GINSU Chikara Series 12-Piece Japanese Kitchen Knife Set - Premium 420J Stainless Steel Cutlery Set with Bamboo Block, Perfect for Any Table or Dining Room, Includes Steak Knives – Black

These Ginsu Chikara knives are very sharp and stay sharp with proper care (briefly, hand wash only, store in block not drawer). I love these knives and they are worth extra care. Try them, I think you will agree.I have owned Henckels, Wusthof and Cutco knives for 40 years of amateur cooking, so I can tell you those other "high end" knives are more expensive, but no better than the Ginsu Chikara knives. (I don't know about the much cheaper serrated Ginsu knives. They might be fine, but I hate sharpening serrated blades and you will eventually have to, or consider them throwaway because they are so cheap). These are very well made, with hard steel blades that keep an edge longer than those more expensive knives. Harder steel is good for sharpness but it makes them easier to spot and chip, so do take special care of them (see below). I love the feel of the handle and the look of the knives and bamboo block, so classic. The santoku blade is my favorite, perfect for all vegetable chopping. Honestly, I mainly use the santoku and the paring knives. The rest are hardly used, but I could do without them! The block is vertical so hard to store under cabinets - you have to pull it out. If you want, you can buy a tilted block, but I like the clean bamboo look myself, and I have a clear area so that's no issue for me, but it's an annoyance if you have to store under cabinet.Cleaning: If you love these knives for their sharp edges and good looks, they are worth special care. As I said, the steel is a little harder, thus easier to rust and chip than softer steel. Do clean and dry right after use. They WILL rust if not cleaned and dried immediately after use (vinegar removes). My cheaper Wusthofs spotted too when I got lazy and did not clean them right away or washed in the dishwasher. Do not wash them in the dishwasher, because they will rust and spot and whatever time you thought you saved will be wasted in cleaning the spots. There is more danger of chipping the blades in the dishwasher rack with other things. It makes the handles look dull too (oil restores). All the fine knives I own recommended hand washing and drying immediately after use. They will survive the dishwasher, but you won't like the side effects.Storage: Don't leave them lying on the counter or in a drawer. Keep them safe in the block or a magnetic rack when not in use. This really helps keep the blades from damage and saves a lot of sharpening time. I once broke a Henckels long meat carver at the handle due to careless handling. They are welded right at the handle, and that's where it broke. My fault, too lazy to put it back in the block, but I learned my lesson. I suspect these will snap too, so I am obsessive about storing them in the block.Sharpening: Before each use, I check for sharpness on my fingernail and hone the blade if necessary. I'm speaking from a lot of years of using fine knives, and I really believe keeping them sharp is the key to enjoying them and using them safely. A dull knife is dangerous. I've sharpened knives with everything from Japanese waterstones to several top line electric sharpeners. They all work, but the electric saves so much time that I just won't bother with using the hand stones any more. But be careful, because some electric sharpeners will rapidly remove too much metal and use up your wonderful knife. Just hone or steel the edge most of the time, and reserve the coarse grinding only for repairing a chipped or hopelessly dulled edge (mainly used knives I buy that are trashed). With this set, I use a Western 20 degree edge on every knife for longer edge life - less chipping. Personally, I'm not much good keeping the angle exact with a steel so I rely on this electric sharpener: Edgeware 50141 Ceramic Edge Electric Knife Sharpener I like this because the ceramic removes the absolute minimum of metal and it works very well on the santoku.For a good manual sharpener I use: Chef's Choice M4623 Diamond Hone 3-Stage Manual Sharpener for Euro-American/Santoku/Serrated Knives This is less expensive and more compact, so I leave it out and use it constantly for honing. I like this because the diamond slot will restore really worn out or chipped blades and it has the ceramic for honing.Here's another good simple manual sharpener which also does scissors: Wusthof 2-Stage Knife Sharpener Whew, I got carried away. Since I spend a lot of time using knives, I find my knives are so much easier and safer to use with proper care. Shortcuts waste time in the end.Bottom line, the Ginsu Chikara line is a best buy. Care for these knives well and you will enjoy using them for many years and many meals.

I have had my set of Ginsu Chikara for about 2 years and they are still an outstanding set. I use my chef's knife and my paring knife the most and keeping an edge on them has been a breeze. The handles have grayed slightly over the years but there are no breaks, chips, or looseness. I hand wash and dry my knives and only once did my sister send one through the dishwasher and that resulted in a very gray handle that gradually regained its color. There's never been any rust on the knives. I sharpen them every few day, it hasn't been necessary to sharpen daily. I am fully satisfied with these knives and feel that Ginsu has done an excellent job of providing a beautiful, functional, product at a very affordable price.Update: September 21,2013These knives continue to be one of the best deals I ever got from Amazon. They stay sharp with a little bit of sharpening after 3-4 days use. Mine have never rusted but I saw some that did because the owner put them in the dishwasher. I've had them now for 3 years and bought a second paring knife because my husband retired and sometimes helps with supper.

My husband and I bought these knives about three months ago. We needed a new knife set but my hubby is a real cheapskate. Consumer Reports recommended these knives so we went for it. Shipping was nice and fast.We started to notice small spots of rust on the chef's knife within a few weeks. We contacted the vendor and they had us send pictures of the rust and our Amazon receipt. Within a week, they had shipped us a new knife and didn't even ask us to return the old one.The Pros:*The knives are super sharp*Set looks classy*Great customer service*Great warranty*Worth the low low price*The knives are of substantial weight, but the balance could be betterThe Cons:*These Knives must be honed before every use to maintain optimal sharpness*Imprinted on each knife is "Japanese Steel" however, turn the knife over and it clearly reads "CHINA", as in made-in-China*Within 2 months, we noticed rust of the large chef's knife. This was rectified quickly by the vendor - see above for details.*The knife block is an upright block. This is really inconvenient, especially if you store them under cabinets. You have to actually pull the block out from under the cabinets to get the knives out. My hub is making a wood wedge to attach to the block so they can be stored at an angle.*The knife block is not made really well. The corners on ours weren't well sanded.*Handle grips are hard. I have blisters on my index finger from how the blade transitions to the handle.Overall, this is a good, decent, BUDGET knife set. It is NOT for someone who needs a flashy knife or someone who cooks a lot. This knife set is a great set for folks who are just starting out and would like a few more knives than a smaller high quality set.

A professional chef would note that stainless blades have edge retention but lack a razor edge. These, as Ginsu is famous for, have a finely honed edge that, with my regular honing, has lasted the better part of a year finely cutting through tomato skin and onion layers. The blades are broad enough to withstand garlic crushing and have not yet required a sharpening. The honing rod is of sufficient hardness to release a burr and keep the edges in slicing condition. Even an enthusiastic home cook would be hard pressed to find fault with the quality or justify the added cost of a Hinckels set.

Muy buen producto, los cuchillos son filosos y muy bonitos, aunque los deje un par de días sucios no se oxidan ni se manchan. Recomendados.

Die Messer sind ganz ok , dass Problem ist nur das der Messerblock leider die Reise zu mir nicht überlebt hat und deswegen leider die ordentliche Aufbewahrung der Messer nur halb gewährleistet ist da die 2 Hälften eher instabil stehen .

Très coupant

Edit: have had these for three years now. The review below was based on roughly a year of ownership. They’ve survived daily use for 3 years including being put through the dishwasher. Occasional sharpening and they still cut as good as new.Happy with these. They're nice and sharp even after repeated trips through the dishwasher. I will hazard a guess that these are superior value to what you'd find in a brick and mortar store for the same price. They're not two man Henckels, but neither is the cost.

Excelente compra, tienen mucho filo