Hey JPM.Cuisine Thank you very much for the comparisson. I did not know the Sarolta knife but I came across the Zelite Infinity 8” Executive Chef’s Knife. I was very interested in one of the Zelite knives, however, some similarities of those knives to Dalstrong and other knives available from alibaba made me hesitate and let me question the uniqueness of the knives as anounced by some of the companies. Same shapes, same metals, same design features all over the place. I was unable to shine enough light on the relationship bewtween some of the knives. With you now haveing at least two it might be worth it to investigate in more detail how similar they really are and if they share the same source eventually. It would be great if you could include the Zelite knive into a three party head to head comparission. Maybe you are able to objectively have them side by side, including close ups of the handles, the mosaic rivets, the blade finishing as well as measurements of all the knives. I think people would be happy to finally learn how all these knives are related and in case it turns out that they somehow are unique each knive would gain more value. Thanks and keep up the good work.
Thank You! - I actually reviewed one Zelite knives before and I wasn't that impressed by the company or the product after a few months. Right now, the customer service for Dalstrong puts them in the lead. I've known a few people that have had issues with their knives and Dalstrong has sent them replacements almost immediately. I don't even think they ask for the old knife back in most cases. The other knives may look similar and cost less, but if you get a dud (which happens very often) you might be out of pocket.
Thanks for the comparison! That was a good initial evaluation and I look forward to the edge retention results for the Sarolta. To help myself observe the blade pofile better I take a straight edge (i.e. ruler) touching the blade tip and heel. The Sarolta seems to have an angular change about 1/3 up the knife whereas the Dalstrong curvature is smooth.
ryan marquez I have sarolta. I had to resharpen it myself to get a better smooth edge than initial factory edge. Now I love it, and edge retention is very good
I'm curious how many of the Chinese manufactured knives come from the same factory. It's almost a given that the steel is going to come from the same vendor.
Hi this is my first time commenting on your channel l am seriously looking at Dalstrong too upgrade my cheap German steel knives. I have seen another knife that looks the same like it came from the same manufacturer Zelite do you know anything about these.
I have a sneaking suspicion the Sarolta has some shady practices put in place, specially considering they disappeared now. I think it's some how a very clever knockoff, or something was perhaps stolen from Dalstrong idk. I don't think Dalstrong is giving us unfair prices, I'm a big fan of Dalstrong and find their products worth every penny.
Hey there! Just stumbled upon your channel. Great videos! As for these two knives, I honestly don't think I would purchase either one. Both knives are made in China and now you're already basically getting the whole knife clone thing going on... This combined with the huge price swing ($40 vs $130) makes me question that they are probably dishonest about what steel they are truly using in the knives. I would much rather spend another $20 more than the Dalstrong and purchase a Shun Classic chef knife. They are a much more reputable company with superb customer service and they routinely win most of the kitchen knife category awards at Blade Show each year. I also trust that they are giving me the steel that they say they are. I just simply don't trust any of these Chinese manufactured knives like Dalstrong or Sarolta. And just for the record, I remember listening to an executive from a major knife company say that china doesn't have the selection of steels that other places in the world have. They are very "basic". And if you are getting a knife that claims to be anything other than a steel from the "Cr-MoV" series, then it's likely not the steel they claim it is. So take that as you will. But after hearing that, it made me rethink my trust in Chinese made knives, unless I'm looking for something like an 8Cr13MoV beater knife.
Thanks for the comment! I’m glad you like the channel. I’m always curious about the actual suppliers of steel for these companies. The majority of the top steel producers by volume are headquartered in China but this only began around the Mid 2000s. One part of Knife use and collecting that I never really considered was handing them down as family heirlooms. I don’t know how long we expect them to last on average, I think that will be one of the points to consider for all these knives.
Honestly, when it comes to these new Chinese clone brands, like Dalstrong and the slew of others that look nearly identical, my first order of business as a reviewer would be the get the knives tested for two things: 1) Is the steel actually what the company claims it to be? 2) is the rockwell hardness what they claim it to be. Bottom line, I would certainly question anything coming out of china that claims to be made of high end materials at budget prices.
They do have kits and scanners that could tell you what the breakdown in the metal composition is, but you'd have to know the steel manufacturer origin to try to match those spec sheets, if they've published them. Hardness is pretty easy to test, but very expensive. Even then, if you don't trust Chinese manufacturers, it would do very little to persuade you otherwise even if the steel matches the claims.
The belly on the 8in Shogun X really makes it feel like a hatchet. It's really weird but when I use it, I want to break down some ribs or something. The length on the 10in is kind of the best of both worlds.
They are basically the same. Dalstrong, Zelite Infinity, and plenty of others are manufactured in the same factories in China. All not legit companies. They pick their designs in a catalog, and the factory in China slaps the logo of their choice on them. Inconsistent manufacturing has been noticed in the products. The hardening process is not right, and the machine sharpening process leaves flaws in a large percentage of the knives. If you want a vg10 knife, buy Japanese.
That is a very direct statement and I’m not quite sure how I feel about it. I’ve got a little bit of experience from doing reviews of many of the knives you mention and other brands that are similar from China and it’s hard to disagree. It does feel like there are about 7-10 major factories in China that produce a lot of knives but I don’t know if I would feel comfortable making such a statement about Japanese knives as well or any manufacturer. The way I see those scenarios playing out are as: a. Someone buys a Japanese VG10 knife that has defects and automatically discredits your claim because it might not have been a brand you were familiar with. b. Someone buys a Chinese manufactured knife and it’s great. I try to have an open mind when I review these knives and minimize skepticism (I find it difficult to be unbiased) and control for bias. Just like many other youtube channels that review knives (burrfection, Justin khana, etc.) I feel like we put some knives high on these pedestals, I’m guilty of it too. If you look at my reviews over time, I feel like many of the knives in earlier reviews got away with more, I’m still not perfect but I’m trying to improve.
@@JPMCuisine I also do knife reviews on my Facebook page The Knife Nerd, and partnered with chefs-resources.com for the review videos. Through my page, I've had a couple reps from these factories contact me, sending me links to their catalogs offering me the opportunity to design my own knife brand. Just about everything you see on Amazon that has been made in China was available as a design choice in these catalogs, even Dalstrong and Zelite Infinity designs. The mosaic pin is a trademark of one of the factories. I found out what a Dalstrong shogun would look like with a red handle. Lol! As for the steel. The cryogenic hardening process they use brings the vg10 to an oddly stiff feel to the edge, and the machine sharpening process at the fine edge has a tendency to leave wavy flaws in some of the knives, causing chipping. These knife brands are all about making easy money with no effort. David Dalare from Dalstrong doesn't even get to touch his own product. He had to order his own knife off of Amazon to send me to review, and when I told him that the edge was flawed, he had another one sent through Amazon. Still the same issue, edge was flawed. It's hit or miss with any of these brands.
It is a real pleasure to meet you and have you comment on my channel! This is some great insight and I always had a hunch but never quite knew it was that easy. It sounds like they are getting their hands on some actual VG-10 but they don’t have the knowledge, care, or respect to even treat it properly. That’s really great to know!
They do the same thing with Japanese knives (rebadge / rebrand). You even get different names for core steels just to throw you off. I was surprised to see the Dalstrong balanced because their paring knife is far from well balanced! -It's dangerously handle heavy!
Hey JPM.Cuisine
Thank you very much for the comparisson. I did not know the Sarolta knife but I came across the Zelite Infinity 8” Executive Chef’s Knife. I was very interested in one of the Zelite knives, however, some similarities of those knives to Dalstrong and other knives available from alibaba made me hesitate and let me question the uniqueness of the knives as anounced by some of the companies. Same shapes, same metals, same design features all over the place.
I was unable to shine enough light on the relationship bewtween some of the knives. With you now haveing at least two it might be worth it to investigate in more detail how similar they really are and if they share the same source eventually. It would be great if you could include the Zelite knive into a three party head to head comparission. Maybe you are able to objectively have them side by side, including close ups of the handles, the mosaic rivets, the blade finishing as well as measurements of all the knives.
I think people would be happy to finally learn how all these knives are related and in case it turns out that they somehow are unique each knive would gain more value.
Thanks and keep up the good work.
Thank You! - I actually reviewed one Zelite knives before and I wasn't that impressed by the company or the product after a few months. Right now, the customer service for Dalstrong puts them in the lead. I've known a few people that have had issues with their knives and Dalstrong has sent them replacements almost immediately. I don't even think they ask for the old knife back in most cases. The other knives may look similar and cost less, but if you get a dud (which happens very often) you might be out of pocket.
Thanks JPM.Cuisine,
this helps a lot towards my decision
Yeah, Zelite also offers lines with AUS10 and German steel (seems to be the same source for at least the blanks)
No longer available on Amazon.
Thanks for the comparison! That was a good initial evaluation and I look forward to the edge retention results for the Sarolta. To help myself observe the blade pofile better I take a straight edge (i.e. ruler) touching the blade tip and heel. The Sarolta seems to have an angular change about 1/3 up the knife whereas the Dalstrong curvature is smooth.
ryan marquez I have sarolta. I had to resharpen it myself to get a better smooth edge than initial factory edge. Now I love it, and edge retention is very good
I suspect that these come out of the same factory. The language on the “welcome to the family” card is even similar.
I'm curious how many of the Chinese manufactured knives come from the same factory. It's almost a given that the steel is going to come from the same vendor.
Hi this is my first time commenting on your channel l am seriously looking at Dalstrong too upgrade my cheap German steel knives. I have seen another knife that looks the same like it came from the same manufacturer Zelite do you know anything about these.
Need to lower background music. Very anoying.
Thanks for the feedback - hopefully I’ve got this fixed for the future videos.
Is it behaves the same over time?
Looks like we are been fooled by branding and marketing:))
I have a sneaking suspicion the Sarolta has some shady practices put in place, specially considering they disappeared now. I think it's some how a very clever knockoff, or something was perhaps stolen from Dalstrong idk. I don't think Dalstrong is giving us unfair prices, I'm a big fan of Dalstrong and find their products worth every penny.
factory sharpness looks little to be desired. they are obviously slipping off your onions when you cut them.
Hey there! Just stumbled upon your channel. Great videos! As for these two knives, I honestly don't think I would purchase either one. Both knives are made in China and now you're already basically getting the whole knife clone thing going on... This combined with the huge price swing ($40 vs $130) makes me question that they are probably dishonest about what steel they are truly using in the knives. I would much rather spend another $20 more than the Dalstrong and purchase a Shun Classic chef knife. They are a much more reputable company with superb customer service and they routinely win most of the kitchen knife category awards at Blade Show each year. I also trust that they are giving me the steel that they say they are. I just simply don't trust any of these Chinese manufactured knives like Dalstrong or Sarolta. And just for the record, I remember listening to an executive from a major knife company say that china doesn't have the selection of steels that other places in the world have. They are very "basic". And if you are getting a knife that claims to be anything other than a steel from the "Cr-MoV" series, then it's likely not the steel they claim it is.
So take that as you will. But after hearing that, it made me rethink my trust in Chinese made knives, unless I'm looking for something like an 8Cr13MoV beater knife.
Thanks for the comment! I’m glad you like the channel. I’m always curious about the actual suppliers of steel for these companies. The majority of the top steel producers by volume are headquartered in China but this only began around the Mid 2000s. One part of Knife use and collecting that I never really considered was handing them down as family heirlooms. I don’t know how long we expect them to last on average, I think that will be one of the points to consider for all these knives.
Honestly, when it comes to these new Chinese clone brands, like Dalstrong and the slew of others that look nearly identical, my first order of business as a reviewer would be the get the knives tested for two things:
1) Is the steel actually what the company claims it to be?
2) is the rockwell hardness what they claim it to be.
Bottom line, I would certainly question anything coming out of china that claims to be made of high end materials at budget prices.
They do have kits and scanners that could tell you what the breakdown in the metal composition is, but you'd have to know the steel manufacturer origin to try to match those spec sheets, if they've published them. Hardness is pretty easy to test, but very expensive. Even then, if you don't trust Chinese manufacturers, it would do very little to persuade you otherwise even if the steel matches the claims.
vg10 is a superior steel than aus10 but the knife profile is still shit.
I'm sure I'm in the minority; I don't care for the more rounded belly. Not a rocker.
Well then I am as well. I prefer more of a traditional gyuto profile. I feel like I have more of the blade to use.
The belly on the 8in Shogun X really makes it feel like a hatchet. It's really weird but when I use it, I want to break down some ribs or something. The length on the 10in is kind of the best of both worlds.
I feel the same way. It's a great knife and all but the thicker spine and profile makes it my less go to all around knife.
I thought it was a french profile. Tap chopping is so much faster, and I believe it causes less lateral stress on the blade edge.
Buy a Yaxell 👌
Watch me review Yaxells!
This knife is now gone from the face of the earth
I wonder if something happened to them?
I still see the Dalstrong site is up and running and they're still on Amazon. Did they disappear for a bit?
They are basically the same. Dalstrong, Zelite Infinity, and plenty of others are manufactured in the same factories in China. All not legit companies. They pick their designs in a catalog, and the factory in China slaps the logo of their choice on them. Inconsistent manufacturing has been noticed in the products. The hardening process is not right, and the machine sharpening process leaves flaws in a large percentage of the knives. If you want a vg10 knife, buy Japanese.
That is a very direct statement and I’m not quite sure how I feel about it. I’ve got a little bit of experience from doing reviews of many of the knives you mention and other brands that are similar from China and it’s hard to disagree. It does feel like there are about 7-10 major factories in China that produce a lot of knives but I don’t know if I would feel comfortable making such a statement about Japanese knives as well or any manufacturer.
The way I see those scenarios playing out are as: a. Someone buys a Japanese VG10 knife that has defects and automatically discredits your claim because it might not have been a brand you were familiar with. b. Someone buys a Chinese manufactured knife and it’s great. I try to have an open mind when I review these knives and minimize skepticism (I find it difficult to be unbiased) and control for bias. Just like many other youtube channels that review knives (burrfection, Justin khana, etc.) I feel like we put some knives high on these pedestals, I’m guilty of it too. If you look at my reviews over time, I feel like many of the knives in earlier reviews got away with more, I’m still not perfect but I’m trying to improve.
@@JPMCuisine I also do knife reviews on my Facebook page The Knife Nerd, and partnered with chefs-resources.com for the review videos. Through my page, I've had a couple reps from these factories contact me, sending me links to their catalogs offering me the opportunity to design my own knife brand. Just about everything you see on Amazon that has been made in China was available as a design choice in these catalogs, even Dalstrong and Zelite Infinity designs. The mosaic pin is a trademark of one of the factories. I found out what a Dalstrong shogun would look like with a red handle. Lol! As for the steel. The cryogenic hardening process they use brings the vg10 to an oddly stiff feel to the edge, and the machine sharpening process at the fine edge has a tendency to leave wavy flaws in some of the knives, causing chipping. These knife brands are all about making easy money with no effort. David Dalare from Dalstrong doesn't even get to touch his own product. He had to order his own knife off of Amazon to send me to review, and when I told him that the edge was flawed, he had another one sent through Amazon. Still the same issue, edge was flawed. It's hit or miss with any of these brands.
It is a real pleasure to meet you and have you comment on my channel! This is some great insight and I always had a hunch but never quite knew it was that easy. It sounds like they are getting their hands on some actual VG-10 but they don’t have the knowledge, care, or respect to even treat it properly. That’s really great to know!
They do the same thing with Japanese knives (rebadge / rebrand). You even get different names for core steels just to throw you off. I was surprised to see the Dalstrong balanced because their paring knife is far from well balanced! -It's dangerously handle heavy!
So how much is the “real shit” if it’s more than double, you don’t need to respond. There’s no need!