440A is a bad steel. It is crippled from the start before heat treating, and it doesn't have the potential to compete with actual good steels when they also have a good heat treat. It is true that a well heat treated 440A knife might be able to compete with a poorly heat treated premium steel,but that is only because the premium steel was poorly heat treated. That would mean a flaw in the manufacture of the other knife, and that doesn't make 440A any better as a steel.
Cutco knives are bad, and poorly and cheaply made. Simply not as bad as other stuff. Its clear that they do take short cuts, have unethical marketing and charge a huge premium.
Their guarantee is pretty worthless as well. I'm skeptical of the quality of sharpening Cutco offers, I am pretty sure that they are just run through sharpening machines, especially since I don't think any of the reps are going to bring over industrial equipment to your hose, nor are they trained to sharpen by hand.
The replacement at half price is just as silly. All it means is that you're buying direct from Cutco and not paying the other 50% to the commissioned salesperson. Cutco is still making every cent of profit on replacement, the middleman is just cut out. To Cutco, the middleman is only there for marketing purposes, and is fully disposable once he gets friends, neighbors, relatives and anyone who he can con into buying the knives to become loyal customers.
And replacement is no big deal. With the quality of the knife, and the price you pay for them, you should really be getting 5 or more for the price you pay.
It is like if I went and bought some $30 forshners, sold them for $150, and tell people that even if they destroy them, I will be more than happy to replace them for $75. I've already made a ridiculous profit on the initial sale to cover the occasional replacement, and if the person wants a replacement at half cost, I'm still making a decent profit selling the replacement at half price.
Remember that not all Henckels are created equal. The Twin Select knives are their premier line, and have the best performance of their series.
I have some made in China ones that cost $10 that I would take over Cutco.
Also, what's necessary in a home kitchen is very different from what is needed in a restaurant.
Its true that you may not need as nice of a knife in a home kitchen, but why should someone pay the price of a pro-knife for an amateur knife?
Conversely, some people like nicer knives in the home because that is where they will be well taken care of. Either way, Cutco wants to charge a premium price for a not premium knife.
Shun/Global is probably my favorite for straight edge for production knives. Can't get much better than folded steel for your straight edges.
Yes you can, and the implication that folding steel somehow makes knives better is idiotic.
Handle material: Wood is generally less sanitary than something less porous (another reason why I like my Cutco, although the handle design is better for home cooking than for the speed you'd need in a restaurant or line kitchen). What kind of pins and how many, and whether they've been machined flush with the handle. Copper pins are generally not as good, or other reactive materials. Is it dishwasher safe, or does it have to be handwashed? That's something that's nice, and very very few kitchen knives are dishwasher safe.
Number of pins does not mean anything. The quality of construction of the handle is far more important. A 3 rivet handle on a cheap knife can fall off, but virtually any accepted handle construction can be made to last on a quality knife, including rivetless, stick tang knives. Implying that a handle doesn't function well at a fast speed simply means that a handle doesn't function well at any speed, it just forces you to go slower. A handle that allows you to go fast will also be comfortable going slow. No one uses copper pins except for custom makers who want a certain look. That is one of the stupidest strawman arguments I've heard. Many knives can be washed in a dishwasher, but knives will rattle around when hit by jets of water, and that is just bad for any knife. The big difference is whether or not the manufacturer feels that this is an acceptable practice. The edge of a Cutco knife will get tossed around and dinged like any other knife.
Blade material: I'm not sure this matters as much. I personally think stainless is better than high carbon, because maintenance of the blade to prevent rust tends to be unsanitary, but as we've seen, there's lots of different opinions. Higher carbon blades tend to stay sharp longer and are easier to sharpen, but a good stainless steel with a good heat treat can do a comparable job, and is much easier to deal with. I just wish Cutco would use 154CM or S30V or even 440C. The 440A makes me a little skittish.
It isn't unsanitary, and carbon steel is simply higher maintainance, and can degrade faster with acidic foods. That has nothing to do with sanitation. Maintenance to prevent a knife from rusting involves washing your knife, which you should do with any knife, and it is far more sanitary than leaving it dirty, and then drying it, which you should still do with any knife, stainless or not.
he blade has to be wide enough that I don't bang my knuckles on the cutting board. That's one thing I really hate about some of the Shun knives. It's gotta have a nice curve so I can get a nice rocking motion for my cuts.
Maybe you should actually buy a Shun chef knife. They are just as tall and bellisome as most of their German counterparts.
does it rip and tear, or does it cut clean? That's the one thing about Cutco that is better than any other company, aside from the guarantee. Hype aside, I've never found another serrated blade, be it Spyderco, Benchmade, or Shun, that can cut as cleanly or stay sharp as long. How long is the cutting edge?
Maybe you should actually look in order to find. Shun has the best "serrated" pattern on their bread knife that produces smooth cuts and is sharpenable with rods.
