Yikes I had no idea that Chef’s Choice was so expensive. Mine has to be 30-40 years old, and was salvaged from my in-laws gadgetry when they were downsizing.
I have been looking into buying knives and learned that one of the things that may matter is the sort of steel they’re made of. That could determine the sort of stone you need and maybe other things too that I’m not aware of.
Another thing is that, if the edge isn’t lasting for even three weeks, you may be the problem (chopping motion instead of rolling for certain knives, wrong cutting board, etc.). Your knives could need a wider edge angle which means less precision cutting but longer lasting sharpness.
It’s bewildering really, but it may be worth your while to look into before you spend time and money going down the wrong path.
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Henckels Zwilling offers a mail in sharpening service and they do a great job. Buy ZWILLING Sharpening Service Sharpening service | ZWILLING.COM
Once sharp an occasional use of a sharpening steel maintains the edge for a long time, for me 3+ years. I am sure the quality of the steel in the Zwilling Pro line steel contributes to maintain a sharp edge too.
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To be clear, all reputable knives are made with “quality” steel. But the style of the user matters in determining what tradeoffs are best because no steel can ever be best at toughness, edge retention and corrosion resistance at the same time. And even if you know the sort of steel, it matters at what temperature it was tempered to know what sort edge it will take and keep (if you temper it at high temps it tends to lose corrosion resistance and that makes keeping an edge harder). The link below explains some of it. That guy’s website is exclusively about this. He even invented a new alloy a few years back but it’s still not “best” for everyone.
I’ve had amazing results with just a diamond steel on my global knives. The diamonds on it actually do a great job sharpening the edge instead of just lining it up. You can see metal dust when you wipe off the knife after using it and it is razor sharp, been using one for decades now with no reason to try anything else. Costs about $20 so you’re not out much if it’s not for you. Can’t get a link to work, just search Amzon for diamond steel.
Might want to look into end grain cutting boards if you’re not already using one.
Try Knife Aid, mailin service , extremely efficient( knives returned in 48hr) incredibly sharp( now missing the nail end middle finger). Was once featured on shark tank. Not cheap . Mailing no hassle and included in cost. A treat to use very sharp knives.
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Used Knife Aid for the first time. They did a fantastic job.
Jason
All right - I’m going to give them a try.
Just put in an order. I included a couple old dull steak knives to see if I should send the rest.
I used a guy in DC before. He did a good job, but it’s a 90-120 minute round trip to drop off and then again to pick up. This is a little more expensive but saving 3-4 hours would be worth it. Our local ACE hardware store has a laser based sharpening machine but it wasn’t as good as the guy in DC. I’m sure Knife Aid will do a better job.
Lonnie
I found this to be the most helpful video after watching a bunch of different tutorials that had different techniques to get the angle right (using a sharpie to color in the edge, putting the spine on a matchbook or stack of pennies, etc), but it’s more important to maintain a consistent angle than a precise 12º or something. I used a 1000 grit stone on a wustof chefs knife and got it much sharper than previous attempts by using a slightly more relaxed angle that i could maintain easily. I’m definitely happy with the results, but I’ll still be going to a local knife sharpener once a year to have a professional redo the edge and tighten everything up.
Has anyone tried the Tumbler Knife sharpening system advertised heavily on social media? Seems to be two simple magnets at 15 and 20 degrees with a diamond plated rolling cylinder and a honing cylinder for $95.
See discussion in this thread.
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just ordered Knife Aid. Minimum 4 knives. Hope they do ok w fine Japanese knives.
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Look forward to your thoughts. They did great on my Germans. I sent one Shun, maybe not ”fine” Japanese but it is sharper than ever.
Jason
For Chicagoans, I had a couple of knives sharpened at Northside Cutlery on Lincoln. They did a terrific job at $7 a blade.
Thanks for the recco RPS
They did fine. I’ll use them again.
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I’m surprised there’s not as much discussion around sharpening using Japanese whetstones. I realize it looks intimidating, but I can promise it’s much simpler than you might think. With a few minutes practice, anyone can do it, and it’s BY FAR the best way to get a knife truly razor sharp. Also, if you have Japanese knives (highly recommend over German/western style), pretty much any “sharpening” gadget on the market will damage the blade. Stones are the way to go.
Tons of great videos on YouTube to get started, but I’ll link to Kenji’s here: https://youtu.be/ixCnCvDUKQ8?si=80DRvdZAqiVtcjRB
As for the stones, I recommend getting a 500/600, 1000, and a 4000 grit. Like sandpaper, you start coarse, make several passes, and then work up to the finer (higher number) to finish the blade. You can also consider a leather strop to add a mirror finish at the end. That’s honestly all you need. chefknivestogo.com is a great place to order from online (they stock some really great Japanese knives too). Owner is super helpful and friendly via email.
The only downside is all your friends and family will insist on you sharpening their knives once they see how sharp your knives are!
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20% off now with BFCM20
I now realize I never updated - yes, I used them and they’re great, even on our semi-fancy Messermeister knives.