Great-aunt passed away leaving me with a knife that needs extreme thinning

[mengo]

Hi all,

I need help with extreme thinning of a knife belonging to my late great aunt. She unfortunately passed away recently. She loves cooking and was the one who taught me how to cook growing up. In 2016, we got her a Japanese knife for her birthday and she's been using it heavily since then. Unfortunately, she did not have the knowledge necessary to maintain one of these knives. She had improper sharpening techniques (used a concrete corner in the garden). This resulted in pitting and damages to the cutting edge.

I tried my best to get a sharp edge on it and was some what successful. The problem is that the knife is so thick behind the edge it wedges into everything.
This thing is a literal ice pick.

I just recently started my first ever job in the kitchen and would like to honor her by keep using this knife. I was wondering if anyone offers affordable thinning services and could help me out. I don't have much money as I'm paying for college by myself without taking out a loan. All of the sharpeners in my local area (San Diego) said they don't have the tools necessary for such thinning job.

 

[daveb]

I've sent several to Zach at @Tokushu Knife Works for work I didn't want to do. Always on time, on budget and great results.

 

[blokey]

JKI is another great option since you live in Cal.

 

[daveb]

JKI is another great option since you live in Cal.

Last time I asked, Jon was not accepting sharpening work. If that's changed then he would be my first rec.

 

[blokey]

Last time I asked, Jon was not accepting sharpening work. If that's changed then he would be my first rec.

He’s open for sharpening now, already been there few times.

 

[HumbleHomeCook]

Maybe the best way you can honor your great aunt is to hang that on the wall of your home kitchen and stay focused on your schooling and work. Once you're out of school and have a little bit of money, then you can spend some on getting the knife treated properly. I suspect she'd be more touched by that than you spending money you may not really have right now.

It ain't going anywhere.

 

[mengo]

I've sent several to Zach at @Tokushu Knife Works for work I didn't want to do. Always on time, on budget and great results.

I don’t see a thinning service on their website, only sharpening. How much do they usually charge for thinning?

 

[KenjiF]

I'll second Zach or Jon and add Ryan at district cutlery. Give Zach a ring. He may be at the Blade show still if he doesn't answer but he will be able to give you good advice if he won't do the thinning. JKI is sharpening again. Ryan specializes in belt thinning to stones and has lots of examples of his work on district cutlery Instagram. I'm in LA if you're ever in town I'm happy to take a look and if it's something I can do I'll do it for free or I'll give you coarse stone and some pointers if you want to give it a go.

 

[jedy617]

+1 for all of the above, have had good personal experience with Ryan at District, check out their IG they do some magic. They could definitely grind it down on belts.

 

[tostadas]

+1 for DC. They do a good job at thinning and prices are reasonable. You could give em a call to chat about it.

 

[daveb]

It will largely depend on the knife. You can reach him through the Tokushu website, they also have a faceybook presence and he is a member here.

https://www.kitchenknifeforums.com/...nd-happy-new-year-discount-code-inside.62657/
@TokushuKnife

 

[TokushuKnife]

It will largely depend on the knife. You can reach him through the Tokushu website, they also have a faceybook presence and he is a member here.

https://www.kitchenknifeforums.com/...nd-happy-new-year-discount-code-inside.62657/
@TokushuKnife

I don’t see a thinning service on their website, only sharpening. How much do they usually charge for thinning?

Zach is out for surgery from June 26, 2023 - August 1, 2023. For thinning services use our website chat on the Tokushu Knife Website. Zach will give a personalized quote for thinning services, sharpening and repair. If you haven't already Ryan Swanson from District Cutlery is extremely talented, and you would be in good hands with either sharper.