Excellent knives straight out the box.
have had a few shun knives prior to purchasing this and highly recommend.
Lightweight and a good grip handle helps with control when cutting.
Personally wouldnt use the knife sharpener supplied in the block with these knives. Would use a whetstone to sharpen these knives.
The Shun knives have exceeded expectations. They are extremely sharp and have proven to be a great investment. I would recommend being extremely careful as my wife and i have cut our fingers several times (user fault). We have been wanting these knives for some time and are not disappointed at all!