German or French curve? French are pointier and German have more rock to them.

Thanks for all the information so far. I think the German profile is more his thing.

I have several chefs knives and use this one
the most.

https://www.amazon.com/Shun-DM...-Chefs/dp/B0000Y7KNQ

I’m working on a few right now! People have some very personal opinions on how their Chefs Knives should be! I live projects like this! It’s very subjective.
https://imgur.com/a/uQ3Wr

quote:

Originally posted by ArtieS:
Thanks for all the information so far. I think the German profile is more his thing.

I have a few of this brand, Tojiro. The DP series is very affordable. Very good Japanese steel, western handle. They have the Gyuto (Chef) in 210 mm and 240 mm).

https://www.chefknivestogo.com/todpchkn24.html

It might be more than you'd like to spend, but I love my Wusthof Classic Ikon 8" chef knife for about $120 if you look around. Still made in Solingen, Germany. Great ergonomics, very sharp, and holds an excellent edge.

For a little less, the Wusthof Classic 8" chef knife is made of the same steel in the same factory and sharpened to the same edge profile. It's an older design with a full bolster. Some people prefer it, actually.

+1 for Wusthof

~$100 on Amazon

quote:

Originally posted by Bassamatic:
An 8 inch Wusthof would fit your dad's needs very nicely.

quote:

Originally posted by choang3:
<snip>

For a little less, the Wusthof Classic 8" chef knife is made of the same steel in the same factory and sharpened to the same edge profile. It's an older design with a full bolster. Some people prefer it, actually.

+1


I own two of these ... their original Grand Prix I Knives (not the newer Grand Prix II - The only difference being the handle geometry); these are my go to every day stainless steel knives. IIRC, I picked them up on eBay for around $100. Solid knife. But they are stainless steel, not high carbon steel (and with enough time and use like many stainlesses you can get them to oxidize).

Wüstof and Zwillings (Henkles) generally use very similar steels. It is Identified by a European/German specification stamped on the blades as X50CrMo V15. IMO it is an OK stainless but not top tier in any regard. It is used mostly for making commercial production kitchen knives coming out of Germany.

Don’t get me wrong, it’s far better SS than the cheap crap coming out of China, but it is what it is. Cost containment is important to these manufacturers since they have to compete on a global scale.

Also I do think that the French got the blade geometry correct versus the Germans. I think the pointier German styled Chef’s knife looks cool, however it’s not quite as “rockable” as the French broad belly type, and recently the trend in kitchen knives has gone back to the (better IMO) geometry of the French. Just my two pesos. YMMV.

quote:

Approximate Composition – 15% Cr, 0.7% Mo, 0.15% V, 0.50% C (EN composition range. No ASTM equivalent).

FWIW, 0.5% C is not “high carbon”. That is more in the range of 0.7-1.5% C.

Please forgive the long post. I tend to completely nerd out on kitchen knives. Good luck and I’m sure your father will enjoy whatever knife you choose for him.

Going completely to the other end of the spectrum than a lot of the posts here...

Last week I was in a closeout store (in this case Burlington Coat Factory.) I was in their kitchen goods section. I didn't need a knife, but I always tend to browse through them. I saw a Calphalon 8" chefs knife (Stainless forged, full bolster, full tang three rivit handle.) IIRC, it was $8.99. If I didn't already own the Wustof equivalent, I would have bought it in a second.

But the point isn't the knife, but where and how to get it. There are a lot of stores that carry kitchen close out goods. Homegoods comes to mind, but there are lots of other. Just hit up these places, and eventually you'll find what you'll need, a lot cheaper than the luxury brands bought from direct retail.

Do you have any local
stores to where you can handle the various chef's knives? I instantly ruled quite a few out simply by picking them up.....The Henckels 4 star handle was too short for my large hands.....same went for the handle thickness of many of the Japanese brands......the Wusthoff just felt right in my hands.....

quote:

Originally posted by BBMW:
Going completely to the other end of the spectrum than a lot of the posts here...

Last week I was in a closeout store (in this case Burlington Coat Factory.) I was in their kitchen goods section. I didn't need a knife, but I always tend to browse through them. I saw a Calphalon 8" chefs knife (Stainless forged, full bolster, full tang three rivit handle.) IIRC, it was $8.99. If I didn't already own the Wustof equivalent, I would have bought it in a second.

But the point isn't the knife, but where and how to get it. There are a lot of stores that carry kitchen close out goods. Homegoods comes to mind, but there are lots of other. Just hit up these places, and eventually you'll find what you'll need, a lot cheaper than the luxury brands bought from direct retail.

I found a Sabatier (French made) 8 inch chef knife at Home Goods last Christmas while in whackyland for IIRC less than $20. Mighty fine knife with great ergo. I love a bargain.

Thanks for all the suggestions everyone. This gives me a lot to work with.

[QUOTE]Originally posted by ArtieS:
Thanks for all the suggestions everyone. This gives me a lot to work with.[/QUOTE

One thing I'll add. For as long as a quality knife lasts (20+ years) if you take care of it. I would get whichever one that feels the best, and not really worry about price at all. Who really cares about $20-50 difference on something you're going to use a few times a week for decades.

quote:

One thing I'll add. For as long as a quality knife lasts (20+ years) if you take care of it. I would get whichever one that feels the best, and not really worry about price at all. Who really cares about $20-50 difference on something you're going to use a few times a week for decades.

For what it's worth, I agree with you. My dad, however grew up during the great depression. He will pay for quality, but he doesn't want to over pay. Thus, he is looking for something with good steel, a killer edge, and a proper blade profile. It doesn't have to be made of Damascus steel, have inlaid rosewood grips, be mirror polished or have solid gold bolsters.

It needs to knife well. That is the only relevant KPI.

quote:

Originally posted by ArtieS:

quote:

One thing I'll add. For as long as a quality knife lasts (20+ years) if you take care of it. I would get whichever one that feels the best, and not really worry about price at all. Who really cares about $20-50 difference on something you're going to use a few times a week for decades.

For what it's worth, I agree with you. My dad, however grew up during the great depression. He will pay for quality, but he doesn't want to over pay. Thus, he is looking for something with good steel, a killer edge, and a proper blade profile. It doesn't have to be made of Damascus steel, have inlaid rosewood grips, be mirror polished or have solid gold bolsters.

It needs to knife well. That is the only relevant KPI.

Find a good cooking store that stocks a lot of the various brands and have him handle them and see what he likes would probably be the best thing to do.