The Down Range Forum
Member Section => Down Range Cafe => Topic started by: Timothy on January 21, 2011, 06:06:51 PM
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I can put a good edge on a pocket knife and a pretty good edge on my fixed blade hunting knife but my kitchen knives are in need of a professionals hand.
I use a decent (not great) cold forged Henckel Pro S knife set and am in need of a pro to put back an edge that's suffered about 10 years of abuse. I can put a decent edge on them in short order but it's short lived.
Anyone know of a good, quality mail order sharpening service. I've found one out of Colorado that seems reasonable and quick.
I don't feel like buying the latest, greatest, knife sharpening gizmo. I just want them back to where I bought them and I'll manage from there.
Thanks in advance.....
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http://www.sportsmansguide.com/net/cb/cb.aspx?a=408455
They work good.
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I can put a good edge on a pocket knife and a pretty good edge on my fixed blade hunting knife but my kitchen knives are in need of a professionals hand.
I use a decent (not great) cold forged Henckel Pro S knife set and am in need of a pro to put back an edge that's suffered about 10 years of abuse. I can put a decent edge on them in short order but it's short lived.
Anyone know of a good, quality mail order sharpening service. I've found one out of Colorado that seems reasonable and quick.
I don't feel like buying the latest, greatest, knife sharpening gizmo. I just want them back to where I bought them and I'll manage from there.
Thanks in advance.....
Try your local butcher. I'm lucky enough to have a good indepent butcher shop in town. The guy will sharpen for $5 per knife. I take mine in once a year and just maintain them with a steel and ceramics in between sharpenings.
FQ13
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most larger areas also have professional shapreners.
Chefs send thier knifes out, ask them where they send them too.
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Look for a Kitchen supply store that caters to restaurants, they usually have a sharpening service.
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Growing up, my neighborhood had a diminutive little Yugoslavian with a van, go door to door and would sharpen anything you had. The women of the house would gladly give him a tray of knives, scissors, etc,..and a sandwich. Shame those kind of business's aren't around anymore. He'd sit in your driveway for an hour, and any edged item you had, charge you next to nothing, and you could shave with your knives when completed. Fillet newspaper was the test.
I know billt has a great sharpener he posted about. It's here in the archives...But I have some Zwilling Chef Knives, and Russel International Commercial fillet knives, that I sit and hand sharpen on the patio with a stone, water, and rag. Yes it sucks, takes time, the wife is also hard on quality equip. :-\
My pocket knives, get my Grandfather's Arkansas Stone, for a honed edge.
If my wife uses my $165.00 Twin Cuisine Swiss chef's knife as a flat head screwdriver again,......... ::)
She will be properly spanked.... ;)
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Thanks guys....
I've two good Arkansas stones, both are capable of putting a good edge on a pocket knife or my 7" hunting blade and can do a great job on my paring knife.
My problem is on the Santoku hollow edge blade (the wifes fav..), my boning knife, carver and my chefs knife. I just can't get a good edge on them. As I said, I can get them sharp enough to use for a few weeks but they dull easily which means, too me that I'm not getting the proper angles.
I know of Billt's super duper Chef's Choice knife sharpener but that's not in the cards. I'd rather find a good pro to sharpen them for a reasonable price and spend my money on something more appreciated like a good cut of beef... a good bottle of wine (thanks TW) or maybe a bauble for the wifey....after all, she puts up with me!
The ideas of local butchers, restaurant supply houses, etc are great, keep them coming.
We had a few guys locally years ago that would sharpen anything....knives, saws, chain saw blades, et al. There was even one in the town I live in now but they've long since disappeared.
The CO guy is a good bet. About 10 bucks a knife with a quick turnaround and guarenteed serivice.
ps....Tom..that little pocket hone is already on order. For six bucks, ya can't go wrong... ;)
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Tim, be careful with those carbide shaver type sharpeners, if they are not the right angle they can ruin an otherwise great knife edge!
They will give a great edge, but it will not last very long. After about 3yrs of sharpening you will see a significant loss of bulk to the blade.
(my recomendations are a VERY fine whetstone and hours of 12oz curls) ;D
Good luck!
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Tim, be careful with those carbide shaver type sharpeners, if they are not the right angle they can ruin an otherwise great knife edge!
They will give a great edge, but it will not last very long. After about 3yrs of sharpening you will see a significant loss of bulk to the blade.
That's where I am.....I've tried a couple of cheap sharpeners and have taken a $200 knife and made it cut butter poorly...thanks Chefs Choice....
back to your regular scheduled programming.....
;D
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You are going to lose material any time you grind/hone metal that's the whole point.
The angle is irrelevant. For a razor edge for shaving/ slicing you want to hone at a shallow angle, (back of blade close to tone ) for a "working edge" you want to lift the blade more it does not shave things as well but holds up better to hacking and chopping. You also need to maintain your edge, you don't just cut and put it away, every time you use it you need to give it a few swipes with a steel or ceramic. It sounds like that is where you are missing out.
If you get your knives sharp then the guy you send them to can't do any better, but like any other tool you have to maintain it.
Do you clean your guns only when they are so dirty they jam ? A blade is the same way.
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I'm sorry Tom, YOU ARE WRONG!
Ask Chuck Stapel about angle. The angle of a knife edge has EVERYTHING to do with holding an edge!
"You are going to lose material any time you grind/hone metal that's the whole point."
Yes, but there is a HUGE diff between "shaving" and "honing".
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You are going to lose material any time you grind/hone metal that's the whole point.
The angle is irrelevant. For a razor edge for shaving/ slicing you want to hone at a shallow angle, (back of blade close to tone ) for a "working edge" you want to lift the blade more it does not shave things as well but holds up better to hacking and chopping. You also need to maintain your edge, you don't just cut and put it away, every time you use it you need to give it a few swipes with a steel or ceramic. It sounds like that is where you are missing out.
If you get your knives sharp then the guy you send them to can't do any better, but like any other tool you have to maintain it.
Do you clean your guns only when they are so dirty they jam ? A blade is the same way.
Pretty much sums it up.
Like Bolivar (the 1st cook) in the movie Lonesome Dove said on the subject, "A knife is like a woman.......every night, you better stroke it."
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I have found that a 20 degree angle works for the 'best of both worlds'........IMHO.
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I'm sorry Tom, YOU ARE WRONG!
Ask Chuck Stapel about angle. The angle of a knife edge has EVERYTHING to do with holding an edge!
"You are going to lose material any time you grind/hone metal that's the whole point."
Yes, but there is a HUGE diff between "shaving" and "honing".
I make my living with metal dude, and I have been doing this stuff for 40 years.
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Tom,
I just spent 3 hrs pissin in your wheaties and lost it in cyberspace HELL!
I'll try again tommorrow! EXPECT IT and be prepeared!
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;D God's telling you something ;D
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I know billt has a great sharpener he posted about. It's here in the archives.
http://www.downrange.tv/forum/index.php?topic=8829.0
I know of Billt's super duper Chef's Choice knife sharpener but that's not in the cards.
I've been using the Chef's Choice Pro 2100 Sharpener for over a year now, and I have to say I couldn't be more pleased with it. It seems like the more I use this thing, the better it works. A lot of this is because when you first start out with it you have to correct the angle on most all of the knives you use with it because most all of them are sharpened at the wrong angle. This machine will correct that, but in the process you have to remove a lot of material depending on how large the knife is to begin with, how dull it is, and how much the original angle is ground off of what it should be.
After you get the correct angle established on all of your knives , keeping up with maintaining the edges is a breeze. The entire sharpening module comes right out of the unit, and is commercial dishwasher safe. I usually just blow it out with compressed air, and it's good to go. Once you get the hang of operating this unit you can literally put a razors edge on most any knife with it. If you do decide to buy one research prices carefully because as you can see by the links I've shown, prices can vary greatly on these things for the exact same unit. One of these links has it cheaper than what I paid last year. Bill T.
http://www.webstaurantstore.com/edgecraft-chefs-choice-2100-3-stage-diamond-hone-professional-knife-sharpener/6942100.html?utm_source=Shopzilla&utm_medium=cse&utm_campaign=Shopzilla+Campaign
http://www.everythingkitchens.com/chefs_choice_commercial_diamond_hone_knife_sharpener_2100.html
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Thanks for the link Bill, I've already reviewed it some time ago.
My issues are not that critical to spend that kind of money on sharpening knives. I have three or four knives that I bought ten years ago worth about 350 bucks total. I can get them sharpened by a pro for 10 bucks each that should last me quite a while. I just can't justify spending 300-500 bucks on the Chef's Choice unit.
As I said, I can put a usable edge on them that lasts several days but I use them constantly. At the cost of the CC unit, I can sharpen my knives for another 10 years and still be ahead of the game.
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Thanks for the link Bill, I've already reviewed it some time ago.
My issues are not that critical to spend that kind of money on sharpening knives. I have three or four knives that I bought ten years ago worth about 350 bucks total. I can get them sharpened by a pro for 10 bucks each that should last me quite a while. I just can't justify spending 300-500 bucks on the Chef's Choice unit.
As I said, I can put a usable edge on them that lasts several days but I use them constantly. At the cost of the CC unit, I can sharpen my knives for another 10 years and still be ahead of the game.
Just give them a few swipes with the ceramic every time you use them. It's what I've been doing with my Kershaw and it is still like a razor after 6 months. ( ask how I know ::) )
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Just give them a few swipes with the ceramic every time you use them.
Speaking of ceramics, I just got back from Harbor Freight. They've got a coupon sale going on until the 30th for their Ceramic Kitchen Knives. $4.99 for a 3" Ceramic Paring Knife, and $11.99 for a 6" Ceramic Kitchen Knife. I bought 6 of them in all. These knives hold an edge forever. Some of these Ceramic Knives can go for up to $75.00 each in a lot of these cutlery shops. They have a real nice grippy rubber handle like a Hogue Overmolded Stock, and clean up easy. Can't beat the quality for the buck, that's for sure. Bill T.
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Speaking of ceramics, I just got back from Harbor Freight. They've got a coupon sale going on until the 30th for their Ceramic Kitchen Knives. $4.99 for a 3" Ceramic Paring Knife, and $11.99 for a 6" Ceramic Kitchen Knife. I bought 6 of them in all. These knives hold an edge forever. Some of these Ceramic Knives can go for up to $75.00 each in a lot of these cutlery shops. They have a real nice grippy rubber handle like a Hogue Overmolded Stock, and clean up easy. Can't beat the quality for the buck, that's for sure. Bill T.
I'm glad they work. My aunt had one and I was impressed by the edge, but she dropped it and it was curtains. I wasn't going to spend $50 on something that would shatter if it hit the tile, but for $5 it seems like it would be a good addition. Can you sharpen these or are they just disposable?
FQ13
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I'm glad they work. Can you sharpen these or are they just disposable? FQ13
I don't think they can be sharpened. The Ceramic is so hard it is supposed to hold an edge for the life of the knife. You pointed out their worst weakness. They don't bounce too well on hard surfaces. These are the 3 models of Ceramic Knives Harbor Freight sells. Bill T.
http://www.harborfreight.com/catalogsearch/result?category=&q=ceramic+knives
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I don't think they can be sharpened. The Ceramic is so hard it is supposed to hold an edge for the life of the knife. You pointed out their worst weakness. They don't bounce too well on hard surfaces. Bill T.
Has a ceramic from Boker and the instructions said that if it dulled to send it in for resharpening. But, yeah, nothing you can do with it at home without some type of special equipment I'd guess.
Hmmm...I did find this link..for what it's worth.
http://www.ehow.com/how_4559360_sharpen-ceramic-knife.html
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I bought the Paring knife and the 5 inch utility knife about 8 months ago. 1 sheet of Scotchbrite wiped out the paring knife, (I bought to see how it would hold up on that stuff since I use it at work, Razor blade will do 3 sheets then it's toast ) I've been using the utility knife for reasonable cutting chores and it still slices a tomato. (I just sliced up some stew beef the other day )