# Advice on wusthof knife set



## lomelanieve (Nov 17, 2011)

I became interested in kitchen knives recently and would like to purchase a relatively good knife/knife set. I saw on amazon that Wusthof Silverpoint II 10-Piece Knife Set with Block sometimes cost only 65$. I think it's really good price for wusthof. But as I'm currently in Germany and have no chance to see this silverpoint II, I would like to seek advice from you guys.


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## Benuser (Nov 17, 2011)

Price and name raise doubts about its origin...


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## welshstar (Nov 17, 2011)

These are cheap stamped knives

They have the Wusthof name on them but they are not to be confused with the proper forged Wusthofs.

If you want a throwaway set of plastic handled cheap knives then these will be as good as any but do not confuse these with proper knives

Alan


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## Mingooch (Nov 17, 2011)

I looked at those once as a gift, did the research and didnt buy them. Too many poor quality reviews.


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## Citizen Snips (Nov 17, 2011)

another thing you may want to re-think is the set itself. there is absolutely no reason to buy a 10 piece set. you really only need a chefs knife and a paring knife. some would argue that a bread knife is needed but its debatable. my opinion would be to only buy the knives you are going to use. pick up a decent forged chef knife and a usable paring knife and go from there. its much better to get two knives that you will use and spend the money on them rather than buying a bunch of knives that will sit in a block in your kitchen.


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## tk59 (Nov 17, 2011)

Yeah, it's definitely better to buy a couple of good knives than an entire set. I'd say most people use a 6-10 inch chefs knife and a 3-6 inch parer-type knife. After that, maybe an 8+ inch bread knife. Block sets are designed to get you to pay more for stuff that you'll never use. Whether Wusthof is right for you, is another discussion entirely.


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## Eamon Burke (Nov 17, 2011)

First, buy one. good. knife.


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## lomelanieve (Nov 18, 2011)

Thank you for all your advices. It seems that it's absolutely not a good idea to buy this knife set. But I'm curious if there is anyone using this knife set who can tell me the real feeling about it. I know most of you think the stamped knife is not as good as folged ones. But is stamped knife really so bad? Besides, if I buy an expensive chef knife I'm probably not willing to do tough work with it and always take good care of it which will make me tired sometime.


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## Timthebeaver (Nov 18, 2011)

lomelanieve said:


> Thank you for all your advices. It seems that it's absolutely not a good idea to buy this knife set. But I'm curious if there is anyone using this knife set who can tell me the real feeling about it. I know most of you think the stamped knife is not as good as folged ones. But is stamped knife really so bad? Besides, if I buy an expensive chef knife I'm probably not willing to do tough work with it and always take good care of it which will make me tired sometime.



Forged knives are not "better" than stamped knives per se, it's a moot point. If you want to buy some cheap knives which are decent performers, and that you don't have to worry about, get some Forschners (Victorinox).


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## welshstar (Nov 18, 2011)

You will not find anyone on the forum who would have much experience with that Wusthof set.

Dont misunderstand what everyone is saying though, there is nothing wrong with stamped knives, the are great for starter knives its just that bying a set like that is not the way to go. You will end up with several useless knives that never get used. The way to go is buy a good stamped chef knife, parer/utility and bread knife, if you look at the following link you can buy a 8/10 chef, bread and 4 inch parer set for around $60 which fits your budget. These knives are great quality and are typical of knives used in probably 90% of the worlds professional kitchens, you can beat the crap out of them and they will last for years.

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_s...d-keywords=forschner+knives&sprefix=forschner


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## tk59 (Nov 18, 2011)

Many excellent knives are essentially the same as stamped. I'd lump them in with anything made from a sheet of steel. My understanding is forging really has very little significance when it comes to mass-produced knives. Furthermore, you need not spend a lot of money to get an outstanding performer. What is your total cutlery budget?


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## lomelanieve (Nov 19, 2011)

Thank you very much for you recommendation. It seems to be a pretty good choice according to my budget.


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## Eamon Burke (Nov 19, 2011)

You really don't have to take care of it with any extreme measures. It's easy to be intimidated by knife enthusiasts, always sharpening, polishing and stuff...but it's totally not required for a lot of high end knives.

Really, what is your budget? Those sets are the worst. Buy one good knife, you'll never look back.


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## lomelanieve (Nov 19, 2011)

I have to say that I was attracted by this wusthof knife set only because of the price and name. Now I see it's not a good choice. About my budget, I would say 60$ for some daily use knives. So the victorinox seems to fit my budget well. I also would like to buy a decent knife after some more learning.


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## Eamon Burke (Nov 19, 2011)

That's good, and also inevitable. Buying a knife that is $50 won't last forever...it's just not enough money to get a permanent purchase(I mean, that IS only 6.6 hours at minimum wage). What's ironic is that you can buy a $50 knife that, despite the warranty(which is more financial management than craftsmanship), I've been told by brand and store reps "will last about 5 years", or you can spend 2-3 times that, and get a knife that will last the rest of your life.


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## tk59 (Nov 19, 2011)

lomelanieve said:


> ...I also would like to buy a decent knife after some more learning.


See you when you get back.


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## Benuser (Nov 19, 2011)

johndoughy said:


> That's good, and also inevitable. Buying a knife that is $50 won't last forever...it's just not enough money to get a permanent purchase(I mean, that IS only 6.6 hours at minimum wage). What's ironic is that you can buy a $50 knife that, despite the warranty(which is more financial management than craftsmanship), I've been told by brand and store reps "will last about 5 years", or you can spend 2-3 times that, and get a knife that will last the rest of your life.


A $80 Fujiwara FKH gyuto will last a life time as well if properly treated.


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## SpikeC (Nov 19, 2011)

I don't get this life span stuff. I have a Forschner 8 inch chef's that I acquired from a pawn shop in the late 80's or early 90's. It was the most used knife in my kichen by far up until I got my Takeda around the start of this year. I kept it sharp with a Henckels steel, and a fairly rare sharpening on Arkensas stones. The blade looks like it did when I got it. The softness of the steel in the blade allowed the steel to burnish the edge without removing noticeable metal. 
The knife had been left in the pawn shop with a briefcase of knives and other tools that a chef would have. As far as I can tell you would have to use a belt sander on it on a daily basis to wear it out.


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## tk59 (Nov 19, 2011)

Nah. It just means you have a high pain threshold when it comes to less than astonishingly sharp edges, lol.


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## Eamon Burke (Nov 19, 2011)

Benuser said:


> A $80 Fujiwara FKH gyuto will last a life time as well if properly treated.



True that. There are notable exceptions, but the Fujiwara and Tojiros of the world will still suffer from handle scales shrinking, a level of acceptable over/undergrinding. I mean, they are at least made so they can be maintained...you can only sharpen a Wusthof so much before maintenance is more work than it is worth.


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## Eamon Burke (Nov 19, 2011)

SpikeC said:


> I don't get this life span stuff. I have a Forschner 8 inch chef's that I acquired from a pawn shop in the late 80's or early 90's. It was the most used knife in my kichen by far up until I got my Takeda around the start of this year. I kept it sharp with a Henckels steel, and a fairly rare sharpening on Arkensas stones. The blade looks like it did when I got it. The softness of the steel in the blade allowed the steel to burnish the edge without removing noticeable metal.
> The knife had been left in the pawn shop with a briefcase of knives and other tools that a chef would have. As far as I can tell you would have to use a belt sander on it on a daily basis to wear it out.



I suppose I am a bit too used to the professional setting. The Forschner at work that my coworker has needs re-sharpening(cause the hone isn't cutting it) like a week after I sharpen it. I mean, I hate the way it cuts no matter how sharp it is, but still.


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## SpikeC (Nov 19, 2011)

If you have never used a knife that is thin behind the edge you don't miss it!


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## tk59 (Nov 19, 2011)

SpikeC said:


> If you have never used a knife that is thin behind the edge you don't miss it!


That's so true...


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## Eamon Burke (Nov 20, 2011)

Touche.


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## welshstar (Nov 20, 2011)

Why is anyone concerend about lifetimes use ?

We either sell them or have so many that unless the steel somehow falls apart its not an issue for anyone.


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## SpikeC (Nov 20, 2011)

True story. I have never even considered potential life span for knives or other tools, because I choose to buy quality.


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