The most important difference is the type of cuts. Zwilling Professional S has a much thinner blade in section. The cut is much finer. Cutting is similar to cutting a razor blade. The bolster from Professional S has the roll to stop the blade from buckling and also to not hurt the hand. Cutting with Zwilling Pro is coarser, the blade is thicker in section, the blade lasts longer, the knife is heavier. Zwilling Pro S is suitable for people with a fine demeanor.
Check out the full comparison to learn more: prudentreviews.com/zwilling-ja-henckels-pro-vs-pro-s/ Want to know when brands like Zwilling, Wusthof, All-Clad, Made In, and KitchenAid go on sale? Join our free newsletter to get deal alerts, giveaways, and exclusive content: prudentreviews.com/newsletter/
A few points there I never took notice of before. I prefer blades with a little more belly for the rocking cut motion. I also like Mac knives. Generally I would purchase from long standing cutlery manufacturers not a marketer contracting anyone to make a fashion statement.
A quite famous British tv celebrity chef, Rick Stein uses the extreme belly pro cook knife He cuts a lot of herbs and garnish, and rocks it furiously. I use a 26cm professional S cook knife. I like the drop tip, as it's more traditional French styling I use Japanese knives too, and prefer a drop/push cut
I have various Zwilling knives, a chef's knive (not Professional S series, but 5 star, which features the same blade with a different handle) and a Santoku from the Pro line. I personally find the "traditional" knives such as Professional S, 4 star, 5 star (all the same knives with different handles) more comfortable to use than the Pro-line. The Pro-line is quite heavy and athough the bolster is meant to sit snugly around the fingers, in my experience the feels of the bolster is a bit uncomfortable after some time. The sharpness is excellent throughout the whole range of Zwilling knives. Hold the knife in your hand and see what feels best to you. My preference is the 5 star series. But that is entirely subjective.
Thank you so much for this video! Although Zwillings dimension numbers are all over the place they do seem to measure the Pro handle narrower than the Pro S which from this video seem to be straight opposite, I've held a Pro, despite not having a full bolster (although it does seem to get quite thick on the heel quite fast) it had too bulky of a handle for my liking, if not a Wüsthof Classic half bolster (which is ground thin all the way on the choil = perfect knife) it's probably gonna be a Pro S for me.
@Jeffrey Herman No store here sells them, and I'd like to hold a knife I don't know what to expect from before buying it.. I also prefer a more mid to front balanced knife, and if I would have a Wusthof, it would be the Crafter, which is stupid expensive, or Classic without the full bolster but they have a slightly different western handle compared to Zwilling, so I'd have to have that in my hand before buying that as well.
I found one of these at a thrift shop for 6 bucks, brought it home resharpened it and now its got a home in my knife roll. Not my favorite knife but its great for some specific uses
After 25 years of Marriage my Wife is finally taking a big interest in cooking. But, she is horrible about knife care. So that being said and the fact I'm not made of $ I pieced her together a very nice set of Victorinox Knives. She did not want a knife block or any steak knives at all so I went down the list and bought her 6 knives and a cleaver and a diamond hone for less than 2. Zwilling or Wusthof knives. Now I know the quality is not the same but with the junk we have been using for the last 25 years there should be a day and night difference for her and I won't have to be constantly be sharpening old junk knives and can now clean out the drawer and take them to goodwill etc. I have a set of Kershaw hunting knives that has served me well for 20 years I hope these hold up too. I collect and restore straight razors and Henckles Twin Works and Wusthof both make good razors from 100 years ago, good not the best. I would consider the Sheffield Razors and the Boker Razors and Swedish Razors the best of that period due to their steel and ease of honing and ability to hold an edge. I try not to buy anything made in China and Henckels affordable knives are made in China.
Id still get her one 4 or 5 star zwilling chefs knife, its like 50 bucks.. but miles away from any 20 dollar knife out there.. its a knife u can abuse for 20 years.. vs a thowaway.. will keep sharp a lot longer also so its a lot less work to maintain.. also it will keep good in the dishwasher for 20 years.. vs a 20 dollar knife that goes bad... global is another good option.. bit more expensive.
0:42 Wüsthof uses the same steel for their blades. Wüsthof uses similar steel, but gives it a Rockwell hardness of 58, while Zwilling has hardness 57, as you mentioned.
I own a Zwilling four star knife, maybe 10 years old, similar to the Professional S in shape. I really dislike the fact, that the blade has a full bolster. I does show the exact problem you demonstrated perfectly. The last one or two centimeters of the blade does not make contact to the cutting board anymore, the shape of the knife is practically ruined. I use a hand-forged japanese Gyuto style chef knife of 240 mm (9.5 inch) length, made from shirogami carbon steel. You can never allow it to be wet or - even worse - exposed to acid like tomato juice for more than a minute or two without drying it, or first signs of rust will appear. And you need to sharpen it every two months, which takes 20 minutes. But it is the perfect chef knife if cutting performance is your only request. And I use it in the pinch grip almost always anyhow. I really do not think that you have sufficient control and that you always know where exactly your blade is even without looking, if you hold it in any other way.
Depends on use. They start to dull after cutting a few pounds of vegetables. If you do this daily, they need to be honed daily after work. And they'll need proper sharpening (whetstone or belt sander) when honing does not bring working sharpness back anymore.
Question, is it worth it to get the self sharpening knives, for the extra cost? We don't use knives everyday, and I'm thinking that maybe after a year or two we can send away from them to be sharpened, right?
I’m not a fan of self-sharpening blocks because 1) you don’t need to sharpen your knives between every use (doing so wears down the blade) and 2) they don’t work as good. You’re better off sharpening them yourself when you noticed dulling (or send them away to get a professional sharpening)
I have family and friends who have no idea about what a sharp knife is. Paying to have a knife sharpened is about the same cost as having the equipment to keep them sharp. If you're seldomly in need of a sharp knife then something like a Wiltshire Staysharp will be a good purchase.
Cut myself with the pro first time I used it. Like the tip of a knife near the handle. I bearly brushed my thumb while moving my hand. The s series with a bolster is better I think and just waisted money on the pro. At least I just bought the chefs knife to try the pro instead of a full set. I will be sticking with my full bolster s series knifes
I have to say, I cringed when I saw you run those blades through that sharpener. Those things destroys blades by removing too much steel. I would never sharpen a quality knife using one of those. My sharpeners of choice are Shapton Glass or Kuromaku Whetstones. Call me a knife snob if you must. 🙂
The most important difference is the type of cuts. Zwilling Professional S has a much thinner blade in section. The cut is much finer. Cutting is similar to cutting a razor blade. The bolster from Professional S has the roll to stop the blade from buckling and also to not hurt the hand. Cutting with Zwilling Pro is coarser, the blade is thicker in section, the blade lasts longer, the knife is heavier. Zwilling Pro S is suitable for people with a fine demeanor.
This is the best video about the Zwilling, thank you so much.
The "G" in Solingen, the city where Zwilling is located, is pronounced like the one in "singer", so it's not "so-lin-djen" but "so-ling-en".
Check out the full comparison to learn more: prudentreviews.com/zwilling-ja-henckels-pro-vs-pro-s/
Want to know when brands like Zwilling, Wusthof, All-Clad, Made In, and KitchenAid go on sale? Join our free newsletter to get deal alerts, giveaways, and exclusive content: prudentreviews.com/newsletter/
A few points there I never took notice of before. I prefer blades with a little more belly for the rocking cut motion.
I also like Mac knives.
Generally I would purchase from long standing cutlery manufacturers not a marketer contracting anyone to make a fashion statement.
A quite famous British tv celebrity chef, Rick Stein uses the extreme belly pro cook knife
He cuts a lot of herbs and garnish, and rocks it furiously.
I use a 26cm professional S cook knife.
I like the drop tip, as it's more traditional French styling
I use Japanese knives too, and prefer a drop/push cut
@@grantsmith505me too
I have various Zwilling knives, a chef's knive (not Professional S series, but 5 star, which features the same blade with a different handle) and a Santoku from the Pro line. I personally find the "traditional" knives such as Professional S, 4 star, 5 star (all the same knives with different handles) more comfortable to use than the Pro-line. The Pro-line is quite heavy and athough the bolster is meant to sit snugly around the fingers, in my experience the feels of the bolster is a bit uncomfortable after some time. The sharpness is excellent throughout the whole range of Zwilling knives. Hold the knife in your hand and see what feels best to you. My preference is the 5 star series. But that is entirely subjective.
Very useful video. I bought the Professional over the Pro S on the basis of the bolster. Thanks!
Good choice!
wonderful. well done. thank you very much. getting pro 10 now.
Thank you so much for this video!
Although Zwillings dimension numbers are all over the place they do seem to measure the Pro handle narrower than the Pro S which from this video seem to be straight opposite, I've held a Pro, despite not having a full bolster (although it does seem to get quite thick on the heel quite fast) it had too bulky of a handle for my liking, if not a Wüsthof Classic half bolster (which is ground thin all the way on the choil = perfect knife) it's probably gonna be a Pro S for me.
@Jeffrey Herman No store here sells them, and I'd like to hold a knife I don't know what to expect from before buying it..
I also prefer a more mid to front balanced knife, and if I would have a Wusthof, it would be the Crafter, which is stupid expensive, or Classic without the full bolster but they have a slightly different western handle compared to Zwilling, so I'd have to have that in my hand before buying that as well.
I found one of these at a thrift shop for 6 bucks, brought it home resharpened it and now its got a home in my knife roll. Not my favorite knife but its great for some specific uses
I prefer the bolster and blade profile of the Professional S. But yes, it does make them harder to sharpen.
After 25 years of Marriage my Wife is finally taking a big interest in cooking. But, she is horrible about knife care. So that being said and the fact I'm not made of $ I pieced her together a very nice set of Victorinox Knives. She did not want a knife block or any steak knives at all so I went down the list and bought her 6 knives and a cleaver and a diamond hone for less than 2. Zwilling or Wusthof knives. Now I know the quality is not the same but with the junk we have been using for the last 25 years there should be a day and night difference for her and I won't have to be constantly be sharpening old junk knives and can now clean out the drawer and take them to goodwill etc. I have a set of Kershaw hunting knives that has served me well for 20 years I hope these hold up too. I collect and restore straight razors and Henckles Twin Works and Wusthof both make good razors from 100 years ago, good not the best. I would consider the Sheffield Razors and the Boker Razors and Swedish Razors the best of that period due to their steel and ease of honing and ability to hold an edge. I try not to buy anything made in China and Henckels affordable knives are made in China.
Id still get her one 4 or 5 star zwilling chefs knife, its like 50 bucks.. but miles away from any 20 dollar knife out there.. its a knife u can abuse for 20 years.. vs a thowaway.. will keep sharp a lot longer also so its a lot less work to maintain.. also it will keep good in the dishwasher for 20 years.. vs a 20 dollar knife that goes bad... global is another good option.. bit more expensive.
0:42 Wüsthof uses the same steel for their blades.
Wüsthof uses similar steel, but gives it a Rockwell hardness of 58, while Zwilling has hardness 57, as you mentioned.
I own a Zwilling four star knife, maybe 10 years old, similar to the Professional S in shape. I really dislike the fact, that the blade has a full bolster. I does show the exact problem you demonstrated perfectly. The last one or two centimeters of the blade does not make contact to the cutting board anymore, the shape of the knife is practically ruined.
I use a hand-forged japanese Gyuto style chef knife of 240 mm (9.5 inch) length, made from shirogami carbon steel. You can never allow it to be wet or - even worse - exposed to acid like tomato juice for more than a minute or two without drying it, or first signs of rust will appear. And you need to sharpen it every two months, which takes 20 minutes. But it is the perfect chef knife if cutting performance is your only request.
And I use it in the pinch grip almost always anyhow. I really do not think that you have sufficient control and that you always know where exactly your blade is even without looking, if you hold it in any other way.
That was very prudent Andrew, if I do say so myself 🧐
How often should these knives be sharpened?
Depends on use. They start to dull after cutting a few pounds of vegetables. If you do this daily, they need to be honed daily after work. And they'll need proper sharpening (whetstone or belt sander) when honing does not bring working sharpness back anymore.
Question, is it worth it to get the self sharpening knives, for the extra cost?
We don't use knives everyday, and I'm thinking that maybe after a year or two we can send away from them to be sharpened, right?
I’m not a fan of self-sharpening blocks because 1) you don’t need to sharpen your knives between every use (doing so wears down the blade) and 2) they don’t work as good. You’re better off sharpening them yourself when you noticed dulling (or send them away to get a professional sharpening)
@@PrudentReviews thanks for the response, that's what I'm leaning toward as well.
I have family and friends who have no idea about what a sharp knife is. Paying to have a knife sharpened is about the same cost as having the equipment to keep them sharp. If you're seldomly in need of a sharp knife then something like a Wiltshire Staysharp will be a good purchase.
Cut myself with the pro first time I used it. Like the tip of a knife near the handle. I bearly brushed my thumb while moving my hand. The s series with a bolster is better I think and just waisted money on the pro. At least I just bought the chefs knife to try the pro instead of a full set. I will be sticking with my full bolster s series knifes
I have to say, I cringed when I saw you run those blades through that sharpener. Those things destroys blades by removing too much steel. I would never sharpen a quality knife using one of those. My sharpeners of choice are Shapton Glass or Kuromaku Whetstones. Call me a knife snob if you must. 🙂