Comparison Maestro MR 1402 vs Maestro MR 1420

The number of items included in the kit. When calculating this amount, only items that can be directly used as a tool are taken into account: knives themselves, scissors, etc.; auxiliary equipment (for example, stands, musat) is not taken into account. For more information, see "Advanced".

— Sharpener. Device for sharpening knives. Most often, slot-type sharpeners are used in kitchen sets: the working part of such a device has the form of a slot in which two abrasive elements are located at an angle. When sharpening, you need to pass the cutting edge several times through the slot, which plays the role of a guide. Note that such a sharpener is intended mainly for sharpening slightly dull knives and is not designed for serious tasks such as restoring a damaged blade; however, in everyday life, more often than not is required. Also note that the sharpener can be either separately made or built right into the complete stand.

— Musat. Musat looks like a round or oval rod with a fine notch along its entire length and a handle for easy holding. Its purpose is to straighten the cutting edge of the knife — to eliminate irregularities that inevitably arise during work, as well as to remove burrs. Experienced cooks recommend this procedure before each more or less large cooking using a knife — a smooth blade is much more convenient to work with a deformed one, even if the irregularities are almost invisible. It should be noted that, despite the similarity of dressing and sharpening processes, musat is intended solely for straightening the cutting edge of the knife and is not designed to be a sharpener, and its regular use does not eliminate the need to periodically sharpen the k...nife. This tool counts towards the items in the set.

— Scissors. Kitchen scissors are similar in principle to ordinary scissors and differ only in shape — the design itself is more massive, and the blades are shorter and wider. They can vary in design and purpose, and use cases include butchering and cleaning fish (cutting fins), butchering meat, cutting greens, opening bags, etc. Many scissors also have additional attachments — for example, serrated inserts in handles for cracking nuts. This tool counts towards the items in the set.

— Stand. The stand greatly simplifies the storage of the set — all the knives are in one place, at hand and on the "seats" that are optimally suitable for them. At the same time, stands, unlike holders, do not require installation — it is enough to have free space on the table. In addition, if necessary, they can also be used for "non-native" knives, if the latter are suitable in size. On the other hand, on small kitchen tables, coasters can be inconvenient by taking up extra space. When counting the number of items, they are not taken into account.

— Holder (magnetic). A kind of “knife hanger”: this device is attached to the wall, and knives “stick” to its magnets for storage. The advantage of this storage over stands is not only that the holder does not take up space on the table — it also acts as a dryer, since the blades remain open on almost all sides. Among the shortcomings, it is worth noting some difficulty in mounting and moving the holder from place to place. Not taken into account when specifying the number of items in the set.

— Blade cover. The sheath that covers the blade outside of working hours prevents unwanted contact of the knife with other objects, which can lead to both damage to the mentioned objects and blunting the blade. This accessory will be especially useful for knives that are difficult to sharpen or not suitable for sharpening at all — for example, with a ceramic blade (see below). Since it does not apply to tools, it is not included in the number of items in the set and is not taken into account when calculating.

— Peeler. A tool, in full accordance with the name, designed for the convenience of peeling vegetables, especially potatoes. Usually it is a blade with a slot almost the entire length, mounted on a handle in the form of a slingshot, between the "horns". The cutting edge is located on the inside of the slot, and the blade itself is able to rotate slightly on the mounts and, due to its special shape, also works as a depth limiter. Due to this, you can easily remove the peel without worrying about its excessive thickness — while the process is faster than when working with a conventional knife. Characteristic "lugs" can also be provided on the sides of the handle to remove small but deep defects that the blade cannot cope with. When counting the number of items in a set, the peeler is included in the count.

— Meat fork. A large, usually two-pronged fork of a characteristic shape, used as an auxiliary tool when working with meat — for example, to turn chops or check the readiness of boiled pork. It is included in the list of the main items of the set and is taken into account when calculating.

— Cutting board. This item can be either a classic kitchen board or a stand (see above) with a special overlay on the top, which can be used as a surface for kitchen work. In both cases, the board counts towards the number of items in the set.

The material from which the handles of the knives in the set are made. Usually, the same for the entire set.

— Plastic. This material is easy to manufacture and inexpensive, it can easily be given any shape, colour and surface texture, and although its strength is inferior to steel, it is quite sufficient for most household tasks. In addition, plastic is chemically inert, easy to clean and resistant to water and kitchen chemicals. Thanks to all this, it is widely used in modern knives — in particular, the vast majority of entry-level and intermediate-level models have just such handles.

— Wood. The wood is pleasing to the eye and touch, can withstand hits and falls without any problems, and its durable varieties are not necessarily expensive. At the same time, this material has a fibrous structure, due to which it is sensitive to water — it “absorbs” water, loses its presentation, resistance to cracks, chips and scratches (which is not very high anyway) and can even “bloom”, which for kitchen appliance is generally unacceptable. Also, these knives cannot be washed in dishwashers. As a result, wood is not widely used — either in the cheapest knives, where durability is not important, or vice versa, in premium-class models, where it plays the role of an stylish material. In the latter case, expensive wood species are used, which are usually also subjected to special processing.

...— Steel. This material is considered one of the most hygienic: it is easy to clean, and the design of the knife has virtually no gaps in which dirt can accumulate. In addition, steel handles look very solid, durable and hard, withstandhits and falls without any problems, and are also scratch resistant. On the other hand, a steel handle is more likely to slip out of your hand than a wooden or plastic one.

— Steel with an insert. A variant designed to eliminate the main disadvantage of all-steel handles (see above) — an increased likelihood of slipping. This is what inserts are used for: they are made of rubber, plastic or other similar material that increases the "grip" of the palm with the knife handle. The presence of inserts is the only difference between handles of this type and all-steel; the rest of the features are completely similar.