Still too rich for me but WOOT has some Wustoff on sale.
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Just found this site.
Sharpening geeks alert.
All the Best,
Jeff
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A wonderful site. Especially if one is a super geek and really wants to get into it, deeply. I bookmarked it many, many years ago when I was fully immersed in the obsession of sharpening.
I recommend to go with a higher end stainless so you don’t need to baby the knife to avoid corossion.
Check out the North Arm Alder Chef knife. It’s made with S35VN steel by a small family owned father and son business.
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Do not want to open a new thread for this small question, I also think this one might benefit from it too.
We know sellers sometimes lie, and manufacturers too, if a knife has m390 laser etched on the blade, is there a way to tell if it is actually m390, or not? without need for some expensive equipment, and preferably without destroying the blade.
Nope.
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I agree with “nope”. Other than destructive testing and using sophisticated methods, I can’t think of a way to verify the steel composition.
The best answer is to but from reputable brands and dealers.
This is why I am very skeptical bout buying the budget knives that many love so much.
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This vid suggests differential grit sharping.
Something I’ve not encountered before.
I do like to stop at 1000+ -ish grit then strop over that to polish the “teeth” as it were.
Jump to 6:00 to see her take on it.
bushmaster - you get anything yet?
All the Best, Jeff
A great question. Lots of good advice here. @bushmaster What did you decide?
As to the video, she discusses some nice knives. I am not sold at all on this differential grit sharpening though. Interesting hypotheses, but I would have to try it to see if it works in reality.
Thanks for asking, my friends. My wife had to leave for Minnesota awhile back to help with some psychological intervention for a family member and the knife thing kinda became second-fiddle. We’ll pick it back up when she is able to return. Very kind of you folks to remember and bring the subject back up. 
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8 inch chef. That’s arguably all you need and could do 90% of tasks efficiently. You have to have them in hand to know how they will feel. Some knives don’t work for some people.
Budget for an end grain cutting board or Hinoki or Hi-soft. The thing you are cutting on will determine how sharp your knife stays as well as how heavy your hand it. A strop can be made for a few dollars, or learn how to hone. You are almost never cutting food that’s harder than you teeth, it determines if you new knife will stay sharp.
Don’t ever put it in the dishwasher and make sure it is dry. The dishwasher and incomplete drying are the worst for knives and cause chipping and pitting.
A far as I know, the current pioneer of dual-grit sharpening is a YT channel called “The Home Slice” who was given an exposure boost by Pete from the “Cedric & Ada Gear & Outdoors” YT channel.
According to the vids I saw, there’s some merit to it. Pete saw some pretty significant increases in result numbers from his cut tests and it looks like the different grits create a pair of micro-serrated edges that work in tandem. You wear down one and the other carries on until it’s worn down.
I’ve tried it on a couple of knives and it does feel like it’s a solid method, but I’m not an expert. You just have to make sure you alternate which side of your edge you sharpen to which grit…
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We have a mixed bag in our house, some Heinkels and a couple of Wusthof (and they’re very good) - but my personal favourite came from a thrift shop and cost me $2, and it’s branded IKEA! If I ever lost that knife I’d be heartbroken, it’s about 8” on the blade with the perfect ‘feel’ , gets razor sharp and stays that way with an odd lick on a steel.
I got my sister a zirconium oxide for a weding gift. About $130. Silicon nitride is a bit harder and more expensive. I have been using silicon nitride bearings in my bicycle pedels. Only one has been damaged in about 50000 miles. It broke like flint. So if you do manage to break a knife it might still actually work. Also consider tungsten carbide. They start off where steel ends in hardness. About rockwell 71. With tungsten get the least hard one to avoid brittle breakage. They can be sharpened with diamond stones but it takes a while. On the subject it has been proven that bacteria will survive in the cuts of plastic even after several trips through the dishwasher. Wood is a better choice.
One thing which I have done for steak knife gifts after I scored a great one for me, was look up “Gerber Miming Steak Knive set” on ebay. I’ll kick back and watch and wait, until I see a solid set.
Things to watch for, the felt can and will fall apart inside of the walnut presentation box. If folks dishwasher them, they get dull. Buy shiny. Very high quality, surgical sharp knives. The set I bought for us had 8 miming steak knives, a 10" carving knife, a boning knife, and a big ass fork. Then I bought a second set of 6 steak knives for when we have larger gatherings.
Rich old people don’t last forever, and their kids sell the stuff of to the high bidder. Good stuff, and if your last name is Schneidman, I’m taking great care of your folks stuff, and the inscribed brass tag with your family name is still on the walnut case. Was going to pull it off, but it was solid stuck on there so I left it.
But… the OP was looking for something like a chefs knife or Japanese equivalent… So ??
If it walks like a knife, and it talks like a knife, it’s a knife.
Darn, I guess that all of the folks that spend lots of time and money finding the best combination of blade shape, handle style, balance and edge geometry for a specific job are wasting their time ??
My monomolecular blade is just about perfect for me, except that it keeps cutting through the cutting board… and the plate… and the counter.
Okay, maybe it’s not so perfect.
Modern knife steels, good ones like S30V, VG10, 154 CM, ATS34, 440C (an older one, but still good), 1095 (carbon, needs care), and D2 will give good service. The Chinese clone steels of VG10 and S30V are just that…some better than others, but usually not as good as the real thing (cheapness over performance). I have one made with generic steel and it works fine and actually does what I want, but is not the same as name brand steels on higher end knives. I am not a huge fan of folded or laminated steels for kitchen knives since they’re usually too thin (to keep the knife light) and tend to be brittle and prone to chipping, cracking, and breaking off tips.
Basically you want these properties in a kitchen knife and over the years I’ve found these to be the essentials:
Good edge retention
Ease of sharpening
Corrosion resistant
Tough and durable (bends, rolls the edge…not crack or chip)
The knives that have these qualities as a whole have been my Victorinox Forschner Fibrox. They stay sharp, haven’t rusted or otherwise corroded (after over 10 years of continuous use), are durable, and easy to sharpen.
I have found very little difference between a stamped knife and a forged one aside from weight and balance.
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