The sharpness of the cutting edge of the blade will inevitably decrease while in use. This is due to the contact with hard materials. That is why it is necessary to maintain the sharpness of the knife at all times. This applies to kitchen, hunting, all-purpose and any other knife models. A sharp knife is a key to efficient and safe work.
Knife care involves honing as well as sharpening the cutting edge of the knife blade. Both methods are used to make the blade sharp. But honing is not the same as sharpening. This is something to keep in mind when choosing a method.
Sometimes the cutting edge is exposed to high loads. This causes the thin edge to bend and roll. Honing involves pushing the edge back in alignment and increasing the sharpness of the blade. To fix the damage of the cutting tool you can use:
The method of honing with a second knife is often used at professional kitchens. This is due to the lack of the need to use special devices. However, one should keep in mind that honing of the edge allows you to get the sharpness back only for some time. If the knife is too dull or damaged, you will need to do a full sharpening. This will ensure that the tool is sharp again.
A complete sharpening of the knife is required when it is too dull. Sharpening helps to fix serious damage to the cutting edge. As a result, you get a sharp knife with a properly shaped cutting edge.
You can use stones or special devices for sharpening. They allow you to set the best angle and quickly make the knife sharp. During the process, small metal particles are removed from the surface of the edge. This makes it possible to form a proper shape of the cutting edge.
A good sharpening without the use of special tools requires a certain amount of experience. One needs to hold the proper and consistent angle. It is difficult for a beginner to do without a special sharpening jig.
You can make a knife sharp with a sharpening stone, special tools, sharpening steel rods, etc. When you choose a tool, you have to take the sharpening features into account. This way one can choose the model that meets the specific requirements.
A sharpening whetstone remains popular among professionals and beginners alike. Different grit sizes provide coarse, medium and finish processing of the knife. The abrasive elements remove metal particles from the surface. Therefore, with a sharpening whetstone you can carry out a complete sharpening. Follow each step to do this:
You should repeat each step for each side until you get the proper cutting edge shape. After that, you need to use a whetstone with a finer grit size. This way you can get a straight edge. After these actions it is necessary to wash the blade with water and wipe it dry.
The disadvantage of this method is the challenge of setting the required angle. It will be difficult for beginners to keep the blade in the right position. That is why you can use additional tools.
Unlike the sharpening stone, it is not possible to sharpen a knife with a honing steel rod. This tool is suitable for aligning the curved line of the cutting edge of the knife blade. You should keep this in mind when choosing a tool.
The sharpening steel rod has become common in the kitchen. With the help of a sharpening steel rod you can quickly get a sharp knife without any special skills. It is enough to make several sharp reciprocating motions and the cutting edge of the blade will be straight.
You can find steel and ceramic sharpening rods available on the market. This allows you to choose a tool according to the operating conditions and the wishes of the user. Yet it is important to bear in mind that a sharpening rod can bring the sharpness back only for a short period of time.
How to do honing? Follow each step:
It is recommended to perform honing several times on each side. After that you will need to check the sharpness of the knife. If needed, you can repeat each step to achieve the maximum effect.
After honing, the blade should be washed with water and wiped dry. This removes the smallest metal particles from the surface.
This type of device provides a high-precision sharpening. The possibility of setting the angle, as well as interchangeable abrasive stones with different grit sizes make it possible to make the knife sharp in a relatively short period of time.
TSPROF models are common among beginners and professionals. A TSPROF knife sharpener is the best for knives designed for different purposes. Adjustable sharpening angle, guide rod and easy change of an abrasive whetstone allow you to get a sharp knife with the proper shape of the knife blade cutting edge.
Electric knife sharpener is sometimes used to speed up the sharpening process. The abrasive element of these devices is driven via an electric motor.
Despite the high speed, an electric knife sharpener has one significant disadvantage. During the sharpening process, the knife sharpener removes quite a lot of metal from the surface. This leads to quick wear of the blade and its end of life.
In most cases, straightening (honing) is enough to restore the sharpness of the knife. However, this method does not always help to make the blade sharp. Unlike honing, sharpening involves removing some of the metal. Therefore, you should not sharpen too often. You need to use sharpeners when honing does not provide the desired result. Besides, knife sharpening will be required if:
To test the sharpness of the blade, you can try cutting vegetables or bakery products. The blade should cut the object, but not crush.
Over time, any knife (actively used) loses its sharpness. This is due to continuous contact with soft and hard surfaces. Decrease in the sharpness of the blade also happens due to improper use. You should follow a few simple rules to avoid frequent sharpening:
If you follow a few simple rules, you can avoid early wear of the cutting edge. This way, you will have to sharpen your knives less often, which will increase the service life of your knives.
Ceramic knives are designed to work with soft materials. They can be used to cut vegetables and fruits, bakery products, etc. For hard objects, it is better to use steel blades. This will help avoid damage to the ceramic blade.
When sharpening such cutting tools, please keep in mind that ceramic is not good at bending loads. Therefore, you should not set a small angle. Failure to do so may result in chipping and other damage.
Special diamond-coated stones are used to sharpen ceramic knives. Besides, the strict rule of maintaining the angle makes it essential to use special jigs.
A mechanical knife sharpener is the best way to restore the sharpness of ceramic knives. It allows you to control the sharpening angle. You need to maintain the pressure when clamping the blade. Too much pressure will cause damage to the blade. You also need to control the pressure when you run the diamond sharpening stone over the blade. Following this helps to avoid damage to ceramic knives.
Sometimes there are no sharpeners and no special sharpening tools at hand. In this case, you will need to hone the edge with whatever is at hand. Note that this will only temporarily restore the sharpness of the blade. Honing the cutting edge at fishing, hunting or any other outdoor activities is possible in a number of ways:
Be aware that using improvised means can damage the edge. You may find small chips and burrs on the blade. Therefore it is crucial to sharpen and polish the blade with sharpeners after returning from the outdoors. With this approach it will be possible to remove all the damages and restore the sharpness of the cutting tool.
For keeping your knives sharp, you need to sharpen and hone them at the right time and follow a few simple rules of use and storage. Thanks to this you can avoid early blade wear and increase service life.
TSPROF Kadet Pro has a convenient folding system and low weight (2.1 kg) which allows you to carry it in your backpack and sharpen anywhere you will need it.
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