# Entry level, low budget chef knife (newbie pls don't shoot me)



## fox2 (Jan 7, 2018)

Hey all,

First wanted to say I'm enjoying reading here as this forum is full of useful information!

As I am an amateur cook and am looking for an entry level chef knife (8 inch) at a low budget (hopefully under £35) it seemed almost as a 'no-brainer' to get the Victorinox Fibrox (£24) to start with.

However after some browsing I have found a Tojiro DP 21cm chef's knife (B-Stock) for £34 and I am wondering whether the difference is significant and should I invest a bit more (I have a big hand so don't think the 'boxy' handle should be an issue).

In addition I have also found these two -



but couldn't find any reviews online so wanted to ask for your opinions.

I would prefer the knife to be as low maintenance as possible as I am not very keen on sharpening it too often.

Which one would you go for?

Many thanks,
Ben


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## rick alan (Nov 15, 2012)

Use tinyurl for any url's that are to big to get posted here. Don't know why this became a problem, but has for a few months now.

35 sterling for the Tojiro DP is a super price, unless "b-stock" is something bad.


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## brianshaw (Dec 18, 2010)

B-stock, generally, is either blemished or a returned item. Sometimes just as good a a-stock.


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## Jin (Jan 6, 2018)

Pick up knife sharpening skills early will help you greatly. Any knife can be sharpened to be your best tool


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## fox2 (Jan 7, 2018)

brianshaw said:


> B-stock, generally, is either blemished or a returned item. Sometimes just as good a a-stock.


Doesn't that mean that it is flawed/ damaged? 
Is it like 'refurbished' with electronics?

Here are tinyurl for the other 2 knives I've seen:
Godmorn-
*https://tinyurl.com/ya4ct9w7*
pro cook-
*https://tinyurl.com/yb3wv4j3*


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## brianshaw (Dec 18, 2010)

fox2 said:


> Doesn't that mean that it is flawed/ damaged?
> Is it like 'refurbished' with electronics?
> 
> Here are tinyurl for the other 2 knives I've seen:
> ...


With knives I have no idea. If anything it probably means visual flaws, if a second, rather than damaged. With a return... who knows. Could be just opened, looked at, and returned. I would expect to have to inspect the exact item to determine if there is an issue or not. With electronics and pots I've had good luck with b-stock buys.


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## fox2 (Jan 7, 2018)

Update - 

The Tojiro is unavailable (received and email from the shop). From the other 3 options which one would you recommend?


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## rick alan (Nov 15, 2012)

fox2 said:


> Doesn't that mean that it is flawed/ damaged?
> Is it like 'refurbished' with electronics?
> 
> Here are tinyurl for the other 2 knives I've seen:
> ...


You're probably talking absolute crap stainless, terrible thick grinds and lousy F+F. All the money for these kind of made-in-China things goes to giving the appearance of elegance in the photo. Stick with names that have real reputation instead of phony reviews.

Now what are you going to do about sharpening?


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## rick alan (Nov 15, 2012)

fox2 said:


> Update -
> 
> The Tojiro is unavailable (received and email from the shop). From the other 3 options which one would you recommend?


The Vic


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## ChefTeddyB (Jan 8, 2018)

fox2 said:


> Hey all,
> 
> First wanted to say I'm enjoying reading here as this forum is full of useful information!
> 
> ...





fox2 said:


> Hey all,
> 
> First wanted to say I'm enjoying reading here as this forum is full of useful information!
> 
> ...


Hey Ben,

I have been cooking professionally for around 10 years now I have fancy Japanese Aogomi Blue Super knives, I have VG 10 steel knives and have used all sorts of knives but I always go back to my Victorinox. If I am on the line working hard, moving quickly I need a knife that can take a beating, will be easy to sharpen and will hold an edge, the Victorinox is a fantastic knife at all these. And at around $40 it's a no brainer. The chef's knives are great but all there specialty knives are pretty great as well. If you plan on doing some fine dining where precision is the focus rather than speed and efficiency then spend a little more money and buy some fine Japanese knives.


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## ChefTeddyB (Jan 8, 2018)

rick alan said:


> The Vic


Yes! Go with the Victorinox


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## rick alan (Nov 15, 2012)

And if you don't like the thickness of the handle up front just grab a rotary tool with a small sanding drum and carve out a nice depression for your thumb to fit in. It works really sweet after that, second page here shows what I mean.
https://cheftalk.com/threads/victorinox-forschner-as-starter-knives.81804/page-2


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## aliphares (Jan 7, 2018)

The Vic is your only option then. Avoid the ones you saw on Amazon at all costs. They're cheap Chinese stuff and they're useless. If you really really want a Japanese knife and want something to play with and learn how to sharpen, get the tojiro ITK or a tosa knife. But since this is your first knife, I suggest the Vic first, leave those till, when you want to learn how to take care of knives and sharpen them. Expect bad F&F (fit and finish) from both. Hence my support to the victorinox.


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## fox2 (Jan 7, 2018)

Wow I really appreciate your replies - very helpful. I agree with starting with something basic and good and then moving up if there is a need. I also thought the vic makes the most sense since it's highly rated by everyone but am a bit annoyed by the handle (for some reason from the photo it looks cheap and fragile, but I'm sure in reality it isn't).

The other knives I linked before say they're made of German steel so not sure what you mean by poor chinese quality. Can someone explain? Is there a way to judge which has the better blade?

Anyway today I'll have a look at the ProCook and vic, hold them and have a general feel keeping in mind that all of you strongly suggest the vic


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## markos sdranis (Dec 28, 2017)

Besides the quality of the steel you use, there are other things equally important to get good results. Heat treatment is the first thing that comes to mind. Then there's quality control. Could you get lucky and get a good knife at a bargain price? Maybe, I haven't tried those knives, but the victorinox is guaranteed quality. The other 2 knives do look stylish but are probably shit. One is 55 +/-2 HRC, the other is *up to* 58 HRC, so who knows if they are legit. Judging from the pictures, unless dishes as cutting boards, uneven dice, and fingers parallel to the cutting board/dish is how you use these knives to their full potential, I wouldn't trust them.


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## fox2 (Jan 7, 2018)

markos sdranis said:


> Besides the quality of the steel you use, there are other things equally important to get good results. Heat treatment is the first thing that comes to mind. Then there's quality control. Could you get lucky and get a good knife at a bargain price? Maybe, I haven't tried those knives, but the victorinox is guaranteed quality. The other 2 knives do look stylish but are probably shit. One is 55 +/-2 HRC, the other is *up to* 58 HRC, so who knows if they are legit. Judging from the pictures, unless dishes as cutting boards, uneven dice, and fingers parallel to the cutting board/dish is how you use these knives to their full potential, I wouldn't trust them.


I understand, great explanation.

Okay so I've had a feel for both the procook and the victorinox and I was amazed by difference between the photos and real life for the vic. It feels much more rigid and balanced than I thought it would, and much nicer than the Procook. To conclude I bought it 

Haven't done much research about sharpening so don't want to bother you with noob questions before I even read anything but since you are reading this already I would appreciate any tips, guides or pointers on the easiest way to do so (am currently using a fist size whetstone but not sure it is the proper way to do it now that I have a proper knife).

Thanks again for all the help and tips, you've all been really helpful!


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## aliphares (Jan 7, 2018)

fox2 said:


> I understand, great explanation.
> 
> Okay so I've had a feel for both the procook and the victorinox and I was amazed by difference between the photos and real life for the vic. It feels much more rigid and balanced than I thought it would, and much nicer than the Procook. To conclude I bought it
> 
> ...


I suggest just watching videos. Jon from JCK has an entire playlist on YouTube I suggest you watch that. The Vic is a good place to start learning, you don't want to start learning on expensive knives that you might ruin. It's all about practice and getting a feel for it honestly.


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## loomchick (Jun 11, 2013)

The knife is only one part of the equation. Proper use and maintenance is critical and an often overlooked aspect.

You may be interested in checking out the free knife skills class on Craftsy.com. I don't agree with 100% of what is covered; however, it provides some really good information about technique and taking care of knives.

https://www.craftsy.com/cooking/classes/complete-knife-skills/35338


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## galley swiller (May 29, 2013)

Chad Ward's on-line sharpening tutorial is at: https://forums.egullet.org/topic/26036-knife-maintenance-and-sharpening/

(though I seemed to have had some problems downloading it properly!?!)

GS


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## Friend_of_Epicurius (Jan 22, 2018)

Another avenue that may be worth looking into is estate and garage sales. I think yall call them boot sales.
Generally folks buy big fancy block sets and never use them and they can be picked up for 20 for a block set alot of times. I asked my folks to look for knives for me as im not in a place to get anything but chinese crap in this country. They got me they went to a fee estate sales. Got some nice wustof and zwilling knives for me at $1 a piece. Think for the wustof ikon chef knife was like 5. Getting brought to me in a fee months when some family comes to visit is here

So might be worth a look people toss great stuff all the time esp now that japanese knives are in styld


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