Steeper angel mistake

[adam_Cullen]

Well, I f***ed up

So I started my sushi training and boss said I needed my knives sharper. So I took it upon myself to learn better sharpening at steeper angles.. aannnndddd this is what happened. If anything, this is showing me just how much of a sharpening novice I am.. so any tips? Repair tips?

Knife in question:
240mm PS60 Kanahide gyuto from CKTG.

 

[Greasylake]

If you're sharpening behind the bevel then your angle is too low, not too steep. If you want to make it pretty again you'd have to refinish the knife, which can be a decent amount of work. Otherwise, just sharpen at a higher angle next time and carry on.

 

[stringer]

Well, I f***ed up

So I started my sushi training and boss said I needed my knives sharper. So I took it upon myself to learn better sharpening at steeper angles.. aannnndddd this is what happened. If anything, this is showing me just how much of a sharpening novice I am.. so any tips? Repair tips?

Knife in question:
240mm PS60 Kanahide gyuto from CKTG.

Just getting it broke in. The grinds on these knives is pretty good. But if you use and sharpen them a lot then you will need to do periodic thinning to maintain the same performance. It looks like that's what you have done there and a petty decent even job too. You can refinish it with sandpaper to bring back the original look, or just let it ride.

https://www.kitchenknifeforums.com/threads/old-beater-meet-new-beater.44563/

 

[Wagnum]

I understand how you feel. It sucks to scratch up your new knife but at the end of the day it's a tool you use for work so it's more important that it's sharp than anything else. Like others said you could take it through a sandpaper progression but that is alot of work and chances are it'll happen again so until you are %1000 confident with your sharpening I'd say leave it

 

[Pie]

Well, I f***ed up

So I started my sushi training and boss said I needed my knives sharper. So I took it upon myself to learn better sharpening at steeper angles.. aannnndddd this is what happened. If anything, this is showing me just how much of a sharpening novice I am.. so any tips? Repair tips?

Knife in question:
240mm PS60 Kanahide gyuto from CKTG.

Get your burr on (and off) and forget about aesthetics. If it’s sharp it’s sharp and food gets cut easier.

If you can get the edge nice and keen it’s good enough for now!

 

[sansho]

don't worry about the scratches. scratches happen with sharpening until you get more experience.

once you're experienced enough that you don't scratch knives anymore (this can take a while), then at that point consider refinishing if it really bothers you. or just leave the scratches.

btw steep means higher angle meaning more robust edge (maybe like 15-20° per side).
low/shallow means lower angle meaning maybe sharper but more fragile edge (maybe 10-15° per side).

when you sharpen low enough, you're not even hitting the edge anymore. you hit behind the edge and scratch the face of your knife. that's what happened to you.

also i would guess that the perceived need to have your knife sharper wasn't simply about getting a lower angle. if you're new to sharpening, there's a lot more that goes into it (like angle consistency and proper deburring).

 

[HumbleHomeCook]

As others have said, you went lower not steeper and if you're gonna f'up, that's the better direction to go. Yeah, you get some scratches and your knife doesn't get any sharper cuz you're not apexing but that's better than going too steep and grinding in a 25 or 30dps that you then will need to fix.

Look up the Japanese Knife Imports sharpening videos on YouTube. It'll come.

 

[NotAddictedYet]

If an angel is being naughty, ask God to bring them in line.

On a serious note, it look like it may be time to pick up polishing as well .

 

[Delat]

Agree with everybody else, looks to like you did some inadvertent thinning, which is probably a good thing anyway given you’re working with sushi and need your knives sharper.

Regarding sharpness - if the knife is cleanly slicing a paper towel then the edge is technically sharp. If it’s not that sharp, then yes you need to work on your sharpening skills (but imho cleanly slicing a paper towel is actually a fairly high bar, so it’s a goal to work towards). One step down from that is push cutting freestanding newspaper, or slicing the side of rolled up copy paper).

If your edge is capable of the above then then other aspect of perceived sharpness is blade geometry, or how thin it is behind the edge. That’s where your thinning helps. If you feel the edge is sharp but you get more resistance than you want through food, then you probably need to do some thinning to reduce resistance.

 

[cotedupy]

I think it looks badass... nice thinning! Even if you don't like the look - at the very least stuff like that *will* make your knife sharper (and indeed more appropriate for sushi/sashimi ).

 

[Jovidah]

Looks like you got started on thinning? If it really bothered you it's possible to polish it all out, but especially for a rather humble work knife I personally wouldn't bother.

 

[Benuser]

In fact, it's good practice to start any sharpening by thinning behind the edge, and only raise the spine little by little, until you've reached the very edge.

 

[natto]

Sushi or raw fish is pretty soft. Shallow angles and thin geometrys might help, I dunno.

Your chef may have asked for a cleaner cut, smooth surface with a little shine.