I'll start by saying that I've only used this knife a few times. But it lives up to the New West quality. I love the original 9" chef with s35v. So when I saw it in the MagnaCut I had to get it. I'm a sucker for different blade steels. The stain resistant of the MagnaCut seams to be easier to clean after use. The 9" Chef with the MagnaCut was slightly more heavier then my original 9" Chef. But the balance of the knife still felt good. It's going to be hard to improve on the original 9" chef but the 9"MagnaCut is on par.