# Your Three Cheapest knives that ACTUALLY performed



## Lefty (Jan 7, 2013)

The "regrettable purchases" thread made me think about which crap knives, or insane bargains have worked out the best for you. 

My top three bargain buys are:

$5 Kiwi Nakiri
10 Icel Petty/gyuto
$25 Fujiwara FKH 120(ish) petty

Honorable mention goes to a Yamawaku nakiri, Global G2 chef, and my Boker King Cutter straight that I found at the St. Lawrence Market for all of $10  I think it was never sharpened, and stropped a handful of times in its 75 or so years.

So, how about you guys?


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## mhlee (Jan 7, 2013)

Dexter Carbon Steel Chinese Cleaver - originally purchased years ago for about $23 or so.
Stainless Japanese paring knife - $25
Dexter Russell fillet knife with the blade height ground down and reshaped to my spec - less than $20.

I love these knives. If I had to, I know I could survive with only these three knives.


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## stevenStefano (Jan 7, 2013)

Can't really think of 3, so just the one. Eden VG10 parer. Cost me £22.50 and it is great value, especially for a linen micarta handle, damascus pattern and VG10. Can't complain at all


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## Andrew H (Jan 7, 2013)

I don't know if the CCK counts, but it should. The other obvious choice is the $5 victorinox paring knife that I love.


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## NO ChoP! (Jan 7, 2013)

Mac Superior santoku parer, think I paid $26 new...wifeys favorite.
Forschner serrated parer. Paid $3 new...definately got my moneys worth out of it.
Not a kitchen knife, but fits in good value/ use from a cheapie...
Opinel carbone #5 pocket knife. Paid $7 new...opened one million and one boxes with it. Keens up with ease, nice and thin, and carbon to boot.


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## Lefty (Jan 7, 2013)

I forgot about our two Victorinox parers. Actually, my wife's 3 parer choices were all very cheap. That is, or course, until her first custom comes in  I think I'm more excited about it than she is! Haha


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## Pensacola Tiger (Jan 7, 2013)

A Ran Damascus parer I got off Amazon for $35 - VG-10 damascus, and every bit as good as the only Shun people like. I let a friend talk me into selling it to him.

A Kanemasa 12 cm petty I got for $20, shipped.

A Sabatier Yatagan carving knife for $25. This one is going to a friend, too.


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## kalaeb (Jan 7, 2013)

1. CCK 1303 cost about $30.00
2. Forgecraft 8" chefs. Cost: $20-25.00
3. Old Hickory bull nosed butcher (best thing for breaking down chicken, beats the laser thin stuff hands down imo) Cost $10.00

Honorably Mention
1. Miracle blade steak knives-better than wusthoff, henckels....at a fraction of the price.
2. Vicky paring-cost $2.50-5.00


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## SameGuy (Jan 7, 2013)

Just one, as the rest of my now-unused collection is made up of knives that have an inverse proportion of price to performance.

My $9 KAI PureKomachi2 "bread" knife was a terrific bargain. After a year of regular use it has been relegated to sandwich knife duties while I enjoy my Henry-handled Tojiro ITK 270 bread knife. I only hope that Mike's epoxy lets go when the time comes to replace the blade! It is truly an incredible performer at the Tojiro's regular selling price of less than $70 including shipping.


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## Twistington (Jan 7, 2013)

Fujiwara FKH 120mm petty $35
Eskilstuna 270mm scimitar in 12c27 $6
Cladded carbon 160mm practice knife from jns $6


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## Lefty (Jan 7, 2013)

Ok, where do I get an Eskilstuna scimitar for $6???


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## kalaeb (Jan 7, 2013)

Yes, and can I get one re-handled by you for $6.00?


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## Lefty (Jan 7, 2013)

+1 to Matt's +1


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## Twistington (Jan 7, 2013)

Lefty: I found it on a Swedish auction-site, wasn't she a beauty? 






Kaleb: If you find one and manage to catch me in a weak moment(post-whiskey) maybe! :lol2:


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## Jmadams13 (Jan 7, 2013)

I agree on the kiwi. I love mine, great little knife
The American Grinding 12" chefs I bought from lefty, best 25$ I've ever spent
My CCK 1303 of course, is now my go to workhorse
Old as dirt little cleaver I bought at antique mall. Not sure who its from, a can't remember what I paid, by after a little work, performs great
Vic paring


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## bikehunter (Jan 7, 2013)

I can't quite hold it to three. 4 Forschner/Vicky. One 10" Fibrox chef. Two straight 6" boning with rosewood, one flexible, one stiff. And one Fibrox Forschner stiff boning knife with the swept back blade All 4 bought at a yard sale for a total of 8 bucks. 

They sharpen easily, hold an edge moderately, as one would expect, and function surprisingly well for their intended purpose, and I use them often in spite of a fairly decent collection of Japanese knives (Nothing fancy like the rest of you guys...Tojiro gyuto , Kagayaki wa gyuto, Kanemasa honesuki, Tanaka gyuto, Yoshikane 240 hammered wa gyuto, couple of Shun Classic paring knives. None of which I bought new or paid anywhere NEAR retail. 

Frugal doesn't come near to describing me. Parsimonious would be the closest. My name appears in the dictionary right beside Bargain hunter/Skinflint.


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## Jmadams13 (Jan 7, 2013)

Forgot my honerable mention would be my VG10 Ikea chefs knife. I did t buy it, but at 50$ I would in a heartbeat


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## Benuser (Jan 7, 2013)

Once I've found an abandoned Victorinox rosewood cimitar neglected, abused (an obvious case of a res derelicta).
I took pity of it and it was my first serious project knife.
As it was clearly being abandoned, (and neglected etc.) I am far from wondering why the original owner didn't reclaim it.
I'm happy I could save it from further misuse.


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## Cadillac J (Jan 7, 2013)

-Victorinox serrated steak knives
-Fujiwara FKM petty


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## Blobby (Jan 7, 2013)

1. Robert Herder carbon paring knife. I think it was 6 Euro brand new. Insanely sharp.
2. Dexter Russell filleting knife I found stuck in a beam at an old abbattoir. I guess that's a find rather than a buy but it didn't cost much. Ran a steel over it and Bob's your uncle. Carbon of course. 
3. ICEL Santuko. Can't remember how much it cost but wasn't a lot. Think I found it at a charity shop. Glad ICEL's been mentioned. I think it's the best make of affordable stainless kitchen knives.


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## Patatas Bravas (Jan 7, 2013)

Benuser said:


> Once I've found an abandoned Victorinox rosewood cimitar neglected, abused (an obvious case of a res derelicta).
> I took pity of it and it was my first serious project knife.
> As it was clearly being abandoned, (and neglected etc.) I am far from wondering why the original owner didn't reclaim it.
> I'm happy I could save it from further misuse.



A sad, sad story but with a positive finish. Some people make me sick!


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## pumbaa (Jan 7, 2013)

$26 calphalon katana 5" utility vg1
$25 shun sheepsfoot parer
$free tojiro dp santoku


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## kiefer (Jan 7, 2013)

+1 on the Pure Komachi bread knife. I got mine for about $10 on ebay. Not much to look at, but it cuts bread just fine.


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## Lefty (Jan 7, 2013)

pumbaa, that Calphalon utility has always made me wonder. They have a 7" slicer, or honesuki, or something (can't remember) that I always thought had great potential too. Too bad they don't just get them made in Japan.


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## tomsch (Jan 7, 2013)

Opinel paring knife. The steel does not hold an edge for long but very easy to sharpen and an amazing slicer based on the thin profile.


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## Dave Martell (Jan 7, 2013)

When this Dojo knife was like $55 it was a great bargain (with blue #1 steel core) to have and still remains a favorite of mine to use but at $110 now I'd never buy it again.


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## bikehunter (Jan 7, 2013)

Perhaps the same might be said of Tojiro DP 240 gyuto which was 60 bucks when I bought it and now commonly double that. Now that I think about it, this may be a knife that I did, in fact, buy new at retail, from Korin no less.


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## joetbn (Jan 7, 2013)

Forschner Fibrox 10" Chef's Knife, $40.00; Forschner Fibrox Bread Knife, $30.00; CCK 1303, $40.00. I hesitated to put the chef's knife on there, but that Forschner performs better than any big name German knife costing 3 or 4 times it's price. The steel may be crap, but it's thin, light, and sharpens up pretty nicely. I'm surprised I'm the first to mention the 1303.


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## Andrew H (Jan 7, 2013)

joetbn said:


> I'm surprised I'm the first to mention the 1303.



You're not


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## joetbn (Jan 8, 2013)

Sorry Andrew, missed that one, you did beat me to it.


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## ThEoRy (Jan 8, 2013)

Helllloooo, I think I only paid like $48 for the tojiro itk bread knife before it first came out. Best. Deal. Ever.


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## mr drinky (Jan 8, 2013)

I will throw in the tosagatas at JWW. I have the Nakiri and Santoku that I bought for sharpening practice, and they used to be $8-10 cheaper -- now they are $49. Both are still in rotation and the wife loves them. I also have a victorinox bird's beak parer that does what it is supposed to do and is cheap as anything I have in my house.

k.


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## EdipisReks (Jan 8, 2013)

Dave Martell said:


> When this Dojo knife was like $55 it was a great bargain (with blue #1 steel core) to have and still remains a favorite of mine to use but at $110 now I'd never buy it again.



i've sharpened a friend's Dojo nakiri, which he had bought for about that amount. definitely a great knife for that kind of money. too bad they have gone up so much, like everything else.


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## jayhay (Jan 8, 2013)

Dave Martell said:


> When this Dojo knife was like $55 it was a great bargain (with blue #1 steel core) to have and still remains a favorite of mine to use but at $110 now I'd never buy it again.





EdipisReks said:


> i've sharpened a friend's Dojo nakiri, which he had bought for about that amount. definitely a great knife for that kind of money. too bad they have gone up so much, like everything else.



My best cheapish knife is my Dojo nakiri for around $80. Blue steel core, AS,#1,#2, not really sure but take an amazing edge and holds it. If they ever make a 240 gyuto (god I wish they would) I'd buy it. It has a weird half tang handle, which almost makes it impossible to rehandle, at least to me. Also, I just picked up a 240 Kanetsune Kanemasa Minomoto for $56 shipped on ebay a month back. It almost felt free. Knife is great for the price paid. Good geometery, bit of belly, thin, a lil soft but takes a good edge. Retention is just ok. But for $50, I don't think you could get a better carbon 240 new. And it was my first western re-handle. Cocobolo with a single brass rivet


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## jayhay (Jan 8, 2013)

mr drinky said:


> I will throw in the tosagatas at JWW. I have the Nakiri and Santoku that I bought for sharpening practice, and they used to be $8-10 cheaper -- now they are $49. Both are still in rotation and the wife loves them. I also have a victorinox bird's beak parer that does what it is supposed to do and is cheap as anything I have in my house.
> 
> k.



Is that the same knife as the Tosa Machinokajiya at Bernal? I picked up a few of those for rehandle project knives. The name is so crazy it seems fake lol. My google-fu finds nothing on it.


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## EdipisReks (Jan 8, 2013)

those 2N Kanetsunes are interesting looking. i haven't bought a Western handled knife in a long while, i might have to rectify that. what was the F&F like on it?


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## mr drinky (Jan 8, 2013)

jayhay said:


> Is that the same knife as the Tosa Machinokajiya at Bernal? I picked up a few of those for rehandle project knives. The name is so crazy it seems fake lol. My google-fu finds nothing on it.



They look similar, but not sure. The profile on the santoku is a bit (though not much) different from mine.

k.


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## jayhay (Jan 8, 2013)

EdipisReks said:


> those 2N Kanetsunes are interesting looking. i haven't bought a Western handled knife in a long while, i might have to rectify that. what was the F&F like on it?



F&F is quite good for the $. No issues with overgrinds and handle is clean. Spine and choil need to be rounded, give it a good sharpening and you're good to go. 



mr drinky said:


> They look similar, but not sure. The profile on the santoku is a bit (though not much) different from mine.
> 
> k.



Yeah, they do look similar. Just trying to find out more about the Machinokajiya brand.


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## Don Nguyen (Jan 8, 2013)

Dave Martell said:


> When this Dojo knife was like $55 it was a great bargain (with blue #1 steel core) to have and still remains a favorite of mine to use but at $110 now I'd never buy it again.



$55?!>!?!?! Uggh, I need to find a good deal like that...


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## franzb69 (Jan 8, 2013)

sounds good. those kanetsunes on ebay.


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## Mr.Magnus (Jan 8, 2013)

Twistington said:


> Lefty: I found it on a Swedish auction-site, wasn't she a beauty?
> 
> 
> 
> ...



your scimitar would look pretty with this :razz:


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## SpikeC (Jan 8, 2013)

https://picasaweb.google.com/112751778743200221986/KnifePics#5712408954722372786

18 bucks at the local Asian Megamart. Gets really sharp, holds the edge ok, great for chopping up the odd thing or 3!


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## quantumcloud509 (Jan 8, 2013)

Wusthof classic kit $140, the bread knife and the 8" chefs knife were my go-to's for the longest time. I still have both as my knives for home use. The parer and utility were nice, but barely got used cuz the other two were takin care of all the business.


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## Dusty (Jan 8, 2013)

F.dick de sosseur boning knife, about twenty five bucks. Still use it often for heavy lifting butchery tasks ( at least until I buy a hankotsu). It may literally have cleaned a tonne of striploin in the last ten years.


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