Sharpening kitchen knives

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wilejoe

Joined
Aug 8, 2013
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I read alot of posts about the dmt pro aligner, lansky pro kit and the edge pro apex. I am looking for a good sharpening system for my and my motherinlaws kitchen knives. There is 8" chef knives, 8" carvers, 6" utility etc My motherinlaws henkel knives are in rough shape. I also have a skeletool with a combo knife.
I am looking for a guided system since I dont trust myself doing it freehand. Will the dmt pro work on the longer knives or do I need a better system. Thanks
 
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All those systems will do a good job but the keyword here is skill. You will need to practice, understand what you are trying to achieve, and know what is happening at the edge as you abrade away the steel.

Good luck.
 
Using a clamped system on longer blades isn't all that easy. It does work, but it takes longer and 'can be' a bit tricky. The most effective angle control is happening perpendicular to the clamp, so with longer blades it's necessary to keep moving the clamp. Using something like an EdgePro, where blade moves along the base so the stone stays perpendicular to the edge is the easiest and most accurate.

I put my European-style kitchen knives on the EdgePro 3-4 times a year, but touch them up with a Sharpmaker weekly if I'm using them, and 'steel' them with a smooth borosilicate glass rod before each use. The Japanese single-bevel knives get sharpened on waterstones.

Stitchawl
 
Thanks
I know it will take alot of practice and learning but from what your saying I should bite the bullet and buy the edge pro
 
Wilejoe, as S-35 suggests, this is a long-term project. You certainly could go out and invest quite a bit in an Edge Pro, and I bet your results would be fine. However, in doing so, you will become completely dependent on Edge Pro and will not be learning much about how to sharpen a knife using your own hands and a stone. Take some unsolicited advice from an old man and plan to head in that direction. After sharpening your mother-in-law's knives with Edge Pro, go out to the hardware store and splurge on a $5 Chinese two-sided stone, one side coarse and the other side coarse, but less so. Then get an old beat-up knife and practice until you can get a decent edge using your own skill. That should take just a few hours, often less. There are fine tutorials in this section of the forum and dozens of helpful videos on YouTube to show you how it's done. In one of the comments here recently, someone compared these ornate systems with training wheels on a bike. I agree. Please learn a method that will allow you to sharpen a knife anywhere, even in the woods and on a boat, with just a stone, your eyes and your hands. You will not regret it.
 
Yep norton dual sided stone for $5 and change, for users there's almost no substitute for working out dings and chips. I start by repairing at 45 degrees per side. Once the chips and dings are out I eyeball at about 15 degrees per side and take it back to remove most of the shoulder.

I'm an Edge Pro Apex user, some things a coarse stone is better for, for nicer knives, sure, I'll waste stones on them to keep them pretty.

I learned the hard way, people with FUBAR knives keep them messed up, and in general high grit edges are a waste of time, better to keep their knives low grit.
 
wilejoe said:
I would love to be able to do it freehand but for now Ill go with guided
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I started out with a guided system which worked for awhile, but I started to get impatient and picked up that Norton stone at Home Depot. I would recommend picking that stone up as well because 1) it's a few bucks and 2) once you get proficient at freehand sharpening with a bench stone, it takes a fraction of the time that it would take you with a guided system.
 
KNaB said:
I started out with a guided system which worked for awhile, but I started to get impatient and picked up that Norton stone at Home Depot. I would recommend picking that stone up as well because 1) it's a few bucks and 2) once you get proficient at freehand sharpening with a bench stone, it takes a fraction of the time that it would take you with a guided system.
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I'm finding that stone is very handy for both re-bevelling & touching up my kitchen knives (typical simpler/softer stainless). Those blades seem to take and hold a somewhat coarser edge better than a more refined one, and the Norton 'Economy' stone at HD does that very well (& quick). I use the 'Fine' side of the stone almost exclusively.


David
 
Obsessed with Edges said:
I'm finding that stone is very handy for both re-bevelling & touching up my kitchen knives (typical simpler/softer stainless). Those blades seem to take and hold a somewhat coarser edge better than a more refined one, and the Norton 'Economy' stone at HD does that very well (& quick). I use the 'Fine' side of the stone almost exclusively.


David
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Yup. Can't go wrong. I need to pick one up just to keep with my tools at work. I replaced my original one with the two sided norton india stone. Also a great stone.
 
The Norton stone from Home Depot is a good and inexpensive entry into freehand sharpening (based on my very inexperienced experience). Just make sure that you check the stone to see if it is level before you buy it. I picked up a second one and it is dished (coarse side is higher in center and lower on both long sides and the fine side is the opposite. Not a big deal because of the low price but I can't seem to get it flat. Tried a sidewalk and even a tile scrubbing stone. The stone seemed to become glazed but not flat.
 
doctorsimpson said:
The Norton stone from Home Depot is a good and inexpensive entry into freehand sharpening (based on my very inexperienced experience). Just make sure that you check the stone to see if it is level before you buy it. I picked up a second one and it is dished (coarse side is higher in center and lower on both long sides and the fine side is the opposite. Not a big deal because of the low price but I can't seem to get it flat. Tried a sidewalk and even a tile scrubbing stone. The stone seemed to become glazed but not flat.
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Mine is the same, somewhat 'dished' on the Fine side, with upturned corners, and 'bowed' on the Coarse side. I initially thought I might need to flatten it, but it hasn't presented any significant problems with the knives I've sharpened on it. Since most blades have a 'belly' to them, the point of contact is almost always somewhere in the central areas of the hone's surface, and the upturned edges haven't really gotten in the way.

I also have a 4" equivalent from Ace Hardware. Appears to be of identical manufacture and material (silicon carbide), even down to the slightly upturned corners on the Fine side, but just a smaller hone and packaged & branded for Ace. Both perform identically, in terms of the cutting speed and finished results. I've actually been using this smaller stone more often; very convenient size for quick on-the-spot sharpening, with stone in one hand and blade in the other.


David
 
doctorsimpson said:
The Norton stone from Home Depot is a good and inexpensive entry into freehand sharpening (based on my very inexperienced experience). Just make sure that you check the stone to see if it is level before you buy it. I picked up a second one and it is dished (coarse side is higher in center and lower on both long sides and the fine side is the opposite. Not a big deal because of the low price but I can't seem to get it flat. Tried a sidewalk and even a tile scrubbing stone. The stone seemed to become glazed but not flat.
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Mine economy stone coarse also glazed after flattened by 140grit diamond plate. Got slightly better after lapped on rough sidewalk but still cuts slower than the fine side. The premium stone doesn't has this problem.
 
Not only with kitchen knives, but especially with them, sharpening is not so much about putting an edge on a piece of steel. It is trying to restore a geometry moved a very little bit towards the spine, where the blade is slightly thicker because of its taper. The jig systems tend to focus their users basically on the very edge, which is, for sure important, but not essential. A kitchen knife with a great geometry and a weak edge will still be usable. A kitchen knife with a great edge but a neglected geometry will be just a poor cutter.
To avoid steering, wedging and loss of performance one has to try to replicate the original configuration in another place. With a jig system, that means changing the angle at almost every stroke. Or, ignoring any consideration of geometry and having to send it out for a severe thinning and reprofiling every year or so.
 
Thanks for all the help.
Like I stated before I'm not ready to try freehand on all my good kitchen knives. The Edge pro Apex is a little pricey right now for me so I think I'll go with the DMT Pro kit since people seem to prefer this over the Lansky guided system. I'm not looking for super, super sharp knives at this point just a nice sharp edge to start with and to keep building my skill set up as I go.

Thanks
Joe :)
 
wilejoe said:
Thanks for all the help.
Like I stated before I'm not ready to try freehand on all my good kitchen knives. The Edge pro Apex is a little pricey right now for me so I think I'll go with the DMT Pro kit since people seem to prefer this over the Lansky guided system. I'm not looking for super, super sharp knives at this point just a nice sharp edge to start with and to keep building my skill set up as I go.

Thanks
Joe :)
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You do learn a lot with the DMT aligner kit. Steep learning curve though. Also, the angle setting that come with it are nowhere near accurate. If you want "truer" angles, you'll have to do a bit of trigonometry.
 
You could always buy a cheapo knife and practice.

mainly, learn proper angle for bevel, and then learn to keep your angles consistent.

but practice makes perfect.

Ive been known to sharpen for hours on end. Now, 30 seconds to retouch and about hour for terrible shape edge.
 
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