Wusthof Grand Prix II Knives Full Review

The Wusthof Grand Prix II knives line article is part of a series of articles we have prepared in order for you to get to know and select the best Wusthof knives for your needs. Also make sure you check out the Wusthof Epicure, Wusthof Ikon, Wusthof Classic Ikon, Wusthof Classic and Wusthof Pro lines in order to get a complete view of the entire product lines

Wusthof Grand Prix II Knives Product Line

The Wusthof Grand Prix II product line is composed of 14 knife sets, 4 chef knives, 3 paring knives, 3 utility knives, 2 Santoku knives, 2 bread knives, 2 filet knives, 1 carving knife, 1 steak knife, 1 cleaver, 1 boning knife, 1 Deli knife

Wusthof Grand Prix II Knife set

The Grand Prix II line from Wusthof is a forged knives line intended for home cooks as well as professional chefs. The knives come at a significantly lower price then other product lines from the same company. But this fact doesn’t majorly impact the quality. The knives are full tanged and have a full bolster being made from the same super steel as all Wusthof knives. Also, because this line is intended for home use you will see a large number a knife sets, intended for users with different needs and preferences.

Grand Prix II 22 Piece Knife Block set

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The Grand Prix II 22 Piece Knife Block set is the largest set on offer in this line from Wusthof. This is a family set and it includes all you will ever need to easily cook great, quality meals. Everyone can participate in the cooking endeavour as this set includes all chopping, paring and slicing knives you would ever need.

Thus a 8 inch chef knife for beginners, a 10 inch chef knife for the more experienced users and even a Santoku knife for who desires a Asian style knife. Also, you will get 2 paring knives including the asian style Flat cut paring knife, all the utility knives that the line provides, the basic bread knife and even a carving and boning knife. Plus the entire family and friends can joy the 8 steak knives. The Wusthof kitchen shears and steel for maintenance are also included.

• one 3 inch Flat Cut Paring knife
• one 3 1/2 inch Paring knife
• one 4 1/2 inch Utility knife
• one 5 inch Serrated Utility knife
• one 6 inch Utility knife
• eight 4 1/2 inch steak knives
• one 5 inch boning knife
• one 8 inch Bread knife
• one 7 inch Hollow Edge Santoku
• one 8 inch Carving knife
• one 8 inch Chef’s knife
• one 10 inch Chef’s knife
• one 9 inch Steel
• one pair Kitchen Shears
• one 22 slot knife block

Grand Prix II 10 Piece Knife Block set

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The Grand Prix II 10 Piece Knife Block set is very similar to the 22 piece set, it is basically a concentrated version of it. You only get the 8 inch chef knife which should really be enough. You get the 2 3/4 inch trimming knife alongside the 3 inch flat cut paring knife and 2 sizes of utility knives. Also you get the basic 8 inch bread knife plus steel and kitchen shears. The only missing knife is slicing or carving knife. Plus you don’t get any steak knives with this set.

• one 2 3/4 inch Trimming knife
• one 3 inch Flat cut Paring knife
• one 3 1/2 inch Paring knife
• one 4 1/2 inch Utility knife
• one 6 inch Utility knife
• one 8 inch Bread knife
• one one 8 inch Chef’s knife
• one 9 inch steel
• one pair Kitchen Shears
• one 17 slot knife block

Grand Prix II 8 Piece Knife Block set

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The Grand Prix II 8 Piece Knife Block set has all you need for a home that does basic day to day cooking. You get the all needed 3 1/2 inch paring knife, 8 inch chef knife and 8 inch bread knife. Plus both sizes of utility knives in order to easily cut any sandwich meat. Also you get the Wusthof kitchen shears and steel for maintenance. The 17 slot knife block also allows you to fit in any other knives you might need and are missing from this collection.

• 3 1/2 inch Paring knife
• 4 1/2 inch Utility knife
• 6 inch Utility knife
• 8 inch Bread knife
• 8 inch Chef’s knife
• 9 inch Steel
• one Pair Kitchen Shears
• 17 slot knife block

Grand Prix II 7 Piece Knife Block set

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The Grand Prix II 7 Piece Knife Block set is our recommendation for the best basic set in this product line. You only get the basics without many useless knives you will probably never use as a home cook. Thus you get the basic 3 1/2 inch Paring knife, 8 inch bread knife and 8 inch chef knife plus a 4 1/2 inch utility knife. Also you get the kitchen shears and the 9 inch steel in order to keep your knives in great shape. But If you want to latter add other knives to this set, the 15 slot knife block allows you just that.

• 3 1/2 inch Paring knife
• 4 1/2 inch Utility knife
• 8 inch Bread knife
• 8 inch Chef’s knife
• 9 inch Steel
• one pair Kitchen Shears
• 15 slot Knife Block

Grand Prix II 6 piece Knife set

If you are not interested in a knife block this set is the largest on sale without the wooden block. It includes the 3 1/2 inch paring knife, the 8 inch bread knife alongside the 8 inch chef knife and a small 5 inch Hollow edge santoku. The kitchen shears are also included. Plus you can keep your knives sharp with the universal knife sharpener provided.

• 3 1/2 inch Paring Knife
• 5 inch Hollow Edge Santoku
• 8 inch Bread knife
• 8 inch Chef’s knife
• Universal Knife Sharpener
• Kitchen Shears

Grand Prix II 6 piece Steak knife set

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The Grand Prix II 6 piece steak knife set is a great addition to your knives collection. All Grand Prix II knives are full tanged and forged from a single piece of high carbon stainless steel. The handle is firmly fixed in place and is made from polypropylene with a pebble texture to reduce slippage.

Grand Prix II 4 piece Steak knife set

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The Grand Prix II 4 piece steak knife set contains the same type of steak knives but featuring only 4 knives. In the case you have no use for too many steak knives this is a perfect set for a small family. While featuring the qualities of great knives this is the best priced steak knives set from Wusthof.

Grand Prix II 3 piece Starter knife set

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I believe the Grand Prix II 3 piece Starter knife set is the best deal for any starter home cook. The Grand Prix II knives are forged but they come at a lower price then other Wusthof knives and maintain a great quality. Also the 3 piece Starter knife set features only the basic knives you always need in a kitchen without any unnecessary knives. Thus you get the 3 1/2 inch paring knife, the 8 inch chef knife and the 8 inch bread knife. With these 3 knives you can prepare any great meal without needing any other special knife.

• 3 1/2 inch Paring knife
• 8 inch Bread knife
• 8 inch Chef’s knife

Grand Prix II 3 piece Chef’s knife set

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The Grand Prix II 3 piece Cooks knife set features the basic knives you need to start cooking in any home. You get the basic 3 1/2 inch paring knife, a 8 inch chef knife and a 6 inch utility knife. Thus you have the basic knives to cook any great meal. The paring and chef knife are basic for any kitchen but a utility knife is always useful especially if you intend on cutting sandwich meats and vegetables. Probably the only knife I would add is a bread knife but if you own one already then this set is great for you.

• 3 1/2 inch Paring knife
• 6 inch Utility knife
• 8 inch Chef’s knife

Grand Prix II 2 piece Starter knife set

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Maybe you really only need the basics in your kitchen. In this case the Grand Prix II 2 piece Starter knife set is best. With this set you only get the two most basic knives any cook should own. The 3 1/2 inch paring knife and the 8 inch chef knife are most important for cooking any recipe. If you have these two knives you can peel, chop, slice and dice almost any ingredient. Maybe with one exception being ingredients with soft interiors and hard exteriors like bread for example. In which case you need a bread knife. But, if you have one this is all you need to get cooking.

• 3 1/2 inch Paring knife
• 8 inch Chef’s knife

Grand Prix II 2 piece Prep knife set

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If you intend on doing a lot of prep work or maybe you are a beginner cook that is reticent on using a longer blade chef knife this set is for you. It features the basic 3 1/2 inch paring knife and a small 6 inch chef knife great for prep work. Because of the 6 inch blade this chef knife is great for people with smaller hands or beginners in the kitchen.

• 3 1/2 inch Paring knife
• 6 inch Chef’s knife

Grand Prix II 2 piece Asian knife set

If you enjoy Asian style cutlery but don’t afford some high end Japanese knives Wusthof has provided the basic Grand Prix II 2 piece Asian knife set. This set features a 3 inch flat cut paring knife alongside a 7 inch hollow edge Santoku. The price of this set is really low when compared with a lot of quality knives on the market today, especially compared to authentic Japanese knives.

• 3 inch Flat Cut Paring knife
• 7 inch Santoku

Grand Prix II 2 piece Carving knife set

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Need a carving set on a budget? The Grand Prix II 2 piece carving knife set is provided by Wusthof for you. It features a 8 inch carving knife and a 6 inch straight meat fork. All made from a single piece of special high carbon stainless steel and a pebble textured handle to prevent them from slipping out of your hand.

Grand Prix II Santoku knife and cutting board set

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If you are interested in only chopping ingredients with a Asian style knife, you have the option of getting the Grand Prix II Santoku knife and cutting board set. You get the great priced 7 inch hollow edge Santoku knife alongside a high quality, wooden, Wusthof cutting board.

• 7 inch Santoku
• Wusthof Cutting Board

Wusthof Grand Prix II Chef Knife

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The Wusthof Grand Prix II Chef Knives are high quality forged knives intended for home use as well as professional cooks. They are full tanged and forged from a single piece of exclusive stainless steel. In the chef knife line you can find the 10 inch Chef knife made for professional users or cooks with larger hands that can control such a large blade with ease. The 8 inch chef knife which is one of the best sizes and most sold out of all. The intermediary 9 inch chef knife and the 6 inch prep chef knife.

1. Grand Prix II 10 inch Chef knife
2. Grand Prix II 9 inch Chef knife
3. Grand Prix II 8 inch Chef knife
4. Grand Prix II 6 inch Chef knife

Wusthof Grand Prix II Paring knife

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The Wusthof Grand Prix II Paring knife line from Wusthof features 3 types of paring knives. Thus you get the classic 3 1/2 inch paring knife, the Japanese style 3 inch flat cut paring knife and the 2 3/4 inch peeling knife also known as a bird’s beak paring knife. All paring knives are forged from the X50 Cr MoV 15 super steel, full tanged and precision edge sharpened.

1. 2 3/4 inch Grand Prix II Peeling knife
2. 3 1/2 inch Grand Prix II Paring knife
3. 3 inch Grand Prix II Flat Cut Paring knife

Wusthof Grand Prix II Utility knife

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The Grand Prix II Utility knife line features all types of utility knives you need to cut any sandwich meat and vegetables. Thus you get the small 4 1/2 inch utility knife and the big 6 inch utility knife. Plus, the 5 inch serrated utility knife perfect for slicing tomatoes or small baguettes. Because of the serrations featured on this blade you can easily slice through ingredients with hard exterior and soft interior without squishing them.

1. 4 1/2 inch Grand Prix II Utility knife
2. 6 inch Grand Prix II Utility knife
3. 5 inch Serrated Grand Prix II Utility knife

Wusthof Grand Prix II Santoku knife

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For Asian style knives enthusiasts that do not afford a authentic Japanese chopping knife, the Grand Prix II line from Wusthof features 2 Santoku knives. Thus you get a 5 inch Hollow edge Santoku and a 7 inch Hollow edge santoku. Both knives feature a hollow edge that prevents food slices from sticking to the wide blade.

1. 5 inch Hollow Edge Grand Prix II Santoku knife
2. 7 inch Hollow Edge Grand Prix II Santoku knife

Wusthof Grand Prix II Bread knife

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There are 2 types of Grand Prix II Bread knives from Wusthof. The classic 8 inch bread knife and the double serrated 9 inch bread knife. The double serrations on the 9 inch knife makes it much easier for the blade to cut through ingredients and minimises the number of crumbs you end up with. Also, the double serrated blade, can easily be used for delicate ingredients like cake.

1. 8 inch Grand Prix II Bread knife
2. 9 inch Grand Prix II Double serrated Bread knife

Wusthof Grand Prix II Fillet knife

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Both Grand Prix II Fillet knives in this line feature a leather sheath for you to safely keep your knife in. The line features two types of fillet knives. The 7 inch and the 9 inch fillet knife. The only fillet knife missing in this line is the Flexible fillet knife.

1. 7 inch Grand Prix II Fillet Knife and Leather sheath
2. 9 inch Grand Prix II Fillet Knife and Leather sheath

8 inch Grand Prix II Carving knife

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The Grand Prix II Carving knife has a long and narrow blade that makes it easy to slice any piece of meat. Also the blade features small vertical indentations that help create air pockets when slicing. The air pockets prevent your slices from sticking to the blade. Thus your cuts will result in perfectly even slices.

4 1/2 inch Grand Prix II Steak knife

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The Grand Prix II Steak knives from Wusthof feature a sharp, straight edge that makes it easy to cleanly slice any thick meats without shredding them. All steak knives are made from Wusthof’s exclusively produced high carbon stainless steel and are precision sharpened.

6 inch Grand Prix II Cleaver

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The forged 6 inch Grand Prix II Cleaver is thicker and has a heavier weight than other knives in this line. This fact makes it perfect for cutting large pieces of meat, bones and even large or thick skinned vegetables. The cleaver is also forged and precision sharpened.

5 inch Grand Prix II Boning knife

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The 5 inch Grand Prix II Boning knife has a curved and narrow blade which allows it to cleanly cut along the bone. Because of its shape you can move the blade in tight spots, like in between bones with great ease. All Grand Prix II boning knives are hardened at 58 on the Rockwell scale.

8 inch Grand Prix II Offset Deli knife

 

Best Price 

As specialty knives this line only features the 8 inch Grand Prix II Offset Deli knife. A deli knife features a raised handle in order for you to easily use it on the cutting board. It is designed to cut through sandwich meats and vegetables with ease. Because of the serrations featured on the blade you can even slice bread and tomatoes without squishing them.

Wusthof Grand Prix II Features

The Grand Prix II are the the entry level knives for the Wusthof forged knives lines. Thus the Grand Prix II knives come at a more affordable price than other forged Wusthof knives. Because this line is considered as entry level we can safely say that it is intended more for home users. In this case you will find a large number of various sets of knives put together by taking into consideration various user preferences. This fact can also be seen in the types of chef knives. Of course you get the professionally preferred 10 inch chef knife but you do not get the variety of big chef knives as in the Wusthof Classic line.

Grand Prix II Design

In terms of design the knives have the same cutting profile and blade type as the Culinar and the Classic. Also the handles have a similar shape to the Ikon and the Culinar but instead of a wood, stainless or polyoxymethylene handle they are made out of polypropylene. The blades have a full bolster and are full tangled but the handle is not triple riveted. The handle fixture is seamlessly hidden inside the polypropylene handle. Also, the material of this handle has a pebble texture that increases safety and comfort by reducing the risk of slippage.

Grand Prix II Steel

The Steel from which the Wusthof Grand Prix II knives are made from is the “X50 Cr MoV 15” high carbon stainless steel produced exclusively for Wusthof. This means that Wusthof is the only knife company using this exact type of super steel. The “X50 Cr MoV 15” is basically an alloy of different materials that give the knife hardness, rust and corrosion resistance.

But what does “X50 Cr MoV 15” exactly mean? Well, “X” stands for the basic steel that makes up the alloy. “50” represents the 0.5% concentration of carbon mixed in the steel. “Cr” represents Chromium and “15” at the end of the name represents the concentration of 15%. The Chromium content gives the blade stainless steel properties. Now, the other two elements make this steel really special. “Mo” represents the element Molybdenum and “V” represents Vanadium. These last two elements give the steel edge retention, corrosion and rust resistance properties.

Grand Prix II Blade

The Grand Prix II knife blades are produced in a almost fully automated process. The Wusthof factory has one of the most advanced knife production lines in the world today. But I mentioned “almost” fully automated because some stages of the production still have to be done manually by experienced workers.

The Grand Prix II line of knives is a forged line with a hardness of 58 on the Rockwell scale. Wusthof achieves this through the process of forging, tempering and annealing the X50 Cr MoV 15 super steel in specific conditions. Thus you will receive a special blade that will last you a lifetime.

First, the Wusthof factory receives the super steel in large steel sheets. Then the exact shape of the knife is cut into shape by robotic arms, heated up at 1093 Celsius (2000 Fahrenheit) Precision forged and quality checked. Second the knife blades are tempered in order to reach the desired hardness. This means the blades are heated up again at 1010 degrees Celsius (1850 Fahrenheit) then quickly cooled down. Now the blades are hard but very brittle. Thus, the third process, namely “annealing” must take place. In this process, the stress in the blade is removed in order to improve its flexibility. Thus the blades are heated up again at 198 Celsius (388 Fahrenheit) then cooled down slowly.

During the forging tempering and annealing process the knife blades are continuously quality checked and cleaned. Only sharpening is left for the blade, therefore Wusthof uses its innovative PEtec technology to give each knife its perfect edge. First, lasers measure the blades. Second, the perfect sharpening angle is calculated. Third, precision robotic arms sharpen the edge on whetstones. After this process the knives get a final polish and are complete.

Grand Prix II Handle

The Handles of the Wusthof Grand Prix II are very similar to the design of the Culinar and Ikon lines. The shape is the same for all three knives but the handles material is different. The Ikon lines have a triple riveted wooden or polyethylene handle. The Culinar has a handle made from a single piece of stainless steel. While the Grand Prix II has a polypropylene handle that hides the full tang of the blade.

Polypropylene is lightweight and has a high resistance to solvents, acids and cracking, plus it has a high melting point and is non-toxic. Probably the only con of this material is that it’s not as sturdy as polypropylene. But in any case it makes a very good material for knife handles.

Alongside the great material used and modern design the Grand Prix II also features a pebbled texture that decreases the chance of slippage and increases comfort.