FAQ and Info

As is shown in our “About Us” page we have been in the knife business for over 50 years. Over that period we have been asked quite a few questions, here are a few along with our opinions from what we have seen from sharpening knives and from what our customers tell us.

What is the best knife brand?

It depends on what you are using it for and what you want to spend. All the knives we carry are quality products. It is important to buy the right knife for the task at hand.

Meat cutting-Victorinox Fibrox are the most popular and loyal brand it has a high quality steel and the fibrox handle that is well liked. F Dick ergogrip is very popular in Europe but it does not have the slip resistant fibrox handle. Giesser Messer’s Primline has the high quality and an even more comfortable and slip resistant handle but lacks in the variety of styles.

Fish cutting- Dexter is by far the leader in this area, and we are proud to say that they are still made in the USA in Southbridge, MA. They are made of high quality cutlery steel with the right flexibility and design. They still make some carbon steel knives that when sharpened skillfully are razor sharp, the downside is that they darken. They make a wide variety of clam and oyster knives with a comfortable slip resistant sani safe or soft grip handles. Victorinox and F Dick are also the quality but they lack in variety of styles.

Kitchen knives- There are 3 types of knives, forged, stamped, and ceramic. Ceramic is very well liked. They are sharp and stay sharp for a very long time. They are very light and our experience has been that they become the knife that everyone grabs for. They downside is that they are very breakable. If they are thrown in the sink after use, you will break them. Also they cannot be re-sharpened practically.

A forged knife is when a steel blank, or piece of steel, is heated in the forge. The maker then pounds the steel with a hammer, into the rough shape of a knife. The forged knife is heated again and more hammering follows. Several cycles of heating, cooling and hammering all serve to temper the steel and make the forged knife strong and not easily broken. This extra steel and work makes the price much higher. J.A. Henckels and F Dick Premier Plus are our forged knife lines. In our opinion, both are equal in quality but F Dick is generally a more competitive price.

Stamped Knives. Stamped knives are stamped out of sheets of metal. As most of these stamped knives are generally flat and thin, the process is done quite quickly. Because of there lack of forging the knife will need to be resharpened more often. We recommend the Victorinox Fibrox chef knives, bread knives and paring knives as “ Cook’s Illustrated” and other test kitchens do.

For more information on Victorinox knives visit our info site www.victorinoxfibroxknife.com

How often should I get my knives professionally sharpened?

Generally when your butcher’s steel no longer gets a knife sharp or the knife is no longer the proper shape, it is time to get your knife professionally sharpened.

Meat Grinder Questions

Why does my meat come out like mush?

This could be from a couple of reasons. First, the blade and plate both need to be sharpened. Second, the plate should be sticking out of the cylinder a little bit so that when the ring presses against it, it will be a tight fit. If the plate is flush with the cylinder put a fiber washer behind the worm to keep the plate out.

What size hole should I get?

FYI, most supermarkets use 9/64, 5/32 or 3/16 for chop meat, sausages generally use  ¼ to 3/8.

Do you fix meat grinder motors?

No. Try going to a local electric motor repair, they usually can fix it.

Meat Saw Blade Questions

What do the numbers on the saw blade mean?

The  easiest way to explain is by giving an example. A blade the is 98 x 5/8 x .022 x 3TPI means that the length is 98", the width is 5/8", the thickness is .022" and the teeth per inch is 3.

Jarvis Wellsaw Questions

What is the difference between a heavy duty Jarvis Wellsaw 404or 444, and an End Cut one?

It is VERY IMPORTANT that heavy duty blades only be used with heavy duty blade supports. The only difference of a Wellsaw heavy duty blade and a End Cut blade is the way it attaches to the support. The heavy duty one has a forked tip that when locked into the support is almost impossible to come off.  Jarvis recommends heavy duty Wellsaws  for that reason.