There are two brands of knives made in Brasil Mundial and Tramotina.

SWMBO would cuff my ears if she read this, as she is Brasilan, but in my opinion neither are very good. The steel is of uneven quality as atested by the fact that some knives will hold and edge anothers not. Some you cannot get an edge on.

Brazilian industry is full of enigmas. The best alcohol fuel technology is from Brasil, they have the drop on the rest of the world when it comes to deep ocean oil drilling, they have a wonderful aeropspace industry - the Bandeirante is a highly regarded aircraft worldwide.

Some tools and machines are of excellent quality and yet other stuff is rubbish, like the aforementioned knives.

The woodworking machinery there is crap, unless you go to big industrial level gear and it is excellent. I lkie Brazilian nails and their screws have good metal but most have slotted heads and the screwdrivers for them are garbage.

I would send it back to Mundial I think they will replace it, friend of mine who has his own butcher shop made the mistake of buying one of the later Mundial knives it broke at the handle also, it was replaced no questions asked. Looks to me like they are not being tempered properly, and a stress line is being created

Well I went up tp the inlaws the other day. Guess what was sitting on the kitchen window sill? A 6 inch Mundial utility knife broken in exactly the same spot!

Will try and send them back China. Mother inlaw seems to think they have a 10 year warranty (her knife was only 6 months old) I saw elsewere on the net they had a lifetime warranty.


Mundial Chef’s Knife Review | 5100 Series 8-Inch
Seems to be common. I've looked at a few online reviews on these knives and breakage seems to be common. See here. Mundial Knives Kitchen Utensils Reviews Australia www.mundialusa.com 3 out of 14 reviews complain about knives snapping.

Thanks for the replies.
I went back to the retail outlet where I bought them and can get no satisfaction.
While in Brisbane last weekend I called in to a different House franchise to ask about their policy on Mundial knives.
Aw mate we don't stock them any more. Used to. They are rubbish. Used to be alright but have gone to the dogs.
Hmm - I guess quality control has gone out the window with this manufacturer.
Anyway I have replaced the offending knife with a Sabatier.
Well it hasn't broken yet, but is high carbon and not stainless.
Started to discolour almost as soon as we used it, and the staining is spreading like blotches all over the blade.
Is this normal?

Attached Thumbnails

   

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Yes. CS blades go grey I'm afraid.

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Cheers, Ern

Organ and tissue donor. Will swap for wood.

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Hi SG,

Yep, Ern is on the money there, discolouration is very hard to avoid and yes carbon steel is prone to rust marks if not meticulous about cleaning and drying after use, (in my experience anyway).

I have several Sabatiers, a range of makes/models and ages, mostly carbon steel. If you have one of the better Sabatiers, (quality varies somewhat) and not a Chinese copy then you should find it worthy of the extra care needed, (like any carbon steel knife blade). I love my CS Sabatier. It rings when the tip swipes the chopping board, nice.

Holds an edge well and is a much better balance, for my hand anyway. You can feel what you are cutting better compared to the heavier blades, like Mundial can be, if that makes sense.

Some chefs prefer carbon steel Sabatiers too, particularly the old ones, made in France. I did a lot of research on these knives but can't remember most of it now, memory is going I think.

Don't put your Sabatier in the dishwasher and clean it after each use and it should be OK. I have never heard of a genuine Sabatier breaking. You have made a good choice there I reckon SG.

Can you tell us what model you have, what is printed on the blade, out of interest?

Cheers
Pops

Thanks Ern and Perry,
The blade of the Sabatier says Lion Sabatier, Made in France, 100% FORGED Carbon Steel.
No model number but described as 6 inch chef's knife.
I bought this one from Everten online.
Cheers
SG

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When the student is ready, the Teacher will appear.

Should be good. Way back I had a set of Wusthof CS knives which could be got nicely sharp but I never liked the staining.

More recently I got a couple of Japanese knives of laminated steel and they're a revelation. Some guff on them here inc NeilS's expert advice.

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Cheers, Ern

Organ and tissue donor. Will swap for wood.

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Hi SG,

Yep, I have one with the same, Lion Sabatier Made in France, 8 inch though. This is a quality knife in my view. Done well. Everton have good prices too.

Check out Ern's Japanese knives thread. Very nice. Give Mundial a wide birth.

Cheers
Pops

I should add a qualifier. SG, as you'll see from that linked thread, the Japanese knives come sharpened, and it's a fair guess that the revelation was what a properly sharpened knife can feel like.

Admitting this makes me feel like a dumbo; so focussed on sharpening tools in the shed to the nth degree but so ignorant about knives in the kitchen.

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Cheers, Ern

Organ and tissue donor. Will swap for wood.

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I've really like my mundial 8" knife. But the tip broke when I twisted it in some frozen tomatoes (stupidly, in hindsight) but that is some pretty hard steel to be so brittle.
I will still like it until I get a better knife one day when I finish paying the bloody rates.

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Mick

avantguardian

scratch that last comment, the bloody thing broke when it fell from the bench and landed on the handle. Broke at the other end of the handle. Cant find receipt, but going to place of purchase this morning.

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Mick

avantguardian

Mundial knives are rubbish I've had a W/Trident and Sabatier for over 20 years with all sorts of idiots and mothers in laws trying to multitask with them and IMHO they're bullet proof.
My dear wife bought me a 8" mundial cooks knife for my birthday to replace a Trident that was stolen years ago and after a month of treating it with kid gloves I discover the blade has a crumbly edge ie. chips if it glances a bit of bone or worse cut a curve through pastry on a board.
I discovered this as I found a tiny shard that had sliced my gum from an apple pie I made one night. Hate to think what could have happened if my young son had ingested it. Its a compost bin knife now.

Ian

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Rich Turner

I dont think it will compost very well

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Mick

avantguardian

well anyone wanting a knife in Mackay should go to the this place. Fantastic service and price.
They sent my knife back to head office and it was replaced in two weeks.
Now I realise how blunt I let it get.

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Mick

avantguardian