Ceramic knives - are they worth it?

[**DONOTDELETE**]

I was wondering if anyone has a ceramic knife. I want to know if they are as advertised - never need sharpening. Mother's Day is coming, and mine loves to cook, so I was thinking that it would make a perfect gift. I just can't "see" a knife never needing to be sharpened, and I would like some verification...

 

[ChrisA]

i would suggest some high quality stainless. a.g. russel has some very nice damascus kitchen knives in their current catalog - those are well made and nearly maintance free (only occasionaly sharpening needed)... ceramics are very brittle and too prone to chipping - not as useful as a good stainless. they won't take a razorsharp edge and resharpening is a pain in the a.. because of the high rc's. IMO you're better off with a high quality stainless steel knife...
i had some boker ceramic folders and they broke within some weeks because i accidently dropped them or used too much pressure to force them into the cut. not very impressive...

chris

 

[txwest]

Allen,
Welcome to the board. I have to agree with Chris on this one. I take pride in being able to sharpen a knife & I don't want one that I can't. I have a knife I got from Smokey Mountain Knife Works I just added to an order to see if this $7 knife was any good. As it turns out, it takes & holds an edge as good as any other knife I have, & I have a LOT. Spend the money on a good sharpner like the Spyderco Tri-Angle. TX
PS: In the kitchen, I find my most useful all around knife to be a 6" chef's knife.

 

[Big Tex]

I agree with the other guys to stay away from ceramic knives. Check out the Forschner kitchen knives. They are reasonably priced and work well. I have noticed that some ceramic manufacturers recommend that you send the knife back to them for sharpening. That would be a hassle.

 

[**DONOTDELETE**]

I just want to thank everyone for their replies. I'm going to avoid the whole ceramic thing.

My Mom already has a set of Henckles (sp?) that came with one of those pull-through-the-roller sharpeners. Would these classify as "high quality stainless" knives. If so, then I'll have to get something else.

Now, about the sharpening thing, is the Spyderco Tri-Angle that txwest mentioned much better than the roller thing? I know it costs a lot more. I never can seem to get a "new knife" edge with that sharpener that came with it or any other sharpener. I'm always wary of using a new knife (like the Chive I purchased after reading these boards - love it) because I know I won't be able to put an edge like that on it again. I have Arkansas stones, that cheesey Lanskey setup, a small diamond "stone", and I just cant get it right. Any assistance on this point would be GREATLY appreciated as I have had this problem for many years...

 

[mikep]

Amen to the Spyderco Sharpmaker recommendation. I think it comes with an instructional video (mine did), it might give you a better 'feel' for the process. It may take a couple of knives until you get the hang of it. Once you do, you will wonder why you didn't get one earlier!

You can get the Sharpener for mom and offer to sharpen her knives whenever they need it. What a thoughtful son!

 

[txwest]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Allen:
My Mom already has a set of Henckles (sp?) that came with one of those pull-through-the-roller sharpeners.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>The knives you mention are good, but way overpriced. The $7 one I mentioned is made in Sweden & is a Frosts brand. I can't vouch for all there knives, but I can for this one. When I was a kid, I worked on the killing floor of a slaughterhouse. If your knife wasn't razor sharp, it wouldn't cut anything. Once beef's been cooled, it's totaly different. We all used Russell brand knives. The ones I have are carbon steel & most people don't want to spend the time to take care of them, but I can make them scarey sharp. The price of a knife doesn't always reflect it's quality.

As far as the "wheel sharpner" goes, that's about the 3rd worst thing you can do to a knife. The 1st 2 are keeping them loose in a drawer & putting them in a dishwasher!!

The only sharpners you need are a 8" coarse stone & the Tri-Angle. The stone is used to shape the back edge when needed (about once a year) & the Tri-Angle will do the rest. If you want to learn the "science" of sharpening a knife, get the book The Razor Edge Book of Sharpening. I'll shutup now.

TX

 

[Big Tex]

Throw that "roller thing" away. lol I have a Spyderco Sharpmaker 204 and it works great. It's not the best if you have a really really dull knife, but anyone can use it. Well worth the $, especially if you're not real good with a flat stone.

BTW, the Henckels are supposed to be quality knives. They are much more expensive than the Forschners.