How long does it stay sharp?

Hi, this is another very common and very understandable question.
You've taken the plunge, forked out your good money to get those old knives sharpened, in some cases spent more to get them sharpened than you paid for them. They hold a special place in your heart though so why not.

How long will they stay sharp?

Well there are some standard answers to that and those standard responses need to be remembered, such as :
- depends on the steel, how hard is it?
-what are you cutting with it, how do you store it, is it put in the dishwasher?

Ok, you treat the knives like gold and they are all the beloved Grohmann, Henckels, Wusthof, Global or Shun.

The key thing to remember is that the dulling process starts immediately, the day you bring the knife home and with new knives.....I give it a month or two before you notice the difference. I had a gentleman call me and tell me his knife was still sharp after 10 years. Well his definition of sharpness and mine are completely different.

To be honest, most people have never seen/used a truly sharp knife unless you have purchased a MAC, or Tojiro or Shun. Those knives have a good out of the box edge but not all of them do. I am definitely not saying that your new Wusthof is not sharp, it is, but they can get sharper.

Back to the question:

How long will these stay sharp under normal household conditions and treated with care, i.e. in a block or better yet, on a magnetic bar?

If you measure the hardness on a scale from 1-10 with a 10 being the day I sharpened it or the day you brought it home...let's just use this scale for the sake of ease.

On week 4 that knife will be at an 8 at best and 3 months in will be at a 6-7. The knife will still perform of course but it just needs a touch up. It is when you let the knife get back down to a 1 or 2 that it requires the full treatment.

Remember that my knives will come back to you nice and sharp, you will find yourself using them more because it is enjoyable to cook again.  So this extra use will expedite the dulling process.

Get them sharpened by me or another sharpener who uses water stones at least twice a year.

ALSO......Every knife you buy will get dull, whether it is a 30 dollar or 500 dollar knife, it just may take a little longer for that expensive knife to get dull but again, you will be using that one more so it will balance out.

The edge is thin it is fragile and it is the nature of the steel to become fatigued, so give the edge a rest and get it re-sharpened. I do my own knives once a month and it takes me 3 minutes to get them back up to snuff.

So if you go to a store and buy a 50 dollars Henckels and the salesperson says  it will stay sharp for a year......she is telling the truth if you don't use the knife for than once a month.

I am not criticizing any knives, I love Grohmann, Henckels and Wusthof, in fact, of all the brands I sharpen, those ones never  come to be chipped or damaged, just dull. I cannot say that about many of the other fancy brands.

So 3 months is my answer. 
After that, get them touched up.

Stop fooling yourself.

The most common misconception there is about sharpening is that a Steel sharpens a knife. So people buy a knife, it becomes dull but the owner believes the knife is being sharpened by the steel.

Even with very precise/expert use of a steel, it has a limited function and I very rarely see it being used properly, especially by chefs.  The edge of a sharp knife is a very thin, fragile thing, it is two sides of the blade meeting at the perfect plane, this is what makes the knife sharp.

How can you keep that knife sharp, how can one "sharpen" that fine edge with a metal rod by slapping the rod against the edge, just what the hell does that do anyway. NOTHING....in fact it makes it worse.  If you are going to use a steel or ceramic hone on a sharp knife to keep it sharp then do it carefully, think of what you trying to achieve. Notice I said "on a sharp knife".

You do not use a Steel on a dull knife, it is too late once it gets dull, it needs to be sharpened.

Instead of using a Steel, which are often cheap anyway, why not use a 1,000 grit whet stone and learn how to hone the knife with that, it is easy and cheap, you can get a really nice stone for the same price or cheaper that a good quality Steel.

Given the choice between a good quality Hone like the ceramic hone above and a good water stone, again like the one in the picture, I would take the stone any day. Think of it as a rectangular  Steel.

Also, remember..... you do not hone a dull knife you sharpen it, you hone a sharp knife to keep it sharp and that may work if done properly for a while, 3 months perhaps. Then put it aside and the get the knife sharpened on a stone, not a machine, a stone.

You folks are awesome for being here, I truly do appreciate it.

Peter Nowlan
sharpenerpeter@gmail.com
902 225 0579

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Due to a technological meltdown I had to change my email address.




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sharpenerpeter@gmail.com

Thanks folks 

Peter Nowlan
Officer of Edge Enhancement &
Proprietor of
New Edge Sharpening
Middle Sackville, NS
B4E 2V5
902 225 0579

(Student in the science of sharpness).

What's the best knife dilemma

I think most of you have heard that a hand made Japanese carbon knife is the be all and end all of kitchen knives, THE knife to own, the bucket list knife.

I used to think that way too, now I have a different mindset, they are no longer on my bucket list.

Now having said that, there is absolutely no getting over the fact that the edge on a good quality carbon knife that was hand made in Japan and hand sharpened  is something you need to see to believe.  I recently had one in my hand the edge was absolutely thrilling, but that is not enough to make me think about having one for the rest of eternity.

Now I am not talking about this Yanagiba, one of the holy trinity of Japanese Traditional knives, i..e the Yanagiba, the Deba  and the Usuba. This wonderful, single bevel knives each have a special purpose and within that area of use, there is no equal.  The knife pictured below is very beautiful and if you are a sushi chef, if you want the knife of raw fish slicers, the Yanagiba is the knife you want.

I am talking about the double bevel chef knives that are made from carbon steel, this is not to say there are other alloys used but there is a high carbon content or even all carbon and iron. No chromium so no stainless ability.

Again these knives are capable of fantastic edges but they have their drawbacks too.

The two knives above are perhaps the sharpest knives I have had in my hands, with the exception of the Yanagiba in the top picture.. These belong to a gifted chef and I have no doubt that in his hands they perform wonders, they're amazing cutters.


The point of this post is to try and relieve the pressure you may be feeling towards the urge to purchase one of these knives.

The BEST knife may be the one you already own, it just needs to be sharpened.

Whatever it is you own, just get it sharpened. If you want to splurge and see what the fuss is all about, sure, go get a Japanese had made knife and  experience the thrill but remember, unless  you have a sharpening plan that knife will get dull too. Yes, due to the hardness of the steel, once sharp it will theoretically retain its edge longer. I say theoretically because I guarantee, once you own one, it will be you GO TO KNIFE and will see much much more use than your other knives so with that, it will get duller quicker due to use.

Also, these knives being harder can be more brittle, they can chip more easily, so there is pay off,  you need to be very careful.

Instead of agonising over which Japanese knife to buy and believe me the choices are overwhelming, why not just go to Paderno or Cucina Moderna and pick up a nice Grohmann, Wusthof or MAC or Henckels or Global. I can tell you one thing I have seen many 400 dollar Japanese knives with chips in the edges, I have never seen a Grohmann with a chip, or a Wusthof.

Stick with what you have, just have it sharpened, hand sharpened and learn to love your knives again.

One of the things about carbon knives that turn people off is the Patina that forms on the blade. You need to meticulous with these knives when it comes to cleaning them and drying them. Use them, clean them and then dry them immediately, don't air dry them.

I bet you have some great knives in your home, you don't need a new one you just need to get it sharp again. I get irritated by people who refuse to get their knives sharpened by me because they are afraid that I may not put a 15 deg angle on their Global so they just use them dull. As if anyone can tell the difference between a 15 deg angle and a 17 deg angle for example.
Get over it, they are just knives, whatever the brand, if they are dull they are useless and you have wasted money.

It isn't rock science folks :)

Thank you for reading this.