Knife Thread

Thanks for all the replies guys, still very tempted to just go Procook as it's so easy and I'm sure they will be more than good enough, it wouldn't be too bad to buy one or two better knives later.

The Wusthof knives look great but would easily take me over budget unless they were on special offer somewhere.
 
I'm having a bit of a dilemma with the sharpening of my knives. I only have two that need sharpening, a Wusthof Classic chefs knife and a small paring knife.

I had considered getting whetstones previously but the crux of it is that I don't want to invest the time in going down that route. Then I try and find recommendations for sharpeners which aren't going to ruin the blade immediately and I see all sorts saying they are rubbish and will ruin the blade.

Does anyone have experience with non-whetstone sharpeners and what would you recommend?
 
whestones and steels do different things. Good knife maintenance needs both. If you just have two knives, find a butcher and pay them to sharpen yours for you. That's what we've always done.

A "sharpening" steel should be used often as it hones the edge - ie helps smooth out dinks and folds where the sharp edge has blunted a bit by bulging/folding over. The whetstone or equivalent will actually remove metal to sharpen the steel - put a new cutting edge onto it, and should be done less regularly, and with more care to get the right bevel profile etc. It's why I use a steel myself for honing but pay someone else to do grinding/sharpening.

https://www.knifesharpenerguy.com/sharpening-vs-honing/
 
Cleisthenes said:
Sorry if I didn't make it clear but j know the difference between honing and sharpening, I have a honing steel already. I'm talking about using either a whetstone or something like this: https://www.kitchenknives.co.uk/wus...EDt4Ah27tc-ndlM1w2IyR5LSfzCI3fEBoCl98QAvD_BwE
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I found that one to be pretty rubbish tbh. I use an Anysharp X and a diamond steel for my Wusthof Ikon knives.

A few light strokes through the anysharp and then on the diamond steel works for me. If you are heavy handed/clumsy I can see how the pull through would ruin knives. I had the knives a few years now and they look fine and will outlast me.
 
Steampunk said:
I'm still recommending the Catrahone. I put a review earlier in this thread.
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I've been using one of these for a couple of years now and found it will get you 90% of the way towards a sharp knife. Pros are that it is easy to use and cheap to buy. Cons are that the grind angle is not adjustable, the diamond wheels are not (easily nor cheaply) replacable, and it removes metal quickly on the medium and coarse wheels. The diamond wheels don't last long either.

More recently I bought a clone of the Ken Onion Worksharp blade sharpener (https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B08F2Q8KHP/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o05_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1) which is basically a belt sander with an adjustable blade guide. You may look at it and think wow, it's going to grind my blades to nothing in no time! You'd be correct if used poorly. Thing is, you can quickly select what grade of grit to use, and also use a honing belt to put that finishing edge on. A super-fine belt and honing belt are usually all you need to keep a perfect edge, anything coarser you are probably trying to re-profile a really blunt or chipped blade. The machine does require a bit more skill to use (maintaining the correct pressure, angle, and contact time with the belt) compared to something like the Catrahone but the end result is potentially much better - mainly due to the fact you can choose the grit size yourself.
 
Just use a whetstone it's quite satisfying learning how to hone the knife with your own skills and getting that first post sharpen cut through something, knowing it was all you, even on cheap supermarket knives for practice it's satisfying
 
Minusorange said:
Just use a whetstone it's quite satisfying learning how to hone the knife with your own skills and getting that first post sharpen cut through something, knowing it was all you, even on cheap supermarket knives for practice it's satisfying
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Whetstones are a minefield to me and I always end up finding them to be quite expensive. If there's a simple set which can be had for maybe forty quid or less I'd be interested but otherwise I'm more inclined to go for an AnySharp
 
Cleisthenes said:
Whetstones are a minefield to me and I always end up finding them to be quite expensive. If there's a simple set which can be had for maybe forty quid or less I'd be interested but otherwise I'm more inclined to go for an AnySharp
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You just need this - https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0016VC...olid=10R6QROD2NOWT&psc=1&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it as a beginner or you can go for a King 1k/6k

If you want expensive go Shapton but I doubt you'll notice much difference just starting off with learning to hone
 
We slip the butcher far less than £40 to sharpen our knives once in a blue moon. And he gets to sell us of a good box of meat at the same time, so it works out well all round.
 
Dunno what knifes set we have but they're brilliant.....it's shut the mother in law up no probs......just hope the wife never delves too deep into the freezer lol. (Sorry...got me hat/coat & going..)
 
CD32 said:
Dunno what knifes set we have but they're brilliant.....it's shut the mother in law up no probs......just hope the wife never delves too deep into the freezer lol. (Sorry...got me hat/coat & going..)
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oh, so *that's* why the pages are stiff. Weird place to keep it mind.
 
want one of these but can't find one anywhere apart from one dodgy looking site in Germany

MIYABI
20cm Gyutoh Knife
MIYABI 5000FCD
34681-201-0
 
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Thanks

may have a but more protection through Amazon, that sellers actual website shows out of stock

2nd place I have seen, they are quoting 2 months, I'd be OK with that if I thought it would happen but with everywhere out of stock I wouldn't be confident
 
What do people think of the Nihon x50 knives?

Was thinking about getting a set like this: https://www.procook.co.uk/product/p...sto_source=cmp&nosto=612a3b862d0b5e5ac390339f

The only slight annoyance is you cant mix and match the knives without spending a lot more buying them individualy and I quite fancy a santoku (mainly as I just think they look cool :) ), but have no need for a carving knife for example.

I suppose I could spend more and get a set like this: https://www.procook.co.uk/product/n...sto_source=cmp&nosto=612a3be5ae026c6ef6fbf15b

but have no need for the largs and small chefs, as the santoku could cover that, and again, I can't see me using the carving knife.
 
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