37 of 37 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Quality Knives, March 2, 2003
This review is from: Farberware Pro Forged 8-Piece Knife Block Set (Kitchen)
These knives were rated by Consumer Reports as being a best buy. I used their recommendation when I made my decision to purchase them. The knives arrived and I am quite pleased with them. They are very study, have a fairly good grip, possibly a little heavy for me, but my husband thinks they are just fine. The blades seem to hold their edge well, and are quite an improvement to our old knives. This is the first time I actually own a matching set of knives and they look quite tidy, safely stored in the block. I would recommend these knives as they are priced reasonably and seem to do their job well.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
35 of 35 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Not Bad, Not Great, February 4, 2004
By A Customer
This review is from: Farberware Pro Forged 8-Piece Knife Block Set (Kitchen)
I collect kitchen knives. I give away extras as presents and keep my favorites. I bought this set because it was the cheapest list price forged set available and I was curious about the quality.
The balance is very good for the price. Better than Calphylon knives, but not close to the feel of a top of the line French/German/Japanese knives. This is particularly noticeable in the paring knife and utility knife. These knives are NOT heavy for forged knives. They are heavy compared to the stamped knives common in most kitchens, but are of average weight for forged knives.
The knives all have a number of detailing errors where the handles mold to the knife and bolster and a few minor errors in the stainless. And, they don't hold an edge quite as long as top of the line European/Japanese knives (or Calpylon)
The bread knife is just great and is the best knife in the set. It's as good a bread knife as you'd get in a top of the line German set. It's worth the price of the set. The 8" slicer is very good too. The 8" Chef is good but the width is more typical of an 8" stamped Cook's knife.
The scissors are very good. Better than the scissors you'd get with MUCH more expensive sets. I replaced a pair of Henkels scissors in one of my blocks with these scissors. And you can take them apart to sharpen.
The block is cheap (and that makes sense since this whole set is cheaper than a single good knife typically costs) and the steel is substandard but better than the steel you'd get with a cheap stamped set. The steel handle looks exactly like the Henkels "traditional/non diamond" steel with the same attractive chrome detailing but the steel portion is far lower quality than a German steel. IOW, it looks better than it sharpens but is still a pretty good steel.
In the end I liked these knives but I still gave most of them away (and the block and steel) to relatives who cook and needed decent knives. I kept the bread knife and the scissors.
If you have to pay list, this is a very good choice for value. However, I recommend looking at the Amazon "Friday Sale" and using Internet Shopping engines to find better European forged sets at deep discounts (they are out there if you are patient and have the time look). You'll probably have to spend between 1OO and 15O dollrs but the knives will be much nicer. If you dont' want to spend that cash this is among the best low cost options and far better than pressed knives including the pressed knives sold by Wustof, Sabatier and Henkels but made cheaply in China which sell in the same price range as this set.
If you have unlimited cash, buy the Wustof Classic Mega Set for 1.5K or so and be done with it! Dick, Henkels Global and Sabatier make excellent forged knives too.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Good quality, May 9, 2005
This review is from: Farberware Pro Forged 8-Piece Knife Block Set (Kitchen)
I bought this set for my wife, and she loves the quality of these knives (so do I). They are very sharp and sturdy. The only weakness is that they rust easily. This is the only reason we didn't rate it 5 stars. The rust is easy to remove, but you have to stay on top of it.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No