Good value knives

[F-Stop Junkie]

Having decided my blue plastic handled Ikea knives have more than recouped their investment, I've decided to look for something a bit posher...

Not looking to spend a huge amount of money, I guess a My First Knife set would be good. I picked up a Masterclass Contoro santoku knife that seduced me with its fluted blade at the weekend, but now I fancy adding a few others.

There's a decent looking Contoro three piece set that could keep me going for a while (and fit in with my need for things to match), but I think I may have either found a bargain or a lemon and I need your help to see.

It's a 6 knife (and accessories) set & block made by Grunwerg/Rockingham Forge and filled with their 9100 Series knives. I've never heard of them before, but they looked pretty decent to me. Few online retailers have them, so very hard to get a sense of if it's a reasonable price. Individual knives appear to be £15 each, full set for £60.

Anyone have any knowledge or experience with these?

[pointedstarman]

Haven't heard of them but whatever brand you go for would recommend you buy 2 reasonable knives for £30 each rather than a set for the same money. You can always add more as funds allow. Also you need a decent sharpener - a whetstone is best - as well as a steel. Without these a £100 knife will be next to useless in a few months.

[skeggysteve]

As the Op is asking about knives I'll jump in and ask if these are good, bad or in the middle?

http://www.tesco.com/thomas-knives/

I suppose for £4.99 it not a big issue but just thought I'd ask - and if they are a reasonable knife then I've let you know about the promotion!

Edit to ask: What is a Santoku knife and what would I use it for?

Edited by skeggysteve on Wednesday 15th February 18:58

[Du1point8]

Santoku knife is a general all purpose knife.

[miniman]

skeggysteve said:

As the Op is asking about knives I'll jump in and ask if these are good, bad or in the middle?

http://www.tesco.com/thomas-knives/

I suppose for £4.99 it not a big issue but just thought I'd ask - and if they are a reasonable knife then I've let you know about the promotion!

Edit to ask: What is a Santoku knife and what would I use it for?

Edited by skeggysteve on Wednesday 15th February 18:58

I would say they are cheap, but not good value.

[Stoatman]

http://www.hartsofstur.com/acatalog/Stellar-Damask...

These babies are still on offer ?

[bennyboydurham]

Raymond Blanc Anololon knife set. Great value - http://www.housemakers.co.uk/anolon-soft-grip-6pc-...

[LordHaveMurci]

bennyboydurham said:

Raymond Blanc Anololon knife set. Great value - http://www.housemakers.co.uk/anolon-soft-grip-6pc-...

I have an Anolon set, recommended by WHICH, got a deal in Debenhams but normally £100 or so I think.

[Bonefish Blues]

Victorinox.

Nisbets have a Fibrox-handled 6" chefs knife on offer at £13 or so at the moment, which is an absolute steal.

In fact, here you go: http://www.nisbets.co.uk/Victorinox-Cooks-Knife/C6...

[smn159]

miniman said:

skeggysteve said:

As the Op is asking about knives I'll jump in and ask if these are good, bad or in the middle?

http://www.tesco.com/thomas-knives/

I suppose for £4.99 it not a big issue but just thought I'd ask - and if they are a reasonable knife then I've let you know about the promotion!

Edit to ask: What is a Santoku knife and what would I use it for?

Edited by skeggysteve on Wednesday 15th February 18:58

I would say they are cheap, but not good value.

I'd disagree with that. I have a Tesco Professional bread knife and was pleasantly surprised at the quality. I'd say that its good value at its full price - at £4.99 it's a steal.

[dazco]

I have not got any, but my perusals through chef forums have revealed a massive respect for Victorinox.

Never heard a bad word against them

[Bonefish Blues]

dazco said:

I have not got any, but my perusals through chef forums have revealed a massive respect for Victorinox.

Never heard a bad word against them

I use mine more than my Wusthofs - they punch way above their pricepoint.

[Flibble]

skeggysteve said:

Edit to ask: What is a Santoku knife and what would I use it for?

They're somewhat similar in purpose to a chef's knife - mainly for chopping vegetables and boneless meat. You use them a little differently though as they have a straight blade so you can't rock them as you would a chef's knife.

[uncinqsix]

Bonefish Blues said:

dazco said:

I have not got any, but my perusals through chef forums have revealed a massive respect for Victorinox.

Never heard a bad word against them

I use mine more than my Wusthofs - they punch way above their pricepoint.

+1: At the price (and indeed going up the scale a bit), there is nothing to beat them.

With a little more budget, I would suggest these: http://japanesechefsknife.com/FKMSeries.html (or indeed anything else off that site). Similar steel to what you get in globals, but with much more user-friendly handles etc. You only need a couple - 210mm or 240mm Gyuto and a 120mm petty will see you right.

[tim-b]

pointedstarman said:

Haven't heard of them but whatever brand you go for would recommend you buy 2 reasonable knives for £30 each rather than a set for the same money. You can always add more as funds allow. Also you need a decent sharpener - a whetstone is best - as well as a steel. Without these a £100 knife will be next to useless in a few months.

I'd 2nd that, it's probably better to buy the knives you need rather than a set, where some of them might not get used, and definitely leave budget for a sharpening steel.

I only have 2 really decent knives and can do pretty much all I need to with them...of course more specialist uses would require more specialised tools though.