# Hobbyists who aren't chefs



## Jeffrey Kramb (Nov 4, 2019)

I got started buying knives because I work as a chef and want the best tools possible. I take all my knives to work and use them and sharpen them often. I know some people just buy them and don't use them and some just use for occasional home cooking. Those of you who aren'r chefs, what made you decide to start spending hundreds and thousands of dollars on knives?


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## slickmamba (Nov 4, 2019)

cut good.


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## jaeysehn (Nov 4, 2019)

I imagine a lot of it has to do with aesthetic as well (true for me). I like pretty things. Of course when things are extremely functional AND pretty, prices tend to go up.


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## gman (Nov 4, 2019)

for the same reasons that people who aren't professional race car drivers buy sports cars


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## jaeysehn (Nov 4, 2019)

Yup. It can be said about any luxury field or product. Who really NEEDS a patek. It's more of an appreciation of the craft. Or maybe some ppl just have too much money.


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## Jon-cal (Nov 4, 2019)

Boredom I guess? There are lots of knife options out there and a pretty strong used market where you can buy and sell without losing much. So, low risk to try different things and keep what I like. I could probably narrow down to a few nice knives but where’s the fun in that. I bought the first jknife on a whim and it was eye opening. 

I don’t really understand buying and not using at all though. I guess you can speculate on certain knives and probably make a bit of money but for the effort it doesn’t seem worth it to me. I suspect some people just enjoy the game though.


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## IsoJ (Nov 4, 2019)

For me it started less than a 6 months ago. I've used affordable 10-60€ knives for 20 years at home to get the job done and not paying much more attention to it. Then when I got a change to try japanese knife, it kind of turned things around. I started enjoy cooking again. All the preps are much more enjoyable, allthought I only cook 5-10 times a week for 5-10 people. I buy the knives for my use. It is a tool for me, but for home use, I now who is using it and how it is used. I can imagine in prokitchen sometimes people may "borrow" and abuse knives and you don't then maybe want to take expensive ones to work.

It is a part of the cooking hobby and since I don't do pool/snooker/hi-fi much more and the knives are pretty much not that expensive, you get allways some money back from your "investment".

And funny thing, the kids have come more involve with cooking since I started. So for me it has been a win-win situation. And by the way, I have a looooooooooong way of getting there, where my wife is with the shoes, dresses, handbags etc...


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## LostHighway (Nov 4, 2019)

I haven't hit the "thousands of dollars" realm for knives and stones yet...

Among other fields I used to work in garden design and estate gardening. Japanese garden design has been a huge influence as has the Arts & Crafts Movement which cross pollinated with Japanese aesthetics and craft movements. I also have friends in the Japanese Sword Society (JSSUS). The (largely) French Situationist Movement thinking has been another influence. I like nice tools and I also really enjoy good food. My interest is in functional tools and I have close to zero personal ownership interest in non-user bling or collector knives.


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## Caleb Cox (Nov 4, 2019)

I was a foodie and knife nerd separately, so kitchen knives were the natural intersection of two interests. But as with many people, you fall into a hobby because it's "work" that's not your day job, so it's a fun release/escape.


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## Paraffin (Nov 4, 2019)

I've used hand tools in other hobbies like woodworking, where you develop a sense of how a finely crafted tool makes the job easier, as well as being just aesthetically pleasing to look at and handle. It's not a big leap from there to appreciating high-quality kitchen knives. 

I do use every expensive Japanese knife I own. I'm not a collector, in the sense of buying more knives than I actually use. My wife and I both enjoy cooking, so that helps too. I don't have to hide a knife purchase.

As for the cost... well, we spent a heck of a lot more on our cooking hobby by renovating our home kitchen 15 years ago. I think just the custom copper hood we had designed and built over our stove and wok burner cost more than all my current Japanese knives combined. Look at it that way, and the knives are a tremendous bang-for-buck in comparison. 

If you work in a commercial kitchen and aren't the owner, you may not be considering the cost of all that infrastructure around you that supports the food prep. Even expensive knives aren't that expensive by comparison!


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## Kristoffer (Nov 4, 2019)

I go through special interests like some people go through clothes. It’s probably something that’d get me a four letter abbreviations diagnosis if I want to a doctor, but I always need to have an interest I can loose myself in reading up on.

Knives happen to be very good combination of a functional hobby (the family needs to be fed), steel (I’m a mechanical engineer and a welding engineer) and Japanese culture (best county I’ve been to by far).


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## Boynutman (Nov 4, 2019)

+1 for many of the reasons & journeys above. But my teenage daughter’s favorite concept perhaps made me understand best why I enjoy it so much: it is just sooo Satisfying to cut with a good and sharp knife.

(next up: ASMR knife vids)


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## ian (Nov 4, 2019)

Well, I spend at least an hour a day cooking. At some point, I started realizing that cutting things with fancy knives is very satisfying. It's all about the cutting experience for me. The feeling of a high end knife gliding through product is revelatory, and if the product then just drops off the side of the knife, the experience becomes orgasmic. 

Isn't this the same reason you buy high end knives, you professionals? I mean, presumably you could do basically everything just as well with a Mac, perhaps with slightly more sharpening.

I certainly haven't spent a billion dollars on knives, though, since I only keep enough at once to fill up a mag strip.


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## tgfencer (Nov 4, 2019)

Knife buying is my one luxury hobby. I often times pine for the days when I had none. 

I sometimes look at knife buying like this. Say a knife cost me $500. If I'm a pro with two weeks of vacation (I assume some cook somewhere gets this, although not in my limited experience), I might use it roughly 351 days of the year. That's $1.42 a day and then it's entirely "paid off." Not such a high price, less than a coffee. A home user might use that same knife only half the year, 182 days. That's still only $2.75 a day. 

Either way, assuming you keep the knife longer than a year, the upfront cost doesn't actually work out to be a bad trade off in the end, especially when allowing for salvage/second hand sales value. At least, that's what I tell myself...I purposefully ignore the compounding effects in regards to buying multiple knives.


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## ian (Nov 4, 2019)

tgfencer said:


> Knife buying is my one luxury hobby. I often times pine for the days when I had none.
> 
> I sometimes look at knife buying like this. Say a knife cost me $500. If I'm a pro with two weeks of vacation (I assume some cook somewhere gets this, although not in my limited experience), I might use it roughly 351 days of the year. That's $1.42 a day and then it's entirely "paid off." Not such a high price, less than a coffee. A home user might use that same knife only half the year, 182 days. That's still only $2.75 a day.
> 
> Either way, assuming you keep the knife longer than a year, the upfront cost doesn't actually work out to be a bad trade off in the end, especially when allowing for salvage/second hand sales value. At least, that's what I tell myself...I purposefully ignore the compounding effects in regards to buying multiple knives.



To be fair, a professional will use the knife for much longer each day than a home-cook will, so the price per hour used will be much different. But more or less I agree. Lot of use for the money.


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## K813zra (Nov 4, 2019)

I like sharpening. I like knives. I like cooking and do so 3x a day 6x(+) weekly. It just seemed to fit.


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## Barmoley (Nov 4, 2019)

I've always been into knives. Started as a kid when my dad gave me my first pocket knife. I was 4 or 5... I've been playing with knives ever since. Isn't it amazing that such a simple tool can be used in so many ways and be so essential to everything humans do, boggles my mind. One day, I realized that most knives that I own outside of kitchen knives get carried a lot and used very little. Fixed blade knives get used even less. The knives that get used the most are kitchen knives, yet these are the worst knives that I own. This didn't make sense to me, so I started looking into kitchen knives. Because kitchen knives get used so much, one can obsess over the minute differences among different knives. For being such a simple tool, knives, especially chef knives sure have a lot of tiny differences in them that make the whole a lot more than the sum of its parts. I try to use every kitchen knife I buy, but sometimes when I receive it, I look at it, handle it and realize that it is not for me. I've been through many by now and I can tell this pretty quickly with some. Doesn't mean these are bad knives, just not for me at this time.....


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## tgfencer (Nov 4, 2019)

ian said:


> To be fair, a professional will use the knife for much longer each day than a home-cook will, so the price per hour used will be much different. But more or less I agree. Lot of use for the money.



Yup, but that was going to be to much math for me to calculate.


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## WildBoar (Nov 4, 2019)

I'm not a professional cook, but I cook at home daily and not just occasionally, so I am not sure I should be responding. But I got into knives because the Wusthofs I had totally stunk, even though they were billed as the best you could get (they were a present from my then-girlfriend). Prep took forever, as it took a long time to cut up everything. That led me to search for better knives, which led me to the old kitchen knife subforum on the Knife Forums. That resulted in a Japanese 210 gyuto, which turned out to be too short, even though I had been using an 8" chef knife previously. That led to more knives, both Japanese and from some custom makers. That basically led to an appreciations of craftsmen and of usable art, which resulted in a block or two of some totally unneeded custom knives. A DT ITK still does the brunt of my daily work, and my wife mainly alternates between a HHH 'production' knife and a Harner line knife. A few pettys and sujis from Dave M, Butch, DT and Del round out the 'heaviest use' category. The Burkes, Raders, etc. are mainly just brought out for special occasions.


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## Interapid101 (Nov 4, 2019)

Very reductive to put people into two bins: chefs and hobbyists. As a former cook, I find it interesting you used the word “chef” instead of “cook,” and I also find it interesting you used the nearly derogatory description of “hobbyist.” Many of the most talented cooks I’ve encountered are amateurs, and I’m positive that many other pros here would agree. The first post has an underlying message that only pros should access the best tools, and that is a very questionable assertion.


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## MowgFace (Nov 4, 2019)

I'm pretty much the same as many of those above. I love cooking, and knives have been an interest to me most of my life. Japanese knives not only tickle my fancy in aesthetics, but also for the craftsmanship.

I have also justified to myself all my purchases by the $$$/Time Used, also thought to myself if my kids can ever pry them from my cold dead hands then the initial investment is nothing.

Mowgs


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## James (Nov 4, 2019)

Jeffrey Kramb said:


> Those of you who aren'r chefs, what made you decide to start spending hundreds and thousands of dollars on knives?


For the same reason why I spend nearly the same if not more for fishing gear. It's a hobby and I enjoy it


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## panda (Nov 4, 2019)

99% cooks and chefs use crap knives


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## daveb (Nov 4, 2019)

panda said:


> 99% cooks and chefs use crap knives



Not sure the percentage is that low - but decimal points are such a bother.....

I started using "good" knives as an enthusiast. Henckels led to Shun which led to KKF and all that entails. My enjoyment with using the perfect knife for a job was no small part of my decision to go into pro cooking as a twilight career. I (foolishly) thought I was a good cook, I liked the knives, the food, surprising and pleasing peoples, and of course the groupies - what could possibly be wrong?


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## bahamaroot (Nov 4, 2019)

I've always been the cook in the house and gaining an appreciation for a sharp knife led me down this rabbit hole. I thought I was doing well with my carbide pull-through and my grooved steel. Then I started to learn how bad those pull throughs were for your knives so I started to look at wet stones. And how can you look at wet stones and not look at J-knives at the same time. After reading all the praises of different J-knives I decided to "splurge" on one. What an eye opener that was! I couldn't imagine why they cost so much or believe they could be "that" much better. Now I do have a few thousand dollars worth of knives that I love but don't need. I don't own a boat or have another expensive hobby so now this is it.


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## labor of love (Nov 4, 2019)

I just make “cooking professionally” a convenient excuse to own way more knives than I need.


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## Carl Kotte (Nov 4, 2019)

Well I think it was only natural since my mother is a deba, my grandfather was a petty and there are a lot of boners and beater knives among close relatives.


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## Chuckles (Nov 4, 2019)

I am a chef. There was a small window of time where I was extremely hands on in the kitchen and was able to afford a couple nice knives and was very fortunate to be a part of this forum and was able to borrow and use a ton of amazing knives that I could never have found or purchased. I don’t really use a knife at work that much anymore (union account yada yada). I probably have more in common with the hobbyists than the production heavy cook and chef members most days. It really is just way more fun to use the techniques that are possible with a sharp bada$$ knife whether that is at home or in a professional environment.


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## Hassanbensober (Nov 4, 2019)

I’m also a chef working in a soul crushing 70 hr + week hotel 2 restaurants plus banquet kitchen. The life has stifled most of my other hobbies and collecting using and redistributing world class knives is the best way to mix business with pleasure. Have to always have something either coming in or going out it’s something fun to look forward to every week. This place provides great resources for that and I thank you all.


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## Steel+Fire (Nov 5, 2019)

I worked as a pro for 10+ years out of HS. Got burned out and switched to an office job. 9/11/2001 happened so I went to war part time for a decade and finished my 4 year degree. Now I make enough to afford knives that would have been a blessing back in the day. I got by with my trusty 10" Henkels 4 Star chef knife for my whole life as a line cook, never knew what I didn't have. I think back to struggling through shifts with dull ****** knives and just laugh.


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## Nemo (Nov 5, 2019)

Jeffrey Kramb said:


> I got started buying knives because I work as a chef and want the best tools possible. I take all my knives to work and use them and sharpen them often. I know some people just buy them and don't use them and some just use for _*occasional home cooking*_. Those of you who aren'r chefs, what made you decide to start spending hundreds and thousands of dollars on knives?



Well, as a home cook, I probably don't use my knives nearly as much as you do. However I do more than occasional home cooking. My knives get used every day and I go out of my way to cut things with them. For example, in situations where you might use a mandolin or a grater.

Why did I start? I love cooking and wanted to get better. I wanted to see if having a really good knife would make me better.

Why do I keep going? I am fascinated by the things that contribute to the performance of a knife, from steel type to heat treatment, profile, grind, taper (both spine and grind taper) and sharpening.


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## Gregmega (Nov 5, 2019)

I think no matter what level you perform at, when you get and use a better knife, it makes you more mindful of what you’re doing. Precision and focus drive to the front of your brain. You don’t have to be a pro to feel the difference.


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## panda (Nov 5, 2019)

if i wasnt a chef, i honestly would have never given upgrading kitchen knives a second thought.. before i learned how to cook, i just figured all knives cut like sh1t. the only reason i got into it was to trying and see if there was a way to make things more efficient and less annoying to use these things all damn day.

i have always been into pocket knives however.


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## lowercasebill (Nov 5, 2019)

I bought a house after divorce and planted an English cottage style flower garden got bored and found japanese style gardens which began my fascination with all things japanese. Their art, food , culture etc. Gardening and cooking were my escape from a streesful career. The knives just seemed a natural progression. As Marie Kondo would say "they spark joy"


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## ian (Nov 5, 2019)

Interapid101 said:


> Very reductive to put people into two bins: chefs and hobbyists. As a former cook, I find it interesting you used the word “chef” instead of “cook,” and I also find it interesting you used the nearly derogatory description of “hobbyist.” Many of the most talented cooks I’ve encountered are amateurs, and I’m positive that many other pros here would agree. The first post has an underlying message that only pros should access the best tools, and that is a very questionable assertion.



Btw, when are you allowed to call yourself a chef? If you take the word literally, maybe when there’s at least one person under your command? I’m assuming a sous chef can call themselves a chef, for instance, but maybe even people lower down can? However, this doesn’t allow for “personal chefs” that work alone. So maybe you are a chef if you have some creative control? Enlighten me.


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## Carl Kotte (Nov 5, 2019)

ian said:


> Btw, when are you allowed to call yourself a chef? If you take the word literally, maybe when there’s at least one person under your command? I’m assuming a sous chef can call themselves a chef, for instance, but maybe even people lower down can? However, this doesn’t allow for “personal chefs” that work alone. So maybe you are a chef if you have some creative control? Enlighten me.


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## Interapid101 (Nov 5, 2019)

ian said:


> Btw, when are you allowed to call yourself a chef? If you take the word literally, maybe when there’s at least one person under your command? I’m assuming a sous chef can call themselves a chef, for instance, but maybe even people lower down can? However, this doesn’t allow for “personal chefs” that work alone. So maybe you are a chef if you have some creative control? Enlighten me.



IME if you work in the kitchen and you don’t have the word chef in your title, you wouldn’t call yourself a chef. And neither would anyone else in the restaurant. Sous chefs, pastry chefs, etc...they are definitely chefs.

Home chefs are chefs in the sense that they run their kitchen. Personal chefs are professional chefs.


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## podzap (Nov 5, 2019)

Chef is simply the French word for "Chief" - in English, it's usually "chief" or "head of" (as in Chief Architect). Chef means nothing more than "chief of kitchen operations", or in Germany they use the term to simply mean "boss".


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## stringer (Nov 5, 2019)

ian said:


> Btw, when are you allowed to call yourself a chef? If you take the word literally, maybe when there’s at least one person under your command? I’m assuming a sous chef can call themselves a chef, for instance, but maybe even people lower down can? However, this doesn’t allow for “personal chefs” that work alone. So maybe you are a chef if you have some creative control? Enlighten me.




There is no rhyme and reason to it. I work at a union hotel with old school demarcation between Chef and cook. There are four chefs, Exec, Exec Sous, Sous, Cuisine. Ideally we would have Junior Sous too but we can't seem to keep it filled. Those folks are called chef by everyone in the hotel. Cooks are cooks. Professionally, I've had every title you can think of. Kitchen Manager, Supervisor, Sous, Executive Sous, Executive Chef....

Some would say there is only one Chef in the kitchen, everyone else is a cook. Some say you should call anyone above you in the pecking order chef. Lots of people on Instagram and Youtube call themselves whatever they want. It took me a long time to feel comfortable telling people that I'm a chef when they asked what I do for a living. I would say "I work in restaurants" or "I cook food" or "I manage kitchens." OTOH I think it's stupid to be uptight about it and getting upset when you see people use the word chef freely and loosely too. This isn't a stolen valor situation or anything life and death serious. It's just cooking food to make a living. It just takes a long time and lot of hard work to get to where people trust you to do it. So you don't want to diminish that struggle. And it's not like being a medical doctor or attorney where there's some particular diploma or certification that proves it, so it's always gonna be subjective.


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## ian (Nov 5, 2019)

It took me a while to start saying that I’m a “math professor” when people ask me my job. For the longest time, I would just say “I teach at Boston College”, since professor always seemed so elitist or something. But after a while, I realized that when you say you’re a teacher, people assume that you only teach for a living, whereas 80% of my job is research.


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## mise_en_place (Nov 5, 2019)

There are a lot of tools out there calling themselves chef that aren't chefs. Food TV and social media have propagated this to a large degree, in my opinion. Unless you're at the top of the food chain in a pro kitchen, exec, sous, chef de cuisine, I don't necessarily consider you a chef. Does that matter? Not really.

I feel the same way about butchers. There are a lot of meat cutters, but not too many butchers. Some of my coworkers call themselves butchers-- and it doesn't really bother me-- just seems a bit inaccurate when there's only one person busting up the cows, pigs, lambs and goats. Before I worked as a butcher, I mostly worked in kitchens, and that's what I'd say: "I work in kitchens," or the cheeky flippant remark of, "I make food hot."


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## Travis petosa (Nov 5, 2019)

panda said:


> 99% cooks and chefs use crap knives




Truth. I actually used pretty **** knives for a long time in a professional setting. Global’s were abundant in my past kitchen (owner/chef was the brand ambassador). 
I am just recently (2yrs) starting to invest in my knives. I look at it like an investment in the quality of tools I use every day constantly. 

I encourage my cooks to buy **** knives for a long time. The usual cook is going to destroy any knife they use. Until they start to really understand sharpening and taking care of their knives, then I encourage them to invest a small bit of money into their roll.


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## Gregmega (Nov 5, 2019)

Travis petosa said:


> Truth. I actually used pretty **** knives for a long time in a professional setting. Global’s were abundant in my past kitchen (owner/chef was the brand ambassador).
> I am just recently (2yrs) starting to invest in my knives. I look at it like an investment in the quality of tools I use every day constantly.
> 
> I encourage my cooks to buy **** knives for a long time. The usual cook is going to destroy any knife they use. Until they start to really understand sharpening and taking care of their knives, then I encourage them to invest a small bit of money into their roll.



For years I made sacrifices to buy nice knives, 200 was a huge splurge for me. Ironically now that I have the money for premium knives, I’m on the boards way less. But I’ll say this- if I had the money back then for the collection I have now- there’d be a ton of beautiful pieces destroyed sans reverence.


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## podzap (Nov 5, 2019)

Back to the OP: there's a reason why I make food at home instead of dining out and saving money isn't it - the reason is that it's difficult to find any restaurant that can put together a decent plate of food. My own cooking is far, far better than anything I can get from over 99% of restaurants in existence. They just aren't willing to drop the money, care or time into a meal like I do. And I can make meals like that with el-cheapo knives just as well as I can with more expensive Japanese knives. In the same way that I can run a pool table with a broom stick just as well as I can with a custom 3-piece cue. I've never worked as a "chef de cuisine" in my life (I'm white collar), yet I consider myself better than most out there (and I've eaten in a lot of high end restaurants during decades of international business travel).

So why did I start buying some more exensive (Japanese) knives when my 27 year old 9-piece Zwilling block set is still doing JUST FINE? Because they can be found in different shapes and sizes than the standard European knives, look nicer in many cases and finally I just have money to burn at this point in life. I still won't pay ridiculous prices for them, though - I'm just not THAT interested in them.


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## Chuckles (Nov 5, 2019)

The chef has the job of keeping all the cooks employed. It goes a bit beyond just making the food taste good. 

Anyway. I am posting because I wrote last night that I don’t cook much at work anymore. WHY!!! Why did I type that! Of course today the opener no shows and I am short all day. I did get a chance to put some miles on the Mario Honyaki which was fun.


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## WildBoar (Nov 5, 2019)

Chuckles said:


> The chef has the job of keeping all the cooks employed. It goes a bit beyond just making the food taste good.
> 
> Anyway. I am posting because I wrote last night that I don’t cook much at work anymore. WHY!!! Why did I type that! Of course today the opener no shows and I am short all day. I did get a chance to put some miles on the Mario Honyaki which was fun.


That admittedly made me, uh, chuckle.


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## Xenif (Nov 5, 2019)

Because of all these enabling mofos, their stories, their journeys, their hype trains ..... Thats why.


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## ojisan (Nov 5, 2019)

I admit I'm eating information about knives and sharpening more than food I cooked with my knives.
It's a complex system fun to poke around.


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## Hz_zzzzzz (Nov 6, 2019)

Do chefs still cut ingredients by themselves? I never worked in a professional kitchen, but I always assume a chef is only responsible for creating the menu and doing the last few steps to finish a dish.

To me, buying nice knives is very similar to girls buying nice purses. You know the materials, you know the difference between makers, and you know the history of a specific model/series. Especially for those who spend more than $300 on a knife. It can’t be just for the functionality. After all, there’s nothing wrong with it when it makes you happy. I mean...why not?


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## stringer (Nov 6, 2019)

Hz_zzzzzz said:


> Do chefs still cuts ingredients by themselves? I never worked in a professional kitchen, but I always assume a chef is only responsible for creating the menu and doing the last few steps to finish a dish.
> 
> To me, buying nice knives is very similar to girls buying nice purses. You know the materials, you know the difference between makers, and you know the history of a specific model/series. Especially for those who spend more than $300 on a knife. It can’t be just for the functionality. After all, there’s nothing wrong with it when it makes you happen. I mean...why not?



I buy knives for performance. I cut the meats and proteins because it's important for controlling food costs and presentation. If I'm cutting produce it means we're behind. If we're behind then my goal is to catch us up. Which means my tool better be ready to rock and roll. It doesn't have to be expensive. But it has to perform and must be able to do so over and over again with minimal maintenance. So it's like a tactical purse I guess.


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## XooMG (Nov 6, 2019)

A while back, I started asking myself if makers would be disappointed or unhappy that I, a nobody who can't practically appreciate the benefits of a high-end knife, would buy their work. Some producers seem to want their products going to professionals or experts, or at least more rhapsodic and enthusiastic customers who would miss out if I were to interfere.

That's gotten me to focus my attention away from custom makers and high-end pieces and instead stick to my more modest stuff.


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## Michi (Nov 6, 2019)

I'm a software engineer by profession. I write high-performance C++ networking code. It's a rather cerebral and mathematical activity. There is an element of artistry involved, but that is discernible only to other highly-specialised engineers. (What I do is so niche that most software engineers have no idea what I'm talking about when I try to explain to them what I do.) Most of my work entails minute attention to detail, obsessive-compulsive checking and re-checking, and sitting alone in front of a terminal with pin-point laser-like focus for hours at a stretch.

There is also an artistic side to me. I once was a quite talented musician and composer (guitar and singing), and I conducted a choir for a number of years. (I got close to enrolling at the Munich Conservatorium for a music degree at one point.) I also was a professional movie, TV, and theatre actor for a few years. I found out the hard way that, if I neglect the artistic side of myself, I suffer. Mathematics and engineering all on their own don't do the trick for me. I have to nurture that "other side" as well, otherwise I end up mentally ill.

Over the years, I've had various hobbies that touch that artistic side of things. Photography, skydiving, scuba diving, car racing, African drumming, wood working, and, for more than four decades, cooking.

I like cooking. It's fun. It's relaxing. It's a way for me to spend quality time. A way to be nice to myself and try stuff without having to worry that the consequences of getting it wrong might kill someone. An excuse to listen to nice music, make something that smells nice and looks nice and tastes good, and that other people can appreciate.

Cooking is meditation to me. But not if my bloody tools don't work. I'm too much of an engineer to put up with stuff that "works", but only so-so, or barely works at all.

I love the precision of good tools, and I love the artistry of good tools. I've been to the German Museum in Munich many times. They have a physics section with a collection of old instruments. Things like protractors, sextants, vacuum pumps, pendulums, telescopes, orreries—you name it. Many of them are made of brass, and most of them are lovingly engraved with decorative designs and embellishments that contribute absolutely nothing to the function of the tool, but contribute everything to making it beautiful.

Japanese knives are like those old tools. They work superbly well, and they have artistry in them. It seems to me that, with almost everything the Japanese people do, they pay attention to the beauty of things. Why else would someone laboriously chisel kanji onto the side of a blade, or spend hours polishing a single-bevel knife just to get the surface texture and degree of reflection "just so"? Without the kanji and without the polishing, the knife would work just as well. But it wouldn't be as beautiful.

The attraction of Japanese knives is that they speak to both sides of me. The engineer in me appreciates the metallurgy, the precision, the craftsmanship of the maker, and the performance. And the artist in me appreciates the polishing, the beauty of the wood, the swirls of the Damascus cladding, and the imperfections that say "I wasn't made by a machine".

And when I go and prepare a meal, and every knife I pick up does the cutting job effortlessly "just so", I'm in that small quiet space of serenity and perfection and happiness, where I can delude myself that the world is "just right" for one brief little moment.


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## captaincaed (Nov 6, 2019)

Gateway drug.


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## Hz_zzzzzz (Nov 6, 2019)

stringer said:


> I buy knives for performance. I cut the meats and proteins because it's important for controlling food costs and presentation. If I'm cutting produce it means we're behind. If we're behind then my goal is to catch us up. Which means my tool better be ready to rock and roll. It doesn't have to be expensive. But it has to perform and must be able to do so over and over again with minimal maintenance. So it's like a tactical purse I guess.


Most members here look for performance in the first place for sure, but within very short term we all grab something that cuts pretty well, and we mostly don't stop there, do we? I mean won't those sub-$300 Tanaka/Gesshin Ginga/Kurosaki/Shibata do a fantastic job cutting your proteins and produce? Why everyone wants a Shig/Kato or even Ikeda honyaki?


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## panda (Nov 6, 2019)

Chuckles said:


> The chef has the job of keeping all the cooks employed. It goes a bit beyond just making the food taste good.
> 
> Anyway. I am posting because I wrote last night that I don’t cook much at work anymore. WHY!!! Why did I type that! Of course today the opener no shows and I am short all day. I did get a chance to put some miles on the Mario Honyaki which was fun.


i havent even taken the miz out of my roll yet, lol!!!


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## panda (Nov 6, 2019)

XooMG said:


> A while back, I started asking myself if makers would be disappointed or unhappy that I, a nobody who can't practically appreciate the benefits of a high-end knife, would buy their work. Some producers seem to want their products going to professionals or experts, or at least more rhapsodic and enthusiastic customers who would miss out if I were to interfere.
> 
> That's gotten me to focus my attention away from custom makers and high-end pieces and instead stick to my more modest stuff.


same as when you put out amazing food but the people eating it have zero appreciation for the love that went into that dish... in the end it's just business. plus the few who really do truly enjoy your work, they make up for the rest of the indifferent schmucks. for example, i like to think that all my praise for that mario honyaki chuckles mentioned put a smile on his face.


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## captaincaed (Nov 6, 2019)

I very much want to be able to appreciate a Mario...


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## gman (Nov 6, 2019)

Michi said:


> I'm a software engineer by profession. I write high-performance C++ networking code. It's a rather cerebral and mathematical activity. There is an element of artistry involved, but that is discernible only to other highly-specialised engineers. (What I do is so niche that most software engineers have no idea what I'm talking about when I try to explain to them what I do.) Most of my work entails minute attention to detail, obsessive-compulsive checking and re-checking, and sitting alone in front of a terminal with pin-point laser-like focus for hours at a stretch.
> 
> There is also an artistic side to me. I once was a quite talented musician and composer (guitar and singing), and I conducted a choir for a number of years. (I got close to enrolling at the Munich Conservatorium for a music degree at one point.) I also was a professional movie, TV, and theatre actor for a few years. I found out the hard way that, if I neglect the artistic side of myself, I suffer. Mathematics and engineering all on their own don't do the trick for me. I have to nurture that "other side" as well, otherwise I end up mentally ill.
> 
> ...



far out. we are actually very much alike. i wrote low-level network code in C back in the 90s (before moving up the stack), and have also tried my hand at music, as both a producer and promoter. i have a thing for analog synthesizers and vinyl records because they feel more alive than pure digital instruments and recordings. the intersection of precision and imperfection is an almost magical place that is also inhabited by japanese knives, and to a lesser extent japanese denim (i don't want to think about how much i've spent on jeans over the years).


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## Matus (Nov 6, 2019)

Seems like not a single ‘knife enthusiast’ was brave enough to say the actual reason behind their knife hoarding... 
... middle age crisis


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## ian (Nov 6, 2019)

Matus said:


> Seems like not a single ‘knife enthusiast’ was brave enough to say the actual reason behind their knife hoarding...
> ... middle age crisis



But I'm only 37! Now that you mention it, though, I started obsessing about knives right after getting tenure at my university, so I guess this is truly an academic midlife crisis. Well, ****.


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## podzap (Nov 6, 2019)

Michi said:


> I'm a software engineer by profession. I write high-performance C++ networking code. It's a rather cerebral and mathematical activity. There is an element of artistry involved, but that is discernible only to other highly-specialised engineers. (What I do is so niche that most software engineers have no idea what I'm talking about when I try to explain to them what I do.) Most of my work entails minute attention to detail, obsessive-compulsive checking and re-checking, and sitting alone in front of a terminal with pin-point laser-like focus for hours at a stretch.



I've been working in IT infrastructure for almost 25 years, coding at work now and then (I still do it sometimes). Nowadays, I manage a web-scale authentication service and the team behind it. When we make stupid mistakes, literally tens of millions of people suffer and almost immediately. I'm a super old-school UNIX fart and spent the biggest part of this day teaching my senior java dev how to trap SIGTERMs. NOTE: Gonna buy him a T-Shirt now that says "BAD TRAP"  I also spend a whole lot of time teaching them the difference between SysVinit and Systemd, also how to read 'man' pages. Sorry for letting you go on about MySQL etc in PMs and pretending like I knew nothing about it - just wasn't interested in tech discussion at the time.

I buy knives like yanagibas then I teach my wife how to use them. She's the real artist in our family. I'm just the guy who keeps the electrical grid running, so to speak. Some of her facebook friends, when she showed them a photo of our new Shun Kaji knife about a year ago, told her that they have a competitor blade that cost 3 times as much and they can't cook with anything lesser like the **** she has. Again, since I like to teach then I just tought her how to laugh. Snobs gonna snob.


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## WildBoar (Nov 6, 2019)

Matus said:


> Seems like not a single ‘knife enthusiast’ was brave enough to say the actual reason behind their knife hoarding...
> ... middle age crisis


I'm 53, so well past middle age. Now maybe I can claim senility instead...


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## podzap (Nov 6, 2019)

WildBoar said:


> I'm 53, so well past middle age.



By like 3 years


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## WildBoar (Nov 6, 2019)

podzap said:


> By like 3 years


Ha, I seriously doubt I'll make it anywhere close to 100. Getting out of your 70s is a feat for the men on both sides of my family. So for me middle age was around 39.


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## The Edge (Nov 6, 2019)

When I worked in a kitchen, I used pretty crappy knives, though as a cook, I couldn't afford anything but crappy knives. When I moved on from that experience, I could afford better things, so when my knives broke, I started jumping in the pool to the high end stuff. I cook most of the meals now, though I've changed jobs again, and money is tight. I tend to do everything from scratch, as it saves money, and I'm afforded the time to actually enjoy myself in the kitchen. Granted, I've got more kitchen knives than even most enthusiasts I know. It's nice to be told I inspire the fanatics, and my buddies can justify dipping their toes in the water based off of me in the deep end.

In the end though, nice tools inspire me to cook. I rarely use recipes anymore, and to be able to hold a tool in my hand that someone actually had a passion to make chokes me up sometimes. Experiences, materials, trial and error, and collaboration ring through, and keeping that tradition moving forward rather than just thinking about the bottom line, are what inspires me in this arena.


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## DisconnectedAG (Nov 7, 2019)

For me it was the pleasure of using a fantastic piece, the difference in sharpness, the beauty of handmade knives. It made me cook more and better.


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## AT5760 (Nov 7, 2019)

Home cook here, restaurant experience is working fast food in high school. 

1. I appreciate craftsmanship and it makes me happy to use a well made tool that was made by an actual human (or small group of humans). 

2. I enjoy cooking, so I can justify the costs to some extent to my other half more than watches, electronics, etc and it means I get to actually use these cool tools. 

3. Using well made tools makes me want to cook more, which reaps two benefits: healthier family, and the relaxation that cooking provides. 

I don’t have nearly as much invested as others, but for me it’s money well spent.


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## minibatataman (Nov 7, 2019)

I feel like I'm a bit of both, I'm mainly still a student (medical research). I got into knives because I was into cooking, but never thought I'd work in a kitchen. Now I'm a line cook to pay my way through college, but also to justify buying nicer knives haha


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## GeneH (Nov 7, 2019)

Jeffrey Kramb said:


> ...Those of you who aren'r chefs, what made you decide to start spending hundreds and thousands of dollars on knives?



Good question, and ignore anyone feeling slighted by your categorizing is into chef and ... non chefs. More like those who work in the food industry and those of us that do not. 

I just like the best tools I can afford, biased on how much I use it. Even Though my knives will never break the $200 mark, they are still a magnitude more costly than I ever thought a knife could be worth. Every knife is tuned as well as I can make it for performance- which is the bottom line for me. 

There is joy in using a good knife, and a struggle using a poorly tuned knife. To a degree we get what we pay for.


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## labor of love (Nov 7, 2019)

If things ever go bad financially for me I can always just liquidate a few gyutos. I try to convince myself that it’s more like a savings account...that doesn’t accrue interest.


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## minibatataman (Nov 7, 2019)

labor of love said:


> If things ever go bad financially for me I can always just liquidate a few gyutos. I try to convince myself that it’s more like a savings account...that doesn’t accrue interest.


It's basically like investing in gold, and that's supposed to be smart right? - Me enabling myself every time I like a knife


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## WildBoar (Nov 7, 2019)

labor of love said:


> If things ever go bad financially for me I can always just liquidate a few gyutos. I try to convince myself that it’s more like a savings account...that doesn’t accrue interest.


Right -- just like a real savings account! (really, 0.25% interest, and then getting taxed a total of 40% for it, is essentially nothing)


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## Barashka (Nov 7, 2019)

Complete cooking noob that works in software .. I woke up one day and thought to myself "why am I still using my 10-year-old, never sharpened, though relatively good quality, utility knife for absolutely everything".
I thought "it's just a knife, how complicated can it get".
Fell into a hole ...
And here we are. I get quite obsessive about stuff, if I don't keep in check things get out of hand.
My collection is quite modest compared to many people here, but certainly more then anyone really "needs".

Now .. why I don't sell all of them, probably what you're looking for:
- It's because I now appreciate the 1% cutting performance and aesthetics (didn't get into the pedigree of smiths yet).
- Having a modest collection, the total cost isn't really a significant portion of my general expenses ether, so selling it all or not, makes no real difference. (ex/ daycare in a major city is vastly higher, I imagine rent in places like SF will probably be more per month than my entire set)
- Tools that I use for, potentially, decades are certainly a better deal than other hobbies I went through, especially if you think in terms of amortizing over use time.
- I also thought better knives would make me cook more and maybe eat healthier, that was a mild success.

I feel like this hobby / addiction is in a pretty good spot right now, enough to enjoy but not so much that it hurts.


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## bahamaroot (Nov 7, 2019)

I bought one knife and loved it and then just started buying for the thrill and I think they are too cool.


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## CiderBear (Nov 7, 2019)

For more I want to try knives I'm curious in - just because. I cycle through collecting different stuff every 1.5~2 years or so. I expect that - 2 years down the road - the knives that I ultimately keep will just become normal tools that I use for cooking. I will have hit my knife plateau and not want to get new knives anymore (and trust me, I know this for a fact).

Until then... welp


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## Corradobrit1 (Nov 7, 2019)

Functional art that I can use daily. I like a challenge and finding those hard-to-get knives brings me a lot of satisfaction. The hunt is half the fun. Plus being a chemist I love the nerdy aspects of metallurgy and what makes a great cutting tool. Fact that I can sell for little to no loss just makes those high value purchasing decisions easier to justify.


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## captaincaed (Nov 7, 2019)

It's cheaper than heroin


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## Corradobrit1 (Nov 7, 2019)

captaincaed said:


> It's cheaper than heroin


But just as addictive


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## Byphy (Nov 8, 2019)

Same way ppl spend thousands on hoop shoes and never let them touch a court. Everyone collects something.


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## M1k3 (Nov 8, 2019)

CiderBear said:


> But I won't know unless I get to try one, arghhhhh


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## ian (Nov 8, 2019)

Barashka said:


> I also thought better knives would make me cook more and maybe eat healthier, that was a mild success.



For me, the good knives make me cut things smaller on average (‘cause once you chop it’s hard to stop) and make me find artificial ways to add things that I can cut into a dish (sometimes to the dish’s detriment). 



CiderBear said:


> I will have hit my knife plateau and not want to get new knives anymore (and trust me, I know this for a fact).



Woah, say it ain’t so! We’ll miss you.


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## Carl Kotte (Nov 8, 2019)

CiderBear said:


> I expect that - 2 years down the road - the knives that I ultimately keep will just become normal tools that I use for cooking. I will have hit my knife plateau and not want to get new knives



I feel the same way. I’m almost looking forward to the day it’s over. [emoji5]


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## daveb (Nov 8, 2019)

CiderBear said:


> I will have hit my knife plateau and not want to get new knives anymore (and trust me, I know this for a fact).





Carl Kotte said:


> I feel the same way. I’m almost looking forward to the day it’s over.



And then along comes JNats.........


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## Xenif (Nov 8, 2019)

CiderBear said:


> I will have hit my knife plateau



Thats what I thought too, but here I am at the 24 month mark, can't physically hold any more knives (unless I ads even more racks), looking BST everytime I go on a bathroom break knowing I cannot buy anymore .... But there are always Jnats  they take less room, more expensive, more obscure, and way less functional then any knife ....


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## Carl Kotte (Nov 8, 2019)

daveb said:


> And then along comes JNats.........



I guess you’re right but hope you’re wrong [emoji23]


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## K813zra (Nov 8, 2019)

Carl Kotte said:


> I guess you’re right but hope you’re wrong [emoji23]



Just do it, you know you want to.


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## Carl Kotte (Nov 8, 2019)

K813zra said:


> Just do it, you know you want to.



I’ve dipped my toe. Just hope not to drown.


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## ian (Nov 8, 2019)

Carl Kotte said:


> I’ve dipped my toe. Just hope not to drown.



My strategy was to spend $80 on the cheapest J-nat possible and then convince myself that they’re all of similar quality. In my experience, Jnats are all worse than synthetics. #selfdeceptionworks


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## Carl Kotte (Nov 8, 2019)

ian said:


> My strategy was to spend $80 on the cheapest J-nat possible and then convince myself that they’re all of similar quality. In my experience, Jnats are all worse than synthetics. #selfdeceptionworks



That was pretty smart. Will see if I manage to deceive myself now that I’m aware of the over all plan.


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## ian (Nov 8, 2019)

Xenif said:


> Thats what I thought too, but here I am at the 24 month mark, can't physically hold any more knives (unless I ads even more racks), looking BST everytime I go on a bathroom break knowing I cannot buy anymore .... But there are always Jnats  they take less room, more expensive, more obscure, and way less functional then any knife ....



Also, Xenif, here’s the real secret: if you sell some, you can buy more!


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## captaincaed (Nov 8, 2019)

ian said:


> Also, Xenif, here’s the real secret: if you sell some, you can buy more!


Again, like heroin


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## CharlieFoxtrot (Nov 8, 2019)

I just like cutting tools. I have several hundred dollars worth of EDC blades, as well. Mostly spydercos, and the latest a benchmade bugout. I've also got a knee mill and metal lathe at work. I've ground my own cutting tools for the lathe in the past. So expensive chef's knives are just one reflection of that obsession.


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## CiderBear (Nov 8, 2019)

daveb said:


> And then along comes JNats.........



About that... I was gonna ask if I could borrow a couple to try and compare... for research


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## panda (Nov 8, 2019)

ian said:


> My strategy was to spend $80 on the cheapest J-nat possible and then convince myself that they’re all of similar quality. In my experience, Jnats are all worse than synthetics. #selfdeceptionworks


ive yet to discover a synth better than my aizu..


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## ian (Nov 8, 2019)

panda said:


> ive yet to discover a synth better than my aizu..



Yea, I probably bought the wrong aizu. But don't burst my financially advantageous bubble, damn it!


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## K813zra (Nov 8, 2019)

ian said:


> Yea, I probably bought the wrong aizu. But don't burst my financially advantageous bubble, damn it!


 
Eh--some people love 'em and some don't. What I do know is that my harder Aizu and my KS seem to be in love.


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## captaincaed (Nov 8, 2019)

CiderBear said:


> About that... I was gonna ask if I could borrow a couple to try and compare... for research


If the first one were free, Maxim could retire


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## LucasFur (Nov 8, 2019)

I just have a collector mentality ... dont know why - Does anybody know why ... Why is it so predominately men on the forum?

I'm knife head because i believe its one of the easiest things you can collect that you can actually use regularly. 

Im 28 --- I'm collecting for long haul --- but comparing to others i know -----

Now:
My cousin will blow 1-5k on his muscle car
his wife will blow 1-5k buying purses
my wife will drop 1k easy buying yoga classes, facials, and manicures (which in encourage ... see below)
My good buddy will spend 5k a year on golf outings, clubs, , blah, blah ....
I think I have the best hobby. 


In 30 years:
My cousin will still have a shitter "muscle car" 
his wife will have ****** vintage bags 
my wife will be flexible & hot (I'm happy about that) 
My good buddy will have a lot of good golf days out with vintage clubs nobody wants anymore. 
I will have the best knives made by a bunch of dead master smiths 

-Lucas


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## WPerry (Nov 8, 2019)

tgfencer said:


> Knife buying is my one luxury hobby. I often times pine for the days when I had none.
> 
> I sometimes look at knife buying like this. Say a knife cost me $500. If I'm a pro with two weeks of vacation (I assume some cook somewhere gets this, although not in my limited experience), I might use it roughly 351 days of the year. That's $1.42 a day and then it's entirely "paid off." Not such a high price, less than a coffee. A home user might use that same knife only half the year, 182 days. That's still only $2.75 a day.
> 
> Either way, assuming you keep the knife longer than a year, the upfront cost doesn't actually work out to be a bad trade off in the end, especially when allowing for salvage/second hand sales value. At least, that's what I tell myself...I purposefully ignore the compounding effects in regards to buying multiple knives.



As a former salesman, looking at the amortization of a purchase is a favorite way to rationalize stuff. Even better is when you factor in the alternative, like eating out. Looking at it that way, my espresso machine and grinder has been making me money (vs daily Starbucks) for about 7 years. My knife purchases should make me money considerably sooner.


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## bahamaroot (Nov 8, 2019)

Xenif said:


> ...but here I am at the 24 month mark...


Hell, you're just getting started!


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## podzap (Nov 8, 2019)

WPerry said:


> As a former salesman, looking at the amortization of a purchase is a favorite way to rationalize stuff. Even better is when you factor in the alternative, like eating out. Looking at it that way, my espresso machine and grinder has been making me money (vs daily Starbucks) for about 7 years. My knife purchases should make me money considerably sooner.



I like the cut of your jib.


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## Paraffin (Nov 9, 2019)

WPerry said:


> As a former salesman, looking at the amortization of a purchase is a favorite way to rationalize stuff. Even better is when you factor in the alternative, like eating out. Looking at it that way, my espresso machine and grinder has been making me money (vs daily Starbucks) for about 7 years. My knife purchases should make me money considerably sooner.



That's a good point, especially when both partners in a relationship enjoy cooking. My wife and I don't eat out very often because we enjoy cooking so many things at home.

On the other hand... the only real investment that appreciates in value as part of a home cooking hobby is the kitchen itself, as part of the house when you sell it. Our kitchen build was done years ago, but it's still holding up well. I've never understood people who throw a lot of money into a kitchen remodel _just before_ they sell the house, so they don't have years to enjoy it.


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## Corradobrit1 (Nov 9, 2019)

WPerry said:


> my espresso machine and grinder has been making me money (vs daily Starbucks)


Man after my own heart. Can't remember last time I bought a coffee at Starsux or anywhere else for that matter. I invested heavily in my coffee setup but the daily rewards easily offset the outlay and those $5-10/day saved soon add up. Same goes for breadmaking.


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## Paraffin (Nov 9, 2019)

Corradobrit1 said:


> I invested heavily in my coffee setup but the daily rewards easily offset the outlay and those $5-10/day saved soon add up. Same goes for breadmaking.



Home breadmaking can be cost-effective, but it's a potential rabbit hole like every hobby where you can find ways to spend money and eliminate any savings. I got into baking rye bread a while ago, which for some recipes means mail-ordering flour types I can't get at the local supermarket or organic co-op. Specialty flour isn't that expensive, but it's heavy and the shipping is expensive. 

And then, the associated gear: digital scale, ceramic rising bowls, pizza stone, the dough kneading machine if you want something other than a Kitchen-Aid mixer hook. It can add up, although I guess that stuff is all "paid down" over time with savings over buying bread at the store. It's the specialty flour that's a continuing cost factor.


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## WildBoar (Nov 9, 2019)

Dough kneading machine?!? What, no guns?


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## ian (Nov 9, 2019)

WildBoar said:


> Dough kneading machine?!? What, no guns?



Surprisingly, there’s not a single youtube video related to “kneading dough with guns”.


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## ThinMan (Nov 9, 2019)

I like knives.


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## Corradobrit1 (Nov 9, 2019)

WildBoar said:


> Dough kneading machine?!? What, no guns?


I just use a breadmaking machine. Mix the 4 ingredients and the jobs a goodun. Simples


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## ACHiPo (Nov 9, 2019)

Total hobbyist here. My only "professional" experience was busboy/host at a restaurant in high school. That being said, it was what opened my eyes to cuisine and started me on the road.


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## daveb (Nov 9, 2019)

ian said:


> Surprisingly, there’s not a single youtube video related to “kneading dough with guns”.


\

Well, we can fix that easily enough.....


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## Paraffin (Nov 9, 2019)

ian said:


> Surprisingly, there’s not a single youtube video related to “kneading dough with guns”.



I believe that comment might have referred to the vernacular for "biceps." The conventional way to knead dough, 'ya know. 

And yeah, I got guns... years of kayaking will do that for 'ya. But a dough kneading machine lets me clean up all the prep bowls while that's happening. It also suits the scientist in me who is looking for consistency and repeatability with a formula. Bread making can be a "folk" pursuit done by instinct that makes terrific bread, or you can take the nerd approach. I'm a nerd at heart. I like getting consistent results with a dedicated kneading machine (not a Kitchen-Aid).


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## podzap (Nov 10, 2019)

Corradobrit1 said:


> I just use a breadmaking machine. Mix the 4 ingredients and the jobs a goodun. Simples



I just use my hands.


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## lowercasebill (Nov 10, 2019)

podzap said:


> I just use my hands.


I cant use my hands so i use silicone dough bags from amazon and use my feet. Bonus dough can rise in the bag.


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## lemeneid (Nov 10, 2019)

panda said:


> ive yet to discover a synth better than my aizu..


My giant Aoto would beg to differ


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## krx927 (Nov 10, 2019)

ian said:


> Yea, I probably bought the wrong aizu. But don't burst my financially advantageous bubble, damn it!



Me too. My Aizu is not what I was hoping to be when buying...


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## krx927 (Nov 10, 2019)

LucasFur said:


> I just have a collector mentality ... dont know why - Does anybody know why ... Why is it so predominately men on the forum?
> 
> I'm knife head because i believe its one of the easiest things you can collect that you can actually use regularly.
> 
> ...



I am a knife freak
But still your cousin will enjoy his muscle car much more than every knife ever made! I know this is knife forum but this is just the fact!

Nothing compares to speed not even knives!


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## panda (Nov 10, 2019)

krx927 said:


> I am a knife freak
> But still your cousin will enjoy his muscle car much more than every knife ever made! I know this is knife forum but this is just the fact!
> 
> Nothing compares to speed not even knives!


recently someone hit the side of my car, i almost cried. when my heiji was chipped to hell, it didnt affect me one bit, just fixed it and moved on..


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## panda (Nov 10, 2019)

lemeneid said:


> My giant Aoto would beg to differ


giant aoto is a synthetic? i once had an amazing natural blue aoto that was nearly as good as my aizu.


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## lemeneid (Nov 10, 2019)

panda said:


> giant aoto is a synthetic? i once had an amazing natural blue aoto that was nearly as good as my aizu.


nope, 100% natural and possibly the finest aoto i've handled so far, crushes my aizu by virtue of it being easier to work and finishes more aggressively. don't get me wrong, i love my aizu, but the aoto is just another level.

edit - ok nevermind wasn't reading carefully, thought you were referring to nats


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## Barmoley (Nov 10, 2019)

panda said:


> recently someone hit the side of my car, i almost cried. when my heiji was chipped to hell, it didnt affect me one bit, just fixed it and moved on..


Is that because one you can fix easily yourself and one you can't and is more expensive?


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## krx927 (Nov 10, 2019)

panda said:


> recently someone hit the side of my car, i almost cried. when my heiji was chipped to hell, it didnt affect me one bit, just fixed it and moved on..



I was not referring to this kind of speed / accidents / stupid driving. I meant the good one!


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## panda (Nov 10, 2019)

Barmoley said:


> Is that because one you can fix easily yourself and one you can't and is more expensive?


No, meaning I have an emotional connection with my car. My knives are not nearly that important to me. They are important but not on an it will affect my life level..


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## k7598 (Nov 10, 2019)

I like to work with high quality tools. Why should I not go for the best reasonable performance as a hobbyist? Even more so if I want to relax and enjoy?


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## ian (Nov 10, 2019)

panda said:


> ive yet to discover a synth better than my aizu..



So, inspired by you I just brought out the Aizu again for a second try. Took it to a Catcheside instead of whatever I tried it on last time, and.... ****, I may have to reevaluate my earlier negative impression. This forum is the worst.


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## megapuff5 (Nov 12, 2019)

I consider myself a culinary enthusiast, but am not a chef. As a kid I liked playing with knives and fire. After living in my own I got more into cooking learning I can make food better then what I eat when I go out to my tastes. Then I got my first Shun chefs knife, then I found knife forums when searching for a knife that didn't wedge cutting a sweet potato... the rest is history after dozens of knives and many years I'm fairly happy with my collection. Maybe just a Hattori 210 and Bill Burke knife still on the wish list, oh and another cleaver, and maybe a 3rd bread knife and down the rabbit hole I go.


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## Jeffrey Kramb (Nov 18, 2019)

Seems to be overwhelmingly people just want the best. Just about everything I buy, laptop, car, knives, bed linens I research to find the best I can get.


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