RADACutlery Knife 7 Stainless Steel Kitchen Knives Starter Gift Set with Brushed Aluminum Made in USA, Silver Handle

I have been using Rada products for years and love them. My son just bought his first house and I got these for his new kitchen. A must have for every kitchen....sturdy, easy to sharpen and such a nice variety of knive sizes.

I have had Rada knives for about 4 years now, now that they are on Amazon I will start buying them as gifts. These are such great knives, and so reasonably priced. I have paid way more for the big brand names sets only to be very disappointed. Make sure you get the sharpener as well.

To be honest, I expected a little more, the handles looks cheap, like painted, but what can you expect for that price.

I bought these knives for 3 reasons:1. Price. They were very reasonably priced. Compared to many other sets that have questionable reviews and quality for ten times the price, it's hard to believe that you would receive a quality set for this cost, but so far they are. More below.2. Quality. From reading of other reviews they sounded like they were a decent quality set of knives. After receiving and using them for the past few days, I have to say I'm very impressed. This is the sharpest set of knives I've ever owned, and the quality of the metal is great. I will update later with more information on how they fare over a longer period of time, but so far so good.3. Made in the USA. There's a growing movement to support smaller, local companies for many US residents, and this was a major factor in my decision to purchase this set. After checking out the company, I decided on Rada cutlery. It's great to know that there are US companies making good quality products.PROS* Very sharp.* Reasonable price.* Many options for expanding your set of knives after buying this starter set.* Can be sharpened at home.* Lifetime warranty.CONS* Somewhat utilitarian appearance. Aluminum handles look fine to me, but they're not as classy-looking as some of the black / stainless options out there.There are a couple other options out there for US-made cutlery, but neither one compares in price, so if you're looking for a decent quality set of knives that are easy on the wallet, this is a great option. I will update this review with any bad news that may come up over the next few months and years, but so far, this looks like a great set at a great price.UPDATE 2012-09-04:As another customer pointed out, Rada does indeed sell a block for these knives. This is now available from at least one Amazon seller. After owning them for nearly a year I'm finally ordering a sharpener. The paring knives and chef's knife are used nearly every day. The tomato slicer in particular is very nice. The chef's knife seemed to lose its edge faster than the others, but that may have had more to do with use frequency than any aspect of the knife itself. Still 5 stars, and I definitely like the aluminum handles as they've maintained their nice-looking appearance (albeit utilitarian) much better than my previous set of knives with black plastic handles.

I was a little leary at first for buying these knives, but I have been very happy with the quality of them. They are very sharp and not as thick as regular knives allowing them to slice through vegetables and fruits more easily. It's comfortable for me to use right-handed or left-handed, does not slip from my hands like some knives.. Cleaning is a simple task provided you follow the instructions which are included in the box. It functions great for dining, cutlery, and food preparation.