SHAN ZU Kitchen Knife 8 Inch Damascus Steel 67 Layers Japanese Chef Knife, Professional Kitchen Knives Ultra Sharp Cooking Knives High Carbon Super Steel Carving Knife Utility Knife with G10 Handle

After years of disappointment with blunt knives or buying new knives but finding them soon lose their sharpness I decided to buy a decent knife set. I was not disappointed. They are very sharp straight out of the box. I have the cut on the end of my finger to prove it!The first time I sliced an onion I was cutting a couple of horizontal slices and the knife penetrated through like it was butter. The tip only just caught the end of my finger and I thought I’d avoided a cut but no. It reminded me how careful you need to be with a really sharp knife but I could get away with not being so careful with my old knives. These new knives will even catch hold of your nail if you don’t fully tuck them under and use your knuckle as a guide.The Damascus pattern makes them aesthetically pleasing and I like the handle which provides a good grip. The knives are heavy compared to my old knives but feel well balanced and robust.I actually bought 4 Shan Zu steak knives after using this set although I’ve not used them yet. They are also weighty with a similar handle although not Damascus steel, which isn’t really required for an eating knife.I’ve done a lot more food preparation since the knife block arrived because I’m no longer frustrated by poor cutting issues. Trimming meat used to be really irritating but it’s a breeze now. I’ve purchased a Whetstone to keep them sharp although there’s no sign of needing it yet.My brother has a set of Global knives but I can’t imagine how they could be much better than these Shan Zu knives to warrant the extra expense. The knife block is fine and functional so all-in-all I’m happy with my Shan Zu purchases.

Bought the set in Oct 2023 in the sale... So glad I did. I thought I had got sharp knives before but this set redefined what I think of as sharp ! I'm an old dude and have been cooking daily for most of my life. I'd got into the habit of compensating for less than sharp knives by changing the way I cut things. Let's just say that once I started using this set, I had to relearn some skills to save my fingers and nails !I use the Santoku and Chef's knife almost daily ( normally one or the other ) on veggies and meats and they will retain a good edge for around a month before I think about honing them again which (though I'm no expert in any way) shows that the steel is a good quality and holds an edge well.On sharpening them... Despite my best efforts with previous knives, I never got on with whetstones, so I use the Horl 2 rotating drum sharpening system. I used it once to set the edge to 15 degrees (which took a while for each knife even though I think that's what they are ground to from the factory), then I honed it using a 3000 and 6000 grit disk and leather strop (from the premium kit) monthly. That gets the knives paper slicing sharp, though I've never yet got a blade "hair shaving" sharp using any method, so that's a me thing I guess. Short version is that for me, this set plus the horl means I always have super sharp knives to cook with, and can even look almost like a pro chef when I'm chopping and dicing sometimes !Final word - You won't be disappointed, but don't forget to hone them regularly using your preferred method... I have never used the honing steel which came with it, as I have heard bad things about honing steels in general, and find the regular honing I do negates the need to use it.

I was hesitant to spend this much on a knife but honestly, I now want every knife in my kitchen to be exactly like this. Makes food preparation sooo much easier. Comfortable, stays sharp, easy to use and clean. Lovely weight to it that saves having to push hard to chop anything - meat, veg, fruit. Will be buying more to replace all the other cheaper knives I've bough over the years that let me down.

bought this as a Christmas gift, and this is VERY sharp. first thing we did was test it's with slicing paper, then tomatoes... it handled both with ease, and is still the sharpest knife we've got today (2 months later). It has a nice weight, and feels very balanced. Very beautiful design, looks much better than the pictures!

This knife is excellent - having gotten fed up of our other dull blades and only a couple of good Zwilling 4* holding their own: we needed something decent to add to the collection and make cooking joyful again. It looks beautiful, but its super power is cutting. Slices through a cooked chicken with ease, bone and all. Veg no problem. Just make sure you adjust to your new blade powers and ensure good finger disapline needed for sharp blades!

Good weight not too heavy, good balance, easy cleaned stays sharp a long time, used extensively and excellent for veg prep no roll off, comfortable handle. No negative points - use a blade guard to protect edge if put in a drawer. Would buy again

The blade is extremely well made. You can see the Damascus pattern quite clearly with the layers beautifully grinded back on the knife edge. The raindrop pattern are again crafted nicely on it.The blade is razor sharp. Slices effortlessly through whatever your cutting.Well balanced knife.Good grip on the handle, nicely done love the shape.Finished very well.Now I'm gonna be picky;personally I would of liked the width of the handle to be a tad smaller width way's.The blade width a tiny bit thin, a little flex to it but the razor sharp edge compensates for this minor production.Hence dropping a star.It is a well crafted knife, in a great presented box. Anyone given this as a gift or to use in a kitchen would be delighted and impressed with the manufacturer's build quality and presentation.Will be trying their other products as well.Not tested it's longevity yet.

Looks good and is very sharp.Hope it keeps its edge.Easy to use