The sharpies...

[Bogie]

I've impulse purchased a few knives, etc., for the kitchen.
 
I've got a set of Calphalon knives. The handles feel great, they have a great balance.
 
And they don't hold an edge.
 
I have a cheap set of Chicago Cutlery knives I got at a Walmart on impulse, because I wanted more steak knives.
 
They have crappy handles. They have crappy balance. They don't "feel" right.
 
And they're easy to sharpen, and they hold an edge.
 
Lesson learned.

[K Frame]

Years ago I needed a filler for an Amazon order. A set of Sabatier Precision knives popped up. Chinese made, stamped, not great handles, capitalizing on the Sabatier mark (which isn't protected).

I figured for the little amount of money ($10!) they wanted they'd be crap. I'd use them until they crapped out and then just toss them.

Let's just say that I'm shocked at how decent they are.

Are they great knives? Nope.

But they take, and keep, an edge and they are real work horses.

My biggest complaint is that they're quite thick, so they're not great for everything, but for general utility work, stuff that doesn't require precision, they're great. Chopping down a turkey carcass? Great. Roughly chopping a bunch of vegetables? Great. Slicing a pork loin? Great.

For more precise work I have a Henkels semi-flexible boning knife and a Wusthof 6.5" Santoku knife that I got from Woot. It was a "B" grade at a huge discount. The ONLY problem I could find with it was that the one side of the edge wavered when it was ground. Hasn't affected my use of it at all.

[Bogie]

I impulse purchased this last night, about midnight, for under $6... Price already up. It give a delivery time of sometime in April... Weird...
 
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004T02YEW/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

[zxcvbob]

I don't buy sets, I buy individual knives mostly from restaurant supply or butcher supply stores.  I really like R.H. Forschner knives, which I think are identical to Victorinox now.  I have one nice big chef knife with rosewood handles to use when carving a turkey or huge roast at the table (that's why I bought it anyway, but I never carve a turkey at the table), but the rest are black plastic.  And I have a few Dexter or Dexter-Russell knives that look just like the Forschners but with white handles.  They are a little cheaper and almost as good.  I've had them for many years and never had to actually sharpen them; I do hone them on a steel quite often.

If you want the same kind of knife but forged steel instead of stamped, get the F. Dick brand.

[Brad Johnson]

After my divorce in '99, my place was pretty much wiped bare so parent's combo Christmas/Birthday present (b-day Jan 6th) was a set of Wusthoff knives, the classic style with forged blades and in integrated tang. Beautiful balance, take a sharpening wonderfully, and keep a great edge. I only use wood or poly cutting boards and they never, ever go in the dishwasher. As a result they are still my daily drivers some 22 years later.

Brad

[zxcvbob]

This is my most-used knife.  Boning, slicing, cutting up vegetables, it does everything.  I've had it for almost 40 year.  https://www.amazon.com/Victorinox-Curved-Fibrox-Boning-Semi-stiff/dp/B001U57EJ4/ref=sr_1_24?crid=1Y80B32XYMBQP&keywords=forschner+knives  Mine has the Forschner brand rather than Victorinox but it's the same knife.  I also paid about $8 for it instead of $28.

[Bob F.]

Patients presented me with a Wusthof chef's knife when I left a previous job a few years ago. Son described it as "sharpest knife I've ever seen!" Not far off. Sis & BIL gave me a Trusted Butcher 8" chef's knife & 4 steak knives a couple years ago for Christmas. Great handle, feel & balance. Give the 8" a few licks on a steel every time I use it and it's amazing. Yes it's Chinese.

[K Frame]

"they never, ever go in the dishwasher. "

Bingo. I see so many people throw really good, or even just decent, knives in the dishwasher and then wonder why they're dull or the rivets are popping or the grip panels are splitting.

Dishwashers are HORRIBLE environments for knives.

The only knives I put in the dishwasher are the steak knives from the set I got because, frankly, I don't give a crap about them, and my butter knives.

I steel my knives every time I pick one up to use it and every time I go to put it back on the rack after washing it.

And depending on how much I'm using it, I'll even steel it in the middle of a cutting job.