I always had great experience with Victorinox knives. This chinese cleaver was very sharp like all Victorinox knives. It cuts through carrots like butter. The blade is very thin so it might appear to be flimsy. The thin blade makes it very light, which is great if you do alot of chopping. Do not use this knife to cut through bones or other hard substance. It is great to chop vegetable and slicing meat. When you wash it, water tend to collect in the handle. the handle needs to face up in order for the water to drain. Overall, this is great value for everyday chopping and dicing. It may appear not well constructed but is comfortable enough to use. It has not fallen apart on me yet. If you like a lightly constructed knife with a very sharp edge, this is the knife for you. For the price, this is a good starter knife for someone new in the usage of the chinese cleaver. Once you get use to it, this maybe the only knife you will be using. If you want something with more heft, look for the Dexter brand or the more expensive alternative like shun, global, or Wustoff.

Arguably, this is one of the better chopping, cleaving, broad utility kitchen knives on the market. It's thin enough to slice very well, and broad enough to act as a scoop to place diced herbs where they need to go. Like all Victorinox / Forschner knives, it's easy to sharpen and maintain. It's weakness, if you want to call it that, is a walnut handle held on by one rivet. (It's a narrow stick tang with solitary pin point if that means anything to you.) Other than that, it's one marvelous example of minimalist extravagance. It'll do what you ask of it, so long as that doesn't require heavy chopping. It's a natural slicer, not a hacker. Learn to choke up on this thing and it becomes a total substitute for a classic 8-10" French Chef's knife.

This identical model was my first kitchen knife 25 years ago. I used it for everything, as I taught myself to cook through my batchelor days. This new replacement has the same balance and control of my original, but the metal is a bit thinner and lighter. Its still a formidible, affordable, and worthy knife for almost any chopping/dicing application.