives have more obtuse angles (typically 20 degrees exclusive, though some newer lines go as low as 16 per side). Japanese double bevels are normally at 15 degrees, sometimes even lower. That's a sharper knife. But a well-sharpened and refined 20 degree edge is enough to shave with, drop and halve tomatoes on, etc, etc. There are a few pertinent criticisms of Ze Germans: they're somewhat overpriced, their spines should be rounded, and the bolsters will cause you eventual problems with sharpening. The first can be circumvented by looking for deals, the second by 5 minutes and some sandpaper, and the third is not exactly a problem a normal user needs to worry about for years to come. I'm not saying Wusthofs and Zwillings and such are better than Tojiros and Shuns - but I don't think they're necessarily worse either. I have Wusthofs and Tojiros, and I end up using my wusthofs more because I like the heft, and being able to bang them around in the knowledge I can get a screaming edge back on them in 5 minutes. Others may like a lighter knife that's a little harder to sharpen. But ultimately, being able to sharpen your knives well may be more important than what knife you're starting with.
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Dec 11, 2013 00:15
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GrAviTy84 posted:German knives are typically closer to 50-54 HRC. Any source for this? I haven't found anything that reports anything for the major German brands under 56. Frustratingly, I've not found any great source that compares common chef's knives systematically, but this link at least offers some overview: http://www.tormek.com/forum/index.php?topic=1768.0 In any case, the idea that "they can't hold a usable edge" is flat out not true. I do still agree with the Tojiro as a default recommendation for someone looking to buy a good, well-priced first kitchen knife; I just don't think it's a real upgrade if you have a decent German already. Thoht posted:Over time, as you sharpen the knife the bolster will start to bulge out compared to the rest of the edge because it's not getting ground down like the rest of it (assuming you aren't in fact grinding down the bolster as well which would be kind of a pain in the rear end). The extra height there will make it so there's a gap between the rest of the edge and the surface you're cutting on, so your knife won't cut all the way through what you're cutting. Not using a pull-through, electric, or similarly super-aggressive sharpener will really alleviate that problem though. It's a problem I learned about on the internet, while I've been using and sharpening my bolstered knife regularly for over a decade without encountering the issue. ma i married a tuna fucked around with this message at 03:03 on Dec 11, 2013 |
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Dec 11, 2013 02:59
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No Wave posted:If you want a lighter knife with a thinner profile that holds an edge better, it is... if not, I guess not? Absolutely, but then we're getting into personal preference territory, and there's no arguing that.
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Dec 11, 2013 16:34
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mindphlux posted:edit : to be fair, who tries to split a tortilla chip in twine in midair with an expensive knife? The whole point of an elite kitchen knife is that you do all your cutting in midair. You justify the expense of the knife by saving on cutting boards.
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Aug 29, 2014 15:45
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americong posted:It would be interesting, albeit expensive and intensely not worth it, to use knives acually made primarily from modern materials like titanium or carbide. I'd love to wreck some onions with the power of science. On the other hand, high quality stainless steels are very much modern materials that behave very differently from stuff from decades past. It might not have that space-age ring to it, but a fairly common kitchen steel like VG-10 is really quite modern.
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Sep 11, 2014 14:31
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RedChops posted:A couple years ago I bought a set of Chicago Cutlery knives, mostly because they looked nice. I later found that they don't really hold their edge well. It's the best value you can get in a knife. It's not the best knife you can get, not by a long shot, but it's a better knife for the money than just about anything else. If you want something better/ prettier, the Tojiro DPs are the go-to recommendation. Even that, I think, you shouldn't do before learning how to sharpen.
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Sep 13, 2014 05:03
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Chef De Cuisinart posted:That's the one I ordered, took it to my kiritsuke that needed serious thinning after I chipped it a few months ago, it's about 1/8in shorter now, but cuts like butter. I definitely recommend this thing, although I may order some Shapton glass pro stones, I'd really like a 15k mirror polished edge. This thing came with a 120, 320, 600, and 1500. Before you buy, remember that there's not one universal system for stone grit. If you want to get a stupid sharp edge on the cheap, an old belt and polishing paste is a good buy.
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Oct 22, 2014 19:54
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Gozinbulx posted:Hey guys. I'm getting married soon and totally wanna get some kick rear end knives. I've pretty much written off any European knives due to this thread and others. Well - first off, you have a very good knife and if you replace it, you'll end up with the same problem soon. Doesn't mean you can't put knives on your registry of course. There's a nice Tojiro DP Santoku (I have one and my wife loves it) and it's hard to mess up buying some paring knives. I think a 4-5 inch serrated utility knife can also be very useful (sometimes called 'tomato knife') but as this thread has pointed out a thousand times, the three knives you need are chef, paring, and bread. I'm not really clear on why you want carbon. I mean, it's fine, but to my mind the disadvantages outweigh the advantages. Will it make a huge difference to you in the kitchen? Not really. I mean, carbon can (doesn't always) have a better balance between hardness and toughness, but the fact that it's vulnerable to both moisture and acid are pretty major in my mind. You won't see a functional improvement over a good knife like a Tojiro, is what I'm saying. If you're really curious, maybe buy an Opinel, like this one? http://www.amazon.com/Opinel-No8-Carbon-Pocket-Knife/dp/B002SCUO04/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1414103112&sr=8-1&keywords=opinel+carbone Notice that Opinel makes a lot of kitchen knives too, but that those are all stainless! For sharpening, I think sharpeners based on the Edge Pro model are the easiest to get consistent results with without requiring a ton of skill. http://www.amazon.com/AGPtek%C2%AE-...2FH9V3N35ZZJ29J Just make sure you set the angle yourself - often the preset angles are totally off. Somewhere between 20 and 16 degrees is good for most regular double-beveled kitchen knives.
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Oct 23, 2014 23:28
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Yeah, once you get into the materials science side of it, it quickly becomes confusing unless you're REALLY invested. There's not a single best steel, since so many factors come into play. There are literally dozens of viable knife steels, which, if they get the right heat treat and are shaped and ground correctly, can all do comparable jobs. That's not to say there are no differences, but it does make most blanket statements wildly inaccurate - except that the major, defining difference between stainless and carbon steel is susceptibility to oxidation. Moisture and acid hasten oxidation, and they're common in the kitchen. It's easier and cheaper to make a carbon steel that's very hard while retaining toughness - which, as pointed out, is the opposite of brittleness - but neither carbon nor stainless escape the general rule that hardness correlates with brittleness. It's the balance between the two that makes a great knife material, and it's as dependent on the material as it is on the heat treat. TL:DR: get one of the knives that's recommended over and over in this thread because they are good knives.
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Oct 24, 2014 04:06
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Gozinbulx posted:So it seems like the build and quality of the Edge Faux's is good enough, but are the stones up to snuff? I read some reviews saying the machine works well but to get the actual EdgePro stones. I haven't done the comparison, but I've used mine for at least 100 sharpenings and I can get shaving edges every time. Maybe the proper stones are better, but the ones that come with it work.
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Oct 24, 2014 22:08
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GobiasIndustries posted:My parents sent me a care package for my first apartment, and my dad tossed in a 3-pack of knives. What are these things used for (are they all paring knives), and are they quality? They are all paring knives, and the shapes are largely gimmick. The first shape looks a little like a wharncliffe, the second a clip point, and the third a hawkbill. The first is usually used for working knives where you want to be careful not to stab yourself in the hand doing slippery jobs, the second is popular in hunting knives and leaves a sharp but somewhat fragile tip, and the third is usually for cutting swaths of fibrous material - like a sickle. Most paring knives use the more versatile spear point shape. They're all usuable, and you'll probably find the second most useful. They're Wusthof, which is a big brand, but this is from a cheap stamped line. They should work as well as most other cheap paring knives. So, totally useable, but not a secret treasure.
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Oct 26, 2014 00:36
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Sounds like you should just get another Victorinox, and you can get those anywhere.
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Nov 2, 2014 05:59
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BraveUlysses posted:I got one of these things for christmas too! I have the same question as you, I need to sharpen my Wusthof Classic 8" and Victorinox 8", which angle should I use? 18 to 20 is about right - but be careful, the factory marks for angles on the sharpener might be way off. They were on mine, by like 10 degrees. Measure the angle yourself when you set it.
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Jan 8, 2015 05:25
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Flash Gordon Ramsay posted:Yeah that one and third knife down, whatever the hell that is, wouldn't get much use in my house but all the others would see time. I actually have 4 of those because they're so useful. Not as a paring or prep knife, really, but for sandwiches they're perfect - good at bread, tomatoes, and spreading, and anything else you can think of for a sandwich. Also an excellent fruit knife for stuff like mangoes, and an excellent if not very nice looking steak knife too. While they're not as essential as a good chef or paring knife, they're really good, versatile and dirt cheap no-maintenance knives. I'll bet you a shiny quarter that if you gift one to a friend or relative who doesn't give a poo poo about kitchen knives, it'll become their favorite knife in a heartbeat.
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Jun 28, 2015 21:03
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sellouts posted:I got the edge pro knockoff - my knife are definitely sharper but not crazy sharp or anything. They may just suck...should I definitely be using all 4 stones to sharpen? Did you set the angles right? The indicated angles on mine were off by a ridiculously large margin (what it called 20 was actually 35). For the rest, you make sure that with finer stones you also finish with less pressure, and scrub out the built-up metal filing. That should get you to a rough shaving edge at least. After that, stropping is the quickest way to improve your edge further.
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Aug 17, 2015 18:49
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rockcity posted:How about the 7" Tojiro santoku? A little bit smaller than most chef's knifes, but still have some height to the blade. I bought this expressly for my wife, who does not like the big heavy 9" chef knife I prefer. She loves it. 6 or 7 inch Santokus in my experience are great for people who for whatever reason feel uncomfortable with a full-size knife and would resort to a parer if left to their own devices.
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Sep 15, 2015 17:37
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ThirstyBuck posted:Anything worthwhile here? That's a lot of noise for trying to reinvent the wheel. That knife might be OK, but even if it is, it's nothing special. It's already totally possible to buy a decent to good chef knife in that price range - incidentally with much better steel (VG10 vs AUS8).
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Sep 27, 2015 14:17
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Fo3 posted:
That's 95% of the problem I think. I cook daily with a bolstered knife and in 8 years of use and sharpening like every other month I've not had this problem.
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Nov 11, 2015 00:52
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The Midniter posted:Does anyone have the link to the most popular/best Edge Pro knockoff? The real deal is hell of expensive. this is what I have had for three years or so, and I can put shaving edges on anything with it. Mine came with angle setting markings that were WAY off, so measure to set it. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Professiona...IYAAOSwDNdVyb~v
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Feb 12, 2016 21:44
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