How about a knife thread?


 
Lots of nice knives in this thread. I feel like I'm driving a Yugo into the Country Club by sharing my latest knife. An el-cheapo Victorinox 6-Inch Curved Boning Knife, only 24 big ones. Very sharp, good flex, I think it will be a great knife for trimming briskets. Used it tonight to remove spiral-sliced ham from the bone and it worked well.
 
Chris Allingham said:
Lots of nice knives in this thread. I feel like I'm driving a Yugo into the Country Club by sharing my latest knife. An el-cheapo Victorinox 6-Inch Curved Boning Knife, only 24 big ones. Very sharp, good flex, I think it will be a great knife for trimming briskets. Used it tonight to remove spiral-sliced ham from the bone and it worked well.
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lol - I have the same boning knife as well- I agree, it does a great job trimming - The Japanese knifes are special. Many of them are much lighter, and designed for folks who cut vegetables or do some sort of prep all day. Many, many moons ago I worked in a sushi kitchen - this were I learned how to use a knife and was introduced to the Japanese knifes - yes, they can be frightfully expensive, but for many folks they are also fun to collect -
 
I got this knife 11/2014 and haven't sharpened it or treated the handle. How should I care for this knife? It's almost lost its edge----closer to that than I should've let it get. Do I need to send it back to the manufacturer or are there suitable businesses around me?
 
Clint, an old-fashioned cutlery store can take care of it. Heimerdinger cutlery is down the road from me and saved a Wusthof santoku; that a guest tried to cut through a ham bone with not knowing any better. It was only about $10 too.
 
I think I'll go with the manufacturer this time - I just checked & it looks like postage will be ~$2.59 each way via my stamps.com account.

I've left the handle unfinished - how are people finishing these? Mine is a little porous, do people keep them that way?

11059319_10204311591051820_3832634094264557515_n.jpg






Dear Mr. Crint,
Thank you for the inquiry. Base sharpening cost for regular kitchen knives is $15.
For smaller utility knives, from $10.
The price depends on the size, condition, and the type of knife.
If you would like a price quote, please send us a picture. Thank you.


Regards,
Koji N.
 
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Love all the pictures. What a collection everyone has. My goto knives are:

Shun Premier Chef Knife
Shun Classic Santoku Knife
Wusthof Classic Chef knife - Getting sick how often I have to sharpen and hone this.

I'm currently looking for a good meat cleaver to cut through bones.
 
I have a sharpening question. I have read the whole thread including Clint's above post. I have never sharpened a knife before and am scared or messing the knife up. Would you recommend I start with a smaller cheap knife such as an old pocket knife until I get more confident? Any tips for a beginner?
 
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Tommy B said:
I have a sharpening question. I have read he whole thread including Clint's above post. I have never sharpened a knife before and am scared or messing the knife up. Would you recommend I start with a smaller cheap knife such as an old pocket knife until I get more confident? Any tips for a beginner?
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You can practice on pretty much any knife, just understand that the cheaper the blade/steel, the lower quality the edge you'll be able to put on it. But you can still practice the techniques, and you should be able to put a serviceable edge on most knives. Most importantly, that will build your confidence so you can tackle the big blades.
 
DBWallis said:
You can practice on pretty much any knife, just understand that the cheaper the blade/steel, the lower quality the edge you'll be able to put on it. But you can still practice the techniques, and you should be able to put a serviceable edge on most knives. Most importantly, that will build your confidence so you can tackle the big blades.
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I bought a medium course stone and a fine course stone. I also have some stone oil as well.

I spent a long time last night attempting to sharpen two ultra cheap pocket knifes... I don't know where they came from and why I have them but knifes that would cost $1 a flea market!
If they were destroyed I would not mind throwing them in the trash!

I would make a few passes on the stone and then test sharpness. I could get the tip pretty dang sharp where it would shave arm hairs but I was having a really tough time getting the blade closer to the handle sharp...

I would make a few more passes and then a part that was sharp was not very sharp....

I feel like I may not be keeping a steady angle when I make a pass on the stone. Would you assume I am not keeping a steady angle or do you think my problem is I am attempting to put a million dollar edge on a $1 knife?
 
Tommy, it's hard to say without actually seeing you work. Keeping a perfect angle isn't usually that critical, as long as you're close. I would try to work only the part of the blade that needs additional sharpening once you get that far.
 
Freehand sharpening is a challenge. I've tried for years and was never satisfied. Tools that hold the angle for you make sharpening foolproof. There are several good systems on the market.
 
Carl H. said:
Freehand sharpening is a challenge. I've tried for years and was never satisfied. Tools that hold the angle for you make sharpening foolproof. There are several good systems on the market.
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Thanks for the advice.
I actually just purchased a lansky sharpening system... I will hopefully get to using it this week and will post my thoughts. I like the idea of the system holding the correct angle for me. I'll start with some cheaper pocket knifes and if I get a little confidence I will try a cheap kitchen knife.

I just bought a mercer boning knife with a new fresh factory edge. I can use that for most of my needs until I can get something done with my current dull kitchen knifes.

I am a case pocket knife collector. I love their products but has anybody used a case kitchen knife? In terms of price they are really reasonable but I was curious to know if anyone had any thoughts. Below is a link to what I am talking about.

http://www2.knifecenter.com/item/CA7316/Case-Household-Cutlery-8-inch-Chefs-Knife-XX635
 
Tommy,

I sold a high end power sharpening system for 20 years. I demonstrated it at woodworking shows from coast to coast. While I certainly appreciate the beauty and quality of Japanese cutlery, the biggest bang for your buck is Victorinox Forschner, in my opinion. From the same retailer that you linked you can get Forschner knives for less than the Case you linked, and I am reasonably confident they're better steel. I have sharpened just about every spendy Western brand (Wusthoff, Henckel, Case, Global, Cutco etc) out there and Forschner takes and holds an edge better than most blades that cost twice as much. Another very good value is Mora knives from Sweden. Good value, like Forschner.

Just a little story about Forschner steel quality. I demonstrated mostly on woodworking tools, but customers wanted to know about sharpening knives, too, since they were getting ready to drop several hundred dollars on a sharpener. For several years I bought a new 10" Wusthoff chef's knife at the beginning of every season. When wooden handles became verboten in U.S. commercial kitchens, I caught a break and was in the right place when someone was closing out their stock of rosewood handled Forschners. I bought a case of 10" chef's knives, thinking I was set for several years. In fact, it was even better than that. I went from using one a season to using one every 2 or 3 seasons.
 
Jeff F said:
Tommy,

I sold a high end power sharpening system for 20 years.

Forschner knives for less than the Case you linked, and I am reasonably confident they're better steel.
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Thanks for the advice. What knife sharpening system did you sell?
I have about 50 case pocket/hunting knifes and have never used a case kitchen knife.
I'll look into forschner.
 
Alright so I have had my lansky sharpening system for about 2 weeks. All that could go wrong did. I ended up returning the kit for another one because the medium hone was crooked. I was practicing on a tiny cheap made in china pocket knife and the first time I tried to secure it in the clamp I stabbed my hand pretty good. No stiches but pretty close!

After the hand healed I tried to sharpen a couple of times and could not get the knife sharp. Remember I am a complete beginner never sharpened anything in my life. After about 3 attempts of really poor results I did a lot of reading on sharpening theory and made two adjustments. I found the correct angle of the knife and understood what a burr is. The kit I got came with a course grit hone. I ended up buying their extra course stone start on this cheap knife. Once I got a basic understanding of sharpen until you feel a burr then switch sides I started to see success. My crummy made in china pocket knife can now shave hairs.

For a beginner I would recommend the lansky system because the guide and rod system holds the correct angle all the time. Once you understand what you are doing it's easy.
From what I understand it is better on short knifes so you would want another option for large kitchen knifes but I have not had a chance to try myself.


I sharpened my Case Slimline Trapper last night. I went from extra course 60 grit all the way down to the super sapphire 2000 grit stone (obviously many grit stones in between those). This sucker has a mirror finish and a razor edge.
Its tough to get a good picture with my phone.



 
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Benji Chong said:
Anyone familiar or have experience with Zhen Knives? They're Japanese and pretty affordable. Tempted to pickup this 10.5 bread knife for slicing briskets n ribs. Any thoughts?
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00E0EF6H4/tvwb-20
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Looks pretty nice, I'd definitely like it for bread, but this one is more like mine, just looks nicer:

1442079708_zps923e5ac8.jpg

http://tvwbb.com/showthread.php?61921-New-toy&p=685397&viewfull=1#post685397

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00DBBJOB6/tvwb-20
 
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