Shun Ken Onion Elite 7-in Santoku Knife

Cutco knives are stamped, 440a steel, bakelite-handled, and way over-priced. They aren’t necessarily bad knives, but there is no comparison to this knife. The Shun, material-wise, is superior in every way. If you own Cutcos and are happy with them, there are several other knives you could have purchased for 1/3 the price and been just as happy. I won’t even mention the whole pyramid scheme aspect of selling Cutco knives (did I say that out loud?).

Edit: BTW, I’ll just mention that Shun once again offers free sharpening (it went away for a while). You have to pre-pay for return shipping though.

LOL! Practical advice? :slight_smile:

Tempting price, but after googling about the warranty issue mentioned earlier, that’s a deal breaker for me. If it’s as finicky as a ceramic blade, I can get 3 of those for the price of one KO. Or another Global.

I recently bought the Shun Elite 8" chef’s knife from home woot. Is there are reason for me to buy this one too?

i dont think so, unless the handle appeals to you very much, i got the 10inch, so its a bigger difference for me, and i want to getas much elites as possible before they dissapear co pletely (their discontinued)

I’m a little confused. I have several Shun Classic knives, but want to understand the difference between what I have and this knife.

Other than the obvious shape/style differences, what’s the difference in the blade construction and steel used? Someone mentioned it’s a Ken Onion handle with an Elite line blade, but I don’t know enough about Shun to know the difference between Elite blades and Classic blades. My Classic has the appearnce of damascus steel and this one doesn’t seem to, but any info someone may have about the differences would be appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

I bought this one a couple of years ago and it is a bit beefier compared in terms of blade thickness in comparison to the classic Shuns. So it feels more of a beefier cutting action than slicing through action. But then I could be wrong because I am comparing this Ken Onion Santoku to my Shun Chef’s Knife.

Let me ask this…if you currently only had a set of cheap knives and you were thinking of investing in some good quality cutlery…would this knife be a good place to start? In other words, if you only had one good knife would this be the one, or would it be better to start with something like a chef’s knife?

I don’t think so. I’d start with an 8 or 10 inch chef’s knife (which you can find for about the same price as this one). I like Shuns but some people prefer German knives like Wusthof, so it’s worth trying them both in your hand first. This is a knife I’m thinking about as a supplement but I’d avoid it as a starter knife since it’s more of a specialty.

Thanks! That’s just the information I was looking for. Woot gods- give this man (or woman) another quality post :wink:

If I can add a dissenting opinion, I think it depends a lot on the kind of cooking you do. If you do a lot of veggies (and therefore a lot of chopping of veggies), this could well be the perfect knife to start with. I have both German and Japanese chef’s knives (both 8" and 10") and this remains my goto knife and I would pick it in a heartbeat over any of my other knives to be my “one” knife.

On the other hand, if you are cutting a lot of meat, I’d be more inclined to go with a traditional chef’s knife.

Also, as someone said, fit matters and may be an issue of personal taste. I have hands a little on the smaller side, and this works perfectly for me. If you have big hands, you might want a 10" chef’s knife.

Your answer can be found in their official catologue, here: Next Level Pocketknives | Kershaw Knives

It’s on Page 27/28.

To put it simply, the Ken Onion line matches the Classic line quite closely outside of the general shape.

Another point… if you wanted to try this Ken Onion ergonomic handle, both this knife and your classic would sell well second hand if properly cared for.

Someone posted a great link earlier. To summarize, this is made of a harder steel (and therefor stays sharper longer, but is more brittle and easier to break). Also, the handles are more ergonometric and personally, I much prefer my Ken Onion knives (particularly this one) to the classic series. At this price, I think it’s worth trying it and figuring you can give it away (or sell it) if it doesn’t work for your hands. It’s an expensive knife, but it’s also a really good price so I would say it’s likely worth the risk.

I agree, but these are all reasons to try them first before investing in a good knife. Some people may prefer this one to a standard chef’s knife, but if you’re just building a knife set, I wouldn’t start with this one based on internet posts. For $100+ it’s worth the time to handle different knives first.

I would suggest there isn’t. There’s nothing a Santoku can do that a Chef’s knife cannot. Chef’s knives are actually more versatile.

Knife purchases are totally personal. Some people might find they need every knife out there. Other’s can make due with much less.

In MY opinion… I would get a very high quality 8 or 10" Chef’s knife, a very high quality paring knife and put them in a block with an inexpensive set of Henckel’s or something to that effect. That way you have covered all of your main needs with the Chef’s knife, and all of your precision detail stuff with the paring knife, and the cheap set will take care of the rest.

Do not spend money on a bread knife. Buy a cheapo and replace it when it’s no good.

I’m actually surprised these knives are still here. Either they have a big batch of them, or people are sleeping in this morning.

Personally, I think the extra $20 is worth it, but it’s a bit like saying that you were being offered a new Toyota Avalon at $20k or a new Lexus IS at $25k. They are both really good cars, and for some people, the extra money wouldn’t be worth it even though the IS is a higher-end car. Either way, you are far ahead of the game.

Well it’s sold out now :wink:

And I’m glad. After missing the last sale, I flew into a missing-knife-fueled rage and bought a pair of Shun Premier’s, I was working the slow process of convincing myself I needed a Santoku as well, but this makes it easier!

These knives are stamped steel, which means they take a sheet of steel and stamp out the knife shapes. As a result, that design on the knife (called a ‘damascus’) isn’t there permanently, and will wear off with polishing. In short, don’t worry, the design, while pretty, doesn’t affect the function of the knife.

That’s not true. The “wiggles” on Shun knives that have them are the edges of separate layers of steel. It’s a different steel than the blade body, giving the knives some protection but mostly making them pretty.

The Shun knives that don’t have the wiggles don’t have the half dozen or so layers of extra steel on them.

True Damascus blades are folded and hammered over and over again. Shun doesn’t make those. They call it a “Damascus appearance”.

It’s up to you. If a shorter, lighter knife works better for you, then get this. Otherwise get a chef’s knife.

You don’t really need both.