Cutco Knives

MaryMumsy

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Is anyone familiar with them? They are sold online and through direct sales. They are made in Olean, NY.

I've seen a couple of demonstrations of them, but haven't jumped because they are fairly pricey. One of the main things that attracts me is their lifetime guarantee. The company has been around since 1949. "Supposedly" with normal home kitchen use they should never need to be sharpened. And if, after years, they do need sharpening, you ship them off for a new factory edge. I have some other, big brand name used by professional chefs, knives that need sharpening every time I use them. I'm so sick of that. Sometimes I even need to stop part way of what I'm slicing and dicing to sharpen again.

Next month I'm going to a huge street fair. Last time I was there was one of the demos I saw. I'm seriously considering buying one general purpose knife to try them out. Then I could get a couple more at the next fair in Feb.

Experiences? Opinions?

MM
 

blacbird

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My wife bought some three or four years ago. They are quite good, and stay dangerously sharp. They come with little paper sleeves which you should always put them back into after washing them.

caw
 

JDlugosz

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I've heard that it’s a good brand. But beware of brand debasing, where cheaper product lines are introduced to take advantage of the name.

I've seen a couple of demonstrations of them, but haven't jumped because they are fairly pricey. One of the main things that attracts me is their lifetime guarantee. The company has been around since 1949. "Supposedly" with normal home kitchen use they should never need to be sharpened.

Nonesence. They must consider that a “typical” home doesn’t cook much or do anything fron scratch.

The metal used has tradeoffs. Google `cutco vs wusthof` for example. (I'm a fan of the latter.) You can probably find out the exact alloy they are made from.

And if, after years, they do need sharpening, you ship them off for a new factory edge. I have some other, big brand name used by professional chefs, knives that need sharpening every time I use them. I'm so sick of that. Sometimes I even need to stop part way of what I'm slicing and dicing to sharpen again.
I run my knifes through a hand-held v-notch ceramic sharpener when I put them away. Two strokes is enough to undo the wear of use, and I can feel that it's smooth. Otherwise, I know it needs more attention.

Wusthof knives are *soft*. Their metal is extremly stain resistant and flexible, but poorer at holding an edge. So I expect other hi-end kitchen knives to hold an edge longer, but take real work to hone.

Any of my 3 pocket knives could probably cut a kitchen knife; they are very hard and made from more exotic material. My woodworking chisels are much much sharper than any kitchen knife. But kitchen knives are designed for a different purpose.

Your not-fit-for-use knives sound like basic stainless steel; cheap stuff. Used by pros, really?! Brand endorced by pros maybe, or a case of different product lines sharing the same brand.

There are knife forums, and cooking forums, you know.
 

MaryMumsy

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Wusthof are the ones I hate. I use a sharpening rod. I've used them for 50 years, and know how to get an edge on a knife.

I have a few weeks before decision time, so maybe some others will chime in.

MM
 

RedRajah

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Whatever you choose, stay away from glass & marble cutting boards!
 

Maryn

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I have a slew of Cutco knives. They're good, much better than the Henkel knives I have in a block. And--this is a biggie--they can go in the dishwasher.

My one gripe is that the boning knife--the one I use most often, because I find the paring knife a little short in the blade--has a tendency to skew to one side. I have two of these and they both do it, probably because if I were actually boning a chicken, I'd want to cut away from the bone. It does make for unevenly-halved new potatoes.
 

Cekrit

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I used to sell Cutco knives in high school, it was an experience to say the least. I had to generate my own leads through word of mouth but they paid 18.50 just for a signature from the person you met with. So if you squeezed in a block than you could make a couple hundred in one day, great for how old I was. However, they were incredibly strict on the number of sales you needed to get to keep the job. I quit after a month or two of driving around in the summer heat.

I started with family and friends, then after a week or so I tapped out my "hey i now you help me out" leads and started being sent to "friends of friends of uncles of friends of why am i here trying to give you a 30 minute presentation on a $860 set of knives please just buy a god damned ice cream scooper and sign this paper so I can get my $18.50 and oh can you please give me 5 names of people who you'd like me to waste their time?"

I kept the knives when I quit, they are still as sharp as the day I sliced my finger on one in training.

"Dont touch the knives, they are a lot sharper than most because of the way the blade is made" the trainer said. (The blades are oddly serrated, but they take the time to sharpen every angle to it still cuts like a smooth flat edge.)

Teenage me pressed his finger down on the blade softly and a moment later I'm bleeding all over the desk. Great first day.

Honestly, despite the fact the job was crummy, and the knives were expensive as hell. They are the best made pieces of cutlery I've ever used.

They are sharp as the day you got them even going into 10 years, and whenever they do get dull they have a lifetime warranty. You dont even need a receipt, if you just are in possession of them than you can send them in to get fixed or sharpened so long as you pay shipping.

The homemaker set is $800+ which is a lot but it will last you a lifetime and you will never need another set of knives again.


Extra: their ice cream scooper is a special kind of metal that can carve through even solid frozen ice cream because the metal melts it on contact and their butter knife can cut through belt-leather and pennies.
 

MaryMumsy

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Whatever you choose, stay away from glass & marble cutting boards!

Maple all the way.

Thanks, blacbird and all. Especially Cekrit. My cousin sold them 40 some odd years ago, right out of college. But, for reasons which don't need exploring at this point, he has huge gaps in his memory from those years. When I saw them at the street fair the last time you could buy them individually. That's what I want because most of the ones in the set I wouldn't use.

MM
 

Maryn

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That's what we did. We saw them at the New York State Fair, of all places, but I was hardly eager to carry around spur-of-the-moment cutlery purchases. Mr. Maryn went back and bought the paring and boning knives, which fit in the pockets of his cargo shorts, and gave them to me for my birthday. I liked them so well I ordered others, and duplicates of the two I use the most, since one's always dirty.

Although it's good, the big carving knife gets used maybe three times a year and probably wasn't worth buying.
 

regdog

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We had a set about 20 years ago. They were well worth the price.
 

cmhbob

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Timely thread.

We bought a new house last month, and during the course of the move, discovered that we needed to throw out our set of kitchen knives. (You don't want to know why. Trust me.)

Glanced at Wally World to see what they had. Lots of stuff in the $50-75 range, and none of the sets had a carving fork! I'm talking a 30+ piece set, and everything BUT a carving fork! WTH?

Anyway, we'd had that set for the entire marriage, and need to look for some new knives. I've done about an hour of surfing and Googling, and have heard both names mentioned here. Good to hear any information.

We have a glass cutting board because my wife doesn't like wood or plastic since they can be difficult to keep sterile. Makes sense that they're hard on a knife blade.

Part of me wants a Santoku blade just because I think they look cool. I obviously need to read up on blades a bit. :)
 

regdog

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I have to ask, what's wrong with marble cutting boards?
 

Barbara R.

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We bought one years ago from a friend of our son's, who was selling them to make money for college. He's now 35 years old, and the knife is as good as the day we bought it. Worth the investment.
 

Maryn

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Glass, marble, granite, and other really hard cutting boards (unlike wood and plastic) will blunt the knife's cutting edge over time. But they'll look great while they're doing it, and can be made sterile because the blade won't have cut into them.

cmhbob, in your shoes I'd probably buy a dedicated carving set, fork and knife that match and look good enough to carve at the table, if you do that, and not worry whether it went with the utility blades in the kitchen.

Oh, and FWIW, the Cutco guy told me lots of people prefer the dark handle over the white, because while the lighter color is hard to stain irreparably, it's not impossible. Curry and saffron were mentioned.

Maryn, who doesn't cook with either very often
 

regdog

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quicklime

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Decide what you like.

I bought a cutco set, I really can't say a legit bad thing about them, but I felt pressured (friend of family) and bought, even though I'd much rather, in a perfect world, get a set that fit my hand and selection of knives better--I ABSOLUTELY believe they are good knives and edges, just not the best (FOR ME) selection in batches, and handle.

So in a perfect world I'd have spent maybe 20-30% more to get exactly what I want, but Cutco offers nice, good knives for the price. You just need to ideally check how you like them vs the competition--no reason not to decide you like them best, but there is no "right" knives, let alone set, so you need to see what you think personally. The steel is good, but you gotta like the knives.
 

JDlugosz

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We have a glass cutting board because my wife doesn't like wood or plastic since they can be difficult to keep sterile.

That is not true. Wood is naturally sterile due to the moisture being wicked away. It seems to have some antimicrobial properties too, but the mechanism is harder to study. Plastic is amicrobial.

You can find studies testing the old wood vs plastic decision, and the **result** is that they both are easy to keep sterile; just wipe and allow it to dry completely.

Glass hard on a blade is an understatement. It does not function as a cutting board, but is simply a shield so as not to cut into your countertop.
 

JDlugosz

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I have to ask, what's wrong with marble cutting boards?

In a nutshell, “something’s gotta give”. If you run the knife edge across a surface thats harder than the steel and unyielding, the steel will be what suffers. Knives are mallible; that’s why honing works. (I found a good picture and explaination at http://www.seriouseats.com/2010/04/knife-skills-how-to-hone-a-dull-knife.html).

Smashing the edge against the hard surface will turn the shape from a point to a mushroom head — done on purpose, that’s how I put a hook on a scraper (found an illustration at http://www.stewmac.com/freeinfo/i-3416/3416_02.gif).

A cutting board serves to catch the knife without damaging it. End-grain wood is ideal (think of the end of a broom — you can chop into it without damage). A soft material gets pressed down, giving room for the blade.

Now a kichen knife generally is best if it has some roughness to it (polish to 800 stone only) but still pointy.
 

MaryMumsy

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UPDATE

I bought one Cutco knife, the one I thought I would use the most. I love it. I have used it almost every day for about two weeks and it is great. Cuts through everything like a warm knife through whipped cream.

I am already planning which one or two I'm going to get in Feb at the next street fair.

MM
 

Maryn

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You know you can order these online, right? I'm pretty sure that's how Mr. Maryn got the rest after we bought the first ones in person.
 

MaryMumsy

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You know you can order these online, right? I'm pretty sure that's how Mr. Maryn got the rest after we bought the first ones in person.

I know. But I still want to heft them and pretend to cut things before I actually buy. I have very small hands and many of the larger types of knives are just too big.

MM
 

Maryn

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I just remember I hated toting the knives around all day. I wasn't there to buy knives! But if you go in knowing you might, I bet you'll have a big enough purse, or a tote bag, right?