hello from the UK

[gingertimmins]

Hello! I've been lurking for a while to gain knowledge on sharpening.
I'm a professional chef of 20+ years and have had many, many knives but just bought a selection of Japanese knives which I'm hoping will see me through to the end of my career. And for that I need to keep them sharp!

I only have cheap stones from amazon or whatever but am seeking to upgrade as I've become quite taken by it as a hobby!
I'm also on the hunt for a 210 Gyuto but to be honest I don't see this obsession going anywhere any time soon.

Does anyone know good online retailers for Japanese knives and the like? I'm aware of the sharp chef, knives from Japan, Japanese knife company and one or two others but they all (apart from sharp chef) seem to stock an awful lot of global and similar brands which I'm not really after.

Anyway, great forum, I'm very happy to be here!

 

[Nemo]

Welcome to the forums.

You will need to not only sharpen your knives, but maintain their geometry through thinning. Especially if you will be using in a pro environment presumably with sharpening on a very frequent basis.

There are many online retailers who stock quality knives.

Some of them are sponsoring vendors on our forum. Check out our sponsor directory for a list of forum sponsoring vendors.

Rather than try to list all of the good online vendors, I'll suggest you start a "Which knife should I buy?" thread in the Kitchen Knife Forum. It’s best if you answer the questionnaire. It's a sticky thread at the top of the same forum. Copy and paste the questionnaire into your thread and answer the questions (best done in bold or a different colour to make it easier to skim read).

 

[Se1ryu]

Welcome to the forum @gingertimmins
For commercial use at pro kitchen I think regular stone is ok as long as we can achieve good results from it. Sometimes your friends and other chefs will use you stone with or without your knowledge, so doesn't have to buy the extra expensive whetstone, but a good stone is a must.
For Polishing collectible knives or hobbyist we can use extra expensive stone and JNATs to get the best results.

 

[Giovanny Torres]

Welcome to the forums @gingertimmins have a look at cuttingedgeknives, they stock a nice selection of knives and the prices are some of the best in the UK, also kitchen provisions if you look for the right stuff and do some research can have a decent deal.
For stones I have a King combination 1k/6k that lives at work and does the job, people can use it and is ok, at home I have shapton glass and aoto for when I take my knives with me.

 

[gingertimmins]

Welcome to the forums.

You will need to not only sharpen your knives, but maintain their geometry through thinning. Especially if you will be using in a pro environment presumably with sharpening on a very frequent basis.

There are many online retailers who stock quality knives.

Some of them are sponsoring vendors on our forum. Check out our sponsor directory for a list of forum sponsoring vendors.

Rather than try to list all of the good online vendors, I'll suggest you start a "Which knife should I buy?" thread in the Kitchen Knife Forum. It’s best if you answer the questionnaire. It's a sticky thread at the top of the same forum. Copy and paste the questionnaire into your thread and answer the questions (best done in bold or a different colour to make it easier to skim read).

Thank you!
I have thinned a few knives- mostly my old chef knives that I’ve retired over the years. I’ve had varied results but as with my sharpening, I’m getting better. My current knives are still new so I’m hoping by the time I need to thin them I’ll have had enough practice on my old ones!
I’m not quite ready to do the questionnaire thing yet- I’m pretty much set on a 210 tojiro dp as I have the 180 and find it to be pretty indestructible and my requirement for the 210 is that it’s a good beater. I’m definitely after working knives rather than something to be cherished. I estimate that I slice 30kg slaw alone each week (on top of everything else!) the 180 tojiro does a fine job but I could do with some extra length (couldn’t we all )
I guess I want a list of vendors purely for the joy of just looking at knives!

 

[Nemo]

Thank you!
I have thinned a few knives- mostly my old chef knives that I’ve retired over the years. I’ve had varied results but as with my sharpening, I’m getting better. My current knives are still new so I’m hoping by the time I need to thin them I’ll have had enough practice on my old ones!
I’m not quite ready to do the questionnaire thing yet- I’m pretty much set on a 210 tojiro dp as I have the 180 and find it to be pretty indestructible and my requirement for the 210 is that it’s a good beater. I’m definitely after working knives rather than something to be cherished. I estimate that I slice 30kg slaw alone each week (on top of everything else!) the 180 tojiro does a fine job but I could do with some extra length (couldn’t we all )
I guess I want a list of vendors purely for the joy of just looking at knives!

FWIW, I tend to do a little "maintenance thinning" every time I drop down to a medium stone. Avoids tedious thinning sessions.

Y9u could always do a fantasy "which knife should I buy" thread

 

[Benuser]

Welcome aboard!
Looking forward to having meaningful exchanges here.

 

[HumbleHomeCook]

Welcome.

This thread has a lot of vendors in it. Not sure how many are overseas but worth perusing.

https://www.kitchenknifeforums.com/threads/who-do-you-buy-from.52523/

 

[Benuser]

Thank you!
I have thinned a few knives- mostly my old chef knives that I’ve retired over the years. I’ve had varied results but as with my sharpening, I’m getting better. My current knives are still new so I’m hoping by the time I need to thin them I’ll have had enough practice on my old ones!
I’m not quite ready to do the questionnaire thing yet- I’m pretty much set on a 210 tojiro dp as I have the 180 and find it to be pretty indestructible and my requirement for the 210 is that it’s a good beater. I’m definitely after working knives rather than something to be cherished. I estimate that I slice 30kg slaw alone each week (on top of everything else!) the 180 tojiro does a fine job but I could do with some extra length (couldn’t we all )
I guess I want a list of vendors purely for the joy of just looking at knives!

As you're in the UK knivesandtools.co.uk is an interesting option. They are located on the continent, have prices often just a tad lower than others in the Union, and much lower than what seems nowadays common in Britain.