Some time ago (2022) I posted a thread here in r/BuyItForLife that got a lot of attention - namely my ancient Y2K Henkels Classic Chef's Knife (thread here: https://www.reddit.com/r/BuyItForLife/comments/wt8n3w/henckels_kitchen_knives_i_hone_them_daily_and/)

For my birthday this year I was gifted....the exact same knife. I love my Classic and was super happy to replace it because its handle was broken. I know, I could have sent it back to Henckels and they would have replaced it under warranty (I swear, it never once went through the dishwasher!), but I used that knife to prep literally thousands of family meals, and there's sentimental value attached to it. So I kept it.

The new knife is sharp. I am a diligent knife honer and sharpener, as mentioned in my previous thread, but this factory sharp knife is absolutely stunning in its sharpness. It has me re-evaluating my honing and sharpening technique (honed before use, sharpened with #1000 and #6000 diamond grit stones every six months or so). I can get my old knife pretty sharp but not this sharp.

The new knife is also considerably thinner, lighter, and more flexible. As you can see in my attached photos, it's a LOT thinner. This results in a somewhat lighter knife (30g lighter), but the downside is that the knife is quite flexible. The old knife is very stiff in comparison and lends a lot of confidence when cutting tough foods (breaking down a chicken, for example) and the new knife kind of gives me the willies on anything that I have to increase the amount of force I'm using. Fortunately the sharpness makes up for that.

The handle on the new knife is also a little different. It has more of a satin feel - maybe I've just polished the old handle with my hands over the decades - and it feels better in the hand. Even with damp hands from a hand wash, it feels perfectly grippy to me. I like it better than the old handle. Plus it's not broken.

One thing people commented about in my previous thread was that the point on my knife was dull - and while the point on the new one is a little sharper, it's still not razor-sharp. Go figure.

The knife was the exact same price as it was 25 years ago: $100.

Overall I give the new knife a 9/10. I use it daily but I'm keeping the OG around for posterity (and for when wifey and I are both doing prep).