Knife sharpener recommendations

On Fri, 01 Jul 2005 19:46:00 -0400, James Egan <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

I'm looking for a non-electric knife sharpener,
simple to use knife sharpener. Something that
I can keep in the drawer. I'm not into culinary
arts or anything, and just want to sharpen my
knives on occasion. I certainly don't want to
take them to a knife sharpener.

-Thanks

They are hanging on the ends of your arms. A good stone and your
hands.

James Egan wrote on 01 Jul 2005 in rec.food.cooking

Quoted message said:

I'm looking for a non-electric knife sharpener,
simple to use knife sharpener. Something that
I can keep in the drawer. I'm not into culinary
arts or anything, and just want to sharpen my
knives on occasion. I certainly don't want to
take them to a knife sharpener.

-Thanks

Try the lee valley store nearest you...They have a wide range of
sharpening tools...from simple to complex.

www.leevalley.com

--
It's not a question of where he grips it!
It's a simple question of weight ratios!

A five ounce bird could not carry a one pound coconut.

Are you suggesting coconuts migrate?

A stone and a sharpening steel are the best, but Ikea makes a decent
knife sharpener that costs about $5. Home Depot also has one that costs
about $7.

They both have preset grooves that you just draw your knife through.
They wear out out after a couple of years, but you you can't find
anything better for the price.

UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES should you use an ELECTRIC KNIFE.SHARPENER!
They grind away the edge and can ruin a fine knife after just a few
uses.

On Fri, 01 Jul 2005 19:46:00 -0400, James Egan <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

I'm looking for a non-electric knife sharpener,
simple to use knife sharpener. Something that
I can keep in the drawer. I'm not into culinary
arts or anything, and just want to sharpen my
knives on occasion. I certainly don't want to
take them to a knife sharpener.

Probably the simplest, fastest and certainly easiest to store is a
steel. It's easy to learn how to use a steel:

http://www.ehow.com/how_2282_sharpen-kitchen-knives.html

You don't actually want to *sharpen* a knife more than once in a blue
moon, you just want to straighten the blade. As a blade is used, it
becomes somewhat "J" shaped and a steel will straighten it out in
seconds.

I wouldn't recommend anything other than a steel or a stone.

Terry "Squeaks" Pulliam Burd
AAC(F)BV66.0748.CA

"If the soup had been as hot as the claret, if the claret had been as
old as the bird, and if the bird's breasts had been as full as the
waitress's, it would have been a very good dinner."

-- Duncan Hines

To reply, replace "spaminator" with "cox"

Quoted message said:

A stone and a sharpening steel are the best, but Ikea makes a decent
knife sharpener that costs about $5. Home Depot also has one that costs
about $7.

They both have preset grooves that you just draw your knife through.
They wear out out after a couple of years, but you you can't find
anything better for the price.

UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES should you use an ELECTRIC KNIFE.SHARPENER!
They grind away the edge and can ruin a fine knife after just a few
uses.

Let's rephrase that, "UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES should you use an ELECTRIC
KNIFE.SHARPENER!" to include the advice not to use one with rotating
grinding wheels. Chef's Choice makes sharpeners that work on a different
principle. Google. They're wonderful. I give them as gifts to my
knifishly-challenged friends.

And a diamond steel (looks like a steel but is a true sharpener that
removes metal) is a good deterrent to needing to use a stone. Use it
like a steel maybe every tenth time you use the knife. Between times,
use a steel or a ceramic steel (not a steel at all, it's also a
sharpener, but removes much less metal) to buff the edge.

Pastorio

Hi James, As others have mentioned, I'd definitely steer away from any
type of electric Sharpener, and against another's recommendation, that
also includes the Chef's Choice Models.

There'd be only one type of electric type Id use, and that would be with
a water cooled wheel, and these can cost $100's.

You certainly don't need such sophistication to achieve a good edge,
without doing undue damage to the blade, or ruining a blade's temper.

Steels (I have a couple) may work well for certain steels, which aren't
too hard, but I've had problems trying to use these on certain blades.

Do you have a cutlery store in your area? This would be the place which
would most likely carry the widest selection of knife sharpening
devices, and I'm sure these folks could set you up with a good sharpener
at a reasonable cost.

Another alternative would be a good gun shop. They usually carry knives,
and also Sharpeners.

Remember too, that knife sharpening can be a very dangerous, and risky
hobby to partake in.
Try to find something which won't involve having your hands anywhere
close to the blade.

A stone has been the choice of many, and while a stone is a very good
method, takes some practice, and I've seen people who thought they knew
how to use a stone make a knife actually worse, and less sharp than it
was before they started!

If your knives aren't worthy of a really high quality Sharpener, (Like
a Spyderco Sharpmaker, or a Lansky Sharpening System) and are of just
average quality, then I would perhaps seek the economy route, and see
what your local Wal-Mart has to offer. Most likely these items would be
found in their Sports-(fishing-hunting) Dept.

A type, that uses ceramic sticks at a pre-set angle, and that you just
draw the knife through, may be a good economical choice, is pretty much
foolproof, is small enough to stick in the drawer, yet will permit you
to attain a good sharp edge. Hope this helps you. Mark

Some time ago, I took a cooking class where the instructor recommended
this sharpener. http://store.candochefs.com/jifknifandsc.html
I got mine at Home Depot for about $6.00 and use it all the time.
Occasionally, I have my husband use the steel on my knives, but for but
everyday upkeep, this little gadget works great!

jillie
Roseville, CA

James Egan said:

I'm looking for a non-electric knife sharpener,
simple to use knife sharpener. Something that
I can keep in the drawer. I'm not into culinary
arts or anything, and just want to sharpen my
knives on occasion. I certainly don't want to
take them to a knife sharpener.

-Thanks

Mark D said:

A type, that uses ceramic sticks at a pre-set angle, and that you just
draw the knife through, may be a good economical choice, is pretty much
foolproof, is small enough to stick in the drawer, yet will permit you
to attain a good sharp edge. Hope this helps you. Mark

Yes, I never thought of the sporting goods angle.
Thanks for the advice!

I am a professional knife sharpener, and I make my living repairing
knives that have been sharpened with the slot type or pull through
sharpeners that others are recommending. Avoid them. The CC 120 can be
okay if you take it easy with the first stage like they recommend. My
recommendations follow, but it sounds like you are a candidate for the
Sharpmaker. Best price I have found is on http://tradingpostsupply.com/

The best sharpening system for you depends on your working style.
Following are some recommendations, sorted by price with comments on
each model:
For under $20:
A good bench stone and time to develop sharpening skills. Not as
good as a guided system, but definitely the lowest price.

For about $50:
Spyderco SharpMaker - quick and easy, but bevels are not pretty.
Handy for the kitchen, and recommended for people who don't want a lot
of work, but don't want to spend the money for an electric machine.

Lansky/GATCO/DMT rod-guided system - not as fast to use as the
SharpMaker, but nice clean bevels. For the craftsman.

For around $100
Chef'sChoice 320 ($90) - electric machine, sharpens and strops to a
shaving edge. This or the following CC model is a perfect, no-skills
solution for those willing to spend the money.

Chef'sChoice 120 ($120) - adds a coarser "pre-sharpening" stage,
needed for really dull knives and/or thick blades.

EdgePro Apex ($125) - the perfectionist's rod-guided system. The
Pro model ($295) accepts attachments for scissor and chisel sharpening.

Paper Wheels ($30 for the wheels, plus $70 for a bench grinder).
Requires a little skill; angle control is manual, but it is the fastest
way I have found to sharpen a knife.

For around $350:
Chef'sChoice 2000 commercial sharpener. This machine
produces a double bevel edge, unlike the triple bevel produced by their
home machines. The sharpening unit is removable so it can be cleaned in
a dishwasher, and be replaced when it wears out. Life expectancy is
about 3000 knives. About $350 for the base unit, $379 for a setup with
signs, etc.

For around $600:
Tormek - power wet grinder with fixtures available for
everything including scissors and woodworking tools. Angles are well
controlled and bevels are clean. Can also be used freehand. $400 for
basic machine plus $200 for jigs for knives and scissors. Buy the stone
grader and stone truing tool. It is a travesty that they sell it
without them.

For around $2000
The F. [censored] sharpening machines, SM-110 and SM-111, are the
ultimate tools for someone setting up a sharpening business.

Steve

--
Sharpening Made Easy: A Primer on Sharpening Knives and Other Edged Tools
Copyright January 2002 Knife World Publications
www.sharpeningmadeeasy.com

James Egan said:

I'm looking for a non-electric knife sharpener,
simple to use knife sharpener. Something that
I can keep in the drawer. I'm not into culinary
arts or anything, and just want to sharpen my
knives on occasion. I certainly don't want to
take them to a knife sharpener.

-Thanks

Quoted message said:

James Egan said:

I'm looking for a non-electric knife sharpener,
simple to use knife sharpener. Something that
I can keep in the drawer. I'm not into culinary
arts or anything, and just want to sharpen my
knives on occasion. I certainly don't want to
take them to a knife sharpener.

They are hanging on the ends of your arms. A good stone and your
hands.

'Zactly.

Sheldon

I am a professional knife sharpener, and I make my living repairing
knives that have been sharpened with the slot type or pull through
sharpeners that others are recommending. Avoid them. The CC 120 can be
okay if you take it easy with the first stage like they recommend. My
recommendations follow, but it sounds like you are a candidate for the
Sharpmaker. Best price I have found is on.......
--------------------------------------------------------------

I can appreciate, and respect you being a pro knife sharpener, and I
myself have absolutely no doubts that I can get any identical knife just
as sharp as you can. I've must've done 1000's over the years.

I'll agree, the the cheap steel shapeners that use the circular metal
discs and you draw the blade through are [censored], but I suppose better than
nothing for getting an edge on typical cheap chinese made knives that
you typically find in K-Mart, Wal-Mart, etc.

The type that use Ceramic crock stick Rods (Something like that comes
with Faberware Sets, and you draw the knife through) isn't all that bad.

Sure, we can argue about scratch patterns on the blade, and examining
the edge with a Jeweler's loupe like I have done with high quality
blades and sure, these cheaper types of sharpeners aren't going to
provide the last word, or the best method in sharpening, but I'm sure
the OP isn't looking to sharpen knives like Loveless, or Randall
customs, or fine Wustof Chefs knives with.

50% of the sharpeners you mention exceed in cost, 90% of common people's
entire knife collections.

Both the Lansky, and Spydeco would be adequate, but total cost for those
two will run you pretty close to $100, and I'm getting the impression
the OP isn't looking for quite that much sophistication. Mark D.

In article <[email hidden]>, Steve B.

Quoted message said:

I am a professional knife sharpener, and I make my living repairing
knives that have been sharpened with the slot type or pull through
sharpeners that others are recommending. Avoid them. The CC 120 can be
okay if you take it easy with the first stage like they recommend. My
recommendations follow, but it sounds like you are a candidate for the
Sharpmaker. Best price I have found is on http://tradingpostsupply.com/

I think it's the Furi knife people who have a new sharpening sytem.
Have you checked that one out? I'm a crock stick honer with a couple of
Wustof knives, some serated for bread, tomatoes, etc. and a fabulous
Shun knife. I'm neither a craftsman nor a bloviator and only cut myself
once or twice a month.

Stark said:

I'm a crock stick honer with a couple of
Wustof knives, some serated for bread, tomatoes, etc.

Bread knives are not serrated, they're scalloped.

Sheldon

"Sheldon" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Stark said:

I'm a crock stick honer with a couple of
Wustof knives, some serated for bread, tomatoes, etc.

Bread knives are not serrated, they're scalloped.

Sheldon

I was looking at knives the other day online and was wondering why the bread
knives were 'scalloped' as I did not see any serrated. Thanks for clearing
that up.
Dee

Dee Randall said:

Sheldon said:

Stark said:

I'm a crock stick honer with a couple of
Wustof knives, some serated for bread, tomatoes, etc.

Bread knives are not serrated, they're scalloped.

I was looking at knives the other day online and was wondering why the bread
knives were 'scalloped' as I did not see any serrated. Thanks for clearing
that up.

Professional bread slicing machines such as those used in bakeries use
the same scalloped blades. There are various configurations and spacing
of the scallops, each for a different type of bread texture... if you
seach for <bread slicing blades> you should find some interesting
reading.

Serrated knives are more saw-like, they're typically used for steak by
folks who don't know better... the sole purpose is to prevent dulling
of a real knife from contact with the plate, whereas only the high
points make contact, they act like bumpers. If you use an ordinary
blade on a plate it will become extremely dull and quite rapidly...
which is why folks who really know steak and know knives prefer eating
from wooden thenchers, then they can use very sharp knives without
ruining the edge, and not tear up the meat the way serrated knives
will.... many a good steak is totally "butchered" by use of serrated
knives. Anytime you visit a steakhouse and they serve on hard plates
with serrated knives you can just bet they know absolutely zero about
steak. The very worst offenders are those that serve steak on those
stupid metal thingies... allows them to get away with tough gristly
meat by providing a knife tantamount to a dulled chainsaw.

The scallops of bread knives are to effectively extend the length of
the cutting edge by about double and to present the correct angle of
attack and at the same time produce as few crumbs as possible. Using a
serrated blade to cut bread is as effective as using a wood saw,
tearing instead of slicing and producing many crumbs. There is no such
thing as a good serrated knife, in fact I wouldn't classify them as
cutlery.

Sheldon

I recommend the $3 Normark/Rapala SH-2 ceramic rod sharpener to my
customers for maintenance, but like the ones you mention it only does
touch-up, not sharpening. If I could only have one of the sharpeners on
my list I would make it the SharpMaker.

Steve
Sharpening Made Easy: A Primer on Sharpening Knives and Other Edged
Tools by Steve Bottorff
Copyright January 2002 Knife World Publications
www.sharpeningmadeeasy.com

Mark D said:

I am a professional knife sharpener, and I make my living repairing
knives that have been sharpened with the slot type or pull through
sharpeners that others are recommending. Avoid them. The CC 120 can be
okay if you take it easy with the first stage like they recommend. My
recommendations follow, but it sounds like you are a candidate for the
Sharpmaker. Best price I have found is on.......
--------------------------------------------------------------

I can appreciate, and respect you being a pro knife sharpener, and I
myself have absolutely no doubts that I can get any identical knife just
as sharp as you can. I've must've done 1000's over the years.

I'll agree, the the cheap steel shapeners that use the circular metal
discs and you draw the blade through are [censored], but I suppose better than
nothing for getting an edge on typical cheap chinese made knives that
you typically find in K-Mart, Wal-Mart, etc.

The type that use Ceramic crock stick Rods (Something like that comes
with Faberware Sets, and you draw the knife through) isn't all that bad.

Sure, we can argue about scratch patterns on the blade, and examining
the edge with a Jeweler's loupe like I have done with high quality
blades and sure, these cheaper types of sharpeners aren't going to
provide the last word, or the best method in sharpening, but I'm sure
the OP isn't looking to sharpen knives like Loveless, or Randall
customs, or fine Wustof Chefs knives with.

50% of the sharpeners you mention exceed in cost, 90% of common people's
entire knife collections.

Both the Lansky, and Spydeco would be adequate, but total cost for those
two will run you pretty close to $100, and I'm getting the impression
the OP isn't looking for quite that much sophistication. Mark D.

My God, I agree. What is happening to me?

Steve
Sharpening Made Easy: A Primer on Sharpening Knives and Other Edged
Tools by Steve Bottorff
Copyright January 2002 Knife World Publications
www.sharpeningmadeeasy.com

Sheldon said:

Dee Randall said:

Sheldon said:

Stark wrote:

>I'm a crock stick honer with a couple of
>Wustof knives, some serated for bread, tomatoes, etc.

Bread knives are not serrated, they're scalloped.

I was looking at knives the other day online and was wondering why the bread
knives were 'scalloped' as I did not see any serrated. Thanks for clearing
that up.

Professional bread slicing machines such as those used in bakeries use
the same scalloped blades. There are various configurations and spacing
of the scallops, each for a different type of bread texture... if you
seach for <bread slicing blades> you should find some interesting
reading.

Serrated knives are more saw-like, they're typically used for steak by
folks who don't know better... the sole purpose is to prevent dulling
of a real knife from contact with the plate, whereas only the high
points make contact, they act like bumpers. If you use an ordinary
blade on a plate it will become extremely dull and quite rapidly...
which is why folks who really know steak and know knives prefer eating
from wooden thenchers, then they can use very sharp knives without
ruining the edge, and not tear up the meat the way serrated knives
will.... many a good steak is totally "butchered" by use of serrated
knives. Anytime you visit a steakhouse and they serve on hard plates
with serrated knives you can just bet they know absolutely zero about
steak. The very worst offenders are those that serve steak on those
stupid metal thingies... allows them to get away with tough gristly
meat by providing a knife tantamount to a dulled chainsaw.

The scallops of bread knives are to effectively extend the length of
the cutting edge by about double and to present the correct angle of
attack and at the same time produce as few crumbs as possible. Using a
serrated blade to cut bread is as effective as using a wood saw,
tearing instead of slicing and producing many crumbs. There is no such
thing as a good serrated knife, in fact I wouldn't classify them as
cutlery.

Sheldon

Steve B. said:

My God, I agree. What is happening to me?

You're being educated. I forgot more about metal working and cutting
tools of all types then you will ever know... you don't even qualify to
be my apprentice. You're simply just another know-nothing spammer been
trying to push your fercocktah book here for years.

Quoted message said:

Sheldon said:

Dee Randall said:

"Sheldon" <[email hidden]> wrote:

>Stark wrote:
>
>>I'm a crock stick honer with a couple of
>>Wustof knives, some serated for bread, tomatoes, etc.
>
>Bread knives are not serrated, they're scalloped.

I was looking at knives the other day online and was wondering why the bread
knives were 'scalloped' as I did not see any serrated. Thanks for clearing
that up.

Professional bread slicing machines such as those used in bakeries use
the same scalloped blades. There are various configurations and spacing
of the scallops, each for a different type of bread texture... if you
seach for <bread slicing blades> you should find some interesting
reading.

Serrated knives are more saw-like, they're typically used for steak by
folks who don't know better... the sole purpose is to prevent dulling
of a real knife from contact with the plate, whereas only the high
points make contact, they act like bumpers. If you use an ordinary
blade on a plate it will become extremely dull and quite rapidly...
which is why folks who really know steak and know knives prefer eating
from wooden thenchers, then they can use very sharp knives without
ruining the edge, and not tear up the meat the way serrated knives
will.... many a good steak is totally "butchered" by use of serrated
knives. Anytime you visit a steakhouse and they serve on hard plates
with serrated knives you can just bet they know absolutely zero about
steak. The very worst offenders are those that serve steak on those
stupid metal thingies... allows them to get away with tough gristly
meat by providing a knife tantamount to a dulled chainsaw.

The scallops of bread knives are to effectively extend the length of
the cutting edge by about double and to present the correct angle of
attack and at the same time produce as few crumbs as possible. Using a
serrated blade to cut bread is as effective as using a wood saw,
tearing instead of slicing and producing many crumbs. There is no such
thing as a good serrated knife, in fact I wouldn't classify them as
cutlery.

Sheldon

In article <[email hidden]>,

Sheldon said:

Stark said:

I'm a crock stick honer with a couple of
Wustof knives, some serated for bread, tomatoes, etc.

Bread knives are not serrated, they're scalloped.

Sheldon

I was asking about the Furi sharpening system.