Wusthof 5558-1 Come-Apart Kitchen Shears
|
List Price: Our Price: $13.99 You Save: $11.01 (44%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $11.30 (click here) Category: Kitchen See more product details |
|---|
Kitchen and Housewares Reviews of Wusthof 5558-1 Come-Apart Kitchen Shears
Customer Review: Excellent Shears - Work Great
Summary: 5 Stars
These replace an old pair of Fiskars shears, and it is useful to note a couple of differences between the Wusthof and Fiskars products. The Fiskars had a larger handle for the fingers and a smaller one for the thumb. The Wusthof is a totally symmetrical design, so it doesn't matter how you pick them up (nice when I am in a hurry) and left-handers can use them as easily as right-handers. Both come apart, but the Fiskars had a large and kind of awkward looking pivot while the Wusthof shears have a smaller and smooth joint - better because it doesn't catch on things when you cut and it won't trap dirt. I looked at a couple of other shears when I bought the Wusthof's. One pair had a bottle opener, and I was concerned this would catch on things and collect dirt. The Henckel Twinshear was certainly nice, but pretty pricey at $50.
The Wusthof shears are positively reviewed by America's Test Kitchen and this is deserved. They are a quality product. They are made of German Solingen steel, which is a high quality steel that holds an edge well. The blades have small serrations and there is a section near the pivot for cutting more difficult objects (e.g., chicken bones). They cut very well. To me,they are a good size - not too large or small. There is a pliers-like area below the handle that is intended to help with opening bottles. I have pretty large hands and find the shears fit comfortably.
These shears come apart easily for cleaning and, as other reviewers noted, the pivot joint is beveled to tighten the blades as they slide together. One reviewer noted that they are dishwasher-safe. I was always told that you don't want to put cutting blades in the dishwasher because it diminishes the tempering of the steel. Wusthof recommends hand-washing and I will be following that advice (as I do with all my knives, food processor blades, etc.).
Overall, I am very pleased with these shears. They are moderately priced, work well, and look like they will last many years.
Customer Review: One of my favorite kitchen tools
Summary: 5 Stars
These shears quickly became one of my favorite tools in the kitchen. They are very sharp, quite sturdy, comfortable in the hand, and come apart for cleaning. (I have never had them come apart while in use.) I hand wash them and have never had problems with rust.
They have not needed sharpening despite using them for several years. There is a plastic button but the actual connecting piece that takes the force and wear is a metal pin and neither is removable. The handles have a fine non-slip texture but are still easy to clean. The tips are not sharp like a knife tip but are very slightly rounded making them safe to use while holding something in your hand but still pointy enough to do delicate tasks.
You can use them to cut up chickens, trim fat from meat, chop herbs like cilantro and green onions, de-core lettuce and cabbage, trim artichokes, de-stem strawberries, open plastic bags neatly to make them easy to re-close, cut foil, milk jugs, string, parchment, and blocks of chocolate, make baskets out of orange peels, cut soybean thread. I have even used them to cut paper and cardboard on occasion. The hole in the middle is supposed to be for opening bottles but I use it to crack walnuts, pecans, and brazil nuts. The other day I used them to cut up frozen asparagus, much easier than using a knife on a cutting board.
I really don't have anything negative to say about these, they're good quality and a good value and definitely a "best buy" kitchen tool.
They also make a great gift for someone starting a household or for anyone who doesn't have a nice set of shears, twice I have used them for gifts and both times they thanked me several times over the next few months.
Customer Review: Great shears, great value!
Summary: 5 Stars
These shears quickly became one of my favorite tools in the kitchen. They are very sharp, quite sturdy, comfortable in the hand, and come apart for cleaning. (I have never had them come apart while in use.) I hand wash them and have never had problems with rust.
They have not needed sharpening despite using them for several years. There is a plastic button but the actual connecting piece that takes the force and wear is a metal pin and neither is removable. The handles have a fine non-slip texture but are still easy to clean. The tips are not sharp like a knife tip but are very slightly rounded making them safe to use while holding something in your hand but still pointy enough to do delicate tasks.
You can use them to cut up chickens, trim fat from meat, chop herbs like cilantro and green onions, de-core lettuce and cabbage, trim artichokes, de-stem strawberries, open plastic bags neatly to make them easy to re-close, cut foil, milk jugs, string, parchment, and blocks of chocolate, make baskets out of orange peels, cut soybean thread. I have even used them to cut paper and cardboard on occasion. The hole in the middle is supposed to be for opening bottles but I use it to crack walnuts, pecans, and brazil nuts. The other day I used them to cut up frozen asparagus, much easier than using a knife on a cutting board.
I really don't have anything negative to say about these, they're good quality and a good value and definitely a "best buy" kitchen tool.
They also make a great gift for someone starting a household or for anyone who doesn't have a nice set of shears, twice I have used them for gifts and both times they thanked me several times over the next few months.
Customer Review: Shear Perfection!
Summary: 5 Stars
I was happy to receive these kitchen shears for Christmas. I have never had kitchen shears before, so I can't compare, but these were very sharp and high-quality. Wuesthof knives are the best that money can buy, IMHO, though Henkels are also excellent. They are both made in Solingen, Germany. (Get the German ones, and not the "International" ones, which are made in Spain, or even in China). These shears are a good value at this price.
The shears fit together nice and tight, but they also come apart easily for cleaning. Once they are re-assembled, there is no slippage or looseness. They are well balanced and pretty comfortable; they handle well. They could probably be more ergonomic, but I doubt that they'd be ambidextrous in that case. We've got two "lefties" in our family, so that's O.K. There's a bottle opener on the handles. There's a straight blade and one that has slight serrations for stability. This reverse side blade also has an indented notch which is sharp; I'm sure that it has a purpose, but I don't know exactly what it is. I will try to post a picture of it tomorrow.
Performance: so far I have used them to snip herbs and to cut a bunch of Cornish hens in half. I do grow a lot of herbs, and previously I have always chopped them with my (German) chef's knife. The snipping is much easier and cuts more neatly without bruising the herbs. And the shears snipped right through the middle of those hens as they were also herbs. Sweet! My hand strength isn't the best, so this is a real boon to me. Thanks!
Customer Review: Love them!
Summary: 5 Stars
I wish I had bought these sooner. I have had cheap kitchen shears that came with a knife set when I was young and broke. As the knives have worn out, I have replaced them with quality knives...but I never replaced the plastic handled kitchen shears. Just to have a "nice, complete set" and to get that ugly plastic thing out of my drawer, I ordered this set of shears. It is amazing. I didn't realize how easy I could cut items with "minimal" effort on my part. I am used to putting a lot of hand squeezing into the other shears to get them to cut cardboard, etc...but these cut tough things like they were butter. My hands are very weak, so they are especially helpful to me. If you have arthritis or weak hands, consider getting some quality shears like these. They do most of the work for you. I also used to put my other shears in the dishwasher, with the blades open, to try and get them clean...but with the pull apart design, I know that there will be no chicken germs hiding in a crack. The taking apart and putting back together of the shears is very simple. I would have expected to pay $50-$60 for these, so they are really worth the price they are sold for in my opinion. It's possible there are better ones out there, but I do know that these are good, they do what you need, and they won't make you go broke.