Broken Wusthof knife

[BaconTastesGood]

I was chopping onions today, getting ready to make a nice beef rigatoni, and whilst gently slicing the onions...the knife separated. Like, the metal in the tang simply separated abruptly, and thankfully the blade went flying into the trash can next to me instead of into my foot (or one of my kids).

Upon closer inspection it looks like the steel itself was rusting internally and it finally just separated cleanly. That's a helluva thing, since you really don't expect a full tang knife to just snap like that, particularly by a reputable company such as Wusthof.

To Wusthof's credit, they're replacing it for free after I called them and explained what the hell happened. I have to guess this was just a manufacturing defect that slipped through the cracks.

FWIW, this knife was 10 years old and always handwashed.

[mouselock]

What's really weird is it looks like there's substantial rust on the handle, but the handles should be some type of polymer that doesn't really accept rust. Also looks like the tang nad a crack that extended halfway through it judging by the rust patterns, which is a huge crackfor some place where there's stress. (Actually there was probably initially a smaller crack and use propagated it, but it's been growing for a while given the rust pattern there.)

[BaconTastesGood]

Originally Posted by mouselock

What's really weird is it looks like there's substantial rust on the handle, but the handles should be some type of polymer that doesn't really accept rust.

Yeah, they have some weird laminate construction, not sure what happened.

It's entirely possible an absolutely minuscule crack developed and rust just started working its way in -- in fact, I can't think of any other plausible explanation.

[Lunch of Kong]

Go ceramic, baby! Wooot!

[Guido Jones]

Originally Posted by BaconTastesGood

in fact, I can't think of any other plausible explanation.

Come on BTG - it wasn't your huge manly muscles that broke that knife?

[BaconTastesGood]

Go ceramic, baby! Wooot!

Uh, ceramic has its issues too (as the owner of two ceramic knives). My Kyocera lasted all of 5 days before it got its first chip due to an accident -- veggies were being brushed into a pan and the knife went too far and smacked the edge of the pan. Nice chip developed.

Ceramic is very light weight, so you have to apply a lot more arm strength to cut.

Finally, since it's fragile you can't do things like chop through bones or smash garlic with the flat of the blade.

[Hetzer]

Go directly to germany, stop in the city of solingen and buy a good knife... For about 70 - 100 bucks you will get a knife that will hold a life time....

I have myself a knife from Zwilling J.A. Henckels since approx. 20 years...

You can buy them also online i believe...

My grandmother has one for over 50 years, they only get thinner after that long time of sharpening....

The only thing that is going over solingen knifes is a smith that knows how to make salamanca steel (or japanese folded steel). But that will cost you a fortune...

[BaconTastesGood]

Originally Posted by Hetzer

Go directly to germany, stop in the city of solingen and buy a good knife... For about 70 - 100 bucks you will get a knife that will hold a life time....

Wusthof knives are made in Solingen.

I have myself a knife from Zwilling J.A. Henckels since approx. 20 years...

I switched to Wusthof after becoming disenchanted with my Henckels actually, although the last Henckels chef knife I bought has been very good.

[Hetzer]

ahh you mean wüsthof, so sorry about that....

[ElGuapo]

I only use glass knives. And spears.

[quatoria]

Originally Posted by ElGuapo

I only use glass knives. And spears.

I prefer glass swords. Great against Lord British.

[BaconTastesGood]

Originally Posted by Hetzer

ahh you mean wüsthof, so sorry about that....

I'm sitting here with one of two minds. The first is "That umlaut makes a bigger difference than I thought" and the other is "Hetzer sure is being a snarky prick".

Which is correct?

[SlyFrog]

Originally Posted by BaconTastesGood

I'm sitting here with one of two minds. The first is "That umlaut makes a bigger difference than I thought" and the other is "Hetzer sure is being a snarky prick".

Which is correct?

Option three - spell it Wuestof; and slap another McDonald's somewhere in Germany.

[Bill]

Originally Posted by BaconTastesGood

I'm sitting here with one of two minds. The first is "That umlaut makes a bigger difference than I thought" and the other is "Hetzer sure is being a snarky prick".

Which is correct?

The latter.

I used to like the Henkels a lot but have recently switched to Wusthoff, which I really prefer.

I also have an carbon steel knife from I don't know where that I like a lot. It's a heavy 10" chef's knife, and it's over 25 years old so it's very weathered and looks pretty cool. It dulls quickly but it sharpens up really easily.

[shift6]

He's not being a prick, he's clearly an ESL speaker whose location is in Germany.

Man, I feel bad if I somehow contributed in part to the douchebaggedness of P&R overflowing into the other forums.

[BaconTastesGood]

Originally Posted by shift6

He's not being a prick, he's clearly an ESL speaker whose location is in Germany.

Sure, which is why I was wondering if the umlaut is that big a deal. I mean, hey, I see posts from bad English speakers on other forums -- and we're talking about people that speak native English -- and it's not like this sentence is going to throw me for a loop:

"We're are you guys going to go tonight?" <-- is that a bigger grammatical difference than a missing umlaut?

[shift6]

Honestly, I don't know. I used to have a list of Spanish words which differed only in n vs. ñ, where one of the words was something normal and the other was either obscene or gross or nonsense.

[RichVR]

Originally Posted by BaconTastesGood

To Wusthof's credit, they're replacing it for free after I called them and explained what the hell happened. I have to guess this was just a manufacturing defect that slipped through the cracks.

FWIW, this knife was 10 years old and always handwashed.

And there you go. Even a Wüsthof with a factory defect lasts 10 years. I love the 8" that I have and this is a great thread to show to the girlfriend to justify the purchase of a second one. Maybe a 5" Santoku. :)

[stusser]

Yeah, that can happen, although usually it comes up in the first couple of months. The knife was defective, probably through an inproper ratio of metals in the steel alloy.

Personally I swear by my Global 8" chef knife. Very light and it feels great in my hand, excellent control. I don't like the global paring knife, though.

[mouselock]

Originally Posted by RichVR

And there you go. Even a Wüsthof with a factory defect lasts 10 years. I love the 8" that I have and this is a great thread to show to the girlfriend to justify the purchase of a second one. Maybe a 5" Santoku. :)

I have an 8" and want larger; what do you want smaller for? Garnish work?

[RichVR]

Originally Posted by mouselock

I have an 8" and want larger; what do you want smaller for? Garnish work?

Truedat. But I always wanted a Santoku. A 5" is hardly just for garnishes. And you have to pick your battles, price counts here.

[Hetzer]

Originally Posted by shift6

He's not being a prick, he's clearly an ESL speaker whose location is in Germany.

Man, I feel bad if I somehow contributed in part to the douchebaggedness of P&R overflowing into the other forums.

Whats an ESL speaker???? and yes my location is in germany...

Wusthof doesn´t sound german where wüsthof does.... and when i want to be a prick i dont say sorry ;)

[ydejin]

That's pretty scary BaconTastesGood, particularly as I have a Wusthoff which looks just like it -- Classic 8" Chef's Knife.

[Lunch of Kong]

Originally Posted by mouselock

I have an 8" and want larger

Some men are just never satisfied with what they have.

[Elton]

Originally Posted by Hetzer

Whats an ESL speaker???? and yes my location is in germany...

ESL = English as a Second Language

This thread is compelling me to become a knife snob. What does owning a premium knife entail, besides always handwashing and (I assume) periodic sharpening?

[Indierthanthou]

http://www.consumerist.com/consumer/...ife-200273.php

[Flowers]

Originally Posted by contrarybear

ESL = English as a Second Language

This thread is compelling me to become a knife snob. What does owning a premium knife entail, besides always handwashing and (I assume) periodic sharpening?

Mainly just talking about yours on the internet.

[BaconTastesGood]

Originally Posted by contrarybear

What does owning a premium knife entail, besides always handwashing and (I assume) periodic sharpening?

I don't quite know, to be honest, other than when you hold and use a top notch knife it FEELS much difference. Balance, heft, rigidity, sharpness -- some intangible combination of that group.

For example, my Kyocera ceramic knife is insanely sharp (and it was insanely expensive), and the "never needs to be sharpened" element is nice, but it doesn't have ANY weight to it. It's like cutting with air. Which means I feel like I use too much arm strength to cut instead of letting the knife do the work for me.

I've used many different brands, and there's a very definite difference in feel between a Wusthof and a lower end supermarket knife. Good knives have a full tang through the handle which helps with balance and strength, whereas low-end ones will have a partial tang.

Note that most Wusthof and Henckels aren't really "high end", they're simply the most popular high quality mass produced kitchen knives. At the high end, like what professional chefs use, you're looking at custom made knifes that can run hundreds to thousands of dollars each. Custom sashimi knives are ridiculously expensive.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kitchen_knife

FWIW, I will be buying Wusthof again assuming they stick up to their end of the bargain.

If you're just starting out, save some money and buy a complete starter set -- much like cookware, you save a lot when getting a set vs. buying individual pieces. If you just want to build up slowly though so that your initial cash outlay is lower, then I'd purchase in this order:

1. 8" Chef's Knife
2. Paring knife
3. Boning or filet knife

[Waltzer]

Originally Posted by BaconTastesGood

Note that most Wusthof and Henckels aren't really "high end", they're simply the most popular high quality mass produced kitchen knives. At the high end, like what professional chefs use, you're looking at custom made knifes that can run hundreds to thousands of dollars each. Custom sashimi knives are ridiculously expensive.

Most of the chefs I know use downright cheap Forschner or F. Dick knives for actual production. I personally am partial to Global but tend not to use them in the professional kitchen.

If you're just starting out, save some money and buy a complete starter set -- much like cookware, you save a lot when getting a set vs. buying individual pieces. If you just want to build up slowly though so that your initial cash outlay is lower, then I'd purchase in this order:

1. 8" Chef's Knife
2. Paring knife
3. Boning or filet knife

I would say ignore the sets and ONLY buy the knives listed above. The sets tend to give you a number of knives you'll never use. Additionally, definitely buy a cheaper boning knife than you would chef's knife - having a forged boning knife is ridiculous; you actually want the knife to have flex, and stamped blades are perfect for this. Likewise if you decide to buy a slicer. There's little difference between a Wusthoff knife that's stamped and a Forschner knife that's stamped. Also, BUY A HONE. Learn to use it. Use it EVERY TIME YOU USE YOUR KNIFE. Seriously. Wash the knife, hone it, wipe it clean, put it away.

[Elton]

Originally Posted by BaconTastesGood

1. 8" Chef's Knife

Thanks! I'll probably start with one of these since I'm almost always cutting vegetables. I'll look at Wüsthof's offerings next time I'm in Germany (or a high-end kitchen store here in Holland). Good God, their website is chock full of deadly-looking kitchen implements that I'd love to have. Maybe I will splurge on a set ...

Edit: Okay, a knife and a hone.