Knife Sharpening Using Traditional Methods: Sharpening is more than just Sharpening

Hi folks,
I was away, thank you for waiting:)

I've said this before but when I started my business, I thought that sharpening the knives would be the challenge. It was at first, making sure that customers knives were returned as sharp as I could possibly make them. (Actually, getting customers was the first challenge but I got lucky there.)

Now of course, it goes without saying that the sharpening is no longer my main concern, I am not worried that I'll be able to get the knives sharp, I can do that, it's the easy part. This is not to say that I don't take this as seriously as I did before, I take it very seriously, it's just not difficult for me, in most cases.

Nowadays, one of the most important part of my business is educating knife owners, trying to get them to enjoy their knives and keep enjoying them. Many people bring me a knife or two or ten that have never been sharpened beyond the factory edge. The most common question I get from them when I return their freshly sharpened knives is: "How often should I get them sharpened"?

I used to really hate that question, do I lie and say "once a year should be enough", or do I lie again and say " you need to bring them to me once every 3 weeks" ? No of course I don't lie.

This is where the education part comes into play. I tell them that it is impossible for me to say when their knives will no longer be sharp. It will be up to them to decide at which point they are no longer satisfied with the level of sharpness. That could be 2 months it could be 6. I tell them what my responsibility is, i.e. sharpen at an appropriate angle for the particular knife (15-20 deg per side for 90% of knives in the world) and that I finish the knife at an appropriate grit to enhance edge retention. Of course I make the knife as sharp as I possibly can, and repair any damage, thin if necessary, all the good stuff.

The owners responsibility is to help preserve the edge for as long as they can but they need to be educated about that, all the basics, no glass cutting board and simple things like that. It all comes down to expectation management. Many think that because they have gone and spent $15.00 to get their $30.00 knife sharpened that it should be good for another 5 years so again, managing expectations, enlightening them about steel, types, hardness and how these factors all play a role.

I offer the simplest and most effective solution, just adopt a Sharpening Plan, bring the knives to me once every three months, I offer a discount and get them all re-sharpened, two months is better depending on the knives and the environment that the knives are used in.

This educational piece has become one of the most important elements of my business. I am honest and right up front when they ask the question and even if they don't ask it. Naturally I suggest a maintenance regime and ceramic hone but most ignore that to be honest.

That's all I have on that subject.

The knife in the picture directly above is a Shun with a serrated portion at the tip area which is followed by a single bevelled middle portion followed by another serrated portion to the heel. I cannot imagine the use of this knife and what Shun was thinking in terms of sharpening it.

However, old dogs have old tricks and I found some solutions. I could use the Edge Pro which makes it a breeze. I can't sharpen it by my normal technique because I would be working on the serrated portions and the non-serrated portions at the same time and I would end up wearing the points off of the serrations. I could hold the knife perpendicular to the stone but that is not my normal technique.

So the other method is to work on the single bevel area first using the Takeda hand held stone, get that all nice and sharp and THEN do the serrated portions. Easy Peasy.