# i still love my German knives.



## boomchakabowwow (Nov 2, 2016)

there i said it.

just made a big pot of Butternut Squash soup and my big 10" Wustof classic is my go-to kitchen hatchet. along the way, i kinda figured out how to sharpen a knife. i can get it damn near just as sharp as my Gyoto. i dont think i'll ever get rid of it. 

its not all nimble and hot-roddy like a thin japanese chef knife, but it still gets it done in fine style. that 10" has put down so many lobsters.  

i just touched it up and stropped it, and whoa!! just whoa. it has that singing sharp edge. you know when you touch the edge and it sings that metallic zinging sound?
i sharpened my wife's Wustof 6" GranPrix and i better leave a danger note on it.


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## Noodle Soup (Nov 2, 2016)

Totally agree. They aren't the best tool for everything but neither are the Japanese knives. Which are all copied off French styles rather than being something part of traditional Japanese culture. My wife prefers the Vics and F. Dicks in my block over all the fancy Japanese blades.


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## aboynamedsuita (Nov 2, 2016)

Well said boom, I still use the henckels from time to time.


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## merlijny2k (Nov 3, 2016)

We have a 13cm long slim german knife called kreuzblumen dunnschliff. Bought it from a knife salesman who had overstock knives in all kinds of odd shapes but nothing in the usual suspects like chefs etc. Paid 3,50 euro's for it. Edge was real sharp and almost but not quite Japanese like thin. Has been nothing but a pleasure to work with for more than six years now. Beautifull wooden handle too. Bought a GE Earn butchers from the same guy. Like the stel but the wood handle is falling apart from just a little water exposure. Never seen kreuzblumen knives again though. Not even on the forum.


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## Benuser (Nov 3, 2016)

http://www.messerforum.net/showthread.php?127914-billig-lasern-mit&highlight=Kreuzblumen


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## LifeByA1000Cuts (Nov 3, 2016)

Kreuzblume are common on german ebay, described as 70s vintage. Pronouced KrrroidddsBlueMay.

The Problem with the largest german makers (Zwilling/Henckels and Wusthof) is that they are trying to cover too broad a quality spectrum, causing everyone confusion re: "which of these are the cheap crap part, and which of these do they mean seriously". Might be intentional, "buy as expensive as you can to have the biggest chance of getting the serious ones". No idea about Güde's politics; Herder have always been just Herder without such games. Ceterum Censeo: The one thing I really like about Global is that they are not dicking around in the super-low and super-high price segments just to be there.


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## Karnstein (Nov 3, 2016)

merlijny2k said:


> We have a 13cm long slim german knife called kreuzblumen dunnschliff. Bought it from a knife salesman who had overstock knives in all kinds of odd shapes but nothing in the usual suspects like chefs etc. Paid 3,50 euro's for it. Edge was real sharp and almost but not quite Japanese like thin. Has been nothing but a pleasure to work with for more than six years now. Beautifull wooden handle too. Bought a GE Earn butchers from the same guy. Like the stel but the wood handle is falling apart from just a little water exposure. Never seen kreuzblumen knives again though. Not even on the forum.



Kreuzblume, without an "n" at the end...One can find them on German ebay, there is one vendor who sells them there. I owned one of those once and I know that some other German knife geeks also bought them for inexpensive projects or as a test-bed for how much thinning a run of the mill German stainless knife can take.


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## malexthekid (Nov 3, 2016)

I still have all of my Scanpan set which I got when my wife and I bought our current place 4 years ago. I do keep meaning to go through it and cull it down, but will likely keep a few as I like having some around for those tasks I just think are just that bit too risky to use my nice blades.


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## guari (Nov 3, 2016)

I love my cheapo stamped henckels for squash and hard shellfish. I don't use them for anything else though.


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## Nemo (Nov 3, 2016)

I like my 20 cm Wustie for pumpkins skins etc.

Wife likes using her Mundial set. She doesn't really like looking after them though. So I find myself steeling them every time after she has used them.


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## merlijny2k (Nov 3, 2016)

I'm sure if you speak German you can find lots of nice knife stuff from germany. My point with the Kreuzblume is also that not all of the nice local stuff makes it to the international market. I swear that thing came with a better edge than an ootb Wusthoff and i can know because i just had a new W here two weeks ago. I have looked them up online at some point out of curiosity but only found some plastic handled ones on ebay. Not the polished wood i have at home. Also perusing German ebay isnt as much fun if you don't speak the language at all. Most Dutch speak some German but i didnt grow up here.


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## alterwisser (Nov 3, 2016)

merlijny2k said:


> I'm sure if you speak German you can find lots of nice knife stuff from germany. My point with the Kreuzblume is also that not all of the nice local stuff makes it to the international market. I swear that thing came with a better edge than an ootb Wusthoff and i can know because i just had a new W here two weeks ago. I have looked them up online at some point out of curiosity but only found some plastic handled ones on ebay. Not the polished wood i have at home. Also perusing German ebay isnt as much fun if you don't speak the language at all. Most Dutch speak some German but i didnt grow up here.



You can find some very well made knives, of course! Some of the Herders are decent knives, the Gude bread sword, but especially custom makers.

Most of you heard of Tilman Leder, who makes stock removal, mostly in Niolox.

The one to watch out for - if you ask the German guys around - is Jannis Scholz (Xerxes Knives), who makes full customs but also just launched a semi custom series and a ready made series of three knives for the German vendor "Messerkontor" (google it, not sure I am allowed to link to it).

It's San Mai, with a SC125 core. Will Catchside talked about his impressions of the steel earlier this year 

http://www.kitchenknifeforums.com/showthread.php/26979-New-Steels/page2

I recently ordered the 230 Gyuto (longest blade offered), and with the VAT taking out it came to something like $380, which is not bad for a hand forged San Mai with Bog Oak and Brass handle. Someone in the German forum mentioned they look A LITTLE like Andy Billipps work... 

I also have a laser from Jannis' semi custom series, which easily outperforms my Ashi Ginga and is on par with my Dalman (albeit with worse food release).


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## LifeByA1000Cuts (Nov 3, 2016)

@merlijny2k not really. Of course there are boutique/custom makers as are everywhere, but small-scale-industrial brands (what you would call a Manufaktur) that make anything worth international interest in the kitchen segment have become scarce. Herder, yes. Burgvogel, probably. Maybe one can consider Jürgen Schanz as being in that segment too.

Germans, especially the younger ones, tend to view german things with a kind of subdued realism, "it is german so expect it to be solid and boring, not spectacular nor disastrous, well executed but expensive and outmoded. Unless it is a german brand on a cheap import again, then it will be a mix of spectacular and lousy". Part of that cynicism comes from the way german brands have been stamped on things not of german manufacture or quality expectations, and how the brands that didn't sell out stayed behind instead, in the last few decades.


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## LifeByA1000Cuts (Nov 3, 2016)

Oh, and a brand that has been positively received but seems to be going in and out of business constantly: Wasserkraft


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## boomchakabowwow (Nov 3, 2016)

my wife is currently in Taipei. i pulled out a sheet of receipt paper and ribbened it with her favorite...all on FACETIME. it got funny because she made me do it for her family, and they CHEERED. hahah..

i miss that family, and they love a sharp blade. i'm hoping she brings me back a badass cleaver


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## merlijny2k (Nov 4, 2016)

The Xerxes look pretty cool indeed.


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## merlijny2k (Nov 4, 2016)

That messerkontor shop got some fun stuff indeed $100 24cm Rosselli Kurouchi santoku. Would be fun to try out a beast like that. The Kamo's go for double the rebranded ones we have here though . Also like the burgvogel redwood line. Handle doesn't look overly heavy. Never seen that line before but its a real looker.


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## merlijny2k (Nov 4, 2016)

Schanz doesn't really tick it for me. Looks a lot like the Blok's from UK. Just not my style i guess.


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## Badgertooth (Nov 4, 2016)

alterwisser said:


> You can find some very well made knives, of course! Some of the Herders are decent knives, the Gude bread sword, but especially custom makers.
> 
> Most of you heard of Tilman Leder, who makes stock removal, mostly in Niolox.
> 
> ...



Alter, I saw a cutting video of it linked by the vendor. Tell me that's not just a chef making it look easy and it's actually an amazing cutter?


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## LifeByA1000Cuts (Nov 4, 2016)

Roselli is Finnish not German. And his geometry seems to be dividing people on european forums (some think it also divides the food some don't , while his UHC steel (which seems to be his own, bulat-like, custom melt and specified at 66HRC!) is generally found interesting


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## dwalker (Nov 4, 2016)

I have a few Roselli knives as well as some Wusthof and Henkel. While the Roselli knives live in the kitchen, the Germans have become my camping knives. I still enjoy using them. BTW, the Rosellis take an absolute beating and keep going. There is nothing about them that could be construed as thin behind the edge but they can be made very sharp and are tough as nails. I hack through bones and frozen food with reckless abandon.


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## alterwisser (Nov 4, 2016)

Badgertooth said:


> Alter, I saw a cutting video of it linked by the vendor. Tell me that's not just a chef making it look easy and it's actually an amazing cutter?



Should be able to tell you soon. Hope it's here this weekend....

The laser I have is a pretty darn good cutter, so I assume this one will be too....


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## coxhaus (Dec 17, 2020)

boomchakabowwow said:


> there i said it.
> 
> just made a big pot of Butternut Squash soup and my big 10" Wustof classic is my go-to kitchen hatchet. along the way, i kinda figured out how to sharpen a knife. i can get it damn near just as sharp as my Gyoto. i dont think i'll ever get rid of it.
> 
> ...



I have been using my German knives for 50 years and I still cannot see a reason to change. I have my mom's Henckels 4-star knives that I grew up with. 

Looking at this forum I thought I was the only 1 until I found this thread.


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## Barmoley (Dec 17, 2020)

This is also from 2016, he might’ve changed his mind

many types of knives obviously work. Some people love Chinese cleavers for example and they work very well even though most are made of pretty low quality steels and are soft compared to Japanese style knives. German style knives work great for 95% of the western world, totally made up statistic, but that doesn’t mean Japanese style knives have nothing to offer. For example, they usually cut much better and longer than german counterparts. On the other hand they usually require more care and better technique.


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## GBT-Splint (Dec 17, 2020)

Same here, A Wusthof classic ikon Chef 180? was my first knife, I left it for dead for years using full Japanese knives. I ended up with a lot of time to kill because of covid 19, did a little restoration, thinned it A LOT, sharpened and polished a bit. It's now a real pleasure to use (super sharp). It's still not going to follow me to work but I'm very happy with the result.


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## GBT-Splint (Dec 17, 2020)

Damn I'm 4 years late for this thread..


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## boomchakabowwow (Dec 17, 2020)

GBT-Splint said:


> Damn I'm 4 years late for this thread..


 no you are not. welcome..

i just used my big cheffie to slice a fresh sourdough..my bread knife was juuuuusst out of reach, and i was feeling super lazy.


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## Ericfg (Dec 17, 2020)

I got my first German knives in the early 1990s. I still have almost all of them and some still get used regularly to this day. And, I've recently been buying some vintage (1910-1970) German knives from ebay. I got a few reactive steel blades that are just dreamy after I put in the work to rehabilitate them.


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## ian (Dec 17, 2020)

boomchakabowwow said:


> no you are not. welcome..
> 
> i just used my big cheffie to slice a fresh sourdough..my bread knife was juuuuusst out of reach, and i was feeling super lazy.



You know your measure when you need to chop up your dough on the counter and your bench scraper is in a drawer 2 ft to your right, but your honyaki is right there in front of you...

Knives are tools. Am I right?


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## Jovidah (Dec 17, 2020)

coxhaus said:


> I have been using my German knives for 50 years and I still cannot see a reason to change. I have my mom's Henckels 4-star knives that I grew up with.
> 
> Looking at this forum I thought I was the only 1 until I found this thread.


How do you know when you haven't tried anything else?
Big fat German knives have their uses; I have a big Wusty myself for kitchen axe duty... it's nice to have at least 1 blade that you can just abuse for rough jobs and not give a damn... but that doesn't mean it's good for everything. Ability to take abuse comes at a cost.
Of course it's still 'more than servicable for average kitchen use', but by that standard you don't need a Wüsty or a Zwilling either; you can just go to Ikea.
At standard price stuff the big fat Germans aren't even that cheap and are basically in the same price range as plenty of other blades that cut far better.

If you want to mix it up get something from Robert Herder. You can stay true to your German affection, but you'll get something that can actually cut a carrot...
If you're okay with full bolsters (or even actually want that sort of thing), just get a Robert Herder 1922 chef knife and be done with it.


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## AT5760 (Dec 17, 2020)

I’ll never get rid of my Henckels chef knife. It’s great for chopping nuts and chocolate. But, unless I’m baking, it gets no use anymore.


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## Barmoley (Dec 17, 2020)

I have a henckels 8" chef as well. I sharpened it last year when my relatives came over it was a hit with them, lots of excitement, it did pretty well. It can't be compared to any of the other knives I have though. Just can't. I tried to make it perform in a similar manner, but the steel can't support being so thin and acute, so that didn't work. After that failed attempt I just let it be what it is and everyone liked it, my uncle wanted to take it with him. Can it be a good knife? It sure can, can it cut as well as quality Japanese style knives? Maybe for a very short time, but just not worth the effort. An ok knife though that I've had for a long time and that my relatives are all excited about. Can still be an excellent tool in many circumstances.


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## coxhaus (Dec 18, 2020)

I have about 30 German Kitchen knives all are Henckels 5 & 4-star and some Wusthof classic knives. Some are old that were my mom's knives and still work like they did 50 years ago. I sharpen them with a Work Sharp Ken Onion. It is easy to maintain the knives. It does not take any time to sharpen all those knives. I also keep sharpen 12 steak knives. There are a lot of knives to maintain. My system seems easy to me and I would not want to go back to manual sharpening which I could not keep up all the sharpening by hand.

I have a big chef knife I have had for around thirty years. It is a heavy 11 1/2 inch big knife that works well for cutting Texas sized watermelons, big cabbage heads, spaghetti squash. Using thin blade knives feel like they would break with any side force. My wife did not cut any of that until I showed my wife it was real easy with the big heavy chef knife. It goes right through without any unsafe feeling. Everybody seems thin is better but not in this case in my opinion.


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## tchan001 (Dec 18, 2020)

I love my Xerxes.


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## Carl Kotte (Dec 18, 2020)

Dick!


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## daddy yo yo (Dec 18, 2020)

There was a thread in a German forum which started like this and ended with people discussing that everybody wants but not everybody has a 12“ Dick!


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## M1k3 (Dec 18, 2020)

daddy yo yo said:


> There was a thread in a German forum which started like this and ended with people discussing that everybody wants but not everybody has a 12“ Dick!


Old Dick's are better. There's a thread floating around on them.


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## Michi (Dec 18, 2020)

I have about 20 Wüsthof Classic knives all up. Some of them are over 30 years old and (before I knew better) have been through the dishwasher hundreds of times. They just shrug it off (except for the rivets which, after a number of years, gradually get eaten away by the dishwashing soap).

The Wüsthofs are good knives. I'd happily cook with nothing else for the rest of my days. They are easy to sharpen (except for that bloody bolster), and they hold their edge for months, provided that I use a honing rod each time I use them.

I can make them wickedly sharp with little effort, finishing on a 1000-grit stone for a toothy edge, or on a 3000-grit stone for something more refined. They do hold an acute angle quite well. I have a non-flexible boning knife with a 14-15º edge that just glides through pork rind. It really is amazingly sharp.

The nicest thing about these knives is that they are so forgiving. Torque the knife on the cutting board? Not a problem. Cut semi-frozen food? Just fine. Hack away at a fish with hard bones, such as snapper? Go for it. Have some guests over who don't know a knife from a hacksaw? Relax. Leave it wet, covered with lemon juice on the bench overnight? So what. Drop it on the floor? What's the big deal, just bend down and pick it up again.

My Japanese knives are a lot more refined, sharper, and more fun. But they also require a lot more care, need wiping down, are prone to rust, won't tolerate a honing steel, chip easily, and won't survive getting dropped (let alone being put in a dishwasher).

I love my Japanese knives. They are fun. But there is no way I'll let go of my Wüsthofs. Both kinds of knives have their place.


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## LUWerner (Dec 18, 2020)

Horses for courses, I say. They may be lacking in some departments but depending on the situation they work perfectly fine, and possibly may be THE best tool for the job. As long as they don't have that integral bolster...
I honestly think they have a place in every kitchen.


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## jonnachang (Dec 18, 2020)

Always with me


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## ModRQC (Dec 18, 2020)

In French, "G" sounds about like "J" in English, so if we ever convert to G-Knives, I'll just keep on blabbing about J-Knives. Thanks God!


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## Ericfg (Dec 19, 2020)

jonnachang said:


> Always with me View attachment 106889


Nice! I see at least one Wusthoff, possibly both? And it's kinda hard to tell from the image but are they both reactive steel? If so what's the story on those two? How old? Where'd you get them? How/when do you use them?


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## Ericfg (Dec 19, 2020)

So.... Can we post our German collections?
Inspired by jonnachang here are mine:






Almost all made in Solingen with a couple sourced out to Spain, Japan and China. All made in the last 100 years with a few made before the rise of stainless steel blades.
Most of these are Henckels blades with a few from Schiff, Weck & Muller, Wusthoff, Miyabi...
The last image is of my camera's monopod, kitchen floor and a tablecloth I used as a background for these shots.


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## jonnachang (Dec 20, 2020)

> Ericfg said:
> 
> 
> > Nice! I see at least one Wusthoff, possibly both? And it's kinda hard to tell from the image but are they both reactive steel? If so what's the story on those two? How old? Where'd you get them? How/when do you use them?
> ...


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## LUWerner (Dec 21, 2020)

Impressive! Some really nice ones you got there.


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## Ericfg (Dec 21, 2020)

jonnachang said:


> Thanks. They are both vintage carbon Wusthof from the 1960’s I believe. eBay is where I got them. Cheers!


There's a lot of vintage steel on ebay. Most of it's in the $75-$300 range but the three carbon steel, and two 1960's stainless knives I've got were all under $20. Just needed a little TLC.
I'm still working on when the shift in Germany went from carbon to stainless but from what I've seen so far it happened in the '50s. Naturally some manufacturers switched early to all stainless while some may have kept a carbon line for some few more years until stainless was firmly established as the best seller.


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## LUWerner (Dec 21, 2020)

50s? In post-war Germany? I would think it would be later, in the early 60s.


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## Benuser (Dec 22, 2020)

From French makers I know they exported stainless to North-America long before introducing it on their home market. Reputation of those stainless at home was quite horrible. 'It shines but doesn't cut.'


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## LUWerner (Dec 22, 2020)

I was under the impression that SS for knives started to be used in Europe only in the late-late 50s or early 60s. Here in Brazil up to the 60s knives coming from Solingen or Sheffield were all carbon steel. Local production of SS knives only began _en force_ here in the late 60s.


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## cotedupy (Dec 22, 2020)

Ericfg said:


> So.... Can we post our German collections?
> Inspired by jonnachang here are mine:View attachment 107032
> View attachment 107033
> View attachment 107034
> ...



A decent collection there! 

Out of interest - what Spanish knife/knives do you have? I'd love to have one or two reasonable quality Spanish knives (mostly just for sentimental reasons).


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## Ericfg (Dec 22, 2020)

cotedupy said:


> Out of interest - what Spanish knife/knives do you have? I'd love to have one or two reasonable quality Spanish knives (mostly just for sentimental reasons).


Just the Henckels International brand outsourced to Spain knives, nothing special.


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## TB_London (Dec 22, 2020)

Stainless Cutlery was first made in Sheffield from around 1920, mostly for flatware. Not sure when it started to be used for kitchen knives though. 
I still keep a henckels due to it being one of my first “good” knives. Vintage Sheffield are great, though due to the anti knife culture in UK are difficult to find.


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## deanb (Dec 22, 2020)

I have quite a few stainless steel German and French knives. They have their place because they’re tough and receptive to a steel. I also have quite a few K- Sabatier which are all carbon steel. I like them because they are even more receptive to a steel than their stainless brothers and will keep a razor edge for a long time. My favorite knives though are Japanese (except for my 52100 genuine Kramer 9” Chef’s knife). It’s just so easy to keep that razor edge with just a borosilicate rod and occasional stropping that I don’t have to put them to stones for years. Of course they’re all HRC 61-66. Isn’t it fun to collect kitchen knives?!


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## Jovidah (Dec 22, 2020)

cotedupy said:


> A decent collection there!
> 
> Out of interest - what Spanish knife/knives do you have? I'd love to have one or two reasonable quality Spanish knives (mostly just for sentimental reasons).


There might be others, but the two still active Spanish knife producers I know of are Arcos and Pallares Solsona. 

Of those two, Arcos mostly makes stuff that's very similar to the industrial German stuff, both in steel and style, while Pallares makes more traditional and unique stuff - some carbon blades as well.
No clue about the real quality of either; only enocuntered them while windowshopping.


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## Benuser (Dec 23, 2020)

Have a few carbon Pallarès Solsona. Unexpensive, certainly not cheap. Surprising C60 @60Rc. Strongly convexed on both sides, well-thought profile, acceptable F&F. Straight. Evenly ground. Well-made no-nonsense. Thin it a bit behind the edge and you have a solid performer for very little money.


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## cotedupy (Dec 24, 2020)

Jovidah said:


> There might be others, but the two still active Spanish knife producers I know of are Arcos and Pallares Solsona.
> 
> Of those two, Arcos mostly makes stuff that's very similar to the industrial German stuff, both in steel and style, while Pallares makes more traditional and unique stuff - some carbon blades as well.
> No clue about the real quality of either; only enocuntered them while windowshopping.



Now that you mention - I remember coming across Pallares online earlier this year, and thinking I wanted to try them.

And then whaddya know... my parents had sent a load of Christmas presents over from the UK a few weeks ago, including this 






[Apologies for the thread derailment, but I thought it too nice a coincedence to leave unmentioned. Back to German knives...]


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## aikon2020 (Dec 26, 2020)

I still use my Wusthof classic ikons for the rougher tasks that I don't want to put my japanese knives through, and I also got a couple of victorinox for the same purpose, they all have a solid place in my kitchen, just for different things!


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## HappyamateurDK (Dec 27, 2020)

Totally agree. And nice to see some love for the German workhorse knifes. 

I have a little variety of German knives. And they are just so sturdy and versatile. They might not do anything perfect, but they do most things good. From fine dicing an onion to cutting out a selleri. 

I own more Japanese then German knives. But if I could only keep one of my knifes. It would without a doubt be a German. 

I own a Zwilling twin cuisine, a wüsthof crafter, a Fdick Premier and a Burgvogel Juglans line. I would rank Fdick and Burgvogel above Zwilling and wüsthof. Both in cutting and F&F.


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## Eloh (Dec 27, 2020)

Modern day German mass produced knives by Zwilling and wüsthoff since the 70ies are pretty trash due to the bad automated machine grind.
Herder K chef and herder 1922 are some of the modern exceptions that actually have a traditional fully convex, thin grind. 

Her is my 10" f. Dick wich gets restaurated right now. ..


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## Benuser (Dec 27, 2020)

HappyamateurDK said:


> Totally agree. And nice to see some love for the German workhorse knifes.
> 
> I have a little variety of German knives. And they are just so sturdy and versatile. They might not do anything perfect, but they do most things good. From fine dicing an onion to cutting out a selleri.
> 
> ...


Believed you had a Herder 1922 as well.


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## HappyamateurDK (Dec 27, 2020)

Benuser said:


> Believed you had a Herder 1922 as well.



I do..I'm just not sure if it could be called a workhorse due to it's pretty thin grind. But I really like it


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## coxhaus (Dec 28, 2020)

HappyamateurDK said:


> I own a Zwilling twin cuisine, a wüsthof crafter, a Fdick Premier and a Burgvogel Juglans line. I would rank Fdick and Burgvogel above Zwilling and wüsthof. Both in cutting and F&F.



So, is the Zwilling twin cuisine the same as the Zwilling PRO line? Maybe same steel? What about Henckels 4-star? I am just trying to figure this all out. I had a Henckels knife a long time ago that kind of looked the same as a 4-star but it never performed as well so eventually I rid of it. I got tired of having to sharpen it more than the other knives.


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## HappyamateurDK (Dec 28, 2020)

coxhaus said:


> So, is the Zwilling twin cuisine the same as the Zwilling PRO line? Maybe same steel? What about Henckels 4-star? I am just trying to figure this all out. I had a Henckels knife a long time ago that kind of looked the same as a 4-star but it never performed as well so eventually I rid of it. I got tired of having to sharpen it more than the other knives.



I can't say for sure. 

But I'm pretty certain it's the same blade with different handles


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## daveb (Dec 28, 2020)

I did catering work for a culinary store that retailed (among others) the Zwilling / Henckels knives. Their lines all looked the same and were always changing, they didn't know if they wanted to serve the high end market, the housewife market or the Wallyworld market. The store eventually discontinued all of their products (except Miyabi) cause folks would look at a set of Four Star in our store for $300 and compare it to a set from Target for $99. The owner got tired of it. THe Wusties and Messermeisters had different enough packaging that it wasn't confusing.


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## Jovidah (Dec 28, 2020)

Zwilling still has a few fancier lines. A good example is the Zwilling Diplôme... a knife series developed with a French culinary school and made in Japan. Then there's the Zwilling Kramer series, a line that designed in cooperation with an American smith and made in Japan. All very German. 
I can understand people getting 'confused' by Zwillings desire to cater to every different segment of the market.


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## Michi (Dec 29, 2020)

Ericfg said:


> So.... Can we post our German collections?


Here are the Wüsthofs I've accumulated over the years. All of these see regular use.


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## spaceconvoy (Dec 29, 2020)

Nice collection, didn't realize Wusthof made double-ended adult toys


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## Ericfg (Dec 29, 2020)

Michi said:


> Here are the Wüsthofs I've accumulated over the years. All of these see regular use.


Very nice mate! I've got that same offset cheese (brie?) knife. Dunno where I found it.


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## Michi (Dec 29, 2020)

Ericfg said:


> Very nice mate! I've got that same offset cheese (brie?) knife. Dunno where I found it.


The offset knife is meant for hard and semi-hard cheeses. The one with the holes is meant for soft cheeses, such as brie.


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## tchan001 (Dec 29, 2020)

I love my JJT.


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## JASinIL2006 (Jan 4, 2021)

Michi said:


> Here are the Wüsthofs I've accumulated over the years. All of these see regular use.
> View attachment 108027



I'm surprised the Wustof logos on your handles are so nice-looking. Mine is faded and you can barely tell it's the Wustof symbol.


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## GBT-Splint (Jan 9, 2021)

tchan001 said:


> I love my JJT.


What brand is it exactly ?


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## dafox (Jan 9, 2021)

Michi said:


> Here are the Wüsthofs I've accumulated over the years. All of these see regular use.
> View attachment 108027


Have you tried the demi bolster chef knife?


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## Benuser (Jan 9, 2021)

By the way: when speaking about German knives the name of Gustav Emil Ern can't be missed. According to people who know their stuff, probably the best factory knives ever produced in Germany, until their bankruptcy in the 1970's. The name has been sold and been used since for very average products. So take care! 
How excellent they might have been, somewhere end 1920's they distinguished their blades with the inscription in Sütterlin — tradional handwriting — of 'Germanenmesser', Germanics' knife. The timing was no coincidence. 





How do I identify vintage Gustav Emil Ern?


It's my understanding that the knives this company produced before the 1980's are exquisite, whereas the ones produced after that are junk. How do I tell the difference between the two from pictures posted online?




www.kitchenknifeforums.com


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## Michi (Jan 9, 2021)

dafox said:


> Have you tried the demi bolster chef knife?


No, I've never tried it. I would expect it to handle much like a Shun Hiro, or any other Wa-handled Japanese knife with a pronounced belly. The steel is the same as for all the other Wüsthof Classic knives, so there won't be any surprises there.


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## Iggy (Jan 9, 2021)

GBT-Splint said:


> What brand is it exactly ?



JJT = Jean Jose Tritz

A german knifemaker from Hamburg. One of the most experienced knife makers for chef knives in Germany at least, maybe in Europe...
Makes mostly rustic sanmai style blades with iron and carbon steels (SC145 f.e.) but also some damascus with crazy work effort etc.

Love mine as well.







Iggy


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## Jovidah (Jan 9, 2021)

The Wüsthof Ikons are _really_ butt heavy. So while the profile on some Shuns might be the same I doubt the balance would be (don't have a Shun here to compare so still a guess).

My 23cm Wüstaxe balances exactly where the scale starts in the handle. Noticably behind the bolster.


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## Benuser (Jan 9, 2021)

Jovidah said:


> The Wüsthof Ikons are _really_ butt heavy. So while the profile on some Shuns might be the same I doubt the balance would be (don't have a Shun here to compare so still a guess).
> 
> My 23cm Wüstaxe balances exactly where the scale starts in the handle. Noticably behind the bolster.
> View attachment 109417


I guess rock-choppers will like it. For others it feels awkward.


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## Jovidah (Jan 9, 2021)

Honestly the balance isn't as awkward as I expected. Still cuts just fine. What bothers me more is that the downward angle doesn't feel ergonomic to my wrist at all. It's not really a problem for me since I use it as a kitchenaxe for whenever I need an abuse knife to cut chocolate, nuts, half-frozen food and that sorta thing, but I don't think I'd feel comfortable using this for hours on end.


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## GBT-Splint (Jan 9, 2021)

Iggy said:


> JJT = Jean Jose Tritz
> 
> A german knifemaker from Hamburg. One of the most experienced knife makers for chef knives in Germany at least, maybe in Europe...
> Makes mostly rustic sanmai style blades with iron and carbon steels (SC145 f.e.) but also some damascus with crazy work effort etc.
> ...


Good to know thanks for the answer these look great


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## Michi (Jan 10, 2021)

Jovidah said:


> The Wüsthof Ikons are _really_ butt heavy. So while the profile on some Shuns might be the same I doubt the balance would be (don't have a Shun here to compare so still a guess).


Yes, the balance point is more forward on my Shun Hiro:




On my 20 cm Wüsthof Classic chef's knife, the balance point is pretty much in the same place as on the Icon. (Maybe one or two mm more forward, but the difference isn't enough to really matter.)


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## landshark (Jan 10, 2021)

My first good kitchen knives were a set of Wusthof Classics until discover Japanese knives, over the years i have passed most of those on to my daughters, but still keep a few few around for specific uses. In the kitchen I still use the heavy cleaver for heavy chopping use, a slicing knife for carving turkey and not having to worry about the bones when someone else carves, a serrated utility knife for slicing hard salami and a set of steak knives for table use. In my knife bag, a slicer and utility for the same reasons as above, boning knife, a paring and a 8" chefs to use like a western Deba.


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## DitmasPork (Jan 11, 2021)

boomchakabowwow said:


> there i said it.
> 
> just made a big pot of Butternut Squash soup and my big 10" Wustof classic is my go-to kitchen hatchet. along the way, i kinda figured out how to sharpen a knife. i can get it damn near just as sharp as my Gyoto. i dont think i'll ever get rid of it.
> 
> ...



I'm not a German knife hater. My Wustof classic chef's and petty prob the oldest knives in the kitchen, useful as beaters, iconic knives, rugged as hell.


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## DitmasPork (Jan 11, 2021)

My prized carbon Wustof cleaver, heirloom from my family.


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## Ericfg (Jan 11, 2021)

Benuser said:


> By the way: when speaking about German knives the name of Gustav Emil Ern can't be missed.


I've got one due to be delivered (hopefully) tomorrow. It's a round nose slicer that is missing it's scales. I've got some really nice, figured walnut I've been saving for a special occasion.
I'm on vacation this week so I can't wait to get started on this project.


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## stevenStefano (Jan 11, 2021)

On my first ever Chef job the Head Chef had a set of Wusthofs and was showing off how much the set cost. Little did I know a few years later I'd have 1 knife that cost more than al of his put together


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## boomchakabowwow (Jan 12, 2021)

Now imagine if you took that knife money and bought Google stocks?


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