Knife sharpening

[JonnyMac]

I have a Japanese chefs knife with Damascus blade (from memory its called a kasumi). Ive noticed a few chips in the edge. I have a wetstone whhich puts a great edge on the blade but I wouldnt mind resharpening it so the imperfections are removed.

ive never dealt with this steel before and im wondering if its wise to use a bench grinder with a relatively smooth grit to take the edge off or is the hand method of an oil stone/file/other method the best route to go???? Thanks...

 

[ajchien]

I'm no pro sharpener by any means ....

But I would personally never use a bench grinder on a nice knife.I'd think you'd take off too much metal as well as potential to change the the temper on the steel.

Coarse stone, medium stone, fine stones, and strop. That's what I'd personally do.

 

[unslow1]

I wouldn't even think about a grinder. At work I sharpen a couple each day. A couple of stones then a diamond and regular steel is what I use.

 

[R.Anderson]

use a grinder if you do not like the knife.

I'm no pro sharpener by any means ....

But I would personally never use a bench grinder on a nice knife.I'd think you'd take off too much metal as well as potential to change the the temper on the steel.

Coarse stone, medium stone, fine stones, and strop. That's what I'd personally do.

This or if you want a power tool to use get this:
http://www.worksharptools.com/knife-tool-sharpener-ken-onion-edition.html

I have one and I like it.

 

[zkling]

What style of knife is it? Kasumi makes some nice knives. My method is sand paper on a glass plate and water. Start with ~320grit and work your way up to 2K. Angle consistency is key. Go slow. Make s small wedge or shim to keep either the knife or stone/glass plate at the correct angle.

Do NOT take it to your bench grinder or any other powered machine for that matter.

How big of chips are we talking about? For real damaged edges I go to my water cooled belt grinder.

Disclaimer have been sharpening knives on the side for a number of years, have a preference for Japanese style and am a bit of a snob when it comes to sharpening.

 

[JonnyMac]

Cheers guys.. its a 25cm (ish) standard chefs knife.
The chips are probably 70% of the width of the bevel so only a millimeter or so but theres about 5 or 6 along the length of the blade. I sharpen with an 800/1200 wetstone but obviously that doesnt take the edge back enough to get rid of the imperfections. i can get a super keen edge on it, i believe my sharpening technique is pretty good..

 

[woody 73]

 

[Coolabah]

What style of knife is it? Kasumi makes some nice knives. My method is sand paper on a glass plate and water. Start with ~320grit and work your way up to 2K. Angle consistency is key. Go slow. Make s small wedge or shim to keep either the knife or stone/glass plate at the correct angle.

Do NOT take it to your bench grinder or any other powered machine for that matter.

How big of chips are we talking about? For real damaged edges I go to my water cooled belt grinder.

Disclaimer have been sharpening knives on the side for a number of years, have a preference for Japanese style and am a bit of a snob when it comes to sharpening.

Hah ! Almost took exception when you said "Do NOT take it to your bench grinder or any other powered machine for that matter. " then the very next line "For real damaged edges I go to my water cooled belt grinder. " 100% agree. I have more Japanese cooking knives than I can count and the problem with some of them is their high hardness ( = brittle) so when friends come over for a BBQ they can damage them but , hey if I can't fix it I can buy a new knife . I've had to remove chips as big as 1/4 inch and also use a belt sander. Mine is not watercooled so I use finer grit , profile a bit and water quench every few seconds ( paranoid about affecting the hardness )
I've been making knives for a number of years so just use the equipment I already have