Does anyone else here have some Cutco knives? My parents have several and my wife and I received a couple as wedding gifts. I absolutely love them. We have a straight-edge paring and a serrated 5 inch.

I'm no chef, and have no affiliation, but I love these knives and if you ever get the chance, check them out.

Cutco website

My folks have had a Cutco set for the last 40 years. I've replaced three over the past few years that had been seriously abused by myself while I was growing up. They are arguably the best stamped-steel knives produced. They ain't German forged Henckels, but most Henckels these days ain't German forged Henckels. They're good knives, more than adequate for any kitchen task.

My roommate in the dormitory at college got into selling them. He had to invest in a full set for himself so he could demo them. I never bought any, but he left behind a 4" serrated knife when he bailed mid-semester. I've still got it 13 years later and use it regularly. Never been re-sharpened and still cuts tomatoes with ease.

They're definitely fine kitchen cutlery.

I have a full set and absolutely love them. After buying my set I bought a ton of them. From individual knifes to full sets. If you need a knife (brand new) or two...let me know and I will give you a price you can't beat.

My mother bought a set about 10 years ago. I feel like they are impossible to sharpen and lost their edge rather quickly. The serrated blads are still pretty sharp.
I prefer Henckels and I use my kitchen knives a lot. It never takes more than a few turns on the iron and they are back to new again. Most people I know who use Cutco like them.

It depends on what you want in a knife, and you should understand several things before spending a lot of money on them.

1) Cutco is sold via self-stocking independent distributors, which is why you find them at home shows. The distributors' income comes from the profit they can turn on their own stock. In other words, you pay significant markups.

2) You're paying significant markups for a stamped steel product that you can't sharpen.

That about sums it up.

If you want to spend that kind of money, look to Henkel or my personal favorite, Wusthof. Get the good stuff, not the crap they sell with their name on it at Target.

I put together a very nice set from Wusthof's classic line for about $950 that I'll never need to supplement or replace.

That said, if I ever have the cash laying around (not likely), I might upgrade some pieces to some of the absolutely beautiful knives Kershaw puts out under the Shun label.

-Rob

We bought ours in 1956, had to send one back cause it was dropped and cracked the handle (tile floor). other than that, no problems what so ever.
My wife likes her Cutco, I personally prefer Henckles that I bought for me in 1988.

I have a Hunter Model I used to skin an Elk. It's ok but the knife should have been sharper for a hunting knife and neds to go back to the factory to get sharpened.
I would not buy another one. Not impressed. Their customer service should be commended though because the girl who was selling them jerked me around for two weeks and pissed me off so I wrote the home office a letter about it and their selling practices to vent,
Head of Customer Relations called me and apologized and sent me a knife NDA free of charge so now I have two. Still at $150 ea they are pretty pricey.
Next time I'll just buy the Randall I want. Unless I win the lottery then I'm getting a Jay Fisher blade. His sheaths alone are worth the price.

Aren't they cheap 440A stainless? If so, that's a lot of money to pay for the same steel you'd get on a cheapo Chinese knife.

Wife's college friend swore by them. I wasn't all that impressed with them when I was in her kitchen. I have a block set of Wustoffs in my kitchen.

Thanks for the replies! I've been eyeballing some Henckles for a while, but these knives have been pretty good so far. I think I'll just keep the ones I have and when the time comes look into a more comprehensive set of 'real' knives.

Thanks Sig Forum!!

I don't know that I'd buy a stamped knife. From what I understand, you can't sharpen Cutco knives. That'd be the deal breaker for me. Last I heard, they were pretty pricey as well.

I prefer the santoku style knives for most general chopping, since the wide blade allows for a lot of control and stability. You can easily keep the side of the blade against your knuckles when chopping. It's also good for smashing garlic and scooping piles of stuff like chives. I have two of these (from Wusthof), and reach for one most of the time. They're expensive but you'll be able to give them to your grandkid.

Another favorite is a 10" Commercial Sabatier chef's knife. It's a beast of a knife and holds an edge for a long time.

For paring, I have one of these: http://www.warthers.com/kitche...aringknife-p-29.html It is wickedly sharp, and stays that way. I use it for boning sometimes, too. It's great at getting the silver skin off the back of pork ribs.

Another one I use a lot is a Messermeister offset slicer. It's really nice because it keeps your fingers up off the board.

You really only need a couple knives, so don't sweat the cost of buying forged over stamped. Get a good chef's knife, 10" at least. Then a paring knife and a slicer (long and thin, like a sushi chef's knife). That'll do about 90% of your cutting. Figure for about $250 you'll have them the rest of your life.

One other thing to think about is the cutting surface. If you normally cut on hard plastic, corian or (please say no) granite or glass, then just buy the cheap knives. If you do get the good forged knives, invest in a wood cutting surface. Your knives will stay sharp a lot longer.

I have one of these: http://www.amazon.com/Catskill...tting/dp/B00004RIXQ/ Had it for about ten years now, probably have it until I die. I cut on it anything I could eat raw. For meat stuff, I use a soft plastic board that can go in the dishwasher. Cleaning is easy: wipe it off with a damp paper towel or rag. Once a week I wipe it down with white vinegar, every couple weeks I'll oil it. It lives out on the counter and gets used daily.

If money is an object, get one of the flat boards. You can find a bamboo one for $15. Make sure that you can put your largest knife across the board diagonally with nothing hanging off.

Just curious - what exactly prohibits someone from sharpening them?

My Mom has a Set from 1953...I have a Set and Love them. I would take them over Henkel...

the Best thing I have from Cutco is their Pruner..It is an anvil Pruner and it is great. I also have their Ice Cream Scoop.

quote:

Originally posted by mmike87:
Just curious - what exactly prohibits someone from sharpening them?

I think they're all serrated.

I don't know how many are straight edge, but our paring knife is. The other is serrated. IIRC it's only about $8-10 to have them sharpen them.

I'll try to snap a few pics this weekend if time permits and I can remember!

Not only are they Sharpen able..they Sharpen them Free for Life.

quote:

Originally posted by MikeV:

quote:

Originally posted by mmike87:
Just curious - what exactly prohibits someone from sharpening them?

I think they're all serrated.

No, they are not all serrated.
I don't know what prohibits someone from sharpening them, but its almost impossible. I've tried numerous methods without luck.

Serrated knives can be sharpened, but I find it to be way more trouble than it is worth.

The plain edge Cutcos can be sharpened - but they aren't that great a knife. They don't stay sharp, and they aren't easy to sharpen.

They are fair knives at best. Spend a little more and get something better.

We have a complete set. Bloody awesome.