I was using an 8" chef knife (henkels) but I switched over to the ten inch (wusthoff) for everyday use a couple of months or so ago. The ten inch was a little awkward at first but now I have it pretty much figured out. It's thinner and doesn't seem to weigh that much more than the henkels, but it is definately a bigger knife. The extra blade length really helps, and I have developed much more of a back and forth sawing motion when I cut things. I still use the eight inch knife for some smaller tasks but not too often.