Shorten my knife

[Thenun]

Hey. I bought a 5.3 inch migaki super aogami haruyuki universal knife. It has stainless cladding. Its a little to long for my taste, ive would have prefered it to be like 4inch. Is there anyway to shorten this knife to that succesfully? Buying a new knife that length is out of the question as i cant find it.

Sharpening this normal, how long would it take shortening? Got a coarse diamond stone.

And how would it be using angle grinder or something cutting away the metal, then putting on a new edge?

 

[Pie]

There’s a few 120mm pettys out there iirc. Off the top of my head kurosaki and a some takefu makers make them.

I think your project is possible, but there’s some tools, time and a good eye required. Taking that much metal basically necessitates regrinding much of knife to maintain its performance, which is never a quick or easy thing. Regular sharpening might take a few decades to take off 1.3 inches from the length.

It can be done. Should it be done? Wellllll I suppose that’s up to you. Personally I’d buy a new lil short knife.

 

[HumbleHomeCook]

I'd recommend you leave it alone and either get used to it or let the forum help you find something else.

What are you using it for that you feel it is too long?

 

[Thenun]

Im using it as an pairing knife. Thing is, i really like everything about that knife. Especially the handle.

Im curious, is it the geometry making it hard? Lets say i use an angle grinder and get good geometry on the knife. Cant i just sharpen on a edge then? Then thin it and all that stuff

 

[Rangen]

Im curious, is it the geometry making it hard?

I think it's the fact that you would be taking on the job of a knifemaker. Bet they don't get good at that overnight.

 

[tostadas]

Im using it as an pairing knife. Thing is, i really like everything about that knife. Especially the handle.

Im curious, is it the geometry making it hard? Lets say i use an angle grinder and get good geometry on the knife. Cant i just sharpen on a edge then? Then thin it and all that stuff

If you know what you're doing, yes that could work. If not, then you could end up spending a ton of time and ruining your knife. Angle grinder will probably mess up the heat treat, at least in some parts of the knife.

 

[Pie]

Im using it as an pairing knife. Thing is, i really like everything about that knife. Especially the handle.

Im curious, is it the geometry making it hard? Lets say i use an angle grinder and get good geometry on the knife. Cant i just sharpen on a edge then? Then thin it and all that stuff

Yeahhhh it’s hard. I don’t know though, if it’s something you want to try and don’t have any need to maintain original geometry, who are we to say you can’t do it? Just on my end I wouldn’t, because I’m not good enough to regrind like they grind. Who knows, maybe you won’t have any issues with how it cuts after. Standards vary.

Some sharpeners are as desirable as the smith themselves. There’s most definitely a learning curve.

 

[HumbleHomeCook]

Talking about an angle grinder and not understanding why that might be problematic is why I'm recommending you leave it alone.

I'm not being a jerk.

Going at it with an angle grinder is highly likely to trash the knife's heat treat and then it won't matter how pretty you make it.

You'd be better off selling and buying a paring knife you like. There's a lot of options out there.

 

[M1k3]

Tip it, fix it. Rinse and repeat until desired length achieved.

 

[stringer]

Tip it, fix it. Rinse and repeat until desired length achieved.

This totally works. I've done this to dozens of knives. It takes little to no skill to knock a quarter of an inch off here and there with no risk of burning the heat treat. It is bound to happen if you own the knife long enough and use it enough. Better to let nature run it's course and learn how to adapt to what comes than to accelerate the learning curve unnecessarily. Use it like you want it to be shorter and it will get shorter fast enough. Gives you one more good reason not to try and catch the thing if it starts to slide off of the countertop. If you do decide to take an angle grinder to it you will destroy the functionality of the knife at a minimum. Please wear some proper personal protection equipment so that you don't hurt yourself as well in the process. Eye protection at a bare minimum. Good luck.

 

[Legion74]

I’ve shortened and reshaped a few carbon steel knives, and turned a lot of damaged straight razors into “shorties”.

The knives I do with a cutoff wheel on a Dremel, using a flex shaft, and keeping the edge in water to keep it from getting hot. Then tidy and reshape with Dremel sanding drums, grinding wheels, and coarse stones.

Razors I do with Dremel grinders, sitting the edge on a block of ice. As it warms it “cuts” further into the ice and cools itself down.

Go slow, use PPE.

 

[Dull_Apex]

If you decide to use power tools, you'll want to look at heat management techniques used by knifemakers.

Forum legend ma_sha1 made a comment that a table saw didn't cause as many heat problems:

https://www.kitchenknifeforums.com/threads/shig-kasumi-diy.48364/

 

[Thenun]

Tip it, fix it. Rinse and repeat until desired length achieved.

What does this mean specifically?



When sharpening a knife normally, dosent one eventually erase the edge that that master sharpener have put on it? Thus making the edge my own? I mean, one cant exactly manage to keep the original edge exactly as it is when sharpening. Cant i then (in theory at least) just put my own edge on the knife when the metal is removed?

 

[M1k3]

What does this mean specifically?



When sharpening a knife normally, dosent one eventually erase the edge that that master sharpener have put on it? Thus making the edge my own? I mean, one cant exactly manage to keep the original edge exactly as it is when sharpening. Cant i then (in theory at least) just put my own edge on the knife when the metal is removed?

Damage the tip of the knife. Grind on the spine side to recreate the tip and keep the curve. Repeat.

 

[Jovidah]

Why not just buy a knife in the desired length instead?

 

[Blank Blades.]

Ive heard a vise, and a hammer is the most common method.

 

[Boynutman]

Can you afford ($$$) loosing it?
Totally fun to tinker with knives so if it's not a big deal... it may be a learning experience.

 

[spaceconvoy]

Thing is, i really like everything about that knife. Especially the handle.

I get it, not sure why this is so difficult for others to comprehend. I've shortened a petty to get an extra 5mm in height. The 120mm petty I wanted was only 26mm tall, but the 150mm version was 31mm. It was well worth the effort.

I’ve shortened and reshaped a few carbon steel knives, and turned a lot of damaged straight razors into “shorties”.

The knives I do with a cutoff wheel on a Dremel, using a flex shaft, and keeping the edge in water to keep it from getting hot. Then tidy and reshape with Dremel sanding drums, grinding wheels, and coarse stones.

Razors I do with Dremel grinders, sitting the edge on a block of ice. As it warms it “cuts” further into the ice and cools itself down.

Go slow, use PPE.

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This is exactly how I did it. Dremel cutoff wheel and running water. That's the easy part. Reprofiling the edge and spine afterwards takes some effort, but then fixing the grind is the majority of the work. It's not rocket science or some mystical art though. Those elite sharpeners are valued for their consistency and efficiency. But anyone can do it on one knife with enough time and patience.

 

[MrHiggins]

Im using it as an pairing knife. Thing is, i really like everything about that knife. Especially the handle.

Im curious, is it the geometry making it hard? Lets say i use an angle grinder and get good geometry on the knife. Cant i just sharpen on a edge then? Then thin it and all that stuff

I turned a nakiri into a bunka with an angle grinder. I have 0 skills and it still turned out fine. Watch for over- heating and have a big bucket of water there to cool your knife off every few seconds. It can be done.

 

[Stockman]

Im using it as an pairing knife. Thing is, i really like everything about that knife. Especially the handle.

Im curious, is it the geometry making it hard? Lets say i use an angle grinder and get good geometry on the knife. Cant i just sharpen on a edge then? Then thin it and all that stuff

Have you considered that reducing the blade length by 25% might unbalance the weight, the handle that you like now might not feel so great if the balance point is too far backwards in your grip?

 

[Gregmega]

I find the best way is to start slowly with a few gin cocktails and draw in sharpie where you’d like to shave directly on your knife (always from the spine to the edge). Now move onto a high proof whiskey, preferably a bourbon & make it 6-8 two-finger pours. Now is a good time to place your knife in a vice while preparing for the next step. At this point you’ll want to call your ‘bindy’ dealer cause you may be cross-eyed. After a quick ‘tune up’, you’ll be ready to throw inhibition aside and a false confidence will wash over you like spring rain. Grab an angle grinder, and do your best to stay inside the lines, DO NOT forget a quality pair of goggles. While you’re standing back and admiring your work, you can browse websites for 140mm pairing knives you’ll probably be buying to replace your fine work. Boom, job done.

 

[Thenun]

If you decide to use power tools, you'll want to look at heat management techniques used by knifemakers.

Forum legend ma_sha1 made a comment that a table saw didn't cause as many heat problems:

https://www.kitchenknifeforums.com/threads/shig-kasumi-diy.48364/

That ma guy is my new hero. I hope to one day make this thread 24 pages long too.