# Looking for a decent Chef knife



## briant73 (Dec 30, 2009)

Been awhile since I posted but been thinking it's time to add a chefs knife to the current collection -

1 Mac pro Santoku 6 1/2"

1 Mac Superior Bread/Roast

1 Mac pro paring 3 1/4"

1 Mac Pro utility 6"

Thinking the $75-150 range in price and somewhere 8 1/2-10" size.  I want it to be easy maintenance for both looking good and keeping an edge. Right handed use - Any suggestions?


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## nikolasrb (Mar 22, 2013)

look for Zwilling J&A Henckels.......best 100%......or WMF...have both..indestructible....and prices as prices...everythings cheap in US...dont save your money when you are buying cutlery...


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## Iceman (Jan 4, 2011)

_LOL_. This is not too difficult to figure out. Whatever is said or recommended, you will probably get either of these. Not that there is anything wrong with that. 

*MAC Professional Mighty Chef's Knife 8 1/2"*

*MAC Professional Mighty Chef's Knife 9 1/2"*

_I'm not sayin' ... I'm just sayin'. _


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## briant73 (Dec 30, 2009)

Thanks for the suggestions. As to buying Mac again i may stretch the budget to do that but I see new names and products out there to check out. Really just looking for a good knife that is easy to maintain and the metal doesn't tarnish/stain easily.


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## boar_d_laze (Feb 13, 2008)

If you can you sharpen, you might want to give JCK's Kagayki CarboNext a shot. 

BDL


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## briant73 (Dec 30, 2009)

boar_d_laze said:


> If you can you sharpen, you might want to give JCK's Kagayki CarboNext a shot.
> 
> BDL


As for sharpening I am a novice and so far the results I have had have been fair at best. Would you still recommend the carbonext or something different? I would say looking at 8 1/2-10" western style chef or western handle Gyuto knife. Prefer as maintenance free as possible for sharpness and maintaining it's looks even when not perfectly cared for.


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## briant73 (Dec 30, 2009)

Been a few days is there more information I could help giving or is the carbonext the right knife to check out?  Thanks!


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## boar_d_laze (Feb 13, 2008)

CarboNext is something of a value leader for semi-stainless.  If you do your own sharpening and value extreme sharpness, it's tough to beat at the price.  For a lot more money the Kikuichi TKC is a slightly better semi-stainless. 

The MAC Pro gyuto is an excellent knife, and so is the Masamoto VG.  Those are the two I most often recommend when it comes to mass produced, stainless, yo, non-lasers.   As Ice pointed out, you have an affinity for MAC Pros... so, why not?

If you're interested in a wa handled knife, semi-stainless or carbon, laser thinness, or if you want something sufficiently heavy-duty to be a "one knife that will rule them all," the recommendations change. 

There are just so many damn knives from which to choose, we really need a lot of guidance from you, so that we can limit the field to a few knives which will really suit you.  The more you give, the more you'll get back. 

Feel free to ruminate.  There's no penalty for not being right.  In fact, getting something wrong and having it quickly corrected is a very good way to learn.  Ask lots of questions.

BDL


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## briant73 (Dec 30, 2009)

Thanks for the response - will do my best to give what information I can to help - and yes there are a lot of choices out there why I stopped here and asked.  I see some people liking the Richmond products but have no experience with them.  As for MAC if it's a great choice I will up the budget.

Occasional home use by a right handed person when the MAC santoku is either too small or being used by another person.  Cutting vegetables and occasionally trimming chicken breasts,beef roasts/steak and such.  Looking for a knife that isn't too heavy but stands up well to most tasks.  I haven't become a pro at knife sharpening so a knife that requires less sharpening to maintain it's edge and maybe occasionally send off to a pro for sharpening.  Also because this is a home kitchen and will be used for a variety of tasks a blade that will keep it's finish even if the user doesn't wipe it down right away or take pristine care of it.


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## briant73 (Dec 30, 2009)

I hope that information helps some but if there is more information you'd like to help make a recomendation please let me know.


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## boar_d_laze (Feb 13, 2008)

The Richmond Artifex is a nice, no-nonsense, middle-weight, stainless knife which would fulfill all of your practical needs and fit well within your budget. There are a couple of Japanese knives at a similar price which share most of its virtues but in slightly different proportions; the Fujiwara FKM and the Tojiro DP. All three are "entry level" into high performance kitchen knives.

The Artifex fits my own sense of what I want in a knife better than the other two, so if I were buying a knife of the type, and restricted to spending less than a hundred bucks, it's the one I'd buy for myself.

The MAC Pro is twice the price, not much better, but a great deal nicer. It's a wonderful "first really good knife." I like it so much that it's the knife I give as a gift to people I care about. For instance, I gave one to my daughter a couple of years ago. In that class, at that price, I'd buy a Masamoto VG for myself; but I have very definite tastes and my own preferences don't make the Masamoto VG right for everyone. The MAC is stiffer, better supported, and between it and the Masamoto, the MAC is probably the better choice for you. For the same reasons, it's also probably a better choice for you than a Sakai Takayuki Grand Chef, and better for the same and other reasons than a Hiromoto G3 or AS.

_*Your best course:*_

Quit agonizing, spend the extra couple of bucks, buy the MAC Pro and don't look back.

Hope this helps,

BDL


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## briant73 (Dec 30, 2009)

Thanks for all the help.  Now on to the last part now that I have some recommendations for brand - knife size do I go with  8 1/2 or 9 1/2 (210 or 240mm) and in the Mac there's also the 8" with  dimples. I know this is more a personal preference decision but it appears the Mac 8" chef knife uses their superior steel vs the original steel for the 8 1/2&9 1/2 knives any difference there I should care about?


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## cheflayne (Aug 21, 2004)

Lots of people will say that bigger or longer is better. For what it is worth, I work in kitchens professionally and for the past 10 years have used the 8" dimpled MAC. I use it for at least 97% of my knife tasks. For the previous 20 years I used an 11 1/2" Henckel. As far as blade length I really have no preference and feel comfortable with both long and short. There is very little that my 8" MAC does better than my 11 1/2" Henckel and vice versa. At no time with either knife was I ever told that I was too slow due to knife length being too long or too short. The bottom line is it comes down to operator knife skills more than blade length.


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## briant73 (Dec 30, 2009)

Decided to go with a Mac pro 9 1/2 chef knife and also picked up a fibrox cleaver.  I know the CCK is getting all the interest but I figured this would be less maintenance and a bit less expensive for an item I haven't had much need for.

Thanks again to everyone.


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