Sabatier Forged Stainless Steel Chef Knife with Edgekeeper Self-Sharpening Blade Cover, High-Carbon Stainless Steel Kitchen Knife, Razor-Sharp Knife to Cut Fruit, Vegetables and more, 8-Inch, Black

I needed a relatively inexpensive (less than $20 after tax) kitchen for camping and Airbnb trips.The most important requirement is that the steel be able to take and hold an edge. (It does come sharpened from the factory well enough to slice across a sheet of paper.) This knife takes an edge much more easily than my other kitchen knife (JA Henckels International (Spain) 8" chef) and holds the edge just as well. Neither knife is exquisite nor expensive. My point is that this knife performs at or above par for knives costing 2-3 times more.A minor requirement was to have a durable sleeve for transport. The bonus is that the sleeve has a built-in metal sharpener (embedded in the red part on the back) to help refresh an edge that has gotten dull in the field and one doesn't have other sharpening tools handy. There's plenty of space in the sheath where the blade will pass over and not contact the sharpener unless one desires. The sharpener serves double-duty as a retention mechanism - albeit not a fail-safe retention mechanism (did I mention there's plenty of space in the sheath?). One can find a sleeve on Amazon without a sharpener for about $8-10, but that sleeve won't fit this well. This is a very practical take-on-the go kitchen knife feature.So how does this knife actually compare with a more expensive and better known brand? Both are forged with through-tangs and riveted handle material. Both blades about the same length from the handle, but the Sabatier Santoku has only a 7" cutting edge. The Sabatier has a bigger side profile, but it only weighs 1.5 oz more than the JA Henckel. This is because the spine of the Sabatier is 0.7mm thinner. More weight is in the handle for the "palm swell" and a "pommel" at the end. The center of gravity of the Sabatier Santoku is at the forward portion of the handle vs. being farther out at the bolster or heel in the JA Henckel. The Sabatier Santoku has a more pronounced belly that curves more evenly from tip to heel verses an upward angle/takeoff for the traditional chef knife shape. .So what does all this mean? The Sabatier Santoku has:1) Better grip with the beefier palm swell and butt2) Better balance with the CG in the hand rather than in front of it3) Easier to hold by pinching the heel and slice with a rocking motion without banging knuckles into the cutting board.4) Easier to sharpen with no bolster getting in the way.5) Cutting edge from tip to heel with no bolster getting in the way.6) Easy to transport with the sleeve7) Easier to freshen up the edge with the built-in sharpener when in the field in-between formal sharpening8) Less self-loathing for misplacing/losing this knife while on a trip.The Sabatier Santoku isn't perfect (but it did cost less):1) Rougher finish (circular grind pattern from machining in the surface finish)2) Edge is evenly double beveled more like a Western knife and less like a traditional Japanese knife.Some negatives if the respective feature is important to the consumer:1) No bolster (may be a concern for those who want the additional margin of safety and better thrusting ergonomics)2) Less sharp point (may be a concern for those who want to stab and trust)3) Not as flat/straight of a cutting edge as a traditional Santoku (may be a concern for those who want more of a "cleaver" edge for chopping and dicing) (Ironically, the JA Henckel is flatter for a longer section of the cutting edge, but it's this flat edge with the handle angle and lack of handle height that results in banging knuckles)4) Some reviews point out that this "stainless" steel is more prone to corrosion/rust than typical stainless steel. I've not seen rust - yet. The knife does have a sticker that says to hand-wash and dry immediately, so there may be credence to this complaint.5) Frustrating clamshell packaging.Basically, a well balanced, ergonomic, sharp kitchen knife that is easy to take and maintain on the go. It's a gratifying purchase for less than $20 after tax.

Great knife... Sharpener works fine...

Great knife! It functions well & I also like the idea that the cover has great blade protection.

The 5 inch Santoku turns out to be much smaller than I expected, specifically the distance from the handle to the edge is short, to the point that with each slice, my knuckles will hit the cutting board. I need to alter the way I hold the knife, which leaves me with a loose grip, therefore must cut softer foods. The handle itself feels good to hold, but there are noticeable gaps between the steel and handle material near the hilt, time will tell if it becomes a problem. The blade is thinner than I am used to, 1.7mm at the spine and 0.7mm at its edge, which makes it a bit flexible. The high carbon steel seems durable, it took some time to shape the edge to the angle I prefer. I would exercise caution when using the included knife sharpener, as with high carbon steel, it is magnetic, so the shavings could be magnetized to the edge of the blade, so rinse and wipe the blade with a clean dry paper towel after sharpening to remove the metal shavings/grit.

We regularly stay at the same lodge during snowboard season. We love everything about the lodge except for the horrible standard cutlery.I get that lodges need to play it safe because they are providing a fully stocked kitchen for all ranges of guests . . . adults, families with kids etc, so I finally decided to buy a knife of our own to keep packed in with all our other our snowboarding gear.I didn't want to pack up one of ours from home. I also didn't want to spend as much on this knife as I do for knives at our home.I read the reviews of this knife and gave it a try. I am so far, very impressed.Comparing it to our knives at home, other than the quality of materials, the major difference I see is the overall weight. This knife is much lighter, yet still very well balanced and it doesn't feel flimsy at all. The grip feels very comfortable in hand for both myself and my husband as well.This particular style, has an exaggerated rocker shape that's more curved than most other chef knives I've used/owned, but that's not necessarily a bad thing . . . just something to get used to.We hand wash and dry it immediately and so far, no issues with rust as some others have reported.At the end of the first winter season, this knife stayed packed in our gear bag. The big question I had, was how it would be when I pulled it out 9 months later. Answer . . . it was just fine. No rust had built up over all those months, even though our gear bag is tucked in the back corner of our garage during those off season months.The sheath that comes with it is essential for our purposes, as it allows safe packing in our snowboard bag.Not sure yet how well a job the sharpening sheath does to keep an edge on it, but we've used this knife on 7 trips over 2 years, and I have yet needed to take it out of the bag and run it through my sharpener at home.