A micro version, yeah, I could see that. The bench sander has an utterly gigantic selection of belts to choose from, and depending on exactly what sander you get, belt speed also becomes variable. Slower belt, more control.
Knife sharpener
- Thread starter Rick Smith
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LMichaels
TVWBB 2-Star Olympian
If I ever do it I'll grab everything at Hazard Fraught
timothy
TVWBB 1-Star Olympian
Our local farmers market has a blacksmith and a sharpening service.
Watched the guy using a big bench belt sander and bench grinder all freehand.
He looked and dressed like a old school smitty
Our local Ace also has a DIY sharpening station for knives, but I never tried it.
Watched the guy using a big bench belt sander and bench grinder all freehand.
He looked and dressed like a old school smitty
Our local Ace also has a DIY sharpening station for knives, but I never tried it.
Jim C in Denver
TVWBB Wizard
On to downloading manual and getting some edges back on my knives!
Yeah, you definitely need to read the manual for the XV. They have some fairly specific and different patterns for different situations.
For example, you typically would only use slot #1 when taking an older 20 degree USA/Euro blade down to the current typical of 15 degrees. If you are already at 15, you start on slot #2.
Yeah, you definitely need to read the manual for the XV. They have some fairly specific and different patterns for different situations.
For example, you typically would only use slot #1 when taking an older 20 degree USA/Euro blade down to the current typical of 15 degrees. If you are already at 15, you start on slot #2.
Jim C in Denver
TVWBB Wizard
While I have never tried it, I would think a trailing honed edge would add tooth to an edge and stropping would remove tooth. We wouldn't want to shave with a toothed edge and a stropped edge would quickly break down when cutting against a plate or cutting board...two different applications.
So the net net is what exactly?
You want a toothed edge on a chefs knife? So no to stropping a chefs knife? But yes to steel honing?
And yes to edge trailing for the steel honing? Or doesn't matter when steel honing? You think edge lead and edge trail on the steel basically the same thing?
Thanks.
So the net net is what exactly?
You want a toothed edge on a chefs knife? So no to stropping a chefs knife? But yes to steel honing?
And yes to edge trailing for the steel honing? Or doesn't matter when steel honing? You think edge lead and edge trail on the steel basically the same thing?
Thanks.
Ed P
TVWBB Honor Circle
Well, technically not a grinding process, but skiving is the only method I can think of that will remove material on both sides at once. The point I was trying to make is that a burr will always be present, not that grinding one side at a time is inherently a bad process.
Think about it for a minute. The knives we typically use for every day cutting have a curved edge ("belly") so that we don't have to hold the blade parallel to the work surface while cutting. I'm going to ignore straight-bladed slicing knives for the moment here.
To sharpen with an electric grinder requires moving the blade at a uniform, constant speed, and moving the blade as it goes through the grinder to follow the belly of the knife. The blade should be moving as it first enters the grinder to avoid over-grinding the heel area of the knife (area #2). Some knifes have a heel (#1) that interferes with the sharpener.
The most used area of a knife is area #3. You can see that the cutting angle changes in this area because the person sharpening the blade (me) was not adept at following the curve and maintaining the drawing speed as the knife passed through the grinder. Blade geometry has been changed from the belly of the knife all the way out to the tip (#4), the tip has been blunted, from years of electric grinding.
This is one of our slicing knives after years of electric grinding. I think I threw the other one away, the one that I used and sharpened most often. Here you can see that not maintaining a consistent speed through the grinder is creating a curved blade at the end of the blade.
Mistakes are made quickly and mistakes accumulate over time with electric grinders.
Ed P
TVWBB Honor Circle
Also, a substitute for not having a microscope is to take a picture of the blade edge with your cell phone. Pull the picture up on a computer monitor and zoom in for a good look at what you are doing to your blades.
When a knife goes dull, look at the edge straight on. Can you see a flat spot? Many times you can. If you want to grind 100% of the blade when only 10% is dull, that's up to you, but a hone or steel properly applied will fix that up for you. If you don't think you have the skill, use a Sharpie to color the edge, hone or steel it, then look at where on the blade you are actually honing. It could be you are not truly honing the edge, or it could be that you are honing the edge at the wrong angle. It is far easier to correct a poor honing or steeling job that a blade that has been damaged by an electric grinder.
Learning is a deliberate process. The sharpness of a knife is not somewhere within the blade and you need to grind it until you find it.
When a knife goes dull, look at the edge straight on. Can you see a flat spot? Many times you can. If you want to grind 100% of the blade when only 10% is dull, that's up to you, but a hone or steel properly applied will fix that up for you. If you don't think you have the skill, use a Sharpie to color the edge, hone or steel it, then look at where on the blade you are actually honing. It could be you are not truly honing the edge, or it could be that you are honing the edge at the wrong angle. It is far easier to correct a poor honing or steeling job that a blade that has been damaged by an electric grinder.
Learning is a deliberate process. The sharpness of a knife is not somewhere within the blade and you need to grind it until you find it.
Jim C in Denver
TVWBB Wizard
Ed -- agree that a thick bolster at the heel (your position #1) does get in the way when using a pull through grinder. The Trizor works much better on those knives where the blade is flat/thin through the heel and where the heel blade is extended away from the handle.
TBH, I think the Trizor type machines are best for keeping meh or cheap knives sooooo much sharper that they work like much higher quality knives do.
If I was going to lay out big bucks on an artisanal sushi knife from Japan, I'd go whetstone. But for my pedestrian wood block set (now ground down from 20 to 15 degrees), the XV once a year works great. So long as I steel hone frequently.
TBH, I think the Trizor type machines are best for keeping meh or cheap knives sooooo much sharper that they work like much higher quality knives do.
If I was going to lay out big bucks on an artisanal sushi knife from Japan, I'd go whetstone. But for my pedestrian wood block set (now ground down from 20 to 15 degrees), the XV once a year works great. So long as I steel hone frequently.
Ed P
TVWBB Honor Circle
You can certainly strop a chef's knife, although I think there are very few professional people that go to the trouble. But if you went to a barber shop and the barber did not strop a blade just before shaving you, I think you would notice.
Serrated blades are commonly found on steak knives. Why is that? For one, the serrations add to the overall cutting area of a blade. Also, with a steak knife, we are cutting against a very hard surface...a glass or ceramic plate, for example...and that will dull a knife quickly, but with a serrated blade, only the very tips of the serrations are dulled. The scallops within the serrations are still sharp. To a much lesser degree, this is partially why a toothed edge is desirable for cutting and not for shaving. The other reason is that you can cut a 2x4 with a stropped edge if you have the time and patience, but a saw with a toothed edge that removes material as it cuts is much faster.
Jim, there is no right or wrong here. If you see benefit to the way you do things, by all means, continue to do so. Electric grinders are useful tools when used properly, no doubt, but it may take a few knives to get the hang of it.
Jim C in Denver
TVWBB Wizard
Ed -- thanks. That all makes sense. Toothed edge does seem to go along with the concept of using push/pull cuts with your kitchen knives.
Timothy F. Lewis
TVWBB 1-Star Olympian
My father used to use a steel almost every use. He was a butcher at Kroger at one point and learned how to do it beautifully! My thing is “Wash it, dry it, Steel it, put it away EVERY time!” I’ve done that for many years and I tell “guests that feel like they must help” to “DON’T fool with my knives!!”
The TWO exceptions are my grill buddy and my granddaughter, he is well versed and careful, she has had the “Sermon of the knife” drilled into her for fifteen years. My knives are sharp and I KNOW them, I can feel when they need some attention.
I was gifted a “sharpening system” for Christmas. I’ve not hardly unwrapped it yet. It’s down in the basement, I’m waiting for a reason to read its design parameters. Using the right knife for the job at hand makes more sense than words can express!
The TWO exceptions are my grill buddy and my granddaughter, he is well versed and careful, she has had the “Sermon of the knife” drilled into her for fifteen years. My knives are sharp and I KNOW them, I can feel when they need some attention.
I was gifted a “sharpening system” for Christmas. I’ve not hardly unwrapped it yet. It’s down in the basement, I’m waiting for a reason to read its design parameters. Using the right knife for the job at hand makes more sense than words can express!
Good on ya, for teaching this.
A couple of years ago, I hauled my smoker on a 1,200 mile round trip for 2 cooks of 70 people each. The smoker ran for nearly 48 hours straight. My grand nephew (brother's son's son,) of about 10-11 years old politely asked if there was anything that he could do to help. Talked it over with his Dad (my nephew,) and said "Sure! I have 5 briskets I need to trim, and season tonight, so I can start them smoking tomorrow." Got him an apron, went over the rules like if it's not cutting, it's flat on the cutting board and so forth. I will cheerfully take him on as a helper any day now. And too this day, if he hears that I'm coming back for a visit, he's always asking me if I'm bringing my smoker.
LMichaels
TVWBB 2-Star Olympian
Honestly been so busy I've not even plugged it in. I still have to deal with getting the new stove hooked up, and the gas line capped. Yesterday I was running around so much I felt like my hair (well my scalp)
was on fire. I'll share thoughts ASAP. I am sure I won't get to the point of someone who knows how to do it manually (maybe I will) but I promise I'll try and get to it soon. Hell right now I don't even have a stove hooked up LOL