Thread: Sharpening

Chefs are notorious drug users

No, just many are lazy as f#$k!

Ive worked in a kitchen for the last 10 years and many don't know how to sharpen properly or at all. They rely on the roaming vans that visit businesses for sharpening things, including knives which the employer pays for so the chefs are happy to have it done essentially for free.

Apart from the owner/exec chef where I work, no one knows how to sharpen knives properly and even then don't do a very good job at it. the other travesty I see used all to often is diamond steels used in the way a regular steel is used to prolong an edge life, with the knife never seeing a stone in its considerably shorter life span. I offer to teach them, but many consider it too hard and would rather rely on others to do the work for them.

I don't think it would be too hard to learn these days with all the guide tools you can get the help you get the angle right.

And stones aren't the most expensive, especially at the lower grit scales most knives need. Like less than 1000. A clean bevel at 1000 is super good for knives anymore is cream. Or for sashimi.

I hope you guys are talking about a 30 degree INCLUDED angle and not each side.

60 degree bevel all the way! lololol

For my Pocket knives and my Randal hunting knife i use a lanski honing kit. for the kitchen knives i free hand keeping about a 25-30 degree angle . The same with my filet knives. so far this has worked good. i hone the kitchen knives about 2 times a year and us a good steel in between.

I think if someone is going to own a knife they should atleast try and learn to sharpen it. Sharpening free hand can be a real pain, but it usually gets alot easier with more practice. Took me forever to get the hang of it. I usually sharpen my pocket knives and most of my kitchen knives at about 25 degrees. I usually use a lansky system on pocket knives for reprofiling factory edges if needed and then free hand. My knives usually don't go higher than about 2000. Once I started honing my own razors everybody seemed to start coming out of the woodwork wanting me to sharpen all their knives.

Originally Posted by rhensley

For my Pocket knives and my Randal hunting knife i use a lanski honing kit. for the kitchen knives i free hand keeping about a 25-30 degree angle . The same with my filet knives. so far this has worked good. i hone the kitchen knives about 2 times a year and us a good steel in between.

I use the same type of system for my custom blades, just a Smith's diamond set-up followed with a Arkansas. I still free hand a lot for my user knives though.

I only have a pocket knife for when I'm out mushrooming, it's never cut anything other than mushrooms

I freehand my knives. I find it's very therapeutic almost, the repetition in pursuit of that perfect edge. It's different than with a razor. Only I use my razors, other people use the knives I sharpen.

Once a month, with a grinder? wow.. that Shun will be a filet knife in no time. Glad you stepped in and gave him a fresh edge. I suppose theres a reason they use cheap Dexter knives usually.