How to sharpen you knife ?
For all knives users, from beginner to the most advanced, this is one of the biggest question.
What are the most used sharepning methods ? What do they consist of ?
In short, how to sharpen your knife ?
We are going to answer all your questions in this article because we know that good sharpening means good cutting !
There are several sharpening methods but today we are going to deal with only two of them. The (diamond) whetstone or the manual sharpener : as many different methods and ways of doing which could be useful whenever your knives need sharpening.
The diamond whetstone : How to use it ?
The diamond whetstone is an easy to store and to use tool. Available in different sizes, you could easily find a stone that will be useful for the sharpening of all your blades.
For this methods, you need to follow several steps. We advise you to respect each one of them to get a knife with a unique cutting edge, with an unrivaled quality and precision !
Step 1 : Choose the right sharpening angle for your knife
The sharpening angle of your knife is one of the crucial aspects of sharpening because it will define the cutting edge of the blade. It is usual to choose the sharpening angle from the previous one : you will probably want to sharpen your knife in the same way as the previous time.It is also possible to choose another angle, but you will have to be prepared because it means that the sharpening will take you more time and you will have to smooth the rough angles then.
In order to define the right sharpening angle of your knife, you firstly need to know how often you use it.
The smaller is the angle, the sharper is the blade. But, you’ll have to sharpen the blade regularly If you have a low intensive use of your knife, you can choose a small sharpening angle without any problem, that can be lower than 30° for example.
For a "normal" use of the knife, the sharpening angle can lie between 36° and 40° so that the efficiency obtained is optimal.
If you have an intensive use of your knife, we advise you to not choose a small angle, or you will have to sharp the blade very regularly. In order to ensure a better efficiency, we recommend you to use a slightly higher angle. The steeper angles, like about 46°, enable a more lasting sharpening.
Additional information :
Before starting sharpening your knife, make sure to read the instructions in order to take into account the indications concerning the lubrification of the stone. If your whetstone is called "oil stone", you will have to apply a light mineral oil oh the stone. If not, the stone an be used as it is to sharpen your blades.
Step 2 : Check the angle by hand or with a sharpening guide ?
To check the sharpening angle is also a crucial aspect that which must not be overlooked. To keep the same angle throughout the whole operation will enable to get a knife with a regular edge and of good quality.To master this angle, there are 2 main options : either check by hand, or use a sharpening guide that will help you to get the perfect angle.
It is actually possible to check the angle by hand, yet this process is not easy and required well trained angles perception.
In order to make this step easier, you can check the angle with the help of a sharpening guide. This is a small tool that you put under the knife in order to hold the angle when you rub the knife on the whetstone
Note : It is necessary to know how you are going to control the angle before you start sharpening the knife.
Step 3 : You can start sharpening. But beware : you should use the side of the stone with the thickest grain !
The grain on the diamondstone and whetstone are different on each side. The thickest one is used to begin sharpening by sanding the steel.If you want a symmetrical edge : sharpen the first side of the blade until you have reached to about the middle of the steel thickness, then turn the blade over and sharpen the other side until you get a slanting angle. Finally, sharpen your knife on the thinest grain for the finishings !
If you want an asymmetrical edge : only sharpen the first side of the blade, do not turn the knife over to work on the other side. Then use the thinest grain of the stone for the finishings.
Note : In order to recognize the thickest grain, check on the packaging or the grain itself
Step 4 : You can turn the stone over and start using the thin grain !
Now that the first stage has been completed, you can finish sharpening your knife with precision and make the sharpening finish using the thinest grain.
The aim here is to smooth the edge of the blade and to get rid of the metal residues left by the thickest grain. In the same way as for the previous step, if you want a symmetrical edge, turn the knife over to work on both sides of the blade.
If you prefer an asymmetrical edge, work only on the same side as in the previous step.
You can now alternate the passages of the knife on the stone, still using the thinest grain. To do this, sharpen one side of the blade in one continuous pass before turning the knife over and doing the same thing on the second side. We advise you to repeat this movement for better results.
You have now finished the sharpening of your knife !
Thank the diamond stone or whetstone, you will get a perfect cutting edge for your blades. The abrasivity of the grain offer a perfect and lasting result !
The manual sharpener : a good choice ?
1. If you need a tool fast and easy to use, so the manual sharpener is a good option ! This is the second method.This tool is very effective if want to sharpen your knife quickly since it features one or more pre-set slit(s), giving you a strict sharpening angle.
However, the manual sharpener also has many disadvantages! It does not adapt to all knives and the result is less fine and precise than with a tool such as a stone. Toutefois l'aiguiseur manuel présente aussi de nombreux inconvénients ! Il ne s'adapte pas à tous les couteaux et le résultat est moins fin et précis qu'avec un ustensile comme la pierre par exemple. It can also sometimes be too abrasive for your blades.
The manual sharpener can therefore be useful in certain situations, when you only have little time to give to sharpening your knife for example, but unfortunately it will not be very effective as for the fineness and good quality of the edge of your blades.
In short :
The diamond stone and the manual sharpener are therefore two tools for sharpening your blades. Despite these two practical tools to carry and use, we advise you to choose the stone for its excellent quality. However, if you are looking to sharpen your blade in a little bit of time, the manual sharpener may be a good alternative.
Now you can use your knives with peace of mind because you know how to sharpen them !