Korpulentny
Active Member
Lately my brother started working from home and so he started to cook more. Then he realized that he could use a "good" knife. So first thing he did was ask me for a recommendation. The problem is he is not that keen on learning how to sharpen knives and as he lives in a different country than me I can't sharpen them for him. So I decided to ask for help in the best place I could think of.
LOCATION
He is located in London UK
KNIFE TYPE
What type of knife are you interested in (e.g., chefs knife, slicer, boning knife, utility knife, bread knife, paring knife, cleaver)?
I think gyuto/chef's knife. That's what I recommended him as I think it's just the best idea
Are you right or left handed?
Right handed
Are you interested in a Western handle (e.g., classic Wusthof handle) or Japanese handle?
No preference, but I think he would find a Japanese one to his taste. Both are okay
What length of knife (blade) are you interested in (in inches or millimeters)?
I think around 210 would be great
Do you require a stainless knife? (Yes or no)
Preferably stainless or semi stainless
What is your absolute maximum budget for your knife?
Preferably around 180-200 USD but can go a bit over that if needed for something of higher quality
KNIFE USE
Do you primarily intend to use this knife at home or a professional environment?
Only at home
What are the main tasks you primarily intend to use the knife for (e.g., slicing vegetables, chopping vegetables, mincing vegetables, slicing meats, cutting down poultry, breaking poultry bones, filleting fish, trimming meats, etc.)? (Please identify as many tasks as you would like.)
It will be used for pretty much every cooking task and by that i mean Vegetable slicing. chopping, slicing some boneless meats and fish (for sushi for example)
What knife, if any, are you replacing?
Some cheap no name chef's knife
Do you have a particular grip that you primarily use? (Please click on this LINK for the common types of grips.)
Pinch grip is preferable
What cutting motions do you primarily use? (Please click on this LINK for types of cutting motions and identify the two or three most common cutting motions, in order of most used to least used.)
He's mostly using rock chopping but I will try to move him in a direction of push cutting probably. But it should be able to rock chop with it
What improvements do you want from your current knife? If you are not replacing a knife, please identify as many characteristics identified below in parentheses that you would like this knife to have.)
Better aesthetics (e.g., a certain type of finish; layered/Damascus or other pattern of steel; different handle color/pattern/shape/wood; better scratch resistance; better stain resistance)?
Comfort (e.g., lighter/heavier knife; better handle material; better handle shape; rounded spine/choil of the knife; improved balance)?
Ease of Use (e.g., ability to use the knife right out of the box; smoother rock chopping, push cutting, or slicing motion; less wedging; better food release; less reactivity with food; easier to sharpen)?
Edge Retention (i.e., length of time you want the edge to last without sharpening)?
Mostly edge retention, general ease of cutting slicing and chopping
KNIFE MAINTENANCE
Do you use a bamboo, wood, rubber, or synthetic cutting board? (Yes or no.)
yes
Do you sharpen your own knives? (Yes or no.)
He doesn't and he doesn't want to send his knives to be sharpened professionaly. He is sadly reluctant to learn whetstone sharpening and he seems to really like the idea of electric sharpeners
(and he is willing to splurge on something like chef's choice 1520 or something of sorts). I might be able to persuade him to something like a budget guided system like Lansky but I dont know if it is worth it
If not, are you interested in learning how to sharpen your knives? (Yes or no.)
Not really sadly
Are you interested in purchasing sharpening products for your knives? (Yes or no.)
He is, as stated above
SPECIAL REQUESTS/COMMENTS
He did some "research" on his own and asked me if a shun pro is a good idea but I just told him not to buy it and wait. I thought about masamoto vg as it's available in the UK under the budget but I also thought about somethign like Kaeru 210 semi stainless form JNS. What my biggest concern is that he needs a knife that could be somewhat sharpened by this electric sharpener and I have zero experience with them and haven't really heard much good thing about them (wouldn't swap my stones for them ever) but i heard they could somewhat work. The problem is could this sharpener work with something like kaeru? ( I'm not really sure). I'll have him buy a leather strop with a compound to take care of it between sharpenings. The problem with masamoto is that it is not a 50/50 grind so I don't really know how would that work with the way he wants to sharpen
Thanks for the help in advance
LOCATION
He is located in London UK
KNIFE TYPE
What type of knife are you interested in (e.g., chefs knife, slicer, boning knife, utility knife, bread knife, paring knife, cleaver)?
I think gyuto/chef's knife. That's what I recommended him as I think it's just the best idea
Are you right or left handed?
Right handed
Are you interested in a Western handle (e.g., classic Wusthof handle) or Japanese handle?
No preference, but I think he would find a Japanese one to his taste. Both are okay
What length of knife (blade) are you interested in (in inches or millimeters)?
I think around 210 would be great
Do you require a stainless knife? (Yes or no)
Preferably stainless or semi stainless
What is your absolute maximum budget for your knife?
Preferably around 180-200 USD but can go a bit over that if needed for something of higher quality
KNIFE USE
Do you primarily intend to use this knife at home or a professional environment?
Only at home
What are the main tasks you primarily intend to use the knife for (e.g., slicing vegetables, chopping vegetables, mincing vegetables, slicing meats, cutting down poultry, breaking poultry bones, filleting fish, trimming meats, etc.)? (Please identify as many tasks as you would like.)
It will be used for pretty much every cooking task and by that i mean Vegetable slicing. chopping, slicing some boneless meats and fish (for sushi for example)
What knife, if any, are you replacing?
Some cheap no name chef's knife
Do you have a particular grip that you primarily use? (Please click on this LINK for the common types of grips.)
Pinch grip is preferable
What cutting motions do you primarily use? (Please click on this LINK for types of cutting motions and identify the two or three most common cutting motions, in order of most used to least used.)
He's mostly using rock chopping but I will try to move him in a direction of push cutting probably. But it should be able to rock chop with it
What improvements do you want from your current knife? If you are not replacing a knife, please identify as many characteristics identified below in parentheses that you would like this knife to have.)
Better aesthetics (e.g., a certain type of finish; layered/Damascus or other pattern of steel; different handle color/pattern/shape/wood; better scratch resistance; better stain resistance)?
Comfort (e.g., lighter/heavier knife; better handle material; better handle shape; rounded spine/choil of the knife; improved balance)?
Ease of Use (e.g., ability to use the knife right out of the box; smoother rock chopping, push cutting, or slicing motion; less wedging; better food release; less reactivity with food; easier to sharpen)?
Edge Retention (i.e., length of time you want the edge to last without sharpening)?
Mostly edge retention, general ease of cutting slicing and chopping
KNIFE MAINTENANCE
Do you use a bamboo, wood, rubber, or synthetic cutting board? (Yes or no.)
yes
Do you sharpen your own knives? (Yes or no.)
He doesn't and he doesn't want to send his knives to be sharpened professionaly. He is sadly reluctant to learn whetstone sharpening and he seems to really like the idea of electric sharpeners
(and he is willing to splurge on something like chef's choice 1520 or something of sorts). I might be able to persuade him to something like a budget guided system like Lansky but I dont know if it is worth it
If not, are you interested in learning how to sharpen your knives? (Yes or no.)
Not really sadly
Are you interested in purchasing sharpening products for your knives? (Yes or no.)
He is, as stated above
SPECIAL REQUESTS/COMMENTS
He did some "research" on his own and asked me if a shun pro is a good idea but I just told him not to buy it and wait. I thought about masamoto vg as it's available in the UK under the budget but I also thought about somethign like Kaeru 210 semi stainless form JNS. What my biggest concern is that he needs a knife that could be somewhat sharpened by this electric sharpener and I have zero experience with them and haven't really heard much good thing about them (wouldn't swap my stones for them ever) but i heard they could somewhat work. The problem is could this sharpener work with something like kaeru? ( I'm not really sure). I'll have him buy a leather strop with a compound to take care of it between sharpenings. The problem with masamoto is that it is not a 50/50 grind so I don't really know how would that work with the way he wants to sharpen
Thanks for the help in advance
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