New Knives

[NeilI]

We currently have a set of Sabatier knives, but as I will probably be moving out of my parantal abode I shall need to get a set of my own.

I was thinking about a similiar set of Sabatiers. They have a nice weighting and feel well balanced. But I would really like a set of Wusthofs. Either the classic or Grand Prix range.

I don't really like the look of Globals but if they are the best I'd maybe get some.

Can anyone provide a bit of guidance as it will probably be an expensive purchase. Alternatives will be welcomed too.

Cheers.

[Flibb]

My old sset of cheap arse knives have been on the way out for a while, so in the new year sales did some hunting about. The best knives I found were the Globals, but to get the ones i wanted would cost a fortune, also more regular touching up with a steel is required. Another problem I found was the shape of some of the handles, they didnt suit the way I hold or cut. I had a look at the various sabatier knives and did some research, apparently the name is used by various makers, not just one sabatier company. Anyway after searching around I picked up a set of these
http://www.kitchenmate.co.uk/itmidx4.htm
cost was £60, the bread knife is complete arse due to being too heavy and agressive, but the rest are ace and have kept an edge very well in the past month. Only reason I got a set was that it was cheaper than indevidual knives. The best way to do it is get indevidual knives, then you only get what you want, you can also mix makes. I will get a couple of Global knives at some point along with a ceramic sharpener. At the moment I use a steel for retouching, but I can also have a set of stones for a proper recut. I also butcher some of my own meat mainly game but has included deer. My pet hate is blunt knives, which for some reason both my mother and mother in law seem to delight in using.
Flibb

[Angus]

Problem with sabatier is that anyone that can buy the moulds can make them.

I've heard that victorianox (the pocket knife people) make a fair set of knives; but don't have any personal experience.

[Nick]

For a good very good value set of knives you might want to try Swibo. I personally can't stand Sabatier, to get a decent set you got to look for so many things... the name has been licensed so much that the quality can vary enormously. Victorinox do very reasonable knives at pretty good prices. Their rosewood handled range are very nice to use, but a tad light for me. Wustoffs are brilliant knives, been using those for a while, very expensive though. I'm not a fan of Global. I find the 'ergonomic' handle to be useless for me, they require a ceramic steel (VERY expensive) to keep a decent edge and the knife itself is too brittle. Yeah, ok, so you can always send off for a free replacement under the lifetime guarantee, but that's no good when you watn to cut something up.

Your best bet is to find a catering supplier near you and go along and have a look. They'll either be cheaper than the high street for equivalent knives, or you could spend the same as you would on the high street, but get a better knife. Go along and have a try, see what feels comfortable for you. The old adage applies here though; you get what you pay for.

Quality points to look for are a one piece metal construction, where the blade and the handle are all the same piece, not a decent grade steel blade braised onto a lower grade handle. Try and get a knife without a 'tang'. This is the wedge shaped bit of metal at the handle end of the knife blade. As you use and sharpen the knife, the blade will wear away and after a while, if the knife has a tang, you'll end up with a hollow in the blade and you won't be able to chop stuff properly. This can be rectified by getting the knife reground, but it's a pain. A tang can also be a sign of a softer steel being used as it helps stiffen the blade. A knife made with a softer steel will need sharpening more often and is likely to corrode easier.

Lastly, make sure that any grip fitted to the handle is riveted on with steel rivets. Avoid molded palstic handles except for Swibo knives (I've never had the handle fall of one of those).

As to what knives you need... that's really down to you and how you use your knives, but I would say you'd want a 10" cooks knife, a 6" cooks knife, a paring knife, a scallope edged or serrated carving knife, an 8" filleting knife, a medium grade steel and a peeler. With that little lot you can tackle pretty much any job going.

Hope this helps!

[NeilI]

Nice one guys.

I was unaware of the Sabatier licensing.

I shall get off to a catering supplier at some point. Went to a 'speciality cooking shop' in Aberdeen to have a feel for the knives at the weekend. The Wusthofs feel very nice, as do the Swibos. Globals feel a bit 'unbalanced'. I didn't feel properly in control if you know what I mean. And the shops prices raised and eyebrow.

Thanks again.

[Flibb]

I was in the local cutlery specialist having a chat the other day. The only sabatier they will sell is the stellar range, mainly due to the lifetime warrenty but also they are hot forged from one bit of steel. If you know anybody working in a department store ask them if they get discount, I priced up from various places and a the 25% discount a friend got made the department store cheapest. If i had the room would dump the knife block and get a manetic rack, easier to have your fav knives at hand, easier to mix and match as well. Dont forget to get a sharpening steel if you havent got one, catering suppliers are great for these, or if you use a butcher ask if he can get you one, longer the better.
Flibb

[grand_witch]

I have a set of Sabatier Knives and swear by them. My prize possesion is my set of Sabatier cleavers which are a joy to use.

(I cannot remember the editon but they have light grey handles)

Although when I use them the girlfriend tends to go pale and leave the room.

[funnelhead]

whats the general opinion on knives from that sheffield knife maker....is it richardson?? they make regular knives and knives that have a titanium edge that they claim doesnt go blunt...anyone tried one of these?

F

[funnelhead]

Sorry to bump this up but my tesco's ( sorry decks) has a richardson chefs knife on offer for £8 rather than £16. I know that it's nothing compared to the above brands but i need a starting place while i'm brassic. Has anyone used / heard about someone else using richardson knives? Lol i mean they are made in sheffield, i'm trying to be patriotic here!

cheers

F

[Nick]

Funnel, sorry mate, didn't see your question, so bumpage was a good idea.

Richardson is not a particularly brilliant knife, and I stress this bit, IN MY OPINION... sorry about the caps, but I don't want a flaming from people who love 'em...

That said, for a cheap set to get you going, I'd have a serious look at them. I've said further up the thread what I reckon you'd need as a basic set, so if the set in Tescos pretty much covers that then for £8 its worth a shot.

What you really DO want to avoid is knives that are chromed or plated... as you sharpen them bits of the plating will flake off... the knife will rust and you'll eat little flakes of metal.. not nice. You tend to find this only on those really really cheap knives though.

Beware anything with a serrated edge too. There was a spate of 'Stay sharp' knives that could never be blunted a while back. The problem with them was that they had a really coarse serrated edge on every knife... sure they'd keep and edge and you could cut a tin can in half but they were useless for actually carving anything other than a tough old lump of overcooked beef... or a tin can. They were essentially a knife shaped hacksaw.. avoid!

[Flibb]

Just a quick note, thers ment to be fake global knives doing the rounds on ebay, yep they will copy anything. I havent tried Richardson, mainly due to the lack of good cutlery shops around here. I will be up in Sheffield soon, hopefully some good shops there. Am looking at getting a filleting knife soon, so will havea crash around on the net.
Flibb

[scottyman]

I'm a real fan of global - just a pleasure to work with, but then I've got enormous hands, so regardless of which knife I've used, they all feel like kiddie toys to me!
My cousin was bought some Wustoffs, but lost interest and went to global about 3-4 years ago and hasn't looked back (he's the sous chef at NZ's last remaining silver service resturant)

[megah0]

I bought my knife set from Cash Converters in stourbridge, and they are fantastic, ok a pro would probably turn his nose up but for what i use them for they are great. They are sheffield made but i can't remember the name. I got a 10" Cooks knife, an awesome bread knife which goes through a loaf like a chainsaw, a filleting knife, boning knife, 6" cooks knife, Paring knife, pallette knife and a decent size steel in a canvas all for £18

[ChasW]

Hello all

Sorry to ask a dumb question but......

How do you use a sharpening steel Other than waving the knife up and down it). I have heard that if you are not careful you can ruin good knives with a steel. Currently I use one of those Kitchen Devil sharpeners. I works but not as well as I would like.

[Nick]

Hmm k.

There's good news and bad new here.

Good news is, it's actually pretty hard to ruin a knife using a steel as long as you use a bit of common sense.

What you want to do is to hold the steel vertically with the tip on something non-slip like a damp cloth or chopping board.

Place the knife against the steel at an angle somewhere between 25-35 degrees, then using gentle pressure to press the blade against the steel draw the knife towards you while also running it down the steel to the board/cloth.

Do this on one side, then on the other... repeat 3 or four times making sure you alternate between sides and do each side the same number of times.

Now check how sharp the blade is, either by VERY CAREFULLY stroking your thumb ACROSS the blade or by seeing how easily it will cut a tomato (it should slice it almost with no pressure, just from the weight of the blade)

If you find this isn't sharpening the knife try using more pressure against the steel.

Once you're happy, all you need to do to keep the knife sharp is run it on the steel a couple of times before use.

Now, never let anyone else sharpen the knife. What happens is that when you first do it, you set the angle of the blade to how you hold it to sharpen the knife. If someone else comes along and has a go, they will hold it differently (right and left handers are the obvious ones here) and that re-sets the blade angle. When you next rty to sharpen the knife, you change the angle again and before you know it you've essentially rounded off the blade and the knife will need to be re-ground.

You know I mentioned good and bad news?

The bad news is that those kitchen devil knife grinders are pretty much cack and once you've run a knife through them it's buggered. Best thing is to find a good knife grinder, get the kinves re-ground if they're worth it... if not, go get some new ones.