Modern “mares”

Modern commercials help create incorrect perceptions and stereotypes that are far from reality. For instance, any professional would smile at demands for self-sharpening knives – this is impossible since no blade may sharpen on its own when cutting cabbages or bread. It is also a myth that the so-called “laser sharpening” is a novelty. At present laser is not used for sharpening, and you will hardly see any knife with “spatial” qualities. It is just that some knives are sharpened by special automatic sharpeners with laser-controlled sharpness angle. And finally, the most sophisticated offers for those who do not wish to economize on kitchenware concern knives made of damask steel. It is widely known that the damask steel production secrets have been lost and are unlikely to be re-invented.

Basic knowledge

To avoid the sophisticated sales manager traps, you need to understand what the knife is composed of and what materials are used for each part of the knife. The main components of this kitchen tool are the blade, the cutting edge (the sharp part of the knife), the point, the back, the handle and the end. Different shapes have different utility functions. It is important how the point of a knife is placed: it may have high, low and even positions. It is also important to distinguish between the blade forms – thin, thick and bent. Since the purposes of different knives are not hard to understand, we will mainly address the quality aspects.
Knives have some basic requirements. Firstly, the blade should be hard enough not to break but at the same time have enough flexibility allow of sharpening. The second aspect – food acid resistance (the metal should be protected from corrosion). Finally, the knife should not be very expensive, since it’s only a house tool, not a valuable design item.
The two main factors that form the basis of pricing and quality of a knife are blade material composition and the cutting edge machining.
So, any knife is made of steel. To put it simply, the steel is an iron-carbon alloy. If the alloy has much carbon then you will get cast iron, if little carbon – then tin-plate.
The steel hardness is measured in hardness units under Rockwell hardness Scale C – HRC. This abbreviation is used in any certificates. The best kitchen knife figures are 56 +/- 1 HRC. The harder knife is not needed in the kitchen since it will be an axe, but a knife softer than 52 HRC will get dull every time it is used.
It should be also acknowledged that the steel hardness may “cut both ways”, and that it is hard to find a universal brand. There is a direct relation between the steel hardness and corrosion sensitivity; very hard steel may not be conventionally sharpened. A hard knife will lose its flexibility and user qualities. However, it has an advantage of the cutting edge preserving its sharpness for a long time. The kitchen knives are mainly made of 420 – 440^o C steel where the lesser values indicating the greater softness.
Of course, modern technologies could not but create a compromise – the steel made by metal powder industry. The metal powder is composed of many components and usually has many Latin letters in its marking. It is perfect in all aspects except for the price. It is mainly used for quality sheath-knives since the price of a kitchen knife made of such steel is unreasonable.
Beside the carbon-iron ratio the steel qualities are determined by the so-called alloying additions. So when referring to molybdenum and titanium additions the commercial means that the carbon-iron alloy has been complemented by one more chemical element, which may represent nickel, molybdenum, manganese, chrome, phosphorus, silicium and some other components. The said components help increase the resistance to corrosion and durability.
After you have chosen the steel, you need to determine the tip edge, i.e. the knife’s cutting part. Firstly the edges are divided into two groups – smooth and serrated (shaped) edges. The serrate blades need not be sharpened and are used to cut bread, vegetables and fruit with hard peel and soft core. The tool shown in commercials can really cut a boot; however, it will then lose its user qualities. These knives are usually made of soft steel and become dull in half a year when used intensively. They can not be “renewed” since even special metal repairs will make them lose almost all of their serrate characteristics.
Another group of knives not subject to sharpening includes the knives with straight cutting edge with a special coating made of hard metal or ceramic. These knives are almost as hard as diamonds but they also have a “diamond price”. Besides, they are quite fragile; if you drop such a knife on a tiled floor or have inadequate maintenance, the blade will be irreparably damaged.
In the end, the most competitive knives have the straight cutting edge and no sophisticated coatings: all you need is to choose the right steel and sharpen the knives regularly.
Since the knife is a daily used item it should be convenient to handle. The key aspect here is the handle materials. Our country traditionally prefers wooden handles; however, they often get dirty and require special maintenance. The most ergonomic and convenient material is plastic, bakelite and other such materials. The more expensive the knife is the more attention the producer should pay to its convenience. The last novelty is a thermoduric rubber handle having several advantages: the rubber handle will not slip out of your hand and will cushion a shock of the blade if the knife falls, thus protecting the knife from damage.

Beware of imitations!

It is clear that better technical characteristics will result in higher prices. However, in the modern market conditions the old saying “the more expensive the better” may not always be followed since there are many fraudsters that sell imitations as originals.
Most imitations are related to using the logos of well-known companies. As other goods the knife imitations often have one extra letter in their names. One should not rely on the quality of an item having the word “International” on its package. This means that the item has been manufactured by a company affiliate that is usually located in China or Turkey.
Many cheatees have bought knives made by “Solingen”, “a famous firm”. Solingen is not a brand but a German city that has produced various quality cold steel arms and kitchen knives for many centuries. Ingenious Chinese or Turkish fraudsters register their firms in this city to use its well-known name and counting on the customer ignorance. A knife with a painted name will certainly be an imitation. The quality steel will rarely be even stamped, i.e. with any hollows. Conscious producers use complicated etching and electrochemistry techniques to preserve smoothness of the knife surface.
In any case the advice is to choose carefully. A dozen of bad knives will stay a dozen of bad knives, but a quality instrument will be serviceable for years.
 

Ksenia Monakhova