As an ex-pro chef, an avid home chef and a knife collector I've been
wanting to get a ceramic knife for some time now. I want to get
something reasonable in price that would be useful on a daily basis.
The question now is: what's the difference between the all-ceramic
blades and those that are metal with a ceramic coating?
Is the latter just a marketing scam and no better than any other, good,
kitchen knife? Should I focus on the former? Or what?

Thanks,
Eric G.

On 23 Mar 2006 17:55:59 -0800, wrote:

>As an ex-pro chef, an avid home chef and a knife collector I've been
>wanting to get a ceramic knife for some time now.

Prediction: you'll find that they're no better for very thin slicing than a
relatively inexpensive Japanese knife like a Shun, very fragile, have
uncomfortable handles, have to be sent off to be sharpened when they finally do
dull, and you'll ditch the ceramic within a year.

At least that was my experience. YMMV.

-- Larry

On 24 Mar 2006 08:25:27 -0800, "Chef Dom" >
wrote:

>Asa chef and store owner who does a lot of research and testing, I
>would disagree with the last statement. Ceramic knives are amzing
>pieces and they are in a league of their own when it comes to blade
>retention and sharpness.

Agreed, except for the sharpness. They can be exceptionally sharp, but often are
not. I've seen Kyoceras brand new out of the box that were markedly less sharp
than others.

If you buy one, I'd recommend getting the lifetime free sharpening guarantee in
writing.

>.... I have been using ceramic knives for over 5
>years now and love them more than ever.

I have too, and I said YMMV. 8

>.... The are also meant to compliment your metal knives, not to
>replace them. You only need one or two, the most common size that you
>would use for general prep (vegetables, fruits, meats with no bones,
>etc.). The brand I sell is Kyocera, again in my opion they were one of
>the first companies to do them and they are the best product for the
>price. Most of my ceramic knives go 1-2 yrs without being sharpened.

Mine were Kyoceras too: the 6" black Ming Tsai, the 5" white chef's, and the
paring knife. I still have the latter two, in two large Wusthof blocks full of
Globals, Dicks, Wusthofs, and Dehillerins -- but the 5" doesn't get touched
often, the paring knife not at all.

Again, YMMV, different strokes, and all that.

-- Larry

On 23 Mar 2006 17:55:59 -0800, wrote:

>As an ex-pro chef, an avid home chef and a knife collector I've been
>wanting to get a ceramic knife for some time now. I want to get
>something reasonable in price that would be useful on a daily basis.
>The question now is: what's the difference between the all-ceramic
>blades and those that are metal with a ceramic coating?
>Is the latter just a marketing scam and no better than any other, good,
>kitchen knife? Should I focus on the former? Or what?
>
>Thanks,
>Eric G.
A ceramic coating on a blade may make the edge last a bit longer, but
it strikes me a useless gimmick. After you sharpen it a few times, the
coating will be gone from the cutting edge, and, of course, that's the
important part.

The "real" ceramic knives, like those form Kyocera are, at least,
interesting. I have a few, and they have good points and bad.

The main good point is that the ceramic knife keeps its edge for a
long time. Send them off to Kyocera every year or so, and they will
always be sharp. This is a real benefit for cooks that do not want to
spend any time caring for their knives. As an observation, most home
cooks fall into this category.

On the other hand, a properly sharpened steel knife can be noticably
sharper than a ceramic knife.

The main downside to me is the weight. Ceramic blades are lighter than
a similar-sized steel knife. I much prefer the "heft" of a steel
knife. On the other hand, my wife likes the light weight.

I have an absurdly large collection of kitchen knives, so we have lots
of choices when we want to reach for a knife. The knife my wife
reaches for most often is a Kyocera ceramic paring knife. If I need a
paring knife. The knife I reach for most often is a Shun Pro Nakiri. I
can't recall the last time either of us used the ceramic Santoku.

Leonard

Thanks for all your help everybody!

Pro chef here.

Got a Kyrocera a few years ago. Tried to like it for three months.
Spent more time worrying about damaging the blade than anything else.
It came with a long list of things you cannot do with the knife. My
french carbon steel knives, my Dick and Henckels steel knives, and my
Japanesse steel knives came with no such list.

The only advantage to ceramic is that they stay 'sharp' longer than
steel knives. Mine was not as sharp as a well-sharpened steel blade,
they are brittle, and a general PITA to deal with. OK, I forgot, they
will not rust, but then neither will stainless steel.

Want proof that they are not as sharp as steel? There are no scalpels
made of ceramic, they are all steel, except for some optical scalpels,
which use special glass blades. In addition, microtomes, used to slice
bacteria into multiple slices, use diamond, glass, or steel blades,
never ceramic.