cowboyardee
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- Jun 7, 2011
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Hi guys.
At another forum, I'm posting a comparison of different kinds of sharpening. It is a food forum, not a dedicated knife forum, so a lot of the people I'm writing for don't have very nice knives and aren't willing to spend a lot of time or money in maintaining em - few have the interest to learn to use a waterstone.
I post this here not because I think it will be helpful to you guys (most of you already know perfectly well how to sharpen), but to ask for any advice or tweaks. Does anything stand out to you as wrong or badly rated? Also, I figured some of you might at least find it interesting.
Here is the post from the other forum:
"One of the questions that gets asked often around here: "which sharpener is the best?" It's a very reasonable question, because reading about sharpeners is confusing. Most manufacturers talk up their sharpener as the ideal solution for everybody, admitting to no downsides. People who have picked one method or another tend to do the same. The knife nuts (myself included) tend to push high end methods that not everyone is willing to consider due to difficulty or expense - that stuff is all well and good for a dedicated forum about knives, but not for a more general food forum like this one. The reviews online are almost always glowing for any sharpener that works at all, since people are actually reflecting on how nice it is to have usably sharp knives.
What people don't realize is that all of the popular methods of sharpening involve a trade-off. There is no one best way to sharpen, nothing that is simultaneously easy, cheap, fast, and produces top-notch results. If there was, everybody would be using it.
I've decided that what people need is a way to quickly compare the most popular methods of sharpening (we'll leave maintenance in between sharpenings for another day). So I've listed here the most common types of sharpening, and scored them ('very low' to 'very high') on several categories. These categories are:
Fast - how fast these methods are as they are actually used by most people. In other words, this is not just a measurement of grinding power
Easy - considers not just ease of use, but also learning curve
Effective - how sharp an edge it produces, how it affects edge retention, whether it allows you to thin behind the edge for improved cutting and continued performance
Cheap - low = expensive, high = cheap. Sorry for any confusion
Versatile - a combination of two things. One is whether a sharpener works well on different types of knives, and different edge angles, and different types of steel. The other is whether the sharpener quickly changes the geometry of the edge, usually by removing metal very aggressively, thus damaging performance or shortening the lifespan of the knife.
Without further ado:
Carbide shearing sharpener (Accusharp type)
Tungsten carbide blades set in a V which shave bits of metal off the edge
Example: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000CSK0DM/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20
Fast.......... Very High
Easy......... Very high
Effective.. Low-Medium*
Cheap...... Very high
Versatile.. Very low**
*Depends greatly on the knife being sharpened
**Not only do carbide shearing sharpeners remove metal quickly and typically not adjust their angle to the knife - they seem not to work on harder, more brittle steels, causing chips and splinters rather than sharpening smoothly. I tried one recently on a hitachi white steel 'fruit' knife (hrc 63) - the result wasn't pretty.
Whetstones
Self-explanatory
Fast.......... Very Low-Medium*
Easy......... Very low
Effective.. Very high
Cheap...... Very Low-High**
Versatile.. Very high
*Early on, sharpening takes a looong time. With practice, most people get much faster
**You can get the stones to do good work for under $10 (a hardware store oilstone) and great work for under $70 (a combo medium and fine grit waterstone, a cheap coarse stone, and a homemade strop). BUT many people who use whetstones wind up spending more than that, either because they view it as a hobby they want to enjoy or because they are chasing the 'perfect edge' or because they become convinced early on that their mediocre results are the fault of their equipment rather than their still-underdeveloped skill.
Electric sharpener (Chef's Choice powered sharpeners)
Example: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000CSK0DM/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20
Fast.......... Very high
Easy......... High
Effective.. Medium
Cheap...... Low
Versatile.. Low
Abrasive rods in an X shape (handheld Wusthof sharpener)
Rods are at a fixed angle, and sharpen both sides at the same time. Often found as one part of a two part sharpening system - usually along with a carbide sharpener.
Example: Whustof's 2 stage sharpener http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0009NMVRI/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20
Fast.......... Low*
Easy......... High*
Effective.. Very Low*
Cheap...... Very High*
Versatile.. Low*
*These ratings are just for the abrasive rods part of the sharpener, not for the combined 2 stage system using a carbide sharpener. Many people buying the 2 stage system seldom use the rods or else find that the rods are mainly useful in maintaining a mostly-sharp edge, but not in sharpening a dull one.
Variable-Angle rods (Spyderco Sharpmaker)
Rods set at an angle, but only one side is sharpened at a time. Rods can sometimes be laid flat and used without an angle guide like very narrow whetstones.
Example: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000Q9C4AE/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20
Fast.......... Low*
Easy......... Medium
Effective.. High
Cheap...... Medium
Versatile.. Medium
*Sharpening a fully dull knife with one of these takes a LOOONG time. But maintaining a sharp edge is reasonably quick.
Wheel sharpeners (cheap, handheld Chefs Choice sharpeners)
Wheels hold the knife against stationary v-shaped abrasives (sometimes, just springed walls are used instead of wheels). Both sides are typically sharpened at once.
Example: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00009R5OY/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20
Fast.......... Medium
Easy......... High
Effective.. Very low
Cheap...... High
Versatile.. Low
Angle controlled system (EdgePro, Wicked Edge System)
Un-powered mechanical device boasting varied abrasives, very controlled customizable sharpening angles
Example: http://edgeproinc204.corecommerce.com/Apex-Model-Edge-Pro-System-c3/
Fast.......... Low
Easy......... Medium
Effective.. Very High
Cheap...... Very Low
Versatile.. High
Professional sharpening.
Speaks for itself.
Fast.......... Very Low**
Easy......... Very High
Effective.. High*
Cheap...... Low*
Versatile.. High**
*These factors are heavily dependent upon the pro sharpener in question. Figures provided are guesses/averages, assuming that your professional sharpener at least is minimally competent.
**These factors especially
Honing steel
A grooved honing steel used as the knife's only form of sharpening.
Example: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00074PDE2/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20
Fast.......... Low-High*
Easy......... Medium
Effective.. Very Low-Low**
Cheap...... High
Versatile..Very Low
*A honing steel is fast assuming you use it every time you use the knife.
** Many say that a steel only trues an edge, and for most people that is true. However, I've come across people who use their grooved steel like a file (applying more pressure), and actually scrape off enough metal that the steel is effectively sharpening the knife, albeit not especially well. This type of use is dependent on technique and also what knives you're using.
Ceramic/diamond honing steel
A ceramic or diamond abrasive honing steel used as a knife's only form of sharpening
Example: http://www.amazon.com/Henckels-10-Inc...
Fast.......... Very Low-High*
Easy......... Medium
Effective.. Medium
Cheap...... Medium
Versatile.. Medium
*A ceramic steel is fast assuming you use it every time you use the knife. It is very slow to sharpen a fully dull knife with one.
These figures are the best I could come up with. I have first hand experience with all of the above types of sharpener except for the Variable Angle rods/Sharpmaker style - for that, I've extrapolated from reviews and what I know of sharpening."
That was it. Any suggestions from this forum?
At another forum, I'm posting a comparison of different kinds of sharpening. It is a food forum, not a dedicated knife forum, so a lot of the people I'm writing for don't have very nice knives and aren't willing to spend a lot of time or money in maintaining em - few have the interest to learn to use a waterstone.
I post this here not because I think it will be helpful to you guys (most of you already know perfectly well how to sharpen), but to ask for any advice or tweaks. Does anything stand out to you as wrong or badly rated? Also, I figured some of you might at least find it interesting.
Here is the post from the other forum:
"One of the questions that gets asked often around here: "which sharpener is the best?" It's a very reasonable question, because reading about sharpeners is confusing. Most manufacturers talk up their sharpener as the ideal solution for everybody, admitting to no downsides. People who have picked one method or another tend to do the same. The knife nuts (myself included) tend to push high end methods that not everyone is willing to consider due to difficulty or expense - that stuff is all well and good for a dedicated forum about knives, but not for a more general food forum like this one. The reviews online are almost always glowing for any sharpener that works at all, since people are actually reflecting on how nice it is to have usably sharp knives.
What people don't realize is that all of the popular methods of sharpening involve a trade-off. There is no one best way to sharpen, nothing that is simultaneously easy, cheap, fast, and produces top-notch results. If there was, everybody would be using it.
I've decided that what people need is a way to quickly compare the most popular methods of sharpening (we'll leave maintenance in between sharpenings for another day). So I've listed here the most common types of sharpening, and scored them ('very low' to 'very high') on several categories. These categories are:
Fast - how fast these methods are as they are actually used by most people. In other words, this is not just a measurement of grinding power
Easy - considers not just ease of use, but also learning curve
Effective - how sharp an edge it produces, how it affects edge retention, whether it allows you to thin behind the edge for improved cutting and continued performance
Cheap - low = expensive, high = cheap. Sorry for any confusion
Versatile - a combination of two things. One is whether a sharpener works well on different types of knives, and different edge angles, and different types of steel. The other is whether the sharpener quickly changes the geometry of the edge, usually by removing metal very aggressively, thus damaging performance or shortening the lifespan of the knife.
Without further ado:
Carbide shearing sharpener (Accusharp type)
Tungsten carbide blades set in a V which shave bits of metal off the edge
Example: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000CSK0DM/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20
Fast.......... Very High
Easy......... Very high
Effective.. Low-Medium*
Cheap...... Very high
Versatile.. Very low**
*Depends greatly on the knife being sharpened
**Not only do carbide shearing sharpeners remove metal quickly and typically not adjust their angle to the knife - they seem not to work on harder, more brittle steels, causing chips and splinters rather than sharpening smoothly. I tried one recently on a hitachi white steel 'fruit' knife (hrc 63) - the result wasn't pretty.
Whetstones
Self-explanatory
Fast.......... Very Low-Medium*
Easy......... Very low
Effective.. Very high
Cheap...... Very Low-High**
Versatile.. Very high
*Early on, sharpening takes a looong time. With practice, most people get much faster
**You can get the stones to do good work for under $10 (a hardware store oilstone) and great work for under $70 (a combo medium and fine grit waterstone, a cheap coarse stone, and a homemade strop). BUT many people who use whetstones wind up spending more than that, either because they view it as a hobby they want to enjoy or because they are chasing the 'perfect edge' or because they become convinced early on that their mediocre results are the fault of their equipment rather than their still-underdeveloped skill.
Electric sharpener (Chef's Choice powered sharpeners)
Example: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000CSK0DM/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20
Fast.......... Very high
Easy......... High
Effective.. Medium
Cheap...... Low
Versatile.. Low
Abrasive rods in an X shape (handheld Wusthof sharpener)
Rods are at a fixed angle, and sharpen both sides at the same time. Often found as one part of a two part sharpening system - usually along with a carbide sharpener.
Example: Whustof's 2 stage sharpener http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0009NMVRI/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20
Fast.......... Low*
Easy......... High*
Effective.. Very Low*
Cheap...... Very High*
Versatile.. Low*
*These ratings are just for the abrasive rods part of the sharpener, not for the combined 2 stage system using a carbide sharpener. Many people buying the 2 stage system seldom use the rods or else find that the rods are mainly useful in maintaining a mostly-sharp edge, but not in sharpening a dull one.
Variable-Angle rods (Spyderco Sharpmaker)
Rods set at an angle, but only one side is sharpened at a time. Rods can sometimes be laid flat and used without an angle guide like very narrow whetstones.
Example: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000Q9C4AE/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20
Fast.......... Low*
Easy......... Medium
Effective.. High
Cheap...... Medium
Versatile.. Medium
*Sharpening a fully dull knife with one of these takes a LOOONG time. But maintaining a sharp edge is reasonably quick.
Wheel sharpeners (cheap, handheld Chefs Choice sharpeners)
Wheels hold the knife against stationary v-shaped abrasives (sometimes, just springed walls are used instead of wheels). Both sides are typically sharpened at once.
Example: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00009R5OY/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20
Fast.......... Medium
Easy......... High
Effective.. Very low
Cheap...... High
Versatile.. Low
Angle controlled system (EdgePro, Wicked Edge System)
Un-powered mechanical device boasting varied abrasives, very controlled customizable sharpening angles
Example: http://edgeproinc204.corecommerce.com/Apex-Model-Edge-Pro-System-c3/
Fast.......... Low
Easy......... Medium
Effective.. Very High
Cheap...... Very Low
Versatile.. High
Professional sharpening.
Speaks for itself.
Fast.......... Very Low**
Easy......... Very High
Effective.. High*
Cheap...... Low*
Versatile.. High**
*These factors are heavily dependent upon the pro sharpener in question. Figures provided are guesses/averages, assuming that your professional sharpener at least is minimally competent.
**These factors especially
Honing steel
A grooved honing steel used as the knife's only form of sharpening.
Example: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00074PDE2/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20
Fast.......... Low-High*
Easy......... Medium
Effective.. Very Low-Low**
Cheap...... High
Versatile..Very Low
*A honing steel is fast assuming you use it every time you use the knife.
** Many say that a steel only trues an edge, and for most people that is true. However, I've come across people who use their grooved steel like a file (applying more pressure), and actually scrape off enough metal that the steel is effectively sharpening the knife, albeit not especially well. This type of use is dependent on technique and also what knives you're using.
Ceramic/diamond honing steel
A ceramic or diamond abrasive honing steel used as a knife's only form of sharpening
Example: http://www.amazon.com/Henckels-10-Inc...
Fast.......... Very Low-High*
Easy......... Medium
Effective.. Medium
Cheap...... Medium
Versatile.. Medium
*A ceramic steel is fast assuming you use it every time you use the knife. It is very slow to sharpen a fully dull knife with one.
These figures are the best I could come up with. I have first hand experience with all of the above types of sharpener except for the Variable Angle rods/Sharpmaker style - for that, I've extrapolated from reviews and what I know of sharpening."
That was it. Any suggestions from this forum?
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