Ya, that's the kind of boning knife I have, I got it at a place that sells stuff to butcher shop workers, etc. I might have bought my sharpening stone there to, I don't remember.

They do have the budget priced line, but I only use the Classic. It feels better in my hand. It has a full single piece tang.

Somewhere unnoticed they even have some of those serrated “never sharpen” ones too now

Thanks a lot Fins :). You just cost me $800.

I started with Henckels Four Star - I still use them and love them.

Then I discovered Messermeister - They are supposedly ex-Henckels guys. Their price and quality is about equal. I don't like the curve of the 8" chef as well as the Henckels.

Then my wife threw a Wusthof 8" chef into the mix. After using all of these a lot, I like the Wusthof the best.

Another one to think about is Berti. Their knifes are beautiful and not stupid expensive. They use some amazing materials for the handles. Next trip to Tuscany you guys need to visit the Berti factory in Scarparia. It's in the Mugello (the "Green Heart of Tuscany") There are several knife makers in this little city. I met Alvaro Berti when I was there - He's a third generation Berti.

Same here. I watch that show which is now Cooks Country and sister show America’s Test Kitchen.

If you like knives, take a look at this site. It’s a hometown guy that made big when special forces found his tomahawks. There’s no kitchen knives, but some cool tactical and utility stuff

[Link: winklerknives.com]

Ah the Bose of tactical knives!

Individuals in the military actually were picking Dan’s axes to carry when doing entries until someone complained that a tomahawk is a uncivilized weapon and banned their use.

That said, I’m not spending that much on a knife. But they are interesting because they are still individually hand made.

I own this. Have had it for years. Great knife. I wash it by hand. Cuts great. All my knives and cookware is predominately what has been tested and highly rated via cooksillustrated and everything has been great.

About month ago I ask a local Sushi Chef (maybe they have a special name?) what knifes he would buy for every day use. Of course, his first choice was some japanese $300 per knife deal, but then said he has Mercer and that would be what he suggest for more budget kitchens. I bought these about a month ago:

[Link: amazon.com]

While I cant give a long-use review, for now they are sharp as hell and easy to use. So far so go. And certainly priced right! Happy with the suggestion.

That's funny. I bought two knives and the second was a Mercer [Link: amazon.com]

One of the two will get the job done...hopefully.

We have some Shun classics that we have used for about 9 years with no issues. We have them hand sharpened every few months for a whopping $5 each by a pro shop and they are in nearly new condition. We use them daily and they are great. They have even survived the dishwasher a few times when guests were over for dinner and they thought they were "helping" by cleaning up afterwards and putting them in the dishwasher without us knowing until later. :/

I would imagine that a professional sushi chef might scoff at them, but I'm not a pro chef so why do I need to spend several thousand dollars for a set of knives?

I received the first knife today. The "Victorinox Fibrox Pro Chef's Knife, 7.5-Inch Chef's". I used it to make chicken breast sliders on pretzel rolls with hand cut french fries. The knife worked extremely well on the pretzel rolls, tomatoes, basil, raw and cooked chicken. The big surprise was the potatoes. The knife cut through them like butter. Its also nice having the blade go all the way through. That little blunt area at the back was a cutting board destroyer.

I have a couple of issues with the new knife. #1 is completely my fault for getting the 7.5" knife. Its smaller than the typical 8" and my knuckles come in contact with the cutting board. It was slightly annoying tonight while cutting 3 tomatoes, and a couple of pieces of basil. With big dinners it would drive me crazy.

Another thing i have gotten used to with the old knife is this thin little pinch area that made the knife easy to hold and use. The new knife doesn't have it. Its not a common feature i guess but it sure was nice. See photo below.









So both issues aren't really problems with the knife. It will be interesting to see how long the new knife stays sharp. Out of the box it was razor sharp.

"Uncivilized" What did they call it when the Taliban and ISIS strapped bombs on little kids and made them go to US troops for candy?

The “pinch area” is NOT on the handle. Your thumb and forefinger are on the blade, not the handle.