Knife sharpening
- Thread starter Paul
- Start date
rfd
Well-known member
- Joined
- Jun 30, 2025
- Messages
- 71
It's about both skill and tool(s).
Carbon blades only, NO "stainless steel" crap.
If a blade is really dull and beat up, I'll start with a file to set the angle (by eye, no tools needed) then work with a COURSE stone to quickly set the edge, Finish up with a bit finer stone and strop.
For a quick touch up, I use an 80/120 grit emery board ... don't laugh, it works quite well and makes Xacto blades razor sharp for cutting a stack of BP PPB paper patches.
Carbon blades only, NO "stainless steel" crap.
If a blade is really dull and beat up, I'll start with a file to set the angle (by eye, no tools needed) then work with a COURSE stone to quickly set the edge, Finish up with a bit finer stone and strop.
For a quick touch up, I use an 80/120 grit emery board ... don't laugh, it works quite well and makes Xacto blades razor sharp for cutting a stack of BP PPB paper patches.
Sudsy
Member
Depends on the style of blade.
I collect and rehab vintage Sabatier chefs knives. This French style blade has a long flat going about 2/3rds of the way from the bolster to where it starts to curve to the point, which takes the last third. (German style has much more curve to it and is better for stone sharpening)
Keeping that flat part perfectly level is difficult, especially with larger knives. If you use a stone or system that's narrower than the entire flat part, you end up with small waves in the blade that keep you from chopping cleanly all the way through.
Because of this I use the "Scary Sharp System" (Google it) I take it all the way to 2000 grit, then I strop.
The strop is a length of heavy leather, like from a saddle, mounted to a length of wood, on both sides. One side gets impregnated with oil and rottenstone for a micro polish, the other is the rough side of the leather to take any micro burr off. Fresh off a sharpening my knives literally drop though a tomato with the smallest amount of movement.
And to comment on an earlier post, stainless has its place - anything acid, tomato's, citrus..... Kills me when someone uses one of my carbon knives to cut a lemon and takes half the patina off it.
I collect and rehab vintage Sabatier chefs knives. This French style blade has a long flat going about 2/3rds of the way from the bolster to where it starts to curve to the point, which takes the last third. (German style has much more curve to it and is better for stone sharpening)
Keeping that flat part perfectly level is difficult, especially with larger knives. If you use a stone or system that's narrower than the entire flat part, you end up with small waves in the blade that keep you from chopping cleanly all the way through.
Because of this I use the "Scary Sharp System" (Google it) I take it all the way to 2000 grit, then I strop.
The strop is a length of heavy leather, like from a saddle, mounted to a length of wood, on both sides. One side gets impregnated with oil and rottenstone for a micro polish, the other is the rough side of the leather to take any micro burr off. Fresh off a sharpening my knives literally drop though a tomato with the smallest amount of movement.
And to comment on an earlier post, stainless has its place - anything acid, tomato's, citrus..... Kills me when someone uses one of my carbon knives to cut a lemon and takes half the patina off it.
