Forschner Knives Purchase - A couple questions


 
Teddy J.

Teddy J.

TVWBB Pro
So I'm finally getting around to purchasing a few knives for my smoking/grilling/etc needs. I was looking for a few that will do most of the basic jobs; trim uncooked/cooked ribs, trim and slice butts/briskets, chop my misc veggies, and the other basic needs. After researching all the old posts on the topic, this is what I've come up with.

1) 8" Chef - Fibrox
2) 6" Curved Boning Knife (Flexible) - Fibrox
3) 14" Slicer w/ Hollow Edge - Fibrox
4) 10" Sharpening Steel - Fibrox

I figure this will get me started. Any thoughts on any real important others that you would recommend buying on the first go-around? I'm thinking about the 7" Santoku as well? Seemed like a lot of people praised it when sifting through the previous topics.

Pretty much I'm starting my knife selection from scratch, so I'm open to any suggestions.

Once again I thank Chris and all you guys for providing such a great resource for us.
 
Though I am not a Forschner fan many here like their products very much. Sticking with them, though, since that seems to be you direction, I'd suggest switching the boning to a stiff or semi-flex, and the steel to a diamond oval. My two cents.
 
Originally posted by Mitch Josey:
I'm thinking about the 7" Santoku as well? Seemed like a lot of people praised it when sifting through the previous topics.
Click to expand...

Mitch, I'll suggest a Santoku for you. I've had this one for over 3 years now and still love it as much if not more than the first time I used it. I can't give this knife enough praise. I have several @ 3 X the cost of this, and still, this is my go to knife. I have 2 Forschner knives, the 14" granton slicer, and a 12" granton cimeter, love both knives, and they are a good value IMO. Link to the Santoku for you. I buy many things from Cutlery and More. Good prices, free, very fast shipping. A great Co. to deal with. HTH
 
Originally posted by K Kruger:
Though I am not a Forschner fan many here like their products very much. Sticking with them, though, since that seems to be you direction, I'd suggest switching the boning to a stiff or semi-flex, and the steel to a diamond oval. My two cents.
Click to expand...

I was curious about whether the 'flexible' would be too flexible or not. Seems like semi-stiff may be the way to go?

Also - can you give me some insight between the different types of sharpening steel? What is the major factor to get the diamond?
 
take a look at cooks illustrated online before making your purchase. if your not a member you cna join for a free 14 day trial ( I love it)

they are quite fond of Forschner knifes as best buys for many of them.

I have been a loyal Wustof fan but i have bought several forschners, a filet knife and recently a slicer
 
Mitch-- For barbecue and working with most meats I think a stiff or semi-flex would be most appropriate. I use a stiff much more than any other boning when working with meat or poultry.

Smooth steels are for realigning the edge. Other, textured or diamond steels are for light sharpening. Were I buying a sharpening steel for Forshners I would buy a diamond oval. The shape is better, imo, and the diamond is more sutiable to the softer metal Forschner uses. It needs to be used with a light touch.
 
What finally pushed me to try the Forschner was the value. They tend to go for less than half what I would be buying the equivilent Wustof for(or in the case of the boning knife more like 25%. The Forschner 40513 is the one that won the Cooksillustrated test back in 2002 (the last tim they appear to have visited it. It is a medium stiff knife with some flexibility and has served me well.

It does have a "cheaper" feel for it than the Wustofs. I only have two and havent had them long the boning knife 3 months and the slicer 2 weeks. So I havent used them extensively.
 
Thanks for the info.

Went ahead and switched to the semi-flex boning and to the diamond steel.

Knives should be here Thursday, can't wait to finally have something sharp.
 
Mitch,

Please come back and give us a review of your new knife set and sharpener!

I am in the exact same position, have taken careful notes and will probably pull hte trigger before Xmas if you like all that you got.

Jeff
 
Jeff - will do sir.

A good friend of mine has a nice set of Henckels, and is eager to see how these perform in comparison.
 
I have "at home" knives and my "traveling/BBQ" knives... The Forschners are my pick for the BBQ knives. You can't beat them for value vs price.

If you do plan on traveling with them you might want to switch to the 12" slicer... hard to find a knife roll that the 14" will fit in.
 
Knives arrived a couple days ago - a few pictures below for reference of other users.

Preliminary thoughts:
- Very light knives
- Nonslip handle is great, nice texture to it
- Wow, is this what a sharp knife is like?
- The semi-stiff boning is much stiffer than I anticipated

IMG_1581a.jpg

- From top to bottom: 10" diamond steel, 8" chef, 6" curved semi-flex boning, 14" slicer w/ hollow edge, 10" serrated/bread, 7" fillet, 3 pairing.

IMG_1591a.jpg

- Here is a close up of the construction by the handle

IMG_1592a.jpg

- Texture of the nonslip handles

So far for with basic tasks the knives feel great in the hands. If you tend to like the feel of heavier knives, these are not for you.

In the midst of a brisket cook now, will see how the 14" slicer does its task.
 
I think you'll find the semi-stiff more useful for boning poultry and meats, which is why I recommended it. It's also good when making trimming in smaller areas (like removing fell) where a paring is unnecessarily small. It works well for smaller fishes also. I like flexibles for larger fish--like whole tuna, dolphin and shark. Very handy there.

How did you like the slicer and the others so far?
 
Kevin:

Agree with you on the semi-flex.

The slicer is great, meets the expectation I had based on what I read by Bryan S and Wolfe. I think it will take a few uses before being real comfortable with such a long knife. And I'll say that just because you have a sharp slicer, it's not that easy to get those paper thin slices that you guys post on here!

I also love how the chef's knife is tapered real thin at the end. I assume this is standard on chef knives, but something I never noticed before until now.

Overall I'm very satisfied so far, and looking forward to getting more use with them. Having a decent set of knives really does make cooking that much more of a pleasure.
 
Good question. The reason I am not fond of Forschner blades is because of the fairly soft steel blend they use. (I am very hard on knives and prefer the thin-but-stiff forged blades of many Japanese makers.) Much depends on a few variables: how often you use the knives and in what fashion; the level and type of sharpness you prefer; how you store them; your skill at varying your touch with a steel; whether you have a smooth steel at hand, and how and when you use it.

For the slicer, e.g. (if you are only using it for slicing), the blade should hold up fairly well for a while. (If you have a smooth steel some occasional light steeling is in order but don't sweat it if you don't.) For the blades that contact the cutting board firmly (like chefs knives or santokus), or blades that contact bone (like boning, butcher, fillet, and possibly paring), maintaining or returning the edge is a more frequent endeavor.

Though a diamond steel will remove metal, as you'd expect, a light touch with the steel, more frequently perhaps, imo, is the better route to go, rather than a heavier touch less often. This does not (necessarily) mean that you need to steel during a cutting task--or even before each task. While the knives are new (and if you like their current sharpness level) get used to the feel of their sharpness. Test the sharpness with your thumb now and each time you use a knife, just before use. Spend a litle time feeling. Don't think about it too much intellectually. Your body will get used to the feel quickly and you will be able to tell, with subsequent tests, when an edge feels off. Slightly firmer steeling will be required at that point. Periodically, depending on amount of use and type/level of use, you might need actually sharpen them with a sharpener (or have them done if you don't have one), but you can extend this time of this requirement by maintaining your edge as long as possible via light but somewhat more frequent steeling with your diamond.

Make sense?

I am glad you are enjoying your new knives. Nothing makes prepping more enjoyable than knives you like using.
 
Originally posted by Mitch Josey:
The slicer is great, meets the expectation I had based on what I read by Bryan S and Wolfe. I think it will take a few uses before being real comfortable with such a long knife. And I'll say that just because you have a sharp slicer, it's not that easy to get those paper thin slices that you guys post on here!
Click to expand...
Mitch, The best thing I can tell you is to let the knife do the work. A sharp knife requires very little down force to cut through the meat. Use long strokes and you'll get the hang of it quick. HTH
 
Thanks, Kevin .. Good read. Can you explain how to properly use the different steels?

Thanks,

Bill
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

 

Back
Top