Thread: Knife sharpening

Originally Posted by p38arover

Can I take it that some of you are chefs?

I am, at least until i get qualified in something else .

Also different brands of knife are made of varying hardness of steel as Frank said above, my set is of German F dick knives which i find very hard, i have added some Trident items which seem a little softer. while i was in the UK i bought a set of Victorinox knifes and they were harder still, stayed sharp longer but harder to sharpen once the edge was lost.
I found the Tridents a good compromise between the other 2 brands.

Check out Tormek whetstone sharpeners on YouTube. What I like is the repeatable bevel angle, so you are not removing very much material with each sharpening.

Years ago on the farm, we used to do mulesing, a practice I had to learn to do. So we bought the tools, mulesing shears and knives. I also had to learn how to sharpen these, and as maybe you can imagine, its critical to do it right.

A couple of pointers from another farmer, dads experience at sharpening and away we went.
The knives are very much like a razor blade on steroids, and the shears aren't much different.

I did all my sharpening at the kitchen table with a large stone we bought, but never had a strop to use.
I always found, and still do, it easier to do one side than the other, but I generally managed to get it right. I used to spend a couple of hours doing these tools every night, and it was suprising how long each lasted before needing to be re-done.
I've watched many a bloke use a steel, and it seems no matter how hard I try, I cant seem to get it.

As others said, useing a stone takes time and patience.

you can use the back of a leather belt for a strop. They are usually unfinished like the front side.

Originally Posted by pannawonica

Check out Tormek whetstone sharpeners on YouTube. What I like is the repeatable bevel angle, so you are not removing very much material with each sharpening.

I hadnt seen these before but yesterday my brother and i were in London and American store in Melbourne and he bought one of these ceramic wheel stones that appear to work very well.

Originally Posted by loanrangie

I hadnt seen these before but yesterday my brother and i were in London and American store in Melbourne and he bought one of these ceramic wheel stones that appear to work very well.

Did he get the machine and jigs to go with it ? I ordered mine after going up the club for a sufficent quantity of beer and winning the raffle.

Originally Posted by pannawonica

Did he get the machine and jigs to go with it ? I ordered mine after going up the club for a sufficent quantity of beer and winning the raffle.

Are you two talking about the same thing?

Some very good advice here..as some have said , I was always told that a steel is only for finishing the edge & touching up during use . Any old double sided stone will do the job quite well for the layman . Given a little practice most people can get their knives sharp enough to do a good job . Butchers etc will need a better edge and the finer points take years of practice & better gear .Have a go yourself , you will do well enough for your own needs .