Chefs Choice 120

[Bernoulli]

After running my knife through the chefs choice 120 it is sharp enough to shave the hair off my arm though. So how do you explain that? Only problem I see with it is the fact that it doesnt seem to hold the edge very well. Any suggestions on how to get the blade to hold the edge better?

When I used to use one, I never had any problem - but, I look at a knife having two parts. I never use a kitchen knife without a few passes on a steel first.

To be fair, the only time I ever used a steel on non-kitchen knives is in the field. I use a Schrade Old Timer Honesteel. Works good for field work when hunting.

 

[cbwx34]

After running my knife through the chefs choice 120 it is sharp enough to shave the hair off my arm though. So how do you explain that? Only problem I see with it is the fact that it doesnt seem to hold the edge very well. Any suggestions on how to get the blade to hold the edge better?

You've pretty much described a wire edge... seems sharp but fails in use. Stropping may help.

No kitchen knives for me, i just have a few benchmade auto folders (AFO and reflex) with the 154cm blades. I tried the benchstones with not much luck.

I suspect with these knives, you'll soon see a recurve develop near the heel, as you won't be able to properly sharpen this area on a Chef's Choice.

Would i be better off with the worksharp belt sander system?

Yes... or as mentioned, even a Lansky, Gatco, or DMT's Guided Sharpener would be a better alternative. For the knives you want to sharpen, the Chef's Choice is really not a good "choice". If you're really looking at just maintaining a couple of knives, I'd look at the guided sharpeners... you'll get a great edge, short learning curve, and least chance of messing up a blade, that can occur with a powered device.

 

[Lou Castle]

I've been using a Chef's Choice 120 for about 8 years on my kitchen knives and steak knives. Yes, there's a slight "step" (about 1/16") on some of the knives where they don't go into the slot deeply enough to sharpen the entire length, but it doesn't affect the use of the knife. If it gets to be troublesome (meaning unsightly), I'll just take it off with my belt sander. Perhaps another 8 years of use will take it to that level.

I sharpen the steak knives every 2-3 weeks or so, and the food prep knives, perhaps once a month. I use a ceramic stick to finish off the edges and occasionally, if they just need a touch up, but not a complete resharpening. The steak knives see ceramic plate with just about every use but the food prep knives only see either a wooden or a plastic cutting board. I'm completely happy with the tool for the use that I put the knives too.

For my "utility" knives that see harder use on various mediums and substances, I use either my Wicked Edge or my HF sanding belts, depending on how much time I have, how many knives I have to sharpen, the intended medium I plan on cutting, and how "pretty" I want the edge to be.