Customer Reviews

Shun Alton Angle 7-Piece Knife Block Set with Clear Block

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

PRO:
These are excellent knives. Excellent build quality - will last a lifetime. Made with the old time samurai sword steel folding methods. Handles are water proof and virtually indestructable.
Very very sharp and hold their edge. The knife block lets you see the blades on the knives before you pull them out.

CON:
If you have BIG male hands you might find the handles to be a bit too small in diameter - I have normal male sized hands and they fit me.
The knife block takes up a LOT of counter space - i prefer a magnetic wall strip.
Expensive unless you find them on big amazon sale here like I did. Buy the set and give one or two of the knives as an xmas presents to others to cut your costs - (a single knife can cost a lot by itself) :-). So a single one of these knives is a GOOD gift.

I got these several months ago and am so happy that I pulled the trigger when the price was $199! The acrylic block is cheesy, but the knives are very high quality. I received 2 knives with Alton's cartoon face, however, I think Shun is phasing that out. I use mostly the chef's knife and the utility knife. Great buy if you can get these on sale.

I missed the $199 deal on this knife set from Amazon, but I did find this set with an additional Shun sharpening steel, so that made me feel a bit better. I have been using Henckel 4 star knives for over 15 years and believe those knives would have been enough for my needs.

The Shun knives are indeed sharper and lighter and the 16 degree angle vs 22+ degree of the Henckels and the weight difference are very noticeable. The Alton's angle Shun set takes some getting used.

The angled handle makes many slicing, cutting, dicing, and other tasks easier once you get used to the angles, but there are definitely drawbacks. The knives and handles look strange in a standard wood knife block and stick out at strange angles. The included Shun plastic knife block is a waste of counter space and quite ugly, so you may wish to consider a magnetic knife holder, vertical drop down knife holder, or some other option.

The included 6 knife selection is also a bit strange. A bread knife swapped in for the small chef's knife and a filet/boning knife swapped for one of the utility knives would have given the set more functionality.

There is no included straightening steel, so unless you have a steel, boning, bread, extra storage block, etc., you may need to shell out more $$$ to round out this set.

Overall I love the Shun knives. They make quality knives that are very different from German blades and it really is a matter of preference.

Delivery was fast and the transaction with Amazon was simple and easy.
The knives are exactly what I thought they would be. My only small disappointment was the knife holder. The plastic holder is big and clunky and I don't like it. Others may feel differently. It's definitely not a deal breaker. The price was very very good too ($199).

These knives are fantastic...extremely sharp and easy to handle. The bent angle takes a little getting used to. They are so sharp that the plastic sheet that I use to chop with is all cut up and have to be replaced. Even my epicurean board has scratches now. The scratches never happened with my Wusthof knives (original version). The clear block is for lack of a better word, stupid. They shouldn't even bother putting it together with these knives - utterly useless and f-ugly. Alton's cartoon face is on a couple of the knives I got but they do not bother me.

One word: Amazing. I will NEVER buy any other brand of knife again. These things are awesome.
Holy smokes these put Henckels and Wustof to shame.

This is an incredible set of knives. Razor sharp, lightweight but strong, comfortable, beautiful layered steel...these are the nicest knives I've ever owned by far, and I have owned Henckels Zwilling(Friodur steel), Wustof, Calphalon, Chicago(forged) and others. The Shun aren't balanced like the big heavy German knives, but they are so light that not only don't they need to be balanced, you will be doing the work in half the time because of the combination of light weight and scary-sharp edges. I have other knives in the block, but the two most indespensible knives I keep reaching for are the 5-1/2 angled Santoku, and the 6-inch angled chef. The holder is cheezy but nice looking.

These knives are amazing. They are fast and strong, and the angle did not take any getting used to for me. I love Alton's cartoon head on a couple of the small knives (wish it was on all); it reminds me these that are designed by a pro.

Best value ever for this set. Shun is quality. I can't believe I only paid $199 for this set!!! Insane.