Wusthof Ikon 8-Piece Knife Set with Blackwood Handles and Walnut Storage Block

This whole process was very easy and these knives are absolutely the best. They are so sharp and beautiful. The wood handles really add to the look of a kitchen. I will definitely be expanding this set and will certainly consider buying from these guys again. Read more

Really I don't think you can find better knives out there than some of these in this set, but as a set it is lacking. There are some features that need to be added too. Woodworking is also becoming a lost art, and I appreciate the wood handles on these as opposed to plastic - they feel so much better and secure in your hands and will age better too with daily use. Pros: 1) Super blades weighted on top, razor sharp on end, and comfortable handles that are real wood. 2) an excellent cook's knife, 3) a great bread knife for most needs (although I prefer 10" to allow for cutting a round loaf), and 4) an excellent parer knife. The squared off edges of my Zwilling knives and Wusthof Classics hurt my hands some, and are not nearly as comfortable. Now on to the bad... Cons: 1) Hate the scissors - handles hurt my hands, so I ended up ordering the $18 pair of Wusthof scissors that had more comfortable handles that I use daily instead putting the ones in this set away. 2) The Utility knife - went to cut a tomato with the utility knife - was a no go, switched over to my 5" serrated Ikon Blackwood that I purchased separately. Not sure what the purpose of the utility knives are. Sometimes I think this is why some sets are sold - to move the unpopular inventory such as utility knives. 3) Block is clearly designed for Wusthof classic series as far as spacing, and these knives I found to look crowded in the block once I filled the other slots. They don't sell sets of 6 steak knives, so must buy 4 in a set then 2 extra which is strange in order to utilize the block fully. I ended up buying a set of 4 steak knives, and putting some of the paring knives in the two other slots but they droop down a bit. The scissors should be positioned in front like on the Zwilling Knife block, as difficult to access - I ended up putting the scissors where the honing steel is & putting the honing steel in a drawer since don't need as often as my scissors; 5) Unlabeled ends of knives make it very difficult to pull out the right knife the first time. Wusthof should see what was done on the Calphalon Precision Series knife set for ideas on labeling (stamped in vs printed would be better on the ends). Here's the knife inventory that I like: 8" cleaver (Zwilling Pro), 8" and 9" cooks, 8" Deli Knife by Wusthof Ikon (just love this one), 7" Santoku, 9" carving, 10" bread, 7" Nakiri, & 2 paring knives: regular & bird's beak. The most used knives in my kitchen are my 7" Wusthof Santoku and the 8" Deli Knife that I bought separately and that DO NOT come in this set. I find I have no use for medium sized knives, only big & small ones. If I'm using a cutting board, prefer all big knives, and if I'm holding something in my hands like peeling, then small knives. So my suggestion is to either start with the $295 starter set - 8" cooks & parer, then add the specialty knives, or get the huge ultimate set, and sell off the knives you don't use. I wish I had just gotten the jumbo set, and sold off the knives I didn't need. Would have saved more money that way. It's $1295 on one website for a 16-piece Wusthof Ikon Blackwood set with all 6 steak knives, the 5" serrated knife (I like for cutting bagels in morning), and the 7" santoku knife, all not included with this set. That would have been a much better deal, as I had to buy those separately - extra $550 for 6 steak knives, $140 for the 5" serrated, & $200 for the santoku. That's an extra $890 right there…so major bummer I didn't know before. But now at least you will know. Missing from the Blackwood Ikon series that I hope they will add: 1) curved tine carving fork both full size & granny sized, 2) labeled ends to knives (stamped in - not printed) to identify the knife so don't have to pull out 3 knives to find the one you were looking for, 3) ergonomic scissors that are not painful, 4) a bird's beak parer with blackwood handle, 5) block that properly holds the paring knives or knife sets sold in the quantity that match the block (mildly annoying), 6) a real cleaver with a blackwood handle - still having to use my Zwilling Twin Signature Friodur Ice Hardened cleaver for chopping. Read more

These are very well crafted and come RAZOR sharp! Certainly this will be the last set of knives I will ever have to buy. Wusthof is the best! Read more

This was a birthday gift for my daughter. She is really happy! Read more