It can happen, but is dependent on the blade steel and sharpening geometry. “Expensive Japanese” knives come in all kinds of steels and often are hand sharpened at very low angles. Very sharp, but very delicate at the edge.
I would bet that the maker would blame the chipping on your technique.
The thing is that most decent knives are quite serviceable. If you find a blade shape and handle that works for you, all you need is to keep it sharp. Which is something that not many people do. Which means that getting a knife that will hold an edge well is important. Maybe sharpen it once every 6 months instead of, with some of the knives mentioned, after every time it is used. If one it willing to do that, sure a cheaper knife using softer steel will work just fine.
Just a brief story. I do some sharpening as a side hustle. I do my close neighbors knives for free. One of them had an assortment of Henkles and Wustoffs. She would bring me knives at least once per month for Sharpening. I bought them a Gyuto and a paring knife, Japanese style with good steel. It went to every 6 to 8 months between sharpening.
We have walmart knives in the kitchen, i sharpen them as needed, and they work just fine, i even sharpen ceramic knives with a diamond stone, thou i can not get them as sharp as they originally were, but a lot better than when they are dull, if ceramic knives get chipped, we throw them away and get new ones, same with steel knives, if they are chipped beyond what i can repair, they go to trash, and we go to walmart for a new one, but it doesn’t happen often once a year on average.
We’ve had the same kitchen knives probably since before I was born in 1976.
I have an opinion on some pocket knives, but kitchen knives?
Forget about it!
As the original poster and for what its worth, I was born on a Minnesota farm and raised in a lifestyle of hunting, fishing, trapping(sorry ) and butchering. I could put a shaving edge on a knife when I was 12. My purpose for this thread was to find sources to acquire a quality blade at a reasonable price. Just sayin.
Nice!
I’ve heard of Henckels and Wüsthof, though I’ve never done research into kitchen knives.
(I’ve also heard of Shun knives, but they might be overpriced for what they are.)
I stay away from gimmicky knives like damascus steel and ceramic and whatnot. All too often, you’re paying for the bling and/or the gimmick, and not actual performance. Think of Ti /Cu lights vs Al. You want the special material, no prob. But it ain’t like you’re getting better performance out of them.
I’ve heard of ceramic knives being overly brittle and not just chipping but breaking, and damascus steel is often just colored/stained into the blade vs being real.
I did endless research Way Back When to find a buy-once-keep-forever knife, and H and K just kept coming up. So, I bought the H and got the W as a gift. Both are really nice, and the different shapes evidently have some different function, but I just go by the pointy edge and what that does vs getting all worked up about thickness, profiles, etc. Either I like it, or I don’t. And I do.
Something that should weight heavily in the choice of knives - especially the main chefs knife is blade profile.
When dicing vegs, some like to use a rocking motion where the tip of the knife never leaves the cutting-board. While doing this some want to come straight down with the back of the blade. Others like to slide the blade forwarded or to the rear.
Others like to raise the whole knife off the board and make a vertical down push.
For rocking cutters the tip can go from mildly rounded to very rounded.
For the lift off cutters a dead flat blade is needed to make sure everything get cut in one motion.
How much tip work does she do? A knife with a cleaver sort of end won’ be so great at this.
Take a look at some knife skills Tube vids. Also watch some cooking computation shows and see the knives and different cutting techniques.
Knife weight is important to some. The extra heft of the H&W type feels good to some and can help plow heaver fruits etc.
While the thinner blades won’t have as much resistance gliding through things.
All The Best,
Jeff
PS What do you currently have?
As others have mentioned, there’s a whole range of things to consider, but for those that just want a set it and forget it sort of knife, something comparable to what most people are familiar with in terms of shape and blade profile, I like to recommend Forschner Victorinox Fibrox and Dexter-Russell. Yeah, they’re stamped and not drop forged, but by being stamped, they’re easier to sharpen up to the heel. The large handles are comfortable, and they’re both often used heavily in commercial areas, like meat processing places. The knives themselves tend to be decently balanced, and sharpen up pretty easily.
For 25 years, my wife really liked our set of Wustofs, particularly the 7" Chef knife because it was easy to keep sharp. Then I bought her a 7" Wustof Hollow Edge Santoku, which she says that she absolutely loves. FWIW!
For most home users the esoteric features of a knife will not really come into play. For people that use a knife for 8 hours or more per day they become important. Weight, blade shape, handle style make a big difference in fatigue and even eventual (if not immediate) injuries.
For a home chef I think the most important features are the size and shape (to suit your style) and comfort of the handle. But, well maybe I have been into knives too long, probably most important is the steel. Edge stability and edge retention are super important if you don’t want to be sharpening you knife all of the time. If you don’t care about a sharp knife, or if you don’t mind re-sharpening at least weekly (if you use a knife daily), then get some of the softer European/American knives. If you want something that lasts a few months, look for better steels. If you prize a sharp knife and just your knives in general, a few bucks more for a good steel is worth it.
Incidentally, the high carbon non-stainless steel are coveted for their ability to take some of the best edges. They are extremely tough and have great edge stability. Traditionalists will use nothing else. But yes, you need to clean and dry them immediately after use. The edge will degrade after long periods just due to micro corrosion. Being softer steels (in general) they need to be sharpened more often. But if well maintained there is nothing in Stainless that compares.
BTW… I have several non stainless knives. I admit it, I am lazy and way too often not attentive enough. Not much worse than cutting something acidic, leaving the knife sit overnight, and finding your prized blade with rust on it the next day…My stainless knives get 90% of the use…
Thar $55 knife check most of the boxes for the features that the pros like, and it is a great steel. If you have nothing to compare, you may be happy with one of the European knives, but if you had both, I think you would pick up the Artifex every time. Plus you would be using it while the Wustof is sitting waiting to be sharpened.
One other thing. people mention production cutters using this knife or an other. Keep in mind that they pretty much all have sharpening services. The company buys the knives (many times based on price) and contracts with a company to sharpen them. When the knives get dull, they get thrown into a bin to be sharpened and the cutter picks up a freshly sharpened one. Most of us don’t have that luxury at home…
No one needs a $1000 knife set. People that want quality and can afford it get it. A $20 set from Walmart will work just fine.
Same applies to flashlights. A $20 Convoy flashlight will get you through the night just as a $300 Surefire.
The people that buy super quality stuff either hqve significant extra money or they are perfectionists that would never dare use or be seen using cheap stuff.
Yeah, screw knife sets. Just gimme a chef’s and parer, and I’m pretty much set. Oh, and a cheepie butter-knife, which is functionally more of a spatula than knife.
What I can’t see is a knife-block, that you “conveniently” stick all your knives into. Imagine all the crap that falls into the slots. And every time you stick a knife into a slot, you’re dipping it into all that crap each time.
Naw, I keep mine separate in a tray, lying down and accessible, and in a cabinet.
I keep my knives, crappy though they may be, on a pair of magnetic racks on the cupboard above and on each side of the sink. I now wonder if I acquire a real quality knife with a great edge whether I would want that edge in contact with the magnetic metallic knife-holder.
I do enjoy spending some time once a month to just touch up the edges when they get too dull to the point where a honing rod doesn’t get it back into shape, but I see your point. Honestly, I get the whole carbon steel vs stainless thing, as I would love a good high carbon Sabatier, but settle for the Kiwi knives from the local Asian supermarket. Thin, sharp, and just very well made considering how inexpensive they are. The average person doesn’t sharpen their knives, and those that do, often use those v-shaped carbide sharpeners that remove a mess of steel just to get a toothy edge.
That’s what I do. Mine are so bent in places it’s not funny, so yeah, a few pulls through those sharpeners is pretty much all I do. And they still cut like razors after it.
Chips, etc.? Hell, I just consider them serrated knives now.
) and butchering. I could put a shaving edge on a knife when I was 12. My purpose for this thread was to find sources to acquire a quality blade at a reasonable price. Just sayin.
