Review on Cangshan X Series 59144 Santoku Knife - 7-Inch, German Steel Forged by Christina Xiong

I'm 100% honest I was concerned about the quality of the softer steel in terms of blade retention but I could NOT be happier with the results, the performance. I gave this knife to my mother for her birthday, she loves to cook. I also sharpen her knives every Sunday after the family dinner, so I know exactly how hard she is on cutting tools. She swings her knives like a beast. For the first week that she had this knife, she kept texting me how much she liked it. When I looked at the blade the following week to set it up there was no wear on the blade. I know the forging process plays a big part in hardness, but I never expected it to hold up SO well. I'm familiar with high quality steels (Sandvik, Crucible, 5160, CPM3V, etc. mostly for outdoor knives) and this knife pretty much comes close to them for PART of the cost. The ergonomics are excellent, I'm not at all happy with the balance of the knife. It looks very attractive. If you gave it to me (with incorrect information on the blade) and said it was a $200 knife made out of 14C28H or C30B and I let it use for a week, I would probably believe you. The box it comes in is very pretty. The only slight possibility with this blade would be that it came with no blade guard other than the box. My mother only keeps hers in a box in her knife drawer, but it would still be more convenient to just have a sheath. Don't let that stop you from buying this knife. For the price this knife is so impressive and I am very picky about knives and blade retention.