There are many inexpensive tools on the market that should sharpen our knives quickly and easily, but don't actually give great results. Don't worry though, there are many ways to successfully sharpen a knife; let's see together what they are and how to avoid making the most common mistakes.
Steps
Method 1 of 3: Use the whetstone or diamond whetstone
Step 1. Choose an angle to sharpen the knife
If you know the angle at which it was sharpened before, you should keep it. Changing the angle is more time consuming and takes a couple of steps to sharpen properly.
- If you don't know the angle, ask the manufacturer or go to a specialist shop to have the knife checked.
- If you need to make an immediate decision, choose an angle between 10 and 30 ° for each face of the blade. Small angles make the sharpening less durable, as opposed to larger ones, so stay around 17-20 °.
Step 2. Lubricate the stone (cote) with a small amount of mineral oil
Look for a specific one for sharpening because it is lighter, and not only lubricates the stone, making it easier to sharpen, but prevents its porosity from being compromised by steel dust.
Check the stone manufacturer's instructions regarding lubrication. The most common whetstones are silicon carbide and are designed to be used dry or wet, but are ruined with oils. However, there are specific stones for oil lubrication and they are called precisely "oil coti"
Step 3. Use a guide to maintain a constant angle if you can
It is a small tool to put under the blade to check the angle, and not to change it during the passage of the stone. If you work freehand it will be more difficult and a well-developed skill will be required to understand the angle.
One of the most complicated steps when you want to sharpen a knife is to maintain the right angle. To help you, color the tip of each side of the blade with a metal marker; then, during the grinding process, check if the mark is erased
Step 4. Start with the rougher side of the whetstone
Check what it is by reading the instructions on the package. Generally these stones (even the diamond ones) have a different grain for each side. The more aggressive one is used for grind steel, while the finer one is used for sharpen it. It always starts with the coarser phase.
Step 5. For symmetrical blades, you need to sharpen the knife by sliding it over the stone in the opposite direction to the one you would use for slicing
This way you do not damage the stone during the work.
Step 6. Continue like this until the grind is about halfway through the steel
This is a rough estimate and you don't have to be precise. For non-symmetrical blades, do not turn the knife when instructed in this article.
Step 7. Turn the blade and sharpen the other side to create a new edge
The best way to tell if you've removed enough metal is to keep grinding until one is formed drool, that is, very small metal filaments that remain attached to the blade and which are naturally formed during the steel working process.
This burr is usually invisible to the naked eye, but you can feel it if you run your thumb over the blade from top to bottom. Fine-grained stones produce a very fine burr
Step 8. Turn the stone to the less rough side and start sharpening one side of the knife
You need to smooth the metal to get rid of the burr and turn the blade into an even, sharp edge.
Step 9. Turn the blade and repeat the same smoothing process on the other side
Make sure you do symmetrical work.
Step 10. Now make alternating passes over the stone from the fine side
With a single stroke, sharpen the blade on one side, then immediately turn the knife and sharpen the other side. Repeat several times for best results.
Step 11. If you want, you can polish or even sharpen the blade until it becomes as sharp as you wish
This way you get a great knife for "pressure cutting" (when you push the blade directly into the material to be cut without slicing), but it alters its ability to cut some products; in fact, without the "microscopic indentations" left by the whetstone, the blade cannot "bite" the skin of the tomato, for example.
Method 2 of 3: Use a Steel Sharpener
Step 1. Use a steel sharpener between grinds to prevent the blade from getting damaged
These tools are not designed to bring a now cordless knife back to life, but to maintain its efficiency for longer.
- The constant use of a sharpener delays the need for an intervention with the whetstone. The advantage is evident, since the stones (even the diamond ones) reduce the life of the knife; therefore, the less you have to resort to them, the longer you can use the knife.
- But how does a sharpener work? This tool realigns the metal of the blade, flattening out any small indentations, scratches and irregularities in the metal. Compared to a whetstone, the sharpener does not remove a significant amount of metal from the knife.
Step 2. Hold the sharpener in your non-dominant hand
Hold it in an angled position with the tip pointing away from your body and up.
Step 3. Grab the knife firmly with your dominant hand
The thumb must be on the edge of the blade and the other four fingers must surround the handle.
Step 4. Hold the knife at an angle of approximately 20 ° to the sharpener
It is not necessary to be precise, but still try to respect this rule as much as possible. The important thing is to keep the same angle for the duration of the sharpening. Otherwise you cannot smooth the blade evenly, and you cannot even if you choose too large an angle.
Step 5. Rub the knife on the upper half of the sharpener respecting the angle of 20 °
Slide the blade from the collar towards the tip.
To learn how to master the movement, you need to move your entire arm, wrist and hand. The most important task is carried out by the wrist, if you move it inaccurately or keep it locked you will not be able to slide the blade along its entire length
Step 6. Always keep the angle of 20 ° and this time use the lower half of the sharpener
Repeat the same arm-wrist-hand movement using only the pressure generated by the weight of the knife itself. At this point you have completed a rotation.
Step 7. Perform a total of 6-8 rotations before using the knife each time
Method 3 of 3: Use a Coffee Cup for Quick Results
Step 1. Take an old cup and put it upside down
In practice, the cup will serve as a surprisingly effective sharpening tool if you have nothing else available. Ceramic is a fairly abrasive material for this work, so much so that it is used for the production of some sharpeners.
Step 2. Always use a 20 ° angle and slide the blade several times over the edge of the bottom of the cup
Step 3. Repeat the process for the other side of the blade
Step 4. For the last two to three passes alternate the faces of the blade
Rub one side on the ceramic, then turn the knife and repeat for the other side. Continue this technique several times.
Step 5. Finish sharpening the blade with 6-8 rotations on the sharpener
In this way you will smooth out any imperfections left by the ceramic.
wikiHow Video: How to Sharpen a Knife
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Advice
- If you use electric wheels to sharpen your knives, be very careful. The heat generated by the stone during sharpening tends to heat the steel a lot, softening it; This way your knife could lose its sharpness very quickly.
- Do not be discouraged if the cheap knives you use in the kitchen lose their edge very quickly, it is not the fault of your sharpening technique. This is because they are made of soft steel. Try using a wider angle or buy knives made of harder steel.
- Sharpening stones work best if they are lubricated to leave the surface free of residue. Try using both an oil-lubricated and a water-lubricated stone. Once you try the oil one, you will never go back.
- Many experts recommend making a movement similar to what you would do if you wanted to thinly slice a piece of stone. However, this advice is incorrect, as it would be too narrow an angle in order to see tangible results from the sharpening motion. This would result in too sharp angling of the edges of the blade, resulting in a dull knife. The more you try to sharpen the blade, the worse the result. Sound familiar to you?
Warnings
- Do not run your finger over the knife blade to feel if it is sharp. The best test is to try to cut a sheet of paper while holding it between two fingers without tension.
- If you use an oil stone, do not lubricate it with water, otherwise the pores will clog and it becomes unusable.
- If you don't remove enough metal from the edge of the blade to create the new edge, the knife is not sharpened well; and you see it if, putting it under the light, it reflects with the thread. A properly sharpened blade should not reflect light, so you need to remove enough metal so that the wire no longer reflects light.
- Always be careful when handling knives, they are a major cause of domestic accidents.
