How about a knife thread?


 

Jose Suro

TVWBB All-Star
Hi All,

I think of all knives as tools. Not only that, besides fire, cutting edges are second in my book as to what got us to where we are today as the human race. As we all know some tools are not only better than others, but some are just beautiful to look at and a joy to work with. Be it a kitchen knife or a pocket knife, they all have value as useful tools. So, how about a knife picture thread and your own personal rating. This would help all of us make better decisions on what our next tool (knife) should be.

I'll start. The image below is a Tojiro DP Garisuke 170mm Japanese boning knife. The more traditional Japanese boning knife is 160mm and it is called a Honesuki. I went for the larger one because I do large birds (turkeys). It has a 70/30 grind so it is right handed, but I'm left handed and can use it without any issues.

This was the first Japanese kitchen knife I ever bought and it was a Wow moment for me. Most European boning knives have a thin flexible blade. On the other hand this knife has a thick blade and it is stout. It goes through bones and joints like butter. It is my goto knife for chicken and turkey. This is the knife that changed my western mind to Japanese knives. It has a wicked edge, it is stainless, and at around $100 at Chefknivestogo.com it is a steal for the quality of the knife I got. Sharpening is easy and the wicked edge returns easily without any issues.

Let's see yours and your reviews, and include pocket knives too. Why? I once went to a Christmas party and the family had cooked a ham. They asked me to carve it for them and when they gave me the knife I couldn't believe it. A 2x4 would have a better cutting edge. So, I went to my camera bag and pulled out my Spyderco Cat with only a 2.5 inch blade, but shaving sharp. I carved the whole ham with that pocket knife and it was perfect :).

My Garisuke:

i-9JL5Vvr-XL.jpg


Let's see yours :).

Best,

Jose
 
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I have a bunch of expensive knives but I always end up using these KIWI knives and they are ridiculously inexpensive!!!

http://wokshop.stores.yahoo.net/inshkiknfrth.html

Letter D is my go to knife, Haven't seen or tried the letter E knife. I sharpen them I just hit them with a little V shaped ceramic sharpener
I have and they are razor sharp again. They are so cheap I usually replace them every year or so. I say give them a try, I'll bet you will be surprised how well they work, especially for slicing things very thin and if you don't like them you are only out a few $$$
 
Don't have any special high end knifes just middle of the road stuff I keep them as sharp as possible. I will be watching this thread to see what folks have to say as I would like to get a few better knifes than what I have.
 
I also don't have really high end knives,but I do keep them sharp! I have a set of Chicago Cutlery knives. They take and hold an edge really well. And,when I had an issue with one of them, they sent me another,no questions asked! Great customer service.
For a pocket knife,I carried any cheap ones over the years. Not sure how I ket from cutting the dog snot out of myself! Dull,and impossible to put an edge on! Pammi got me a Shrade Old Timer and it was awesome! I was heart broken when I lost it! I replaced it with a Case SS lock back. What a great knife! Takes and keeps an awesome edge! I use it all the time at work when my utility knife isn't handy.
 
I've been looking to get a Victorinox Swiss Army Fibrox 8" Chefs knife. It has great reviews for around $40.
 
Tojiros are excellent value. My daily drivers. Well worth the money. But I have a couple of Masakage Zeros for special occasion use. IOW, wife and kids DO NOT touch them! LOL For anyone thinking the knives don't matter, go to a kitchen shop and try some high end knives. You will change your mind.
 
Nice thread Jose! Some people just don't understand how important a good cutlery set is to the hobby of throw down. You don't need to spend a fortune on knives. You just need to know what you are using them for. Most important to me is the type of material,degree of bevel, and if I can sharpen them. I've always like VG-10 and Damascus style for cutlery because you can put some serious anger into the blade. I'm super fortunate to be in the "kitchen" industry and have clients who have bought me some serious cutlery that wouldn't be obtainable by me. My work force and everyday set is the Kershaw shun classic set. The 8inch Ken Onion being my go to.
 
Buy once - cry once like Dad used to say. A good knife will be your friend for life. I HATE replacing crappy tools with crappy tools. YMMV
 
I currently have Wusthoff Classic knives that i got on sale from Sierra Trading post. These are my first decent knives and they do a nice job but i really want set of Kershaw Shun knives.....
 
Tojiros are excellent value. My daily drivers. Well worth the money. But I have a couple of Masakage Zeros for special occasion use. IOW, wife and kids DO NOT touch them! LOL For anyone thinking the knives don't matter, go to a kitchen shop and try some high end knives. You will change your mind.

Agreed!! Tojiros are an excellent value for the money. My wife likes Santokus and when her cheap one finally gave out I got her a Tojiro DP in VG-10 steel. Wicked sharp. An excellent knife for the money:


http://www.chefknivestogo.com/todpsakn17.html
 
I think I'll enjoy this thread----

My knives are all pretty much lower end, and one of my favorites was bought on the way to a picnic @ an amusement park campground when I realized I didn't have anything to cut the watermelon with...a ~10" chef's knife. I have an 8" santokou that's right up there too. I only recently picked up a steel (ceramic) to sharpen them... It does a pretty good job but...

I seem to admire the hammered multi layer Japanese knives, one day when I have a little extra money I'll get one.
 
This set is not "fancy" but it keeps an edge like nobody's business. I dropped my filet knife overboard while fishing Shasta Lake, and the marina down by the dam had decent filet knives and then they had this for $10 more (I paid $40 for this back in the mid 80's) I'm missing one blade, it will probably show up someday. This is the Kershaw "Blade-Trader."

923C0121-DEEC-4063-B002-5819F517F4FB_zpsb80dksfr.jpg

1CC1DBD0-E47B-41B1-8770-F905022EDC93_zpsevj3xvkl.jpg


I've cleaned more fish, deer and wild pigs with this set, than my all my hunting knives combined (including my Buck's and my Colt's)
 
After my kids left the nest, the first thing I did was buy upscale pots and pans and knives! (I gave the kids my old sets)
After 18 years or so, I'm still working with my Wusthoff 8 piece set as well as my JA Henckels pro set of 6. Through the years, I have added different sizes of Santoku style knives from Wusthoff, and they are pretty much my go-to knives, and still loving them after all these years.
I'm still using the good pots and pans sets too! Funny, how everything lasts after the kids leave home! :)
 
Pots... there's another thread!! :) We are giving the old ones to the kids for college and FINALLY getting decent/better stuff! :)
 
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Talking to my brother today about Nakiri knives that I've been wanting to buy for he owns a lot of Japanese knives. The Nakiris look like mini hatchets but have a very thin blade and made strictly for vegetable preps. And so, he led me by the hand to a Japanese Ebay website. I bought the Tanaka Nakiri while I was still on the phone! The price? $99 with expedited shipping. It goes for $144.00 here in the U.S. It's VG-10 stainless and Damascus stainless clad as well. This year he gave me a $300 Tanaka Santoku knife as a birthday present and it is the sharpest knife I own. Incredible edge. I'm stoked about the Nakiri:).

Here's a pic and the Ebay store link below. Don't know how long the links will be up.:

187039690_o.jpg


http://www.ebay.com/itm/Tanaka-knife-Japanese-Damascus-Nakiri-Knife-165mm-WA-HOUCHOU-/261421467623?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3cddef07e7

Best,

Jose
 
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