Don’t Fall for Lame Knife Marketing 👎🏻 It Doesn’t Get Any Worse Than This

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  • čas přidán 4. 02. 2024
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Komentáře • 1,1K

  • @trudgemankPhD
    @trudgemankPhD Před 3 měsíci +1191

    “Banned from public use for being too sharp” is an incomprehensibly stupid marketing phrase. I am astounded.

    • @mrkiky
      @mrkiky Před 3 měsíci +80

      It probably works though. Most people's kitchen knives are annoyingly dull so when they hear that they go "oh heck yea".

    • @kai.05
      @kai.05 Před 3 měsíci +89

      Sensational meant to make you feel exceptional. This marketing does a few things.
      It's layered, but the first part is "it might go away" since it was once banned. Second part is, the ability to get products not meant for general use can be appealing to some. Think advertisements selling "military" or "space grade" products. Third part is, it makes a person feel like they're more capable if they can use it; "other people might not be able to use it, but I would".
      Stupid, but appealing enough to work. I hate this kind of marketing.

    • @mrkiky
      @mrkiky Před 3 měsíci +24

      @@kai.05 That's what marketing is: lies and manipulation. It's pretty much a different word for propaganda.

    • @psibug565
      @psibug565 Před 3 měsíci +17

      @@mrkikyNot if done properly for a good product. An increasingly rare thing unfortunately.

    • @psibug565
      @psibug565 Před 3 měsíci +1

      @@mrkikyAnd learning how to use a knife steel is really easy.

  • @benluna1474
    @benluna1474 Před 3 měsíci +984

    The AI voicing those ads is a dead giveaway, honestly. Maximum distrust, activated.

    • @jamesdennett196
      @jamesdennett196 Před 3 měsíci +67

      Exactly. So many of these ads for drop-shipped goods, all with that text-to-speech audio, every one making ludicrous claims. Considering how easy it is to spot that they're bs, it annoys me that CZcams shows so many of them.

    • @benluna1474
      @benluna1474 Před 3 měsíci +36

      @@jamesdennett196 CZcams policy: Disregard bs, acquire currency.

    • @drengillespie
      @drengillespie Před 2 měsíci

      Is there just one AI voice?

    • @Dean.....
      @Dean..... Před 2 měsíci +21

      @@drengillespie No, and unfortunately some of them are getting harder to spot. These ones are already challenging for older people who don't know any better and are hard of hearing. Doubly so if their native language isn't English.

    • @appa609
      @appa609 Před 2 měsíci +6

      That whole AI video was showing other knives...

  • @Ultramasterjedi
    @Ultramasterjedi Před 3 měsíci +431

    you know its gonna be quality when the advertisements feature of heavy use of AI images/voiceover and footage of a completely different knife

    • @ghoulishgoober3122
      @ghoulishgoober3122 Před 2 měsíci +8

      Like boy, that dollar store looking knife is outperforming this dimensional cutter they claim to be selling

    • @generalgreevus8773
      @generalgreevus8773 Před 2 měsíci +6

      I see it all the time on videos about firearms. Somehow these AI bot channels get hundreds of thousands of views and the only thing the video does is take the description of a firearm off the manufacturer's website put into text to speech and then steal footage of other content creators that are actually using the firearm for a review.

    • @4FlatTires
      @4FlatTires Před měsícem

      If that knife had feelings it would need intense psychological therapy and a designated safe space after Wills evaluation.

  • @mzaite
    @mzaite Před 3 měsíci +561

    “Our truck stop novelty knives aren’t selling!”
    Just rebrand it as a japanese chef knife and put some basic wood scales on it.

    • @I.b.shifty
      @I.b.shifty Před 2 měsíci +64

      Before it was a Japanese knife, it was marketed as a Viking forged knife

    • @Aederex
      @Aederex Před 2 měsíci +66

      @@I.b.shifty The best part is, the "Japanese" looking writing on the package uses a form of the second character (话) that isn't used in Japanese, only Chinese. The Japanese text would be 神話.

    • @jinolin9062
      @jinolin9062 Před 2 měsíci +1

      @@Aederexnah they didn't convert to traditional😭

    • @SiqueScarface
      @SiqueScarface Před 2 měsíci +18

      @@I.b.shiftyThe idea probably being that the vikings are famous for their high quality swords, especially the Ulfberht (actually spelled +VLFBERH+T). Problem with that: Ulfberht swords, while widely used and praised by vikings, were made in the Frankish Empire and traded to the vikings. The vikings at the time weren't able to create the high quality steel the Franks were able to produce.

    • @I.b.shifty
      @I.b.shifty Před 2 měsíci +8

      @@SiqueScarface cool fact!. But more than likely it was because Vikings the show was popular!

  • @matthewmarting3623
    @matthewmarting3623 Před 3 měsíci +295

    Any time someone says “It was banned for being too (desirable quality)” in an advertisement, just run. Too sharp, too good at curing every ailment, too good at curing a single ailment, too good at dating.

    • @joshuayung5158
      @joshuayung5158 Před 2 měsíci +12

      It's not like it wouldnt be easier for BIG [INDUSTRY] to just copy it and make their own version and use their BIG [INDUSTRY] money to flood the market with their product.

    • @sanhakim1335
      @sanhakim1335 Před 2 měsíci +4

      There are some instances where it is legitimate though. For example, many fishing lures are banned from competitive fishing competitions for being too good at attracting fish, and many shoes are banned from sports as well for the same reason.

    • @woollypidgeon1948
      @woollypidgeon1948 Před 2 měsíci +21

      @@sanhakim1335yeah but that’s not general use

    • @martyh7771
      @martyh7771 Před 2 měsíci

      "I'm just too much of a hard worker"😂

    • @stefanforrer2573
      @stefanforrer2573 Před 2 měsíci +4

      @@sanhakim1335banned from fishing competitions is NOT the same thing as banned from the public

  • @ryvvyr7767
    @ryvvyr7767 Před 3 měsíci +464

    I have one of these Matsato knives and it works wonderfully for cutting all kinds of meat and tenderizes it at the same time. I'd say 2 thumbs up, but I lost one of them in the hole.

    • @Friedbrain11
      @Friedbrain11 Před 3 měsíci +13

      Hahahahahaha

    • @CGSmithing
      @CGSmithing Před 3 měsíci +3

      This is awesome hahahahah

    • @thomaslutro5560
      @thomaslutro5560 Před 3 měsíci +28

      I actually got a Huusk "knife" as a present (looks very much like this thing). I also have an Estwing hammer that cuts meat just as well, tenderizes almost as well, and drives nails a lot better. 🤣

    • @ilari90
      @ilari90 Před 2 měsíci

      @@thomaslutro5560 It's the same company. It's Huusk Matsato. Might be the same scam company group behind Kamikoto Knives and Established Titles and these.

    • @dowfreak7
      @dowfreak7 Před 2 měsíci +14

      @@thomaslutro5560 Ha, I got one as a christmas present, actually. I'll take my real opinion on that thing to the grave, before I admit how bad it is to my sister.
      It's nice to look at, I guess.

  • @terrenusvitae
    @terrenusvitae Před 3 měsíci +233

    Knife companies, three options and they are not mutually exclusive:
    1. Make better knives.
    2. Stop lying in your adverts.
    3. Stay out of Will's insta feed.

    • @mrkiky
      @mrkiky Před 3 měsíci +11

      But how will they make a lot of money while having a crap product?

    • @Benjamin1986980
      @Benjamin1986980 Před měsícem +3

      ​@@mrkiky By putting it in Walmart.
      In fact, I think I have bought better knives in Walmart for 5 bucks.

    • @mrkiky
      @mrkiky Před měsícem

      @@Benjamin1986980 My point illustrated. Selling it for 5 bucks makes less money than selling it for whatever they're selling it.

    • @Manigeitora
      @Manigeitora Před měsícem

      @@Benjamin1986980 Literally the $25 Gerber pocket knife I bought on Amazon last week would cut food better than this hunk of junk.

  • @fixit9844
    @fixit9844 Před 2 měsíci +78

    I love how in their ads whenever they actually show their knife, you can see the person using it struggling to cut things lmao.

    • @felix-eeee
      @felix-eeee Před měsícem

      some of the clips were different knives too

  • @lyonmandan
    @lyonmandan Před 3 měsíci +120

    A friend asked me what I thought of these, I told him it’s a knife with an identity crisis. It has no idea what it wants to be so it’s horrible at everything

    • @Foxxie0kun
      @Foxxie0kun Před 3 měsíci +14

      It's like it went to community college and got partway through getting credits towards six different degrees but never stuck to the classes long enough to finish. It knows, to some small degree, what kinds of things knives are used for, but it can't with any degree of competence emulate any of those tasks.

    • @planescaped
      @planescaped Před 2 měsíci

      It's a kitchen knife who wants to be a fighting knife.
      But it's also a meth addict and spends most of it's days tweaking behind the trailer park.

  • @jamesdill8952
    @jamesdill8952 Před 3 měsíci +93

    The irony of CZcams forcing me to watch an ad for this very knife before watching this.

  • @jakeharms1386
    @jakeharms1386 Před 3 měsíci +489

    Would love to see some recommendations on decent affordable kitchen knives

    • @modularcuriosity
      @modularcuriosity Před 3 měsíci +28

      I love Global knives. The chef's knife is about $80 and is wonderful.

    • @That1NissanGuy
      @That1NissanGuy Před 3 měsíci +18

      Kitchen knives are not something to cheap out on. You will hate yourself. Unfortunately, with price comes quality in the knife world.

    • @jakobrosenqvist4691
      @jakobrosenqvist4691 Před 3 měsíci +74

      Victorinox is the best you'll ever need as a home chef and at a very good price point. Fiskars are also decent cheap knives if they are avalible where you live. And you do not need a huge set, 3-5 knives depending on what you do is all you really need.

    • @nodeio
      @nodeio Před 3 měsíci

      ​ @jakobrosenqvist4691 I still think Wüsthof gets a bad rap in that price range... They are decent knives... I like the Wüsthof Ikon Classc range for cheap but decent beater.
      If you want something just a little nicer, look into Kai Shun or the Myabi lines by Zwilling... They'll cost you about twice of what a Global or a Wüsthof will cost you, but there is a real difference in quality there as well...
      Also depends on whether you want a beater or something to take care of a bit better...
      A Kai Shun Santoku is nice, but not so horribly expensive it's unaffordable, and it really makes for a great allround knife in the kitchen for pretty much all prep work, unless you're talking filleting fish or deboning a piece of meat or some other really specialised task.
      I'm not sure this will pass on CZcams, but a great website I can recommend, which ships pretty much locally world-wide is:
      www.knivesandtools.com/en/ct/kitchen-knives.htm
      Great detailed descriptions and a lot of knowhow and honest reviews...
      It's my go-to place for anything that isn't something Japanese and fancy...

    • @norbertszekeres867
      @norbertszekeres867 Před 3 měsíci +8

      @@That1NissanGuy Dunno , i cheap out on them , even though i a knife guy , most of them i made it myself, and use , the other knifes are for somebody else , that would just cut on porcelan stuff like this , so i don't care about them

  • @RobertsJimmy
    @RobertsJimmy Před 3 měsíci +111

    Got an ad for this knife when I clicked on the video. Hilarious.

  • @Tyraeous
    @Tyraeous Před 3 měsíci +120

    I am reminded of those Kamikoto scam knives that were all over the sponsorships a bit ago.

    • @foxyfoxington2651
      @foxyfoxington2651 Před 3 měsíci +62

      Fun fact: The parent company of Kamikoto was also the parent company of Established Titles.

    • @mrkiky
      @mrkiky Před 3 měsíci

      @@foxyfoxington2651 So many companies are "successful" just because they manage to find ways to scam the public, but their products are garbage and the world would be better off with them not existing.

    • @imbored667
      @imbored667 Před 3 měsíci +17

      ngl my rule of thumb for knive buying, is if it does Sponsorships on youtube, i wont buy it

    • @A1BASE
      @A1BASE Před 2 měsíci +10

      I got an early kamikotu and it’s still fantastic and one of my most used knives. I bought a second, different model a year later and it was utter utter garbage.
      It’s literally in the garage as a paint can opener.

    • @justsomehaatonpassingby4488
      @justsomehaatonpassingby4488 Před 2 měsíci

      @@imbored667rule of thumb for general buying, if it does sponsorship on youtube, don't buy it

  • @nineoclockhero
    @nineoclockhero Před 3 měsíci +188

    Com'on Will. That's obviously a "Survival" Chef Knife. 😁

    • @DaftFader
      @DaftFader Před 3 měsíci +23

      For when a chef has to survive because his sous chef has lost the plot and is threatening the waiting staff with a hot frying pan and you have to put them down with it? xD

    • @andyc750
      @andyc750 Před 3 měsíci +6

      ah, you mean use it as a club I presume

    • @nineoclockhero
      @nineoclockhero Před 3 měsíci +1

      😄@@DaftFader

    • @nineoclockhero
      @nineoclockhero Před 3 měsíci +2

      @@andyc750 After you've shaved with it, maybe 🤔😏

    • @mm-hl7gh
      @mm-hl7gh Před 3 měsíci +4

      also very good for cosplay..

  • @jakobrosenqvist4691
    @jakobrosenqvist4691 Před 3 měsíci +85

    The edge profile would be good for a skinner, but it's much to large and chunky for that. To me it feels like someone mixed a heavu duty outdoor knive and a skinner, and then made a cheap edgy replica version of that.

    • @einundsiebenziger5488
      @einundsiebenziger5488 Před 3 měsíci

      ... too* large / outdoor knife* . Otherwise completely agreed.

    • @jakobrosenqvist4691
      @jakobrosenqvist4691 Před 3 měsíci +4

      @@einundsiebenziger5488 If you want something really heavy duty that can baton firewood and be used to pry and poke, then something this size is ok. But it's definitley on the larger end.

    • @Guysm1l3y
      @Guysm1l3y Před 3 měsíci +8

      I think someone contracted a Chinese foundry to crank out thousands of these blanks and then a marketing + drop shipper company tried to make it into a "premium chef's knife"

    • @einundsiebenziger5488
      @einundsiebenziger5488 Před 3 měsíci

      @@jakobrosenqvist4691 I was just hinting on your typos, but thanks for the fast response anyway.

    • @this_is_an_outrage
      @this_is_an_outrage Před 2 měsíci +2

      I had a skinning knife that was larger than this thing, but it was made by a reputable company. I have a smaller version of a knife that's sorta like this one. It was advertised as a "bush craft utility knife". Basically they said "it's good for cutting sticks". :D

  • @Praderanoire
    @Praderanoire Před 3 měsíci +25

    Will should do a video about the best knives at certain price points. Like something along the lines of

  • @ZevVeli
    @ZevVeli Před 3 měsíci +48

    From the way that it looks, it looks like the knife was originally meant to be a survival knife of some kind. Especially since the ads show them using it to strike flint. But I think it failed at that and they realized they could more easily market it as a kitchen knife than an outdoors knife.

    • @vaiyt
      @vaiyt Před 2 měsíci +4

      These businesses literally recycle the same knife models as japanese, viking survival, etc.

    • @dowfreak7
      @dowfreak7 Před 2 měsíci +2

      My "survival" knife feels a lot more sturdy and safe than this one, tbh. And it's a years-old pretty cheap one.
      And most I'd need that type of knife for is cutting rope, whittling and maybe chopping food/meat in a pinch. I can't see whittling work too well with this and you can cut rope with pretty much any knife. Then add in the "ez stab" spike near the handle and the safety I'd want from a knife I need to grab blindly from my belt goes out the window, too.
      Couldn't even hand that knife safely to someone who needs it, because of that stupid spike.

    • @teresar6348
      @teresar6348 Před 2 měsíci +3

      Its probably advertised as both, on different sites with different ads and maybe a sheath in one case.

    • @markdotinc8371
      @markdotinc8371 Před 2 měsíci

      It's supposed to resemble those outdoor "rugged" cooking videos with their ridiculous knives

  • @rumplefourskin6775
    @rumplefourskin6775 Před 3 měsíci +41

    lol My cousin brought up one of those cringy Instagram knife ads and I immediately made fun of it without realizing he was about to tell me he had just bought one xD It was one of those big cleavers you see people doing like.. "survival" outdoor cooking videos with.

    • @Louzahsol
      @Louzahsol Před 3 měsíci +16

      "My wife got me this new knife, at first i thought it looked like a viking sword"

    • @ivanheffner2587
      @ivanheffner2587 Před 3 měsíci +9

      @@Louzahsol”My wife got me this weird knife for [my birthday / Christmas / Valentine’s Day]. God I love her…”

    • @Louzahsol
      @Louzahsol Před 3 měsíci +3

      @@ivanheffner2587 lol those ads are so bad. The dialog legit feels like AI

  • @packwolf445
    @packwolf445 Před 3 měsíci +10

    I do wanna point out, that my aunt owns a very, very similar (but not the same) knife from a place called "The Caveman Style". Cheep handles, nonforged blade with black painted upper section with the same pressed dimples, the hole, the only difference I can see being the grip and tang are shaped differently, and the finger cutter (rear overhang) is gone. Blade profile looks very similar otherwise

  • @DannyTeloTKD
    @DannyTeloTKD Před 3 měsíci +26

    I was gifted one of these by a relative who fell for the false advertising of "Japanese Knife" "Japanese Steel" Will got lucky with the handle scales being flat on his, mine have chips out of them and daylight between the scales and tang. I have never even tried to cut anything with it, other than paper (which is simply couldn't do out of the box) I use it to practice sharpening since I'm not worried about messing it up. Also notice in the ad they demonstrate cutting with several completely different knives to the one they actually sell, it would be funny if so many people weren't actually paying money to such a blatantly fraudulent business.

    • @Bloodlyshiva
      @Bloodlyshiva Před měsícem +1

      The Ginsu and its advertising has a lot to answer for.

  • @SuicideNeil
    @SuicideNeil Před 3 měsíci +61

    I could be wrong, but that POS looks like a stupid 'zombie knife' that someone put wooden grips on ( instead of green plastic ) and decided to call it a chef's knife- it has that styling and vibe to it...

    • @A-G-F-
      @A-G-F- Před 3 měsíci +8

      Youdbe half right, these were all over chinese retailers sold as "Outdoor knifes"
      They were basically dropshipped with extra steps by these guys

    • @jamesdennett196
      @jamesdennett196 Před 3 měsíci +4

      Exactly what I thought. I even wondered if the attempt to market it as a chef's knife is just to get around bans in certain countries

  • @josefs.627
    @josefs.627 Před 2 měsíci +4

    "I need ounces because i am a normal person" said no one ever that is normal 😂

  • @chronovac
    @chronovac Před 2 měsíci +13

    It's like they saw a spyderco and didn't realize the hole for opening the knife.

  • @rupertmiller9690
    @rupertmiller9690 Před 3 měsíci +57

    A friend bought me one of those 'Viking' blades. I left it on the table in the break room at work with a post-it that said "free knife shaped object".

    • @shadehealer
      @shadehealer Před 3 měsíci +1

      Any picture of what you mean by a "viking" blade?

    • @Alsry1
      @Alsry1 Před 3 měsíci +4

      @@shadehealerthe one in the video, this is a pretty well known knife scam at this point

    • @wayneswonderarium
      @wayneswonderarium Před 3 měsíci +2

      "gawd I love that woman" should ring a bell 😢

    • @shadehealer
      @shadehealer Před 3 měsíci

      @@Alsry1 Thanks for the reply :)

    • @Handles_arent_a_needed_feature
      @Handles_arent_a_needed_feature Před 2 měsíci +2

      That's a bit rude

  • @OverlordMaggie
    @OverlordMaggie Před 2 měsíci +5

    Keep in mind: Design is used to make a good, quality, functional product.
    Marketing gets whatever product you *do* have to sell to people.
    There isn't necessarily a lot of overlap between them. Careful on the internet guys, and Will, thanks for reviewing the bunk for all of us.

  • @francoisgreen7149
    @francoisgreen7149 Před 3 měsíci +25

    Hi Will
    There is another channel on CZcams called Project farm, he has some pretty neat setups to show things like cutting force required etc..
    Anyways just a suggestion to maybe try to make some of these cuts on a kitchen scale or something to show how much force is required to cut certain inedible vegetables (like pumpkin or aubergines) in comparison to actual kitchen knives? Just a thought.
    Love the videos thank you for all the effort you put into them.

  • @Honey-Biscuit
    @Honey-Biscuit Před 2 měsíci +5

    Imagine claiming to pay respect to ancient Japanese weaponsmiths, and calling one of the most well-known blade styles. . . a samurai sword. Were they afraid "katana" was too niche? I see the levels or respect match the products quality.

  • @WlfLLC
    @WlfLLC Před 3 měsíci +23

    I really appreciate you going through the knives that are pushed so hard. It shows how bad they are.
    My personal feeling is that if you need this much advertisement to sell it it's probably not worth buying.

    • @l0rf
      @l0rf Před 2 měsíci +1

      And like Will said, if you can give me a 60% discount and still make a profit, you're not pricing your product in a reasonable way

  • @sigh_bold8192
    @sigh_bold8192 Před 3 měsíci +7

    Something to help us the viewer understand how hard you have to push to cut through things would be to put a scale beneath the cutting board. Probably weird to film but would be cool to see.

    • @WillStelterbladesmith
      @WillStelterbladesmith  Před 3 měsíci +5

      We tried it for this video, but it’s too challenging to make it read consistently

    • @sigh_bold8192
      @sigh_bold8192 Před 3 měsíci

      @@WillStelterbladesmith I thought that might be the case. Very cool to see how blade geometry alone makes such a big difference in the cut. Thanks for the video!

  • @ground5295
    @ground5295 Před 2 měsíci +3

    As soon as I heard 420j2 steel being used for this, I already knew how much of a scam this was.
    420j2 steel, for those unaware, is a really good steel. For surgical utensils. That's an insanely bad thing for a blade that is going to be used often, like a kitchen knife. 420j2 steel can hold an edge, but it doesn't hold an edge for very long. It's easy to manufacture, and it's cheap, which is why they're used for surgical utensils; because surgeons dispose of their utensils after surgery, for both sanitary and efficiency purposes.
    If you ever see any blade that is made with 420j2 steel, do not buy it even if you like dedicating your life to resharpening it after almost every single use.

  • @nodeio
    @nodeio Před 3 měsíci +21

    I could really stand to see more of this type of video...
    Not just because it's entertaining ripping into horrible knives, but it's actually rather instructional as to what you should be looking for as well.
    👍👍
    [edit] From a blacksmith/knifesmith standpoint, I could also stand to hear a bit more about certain steel types.
    Especially some of the more modern powdered carbide knife steels in contrast to the more traditional white/blue carbon steels, Aogami super steel, the VG variations, etc...
    Advantages, disadvantages, etc...
    --
    Also, people really underestimate just how important a good knife or two in the kitchen really is...
    I hardly know anybody, not matter how great a cook they are, that actually have a decently sharp knife in the kitchen... It's crazy!
    It's come to a point where I hardly even let people loose on my better knives in the kitchen, because they'll invariably be maltreated, so they'll just have to deal with the Wüsthoff's...
    That said, it's also become pretty automatic to warn people that my knives are sharp, and half the time they'll still cut themselves...
    What's up with all that?!

    • @wayneswonderarium
      @wayneswonderarium Před 3 měsíci +1

      They don't understand what sharp means. And they don't know how much hacking they've been doing in their own kitchens

    • @lucas23453
      @lucas23453 Před 3 měsíci +2

      I learned how to sharpen almost immediately after my favorite knife (A Dalstrong, nothing fancy really, probably about as good as a Wustoff) began to dull on me. I was not about to lose gliding through food, truly, more sharp is more fun.

    • @bowow0807
      @bowow0807 Před 2 měsíci +2

      Not 100% a bladesmith's perspective but for someone who's definitely an authority and passionate about steel and their use in knives, Larrin Thomas of KnifeSteelNerds has a huge repository of his personal independent testing and metallurgy knowledge of many many different steels from your classic 1095 to his personally developed Magnacut that's the new big hotness of knife steels being a high carbide stainless steel that's more stainless and tough than M390, sacrificing just a little bit in edge retention
      Magnacut is nearly what most say is the most well balanced steel by far in terms of the triple seesaw of stainlessness, toughness, and Wear Resistance/*Edge retention where in any steel it's always going to be a at most "pick two" situation. Want a knife that doesn't chip and you can abuse it to high hell but able to bring back the edge using a river rock? 1095 is a great option, but it's gonna rust like nobodies business. Want a knife that stays sharp dang near forever? Maxamet is right up your alley, but it's not exactly stainless and chipping is a real danger with abuse, also sharpening it with normal whetstones is a huge pain(even with diamonds) but if you're sharpening once a year then it ain't so bad. Need a knife that'll mostly survive the ocean salt on a busy boat or while diving? LC200N is your best bet, very tough and can be abused, just expect to maintain that edge a lot more often than other popular steels
      Of course there's no such thing "perfect" knife steel, only what's best for your environment and needed application.
      *Edge Retention has a lot of factors, not just the steel. Assuming identical heat treatments(method(oil, water, aluminum plate, cryo), temperature, time, HrC) it's knife geometry and bevel angle that's a bigger factor when it comes to edge retention and cutting performance a 15 Degrees Per Side vs a 20DPS edge on two identical geometry knives the 15DPS will be sharp for much longer compared to the 20DPS. Though of course the edge will be a bit more prone to folding over and even chipping compared to the more robust 20DPS. Again it's always that seesaw for your particular application

  • @defiante1
    @defiante1 Před 3 měsíci +15

    I'd love to see you recreate one of these production knives with good quality steel and a proper edge on them. Just to show the difference that even with a bad design, what a proper edge and steel makes to a knife and why its worth the money.

  • @Dartyus
    @Dartyus Před 2 měsíci +3

    I have one of these knives, and yeah, I would agree with most of this. My aunt got one each for me and my mom, and my mom hated it right off the bat because of how HEAVY it is. For me, as you said, the pinch grip is surprisingly comfortable, but because of the blade's weird shape, it makes it really awkward for both slicing and chopping.
    What I find it useful for, weirdly enough since it doesn't look like it, is carving. I use it for cutting meat, especially partially-frozen meat that's hard to cut. I also use the tip to carve things like peppers off the stem or really thick vegetables like carrots or leeks (my local grocery store only sells giant flakkees). Turns out that weight is actually surprisingly good for just brute-forcing some tougher ingredients. Honestly if you're strong enough you could probably use the tip for chopping things finely like garlic, but again, it's really heavy compared to any other knife.
    Also it looks cool so my guests like to gawk at it, and that distracts them long enough for me to use the $15 nakiri I got from the local grocery store. ALSO it's really fun for mushrooms. I like my mushroom slices thick so I can just haphazardly chop chop chop which is fun with this knife. Basically, this knife is better treated as a miniature woodcutting axe than a knife.
    All that said it's just incredibly overpriced. The weird shape isn't doing it any favours. It's easily the most expensive knife in my drawer and not nearly the most useful. I definitely don't hate using it, but I completely understand why it's getting so much scrutiny, since it's basically trying to sell on being a gimmick. Which sucks, because the handle is really nice and the weight might be something that other people like me might like. God knows the fucking 1cm blade won't bend ever. But instead of making just, you know, a good knife, they had to try to trick people.

  • @Nerdworker
    @Nerdworker Před 3 měsíci +5

    I was a chef for 6 years and still use my 8" Henckles for pretty much everything. I got one of these instagram knives as a gift one year for christmas. It was a really tall and thick blade with a decently sharp edge. The only thing I use it for, and will admit that it works quite well for, is cutting chicken wings. When I am breaking down whole wings into the drum and flat and removing the tip it really does well. Not good for much else.

  • @BlazeMiskulin
    @BlazeMiskulin Před 3 měsíci +13

    The ideograms on the box looked familiar (the 2nd is "hua" which denotes a language or dialect). So... I looked them up. It's "shen hua". I assume they're marketing on the "legendary" translation. But... it also translates to "fairy tale". :D

    • @FaeQueenCory
      @FaeQueenCory Před měsícem

      神话 "kamifua" meaning "myth".
      Literally: "God-Story"
      Going with the Japanese pronunciation since it's marketed as "Japanese".

    • @zyriantel9601
      @zyriantel9601 Před měsícem

      So it’s either mythically fake, or legendarily fake, depending which way we choose to lean!

  • @einundsiebenziger5488
    @einundsiebenziger5488 Před 3 měsíci +7

    Interesting how in most of the footage these shady companies use in their ads, nobody seen cutting food uses the knife they advertise (1:00). And fascinating how they do not feel ashamed to sell the same shitty thing under names that change on a weekly basis.

  • @fungalgrowth
    @fungalgrowth Před 2 měsíci +3

    The first red flag is that Matsato isn't a real Japanese name you'd use ever. Kind of like Thomdas or Grevgory or something

  • @gavinhuckstepp582
    @gavinhuckstepp582 Před 3 měsíci +9

    I have this exact knife (given as a gift) and it is utterly hideous. The handle material has no protection and is rough. And the blade isn't even good enough as a cleaver and is downright dangerous with how unstable it is if you don't know how to handle a knife properly.
    Thank you for bringing this to peoples attention Will. Keep up the great work!

    • @wayneswonderarium
      @wayneswonderarium Před 3 měsíci +3

      I'd love to see Wil re-grind and try to make this knife... anything but awful. I mean the shape is awful, but at least a correct sharpening would be good

  • @Smallathe
    @Smallathe Před 3 měsíci +5

    In my country they are trying the sell it as "the absolute japanese chef knife sward"... "made in China" (if you notice the superfine print on the label).
    I'd say it's a wonderful blade (if you use it daily, all the way from the edge) - for developing carpal tunnel joint problems...

  • @LeCroynotLacroix
    @LeCroynotLacroix Před 3 měsíci +8

    I love these videos so much. the vindictive glee at watching these knives fail to live up to marketing lies is so enjoyable.

  • @rorydonaldson2794
    @rorydonaldson2794 Před 3 měsíci +4

    I love the concept of this series. It's so fun seeing an absloute dumpster fire of a kitchen knife being talked up about.
    It's almost as if every design choice of this knife was to make it bad at its supposed job in the kitchen.

  • @tmbiggs5343
    @tmbiggs5343 Před 3 měsíci +21

    My mom swears by Cutco knives. Love to see you evaluate one of theirs. I like the ones I have.

    • @drbjr8223
      @drbjr8223 Před 3 měsíci

      ooo this is a great idea, we have a Cutco near us, would be interesting to see what he thinks.

    • @ericepperson8409
      @ericepperson8409 Před 3 měsíci +8

      When I started working as a chef, my Grandpa got me one. Handle was uncomfortable, point and edge were brittle, and its a pain to sharpen. I eventually gave the knife away. Much prefer to use Whusthof or Dexter Russels in a professional setting. The Japanese knives are wonderful, but too brittle to stand up in all but the calmest situations. Most professional kitchens are not "calm" settings.

    • @wayneswonderarium
      @wayneswonderarium Před 3 měsíci +6

      They're good but not their price good. They're probably overcharged by at least 50% but the marketing is scummy as heck.

    • @rdizzy1
      @rdizzy1 Před 3 měsíci +16

      If they are still an MLM (door to door scam jobs), I would never buy from them, regardless if their knives are good. They are overpriced as fuck on top of that.

    • @w.reidripley1968
      @w.reidripley1968 Před 2 měsíci

      ​@@rdizzy1Their price runs under the kind of price you find JA Henckels 4 Star charging.
      What you buy with Cutco is stubborn durability.

  • @ThatWorks
    @ThatWorks Před 3 měsíci +1

    More of these please! You are built for this! Fun and informative!

  • @RobDeHaven
    @RobDeHaven Před 3 měsíci +7

    I LOVE this series of testing knives that were recommended from instagram. You should make a video for all the people that took the bait and bought one a way to “fix” the knife by modifying it with a regrind so they don’t have to just throw it away, right away.

  • @Poken__
    @Poken__ Před 3 měsíci +3

    I would love to get like a basics video on knives. What the typical marketing with different steel types actually means for the knife, what the different shapes mean for cutting/how to cut and all that. Plus some recommendations for different budgets and maybe even a summary of brands (how good is a normal wüsthoff against a zwilling or hexclad, are the cheap ikea knives acutally okay)

  • @BCM1959
    @BCM1959 Před 3 měsíci +5

    Quality review of a highly marketed knife. I learned some things that I just never thought about before. I am not a chef, I'm not much of a cook at all but I do help in the kitchen when asked and trying to sharpen knives is my responsibility.
    The more ya know...
    Thanks Will.

  • @TheTwistedKris
    @TheTwistedKris Před 2 měsíci +1

    19:17 literally chills and goosebumps seeing a cut that clean after seeing the mall ninja knife struggle to knife

  • @johncoulter1507
    @johncoulter1507 Před 3 měsíci

    Thanks Will! Love to see all the finer tidbits of perfecting blade geometry revealed in your videos. Helps me to make a better product when I can see direct comparison in action.

  • @GavinCowardswym4lyphe
    @GavinCowardswym4lyphe Před 3 měsíci +4

    These are great videos! You should try cutting things on a scale to see if you can actually quantify how much harder it is to push these knives through the veggies than it is the more well designed knives

  • @justinbanks2380
    @justinbanks2380 Před 3 měsíci +4

    I love how they say the hole is for control, yet none of the footage from ads you shown was anyone actually using the hole, 😂
    It's almost like they made the blade then had people who actually knew how to use a blade use for footage. Lol

  • @koholos
    @koholos Před 2 měsíci

    I always love watching experts talk about things they’re knowledgable about, and since cooking is one of my passions, it was relatively easy for me to understand some of the points I otherwise might not have. I didn’t understand everything, but it was an interesting video on balance, and I’m interested to watch some more.

  • @MoZeZ92
    @MoZeZ92 Před 2 měsíci +1

    I saw an ad for this "knife" claiming it was some ancient long lost viking knife. Then vikings dropped from mainstream and they're a banned samurai knife.

  • @RobertGracie
    @RobertGracie Před 3 měsíci +4

    Hang on I know that knife as the Huusk as it goes via one of its other names, its a compete joke the steel used in it isnt even tool steel!

    • @ronjones-6977
      @ronjones-6977 Před 2 měsíci

      It's steel for tools. The buyer being the tool.

  • @yaboy8846
    @yaboy8846 Před 2 měsíci +5

    11:40
    "How many ounces is that? Because I'm a normal person."
    Classic American that doesn't realise that almost every other country in the world uses metric making you anything but a "normal person".

  • @Andrei_K1G1K
    @Andrei_K1G1K Před 3 měsíci +1

    I bought a Santoku off aliexpress for about $7.00... Was NOT expecting anything but when it go to me I was really impressed with sharpness and the way it cut. Very similar to my $125 20+ year-old Shun. Comfortable as well. No idea how the edge is going to last but at $7.00 and having a decent whetstone set, I'm not gonna lose any sleep over it.

  • @Lucas-hp7he
    @Lucas-hp7he Před 2 měsíci +1

    “I can’t go through because MY FINGER IS IN THE WAY” is a solid comedy moment. I understand now why my cheap farberware knives are so frustrating!!

  • @Andrewbert109
    @Andrewbert109 Před 2 měsíci +2

    I wonder which Okinawan hermit this guy approached to learn from but was turned away but then waited outside his house for 3 months until he begrudgingly accepted him as an apprentice to learn all this stuff

  • @Rubbly
    @Rubbly Před 2 měsíci

    Great job of comparing the differences and describing the specifics of what makes cutting with it tough!
    The angled part that causes it to wedge is never even something I considered with knives, great to keep in mind!

  • @maximus_knives
    @maximus_knives Před 3 měsíci

    Thanks for making this Will!! Ive been trying to post educational stuff on "handmade" items on Amazon for less than what my material cost is lol

  • @justinbanks2380
    @justinbanks2380 Před 3 měsíci +2

    I love how even having no real experience/knowledge in proper kitchen technique, or use in good/bad knife comparison, anyone can HEAR the difference in the cuts between the knives!

  • @lawlznet
    @lawlznet Před 2 měsíci +2

    That AI art in the advertisement told me all I needed to know...
    (Still watched the video though.)

  • @benhoffman4065
    @benhoffman4065 Před 3 měsíci +1

    Love these videos! It's funny though because the main thing I always take away is how dull my kitchen knives are and that I need to sharpen them again.

  • @SledTillDead
    @SledTillDead Před 2 měsíci +1

    "Ounces because Im a normal person" is incredibly ironic

  • @thexbigxgreen
    @thexbigxgreen Před 2 měsíci +1

    I'm very impressed by your presentation, super natural and informative, subscribed!
    As a culinary school grad I appreciate your knowledge of the craft and would love to have one of your knives

  • @druggedupdino6252
    @druggedupdino6252 Před 2 měsíci +2

    Darn, That knife has a harder time being straight than i do.

  • @leechesg
    @leechesg Před 2 měsíci

    Didnt expect to learn why stropping is so important in this video, but im glad i did!

  • @Merennulli
    @Merennulli Před 3 měsíci +2

    Thanks for covering these things. I'd love to see you cover a good inexpensive knife like the Victornox you mentioned.

  • @laumuseka
    @laumuseka Před 3 měsíci +2

    One of my life goals is to buy one of your knives. I love your reviews and I hate my current knife set. You do amazing work! I’ll save up for this for sure.

  • @NickG6623
    @NickG6623 Před 3 měsíci +2

    My dad bought one of those. He was all happy about it, and couldn’t wait to show me. I had the hardest time not throwing up haha

  • @LudosErgoSum
    @LudosErgoSum Před 2 měsíci +1

    This product leverage that their customers probably have an old kitchen knife at home, probably cheap and horrible to use, and that they have no knowledge of how a proper knife should be. So what ends up happening is that once they get the knife to compare, the Matsato will conform to their notions of an "exotic and super sharp knife" in it's design and functionally it will definitively cut better than their old knife.
    Also, with claims of thinner slices and so on, the user be inclined to try making thin slices and such and then believe them to be special because they TRIED IT WITH THE MATSATO KNIFE. They would otherwise would never cut thin slices because they are probably terrible chefs in the first place.
    It's a cartoon knife - it's designed to appeal not to cut.

  • @FhtagnCthulhu
    @FhtagnCthulhu Před 3 měsíci

    No clue why this came across my feed, I know nothing about knives. Grateful it did, I feel like I learned a lot watching this, both about knives and how to use them. Fantastic.

  • @markfairbanks6601
    @markfairbanks6601 Před 3 měsíci

    I had no idea there was so much to know about chefs knives, very educational!

  • @erwinbogumil207
    @erwinbogumil207 Před 2 měsíci +1

    This looks like a fighting knife. "If you intend to duel your food to the death first, this is the way to go!" also sounds like something they would use as marketing.

  • @BlaBlaBlaInDaHouse
    @BlaBlaBlaInDaHouse Před 3 měsíci

    Great video! A lot of useful information

  • @got2kittys
    @got2kittys Před měsícem

    "This one wierd trick" , a phrase, a sign to avoid whatever it is, without delay.

  • @polk-e-dot8177
    @polk-e-dot8177 Před 2 měsíci +1

    it reminds me of a mall knife or a gas station knife. but at least when you buy a mall knife or a gas station knife you *know* you're not buying a *real* knife.

  • @scoobdoob
    @scoobdoob Před 3 měsíci

    I love this little series! Cant stand seeing these flashy "content creator" knives as i call them lol. I have an idea, maybe you could take these knives and "fix" what you don't like about them and re-test to see if it's any better! Like refinishing the edge geometry from hollow grind to convex edge, maybe smooth out the choil/heel or remove the jimping on the spiine. Love the videos, thanks!

  • @HappyNBoy
    @HappyNBoy Před 3 měsíci +1

    Is Isaiah also doing the secondary camera? Because the closeups are really high quality! Those carrot slices are so nicely lit and in focus! A+ work, gents!

  • @BraxxJuventa
    @BraxxJuventa Před 3 měsíci

    Thanks for warning us Will. 😁👍🏼

  • @Kris_at_WhiteOaksFarm
    @Kris_at_WhiteOaksFarm Před 3 měsíci

    Thanks Will, I somehow knew what a good chef's knife needed to be, but, you gave definition to my intuition in that regard. I've got a set of stainless Oxford Hall knives that have been working well for me for over forty years. I could probably really enjoy a set of your knives, but I'm not sure I could afford them. Love your vids, and the work you've done with Alec.You two inspired me to set up a smithing area at my shop. Just to putter... First project has been a Chestnut knife from a circular saw blade that lost some teeth... Ugly, but hey, it works for scoring Chestnuts for roasting. Yeah, on an open fire!

  • @matthewpoff2077
    @matthewpoff2077 Před 2 měsíci

    I was given one of these as a gift. I used it about 6 times, each trying hard to convince myself that it was just me not using it correctly. Glad to see that I was right in it being garbage.

  • @ThePopeSong
    @ThePopeSong Před 2 měsíci

    As someone who likes knives and knows a small amount about grinds and steel (usually woodcraft knives), the Huusk ads are painful for even me to watch. Despite knowing the knife is horrible, you explained and demonstrated the reality of using this knife (piece of junk) very well! I'm amazed they are allowed to keep the false advertising going as it's not just exaggerated, it's straight up lying and no doubt illegal.

  • @justinbanks2380
    @justinbanks2380 Před 3 měsíci +2

    "Versatility is the enemy of efficiency"
    I both totally understand your point, and feel personally attacked as I feel good/decent at a lot of things... 😬😭
    Gotta do some introspection on that... 😂

    • @Seelenschmiede
      @Seelenschmiede Před 3 měsíci

      Every ADHD person out there: "I feel attacked. But nevertheless he is right..."
      I'm ADHD and it got me good 😅😂

    • @TheArtistInTheDark
      @TheArtistInTheDark Před 2 měsíci

      Versatility is also a good trait in many things so don't feel bad ❤

  • @easternlights3155
    @easternlights3155 Před 2 měsíci

    "Blacksmithing heritage at your fingertips" I most certainly do NOT want a knife at my fingertips!!

  • @TheBottegaChannel
    @TheBottegaChannel Před 3 měsíci

    My dad bought me a whole " chef knife" set of these types of knives as a Christmas present the year before last. I immediately regarded them as " lovely additions to my knife collection". Last year, he bought me a much better knife that actually functions. Moral of my tale? Some people mean well, are easily swayed by flashy advertising and are very big " works in progress". They can, however, learn if given proper guidance.

  • @rickycoons4665
    @rickycoons4665 Před 3 měsíci +1

    I'd love to see a video on someone taking one of these knives and making them useful, like ReSharpen or forge it into a better shape etc

  • @nanaki-seto
    @nanaki-seto Před 3 měsíci

    When you mentioned the toothy grind it reminded me of a knife from a small Japanese mass market knives maker i once had. It was your standard 1 hand opening knife. The blade hand full serrations effectively scallops standard stuff really quarter round at least on first look how ever looking at it more closely each serration had again quarter round serrations along the quarter round serrations in side those barely visible with out a magnifying lens was yet 1 more stage. The damn thing had fractal serrations LOL
    I carried that knife daily for work and often times i was cutting down boxes. and i kept using it everyday for over 3 years i never did dull that sucker at all. It could cut rope any type boxes what ever you needed and just would not dual at all I ended up loosing it in a move and can not remember the company name or knife name. Would love to find another one because for such a cheap pocket knife 35 bucks new it was a great little general utility knife. I can only imagine how complex it was to machine those serrations like that LOL

  • @frankm4461
    @frankm4461 Před 3 měsíci

    I've waited so long!! For this video! Thanks a lot for it. The advertising for this piece of junk has been following me everywhere😀

  • @erikcourtney1834
    @erikcourtney1834 Před 3 měsíci +1

    Anyone that has used a real quality knife (all types) understands why they are worth the cost. 75% of people are clueless to what a quality handmade knife is. Free life lesson- If it’s cheap or easy then it’s not worth buying or doing.

  • @peterward2875
    @peterward2875 Před 26 dny

    I'm in 100% agreement that if the ads let me get 60% off... or 4 knives for the price of 2... I don't want any of them. If you can sell them that cheaply, you should do that instead.
    If this is a chef's knife replacement, the heavy texture is going to be difficult to keep clean of all the food products you cut with it. Transferring bacteria from one item to the next sounds like a really bad idea.

  • @Cheezicows
    @Cheezicows Před 3 měsíci +2

    I got one of these as an Xmas gift last year. I use it as a general purpose hiking knife

  • @egbluesuede1220
    @egbluesuede1220 Před měsícem

    I've been using the Victorinox for close to 20 years as my best knife, but I recently upgraded to a nice japanese damascus steel. First cut with it I couldn't believe the difference. I've been using it for about a month now and am still astonished I waited this long.

  • @danielcurtin7616
    @danielcurtin7616 Před 3 měsíci +1

    Victorinox Fibrox line is popular in commercial kitchens because they are decent, reasonably priced, easy to clean and the handles can stand up to repeated immersion in sanitizer.

  • @Ariansiss
    @Ariansiss Před 2 měsíci

    Hotel and Catering Manager from Germnany here:
    Geht in Ideka. Kauft ein Kochmesser.
    Geht ins Bauhau. Kauft einen Schleifstein.
    Great vid. I disagre on the master of all is a master of none part. A normal chef knife is all I will ever need.
    Peeling you ask? That's what I use a peeler for.

  • @johnanderson1352
    @johnanderson1352 Před 3 měsíci +2

    Hey Will, don’t be surprised if this video gets taken down, Cedric and Ada slams these “knives” often and his videos are often taken down because of some b.s. claimed by the company

  • @Zogg1281
    @Zogg1281 Před 3 měsíci

    I am 100% positive that there isn't a law in ANY country stating that a knife can be "too sharp." I know UK knife laws quite well and there are definitely knives that are illegal to have in public due to different design features - e.g. fixed blade, blade length, and double-edged blades will get you in a whole heap of trouble! Also, if that knife was only finished with 120 or 240 grit, I'd personally say that it's more likely to be dangerous due to it NOT being sharp enough! My reasoning is that if you were to use this in the bush crafting world (as advertised when they show it splitting wood), a blade that isn't sharp will force you to have to exert more pressure to be able to cut items (I give you Will trying to cut through a potatoe as an extreme example), which will reduce the amount of control you have with it. Also, if you are in a bush craft environment, can you imagine the carnage that knife could cause if your finger slipped into the hole in that blade while chopping wood?!?!? I don't think you'd ever live down having to explain that to a doctor when you have to go to the hospital due to chopping off your finger with a HOLE!!!! 😂😂😂

  • @WonkaTheGreat
    @WonkaTheGreat Před 3 měsíci +1

    Educational content.
    Like to see it.
    I hope to see more Knife debunking .

  • @therealdestructicus
    @therealdestructicus Před 3 měsíci +1

    What's funny is these are the improved ones, originally it wasn't 420j2, it was literally a stainless potmetal with 0% carbon.

  • @SMEARGLEX75
    @SMEARGLEX75 Před měsícem

    6:47 - As SOON as you said 420, I had a bit of a chuckle.

  • @MxEuphemia
    @MxEuphemia Před 3 měsíci +1

    Watching Will roast terrible knives is not something I knew I needed in my life! 😂