Wusthof Chef Knives
Source:wusthof.com

Baby Boomer Men Who Cook Love Sharp Knives

Having sharp knives is a point of contention with me – or perhaps more accurately – dull knives. Many kitchens have knives that ‘saw’ through foods rather than dice, slice or chop.

One of my favorite places to spend spare time is in the kitchen because I like to cook and I’m getting better at it. It’s kind of becoming a “sport-hobby” for me – as a genuine wannabe chef. Because, I am a Healthy Boomer and very conscious about the quality of food that I put into my body, the preparation of food is done with great care and conscious attention to detail. Good cooking tools and sharp knives are essential in the kitchen in order to create delightful and healthy meals fast.

Over the years, I have made a sincere effort to learn how to sharpen a knife correctly – with only limited success to my satisfaction. In part, this is because those who tried to show me didn’t know either.

After college, I took several woodworking classes making furniture using traditional woodworking tools. Part of the curriculum was learning how to sharpen hand plane blades and chisels.

Source:japaneseknifesharpening.com

I accomplished some degree of success first using Arkansas oil stones and a lot of elbow grease. Later I learned how to use Japanese water stones to sharpen to these tools to a mirror finish.

Every cutting edge requires a specific bevel angle, or what’s called a primary angle. On steel knives the angle usually varies from 15-25 degrees depending on the style of knife and how it is manufactured.

In order for a the cutting edge to work effectively, there needs to be a relief angle – in addition to the primary bevel. On square edged tools like a chisel, this can be achieved by grinding a second bevel. Another way to create a relief angle is by using a grinding wheel to create a hollow grind. What creates the most effective cutting edge on a chisel is actually a combination of the two: First a hollow grind, then a secondary angle and finally the primary edge

What really makes a cutting edge work efficiently is the second bevel angle. In this context, you end up with 3 bevels on a cutting edge. The primary angle, the second angle and a relief bevel. Here is an excellent description of how to sharpen a knife on Mike Casey’s Knife Sharpening Page.

Scroll down to Figure 5 to see the three bevel angles described above. This visual may help. A triple bevel cutting edge creates a very strong and durable cutting edge with exceptional ‘relief’ to reduce friction and resistance when the cutting edge is in the material you are cutting.

On the Subject of Edges and Honing

Here is a good series of magnifications showing the cutting edge of a knife sharpened using an F. Dick SM 111 sharpening machine.

1. Before 2. After 3. Ground 4. Honed 5. Polished (SM-111 only)
(source:http://users.ameritech.net/knives/dick.htm)

Frederich Dick SM 111 3 Stage Sharpening Machine

Sharpening A Square Edged Tool…

Sharpening a square edged tool is fairly easy because we only have one plane to be concerned with. As long as we keep the cutting edge at a 90 degree to the grinding surface, it’s pretty straight forward.

We need some type of jig or fixture to maintain that relationship so we can create a constant angle across the entire cutting edge.

The SM111 is a great way to grind, remove the burr and hone fairly quickly and consistently. This looks like a good machine that runs about $2600.

A Radiused or Contoured Cutting Edge Is a Different Story.

When we sharpen a contoured edge, maintaining constant bevel edges across the entire cutting edge surface is a different story.

It requires a way to maintain a constant bevel around the contour of the knife. If you use water stones, this requires a great deal of skill and practice although this can be a very effective way to sharpen knives.

Look at these before and after pictures and see Dave Martell can do with waters stones, by hand.

What about a regular guy who isn’t an expert with water stones?

A Chef’s Recommendation…

Edge Pro Knife Sharpener
source:http://www.edgeproinc.com/

With an Apex Knife Sharpener, Putting a 600 Grit Finish on the Cutting Edges of Your Knives Is a Snap…

About a week ago, I was talking to a chef from the Ritz in Sarasota and he told me about the Apex Edge Pro. He bought one himself to keep his $250-300 knives razor sharp. He was actually looking at a new fillet knife when I spoke to him because he needed to fillet a large grouper for a function at the Ritz that night.

Watch this sharpener in action, it’s so easy to use.

When I got home, I took a look at what Chef was talking about. I’m impressed. So much so that I am going to get this system myself. It’s about $575 with attachments and a carrying case.

What qualifies me to talk about sharpening?

I founded and was the managing partner for True Cut Saw and Tool in Hamilton, Montana for six years. We did industrial grinding for the woodworking industry specializing in cemented carbide tooling. Our niche was carbide tipped router bits. We sharpened, manufactured and retipped router bits, shaper cutters and circle saws, maintaining a high level of professional quality.

I was also a foodservice broker in Seattle for 5 years and have interfaced with thousands of chefs. Cutlery has been an interest of mine for many years.

A key to Baby Boomer Health is eating right. Baby Boomer Men who cook love knives. Knives are an integral part of food preparation and eating right.

I AM Michael Barrett and I AM A Healthy Boomer