Keeping it Real

Hi everyone,

     It just hit me that some of the things I worried about in my sharpening life and some of those things that I have shared are really not that important in the big scheme of things.

   I'm talking about topics such as edge retention, whether or not a 1k edge is the ultimate edge for certain knives, toothy vs polished edges, things like this.  Knife sharpening has consumed the vast majority of my life, fortunately, so I guess feeling the need to encompass all of those things comes with the package. 

    However, for people who are interested in sharpening, for novices and beyond, I can honestly say now that the importance of those things truly pale in comparison to other aspects of the sharpening process, the basic fundamentals and really simple things. For example, one comment that I just noticed was about lighting and inspecting the edge, so I will talk about that here but it really is those very simple little things that will improve your ability to sharpen. Not worrying about whether to finish a knife at 1k or 5k.  So if I ever gave the impression that to become THE sharpener you need to know about all those things, I apologize, I was just sharing my experiences.

   Why don't I tell you what you need to know, from Day one to Day 35 years from now as in my case. I can honestly tell you though that even today I get excited about sharpening knives, just as excited or more than I was ten years ago. I have a bunch of knives from a new customer, (a Chef) and I'm like a kid at Christmas. This sensation is not because I understand what a 1k edge looks like magnified 5,000 times, (big deal), it is because I love the process, the simplicity of it. All that other stuff was a distraction, good to know but not an impact on my ability to make a knife sharp.

   The reality of the 1k edge retention thing is that it all goes to hell once the knife goes to work anyway. If you sharpen your own knives, what does it matter if the edge stays sharp for 4 weeks or 5 weeks or 4 months or 6 months.  

   Can you imagine If I ever met a master sharpener like Shibata san or Fujiwara San and said "So, what do you think lasts longer, a 1,000 grit edged or 2,000 grit edge", I am sure they would just look at me like a deer staring at headlights.

   Recently I spoke to a man that I have the utmost respect for, Jon Broida and Jon and I spoke about this whole 1k edge thing. He has a slightly different view and he elegantly described it to me in such a manner that it was a relief, something I don't have to worry about anymore.  His view is that it is not necessarily true, that sharpness from a 1k edge may be perceived differently by people, it is a little more aggressive than a 5k edge, it may "feel" sharper because of it's toothiness, it's lack of refinement but does that mean it will last longer than a polished 5k edge. It may and it may not, so many people will have different results that it is hard to make a definitive statement. There are more important things to sharpening, like finishing with a "clean" edge, that is the edge we all strive for. Jon is very humble man but he is an extremely knowledgeable one and if you love watching sharpening videos, I still think his are the best.

OKAY........I may never utter the words "Edge Retention" again :)

HOWEVER......all part of my sharpening journey, and I shared it.

Maybe I just spoke about those things to make myself sound smarter, or maybe I thought I HAD to cover those things.....let's move on.

Here is what it has all boiled down to, after all these years and thousands of knives, here is what I now know is important.

Just a big cleaver, this isn't whats important :)

• Finding a technique that works, one that enables you to adopt the sharpening position easily and without thought. In other words, when you decide to sharpen a knife, you are not walking into the sharpening session thinking about what technique you are going to use, how you are going to hold the knife etc. That should come automatically and it may take you some time to find the right one for you. It certainly did for me, I think I went through three different styles of sharpening until I found this one. I believe this one is the most common one anyway and believe me, it is effective.
• Setting up your sharpening station properly, it has to be one that allows you to sharpen comfortably for an hour or however long you need and it must have GOOD LIGHTENING. I purchased a really cool light from a store here called Lee Valley.  Great Light 
• Your Japanese Water Stones or oil stones if that is your preference, some good micro fibre towels, some water and a good solid surface to work on. One of the best things that I have is a really good stone holder so pick something up that keeps the stone stable and eliminates any movement, so do distractions. If it is a 2x4 with the stone sitting on a wet cloth, cool, many sharpeners use this, it is stable so that's the key.
• A sharpie may be helpful and it certainly is to beginners but I have already talked about that in my guide and I will add some links to the bottom of this post.

    So these are just the basic "tools" you need, your setup but of course you need to have a knowledge of sharpening. What I find really effective, something that students enjoy is the ability to "picture what it is you are attempting to (and will) achieve.  When I first started I did none of these things, I just picked up a knife and dragged it over the stone on both sides, I did this for years without really understanding what I was actually doing, why the knife was getting sharper. 

   For a novice, get a good light source and really look at the edge and bevel before you start.  I picked up a Loupe at Lee Valley, it is a very simple magnifier designed for jewellers but it really gives you the ability to see your edge and bevels, you will see the scratch patterns and most importantly, you will see if your sharpening is effective, if you reaching the edge of the edge.
Loupe - Magnifier
Now again, I sharpened for 25 years before I had a loupe, but I definitely see how it would have given me a better understanding of seeing the edge and bevels of the knives I worked on, it's pretty cool actually and very cheap.

  The things I am discussing may be things you that will help you, you still need to find the technique and practice and practice and build up that muscle memory but these are little things, simple things that enhance the sharpening session and should become habit. We shouldn't just pick up the knife and start blindly grinding away, there is no finesse to that.

• Place your sharpening hat one, turn off any distractions, turn your light on and pick up the knife;
• Look at the knife and ensure it is not damaged in any way, a tiny bend near the tip will have an impact on the consistency of the bevel on one side of the knife near that tip, believe me. 
• Feel the edge and allow it help you choose two things: The water stone (Grit) you will start with and just as important, the PRESSURE you will begin with.  If you only have the one stone, then Pressure is even more important.  (ALSO remember that what you are doing is very important to you, you are improving a unique skill, a lost art some call it, and you should be proud of yourself). So you feel the edge and it doesn't feel to sharp, if you were trying to cut yourself, you'd have to use some pressure for example. Now you know that you can start with more pressure than if the knife was still relatively sharp.
• Now just before you start, and this is for a novice, imagine that you are trying to bring Side A and Side B together at the Apex of the knife by grinding on Side A at a certain angle and by grinding Side B at that same angle and doing it as evenly as possible on both sides. I know that seems obvious but do you think I pictured that when I started, definitely not.  Your ability to do this with consistency will vary go from "not that great to holy crap, I finally got this". The period of time in between your inability and ability will depend on how much you practice and also, some folks are just really good at it.  However, you don't need to have the steady hands of a surgeon to get good results, you will get that knife sharper by following the steps and focusing on creating that primary edge, or just improving it. 

PRESSURE: Manipulate pressure as you progress, whether using one stone or three. Start with enough pressure to raise a burr effectively on both sides of the knife from heel to tip. Sometimes, you will feel a burr along the entire edge except for a part in the middle. This happens to me a lot, so I continue to grind along the entire edge, however, I ease up on the pressure on the are of the edge where the burr is formed and then as I get to that spot where it just isn't quite there yet, I press down a  little harder with my two fingers that are placed by the edge for that purpose. Remember, those fingers are not there for the ride, they serve a purpose, those are your Pressure Pads.  After a while you will find yourself able to move those two fingers along the edge in very smooth rhythm, as you push the knife away from you and apply pressure with your fingers (Pressure Pads) you will be able to shift those two fingers to the next position on the knife as you pull the knife back towards you. (This is assuming you are using trailing strokes). 

     Pressure is so important, by the end of the work on that stone, you have gone through three or four different levels of pressure depending on your goal, MAX pressure = Burr Formation and everything after that is about burr removal, cleaning your edge by your gentle reduction in pressure until at the end your pressure is so light that it is barely there, just enough to keep that knife stable. 

    Repeating an efficient process over and over is what will make you a better sharpener. Don't get caught up in brands of stones and mirror finishes and so on, just get to the point where your muscle memory and sharpening sense has developed to a point where your confidence has kicked in, every single time you pick up a knife.  You know that some knives will be harder to sharpen than others, but you will find a way, and remember, the edges your produce are sharp enough, don't be deceived by parlour tricks you see on YouTube.  Does your knife cut your tomatoes nicely, without bending them? Yes they certainly do so whatever it is you are doing, keep doing it.

Sometimes I miss comments, but I will get to them and don't hesitate to say something like 
"Peter, thanks but would you mind telling us about ................." . You may be struggling with something that I have overlooked, not explained well enough. YOU may teach me something and I am all over that.

Remember to focus on the basics and consistency and use a good lighting source. Have fun and don't hesitate to walk away from a difficult knife for a while.

The picture above is of my Admiral, a fantastic man and I with a Japanese senior officer about to embark on a visiting Japanese ship. I am on the left, in my Navy Days


Thanks so much for being here and reading my ramblings.

I respect you all.
Peter

Things I forgot to add:

This is the article I wrote for Knifeplanet, 100,000 people have read this, I think it covers a lot of things.

How to Sharpen on a Water Stone

ALSO......If you have a high grit stone that  you like to use because it gives a nice polish and it just seems to make that edge sharper, don't hesitate to use it. If you are worried that you are going to polish out any "teeth" on the edge left by coarser stones, you can still use it. Just use very light pressure and don't linger on the high grit stones, just be gentle and enjoy using them. They are great also for cleaning the edge, like a leather strop.