ANGLE - I'm afraid

I think the most common fear of sharpening is that the knife will be permanently ruined because you did not sharpen it at the exact same angle that the factory set.

Well here is something to think about:

What are your options?
1. Try sharpening it anyway and do your best to keep a steady angle, regardless of the factory angle; or
2. Just keep using it dull, that way it won't be ruined.

Do not concern yourself too much about the angle. There is only one thing to be concerned about when learning to sharpen a knife by freehand. CONSISTENCY.

So you hold the knife at an angle that you THINK is similar to the factory set angle which is likely about 20 degrees. As long as you can hold that angle and keep it steady as you sharpen and as long as you are hitting the edge of the knife you will succeed. It doesn't matter if the angle you are using is 22 degrees of 18, as long as it isn't 14, 22, 18, 25 and so as you move the knife.

I've already explained the sharpie trick so this will guide you but again, do not be overly concerned about keeping the same angle. You won't notice. 

So assume that you Wusthof or Henckels is new or never been sharpened beyond the factory and the angle on it now is 22 degrees. So you want to match that 22 degrees on either side of the knife. So a 44 degree included angle. Just do your best to hold it, an inch will give you a 20 degree angle on an 8inch chef knife.  It's your knife, sharpen it at an angle that seems natural and feels comfortable. Over time, muscle memory will kick in and you will automatically hold the knife at that same angle. BIG DEAL if it is a degree or even 4 degrees off.

I have purposely changed the angle on many knives, and every one of them still cut.  Who the heck can pick up a knife, and say, ok that was sharpened at the factory at 19 degrees. If you read the GLOBAL Knife sharpening instructions online it will say to hold the knife between 10-15 degrees. IT does not say, "hold the knife at 15 degrees exactly or your warranty is void"

Global Sharpening Instructions

Here is where I hold the knife:
So what angle is it.......I don't know, probably 19 degrees. The point here is that I know that I am hitting the edge, removing fatigued metal and sharpening this knife. I don't care if it is at 19 or 21 degrees and neither does the owner.

My Angle

Now you can purchase a device like this one that will set the angle for you:

However, I have never used this because it just gets in the way but it is handy for showing what a 19 degree angle looks like.

The whole point of this is to talk you out of the notion that the wrong angle will ruin the knife. That is completely untrue unless you hold the knife at 90 degrees or something.

This is easy folks:

It's a leap of faith......jump in.