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YouTubePretty good writeup too. It must have worked because their website is off-line due to "Bandwidth Exceeded". He's out of Galena, and I've heard good things.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703405704575014992111661922.html
Columbus Underground Messageboard » General Columbus Discussion » Shopping
The Knife Guy Knife sharpening service mentioned in the Wall Street Journal
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michaelcoyote
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Posted 2 years ago # -
Tenzo
Chicago Lakeshore
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Norman Weinstein, knife-skills instructor at the Institute of Culinary Education in New York City, recommends using a reputable professional instead of trying to sharpen your knives at home "because the learning curve for doing it yourself is so high."
That is rather elitist.
And patently untrue.It's a learning curve. But I never consider a learning curve on something that impacts my everyday life 'high'
(OK, so I did take a 4 month knife skills class. But it has paid off many times)Institute of Culinary Education
pffft, second rate culinary school, with a fancy name.Posted 2 years ago # -
michaelcoyote
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Tenzo wrote >>
Norman Weinstein, knife-skills instructor at the Institute of Culinary Education in New York City, recommends using a reputable professional instead of trying to sharpen your knives at home "because the learning curve for doing it yourself is so high."
That is rather elitist.
And patently untrue.
It's a learning curve. But I never consider a learning curve on something that impacts my everyday life 'high'
(OK, so I did take a 4 month knife skills class. But it has paid off many times)I'm thinking that most people would not agree, and I'm betting I'd be right too. For whatever reason, most people don't sharpen their knives. They may have no time to learn how, don't have the equipment or even know what they would need, or have no one to teach them.
I know how to sharpen knives, and in fact I've taken some horribly dull knives and sharpened them on the bottom of saucers and coffee mugs (it works OK). I have a ceramic "stone" that I use and I can get my knives very sharp. Even so I've been considering using The Knife Guy just to see how they could do with some older knives I have that need blades reworked. I'd imagine they could do better than I could just by dint of their experience.
Tenzo wrote >>
Institute of Culinary Education
pffft, second rate culinary school, with a fancy name.Elitist.
Posted 2 years ago # -
rus
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I'm with Tenzo. Sharpening knives isn't rocket science.
If people don't know how, there's always this new fangled invention called the intarweb:
http://www.wikihow.com/Sharpen-a-Knife
Crock sticks for light sharpening, a lansky set for heavier duty work and stones for the big jobs.
Posted 2 years ago # -
lifeliberty
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i was watching a cooking show once and they tested like 4 or 5 sharpeners they bought at stores, i think some were electric and some fancy. the one that worked the best was the cheapest bought at a hardware store for around $2 or something, looked like a little blue handle.
like this
http://www.amazon.com/Accusharp-1-AccuSharp-Knife-Sharpener/dp/B00004VWKQPosted 2 years ago # -
rus
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lifeliberty wrote >>
i was watching a cooking show once and they tested like 4 or 5 sharpeners they bought at stores, i think some were electric and some fancy. the one that worked the best was the cheapest bought at a hardware store for around $2 or something, looked like a little blue handle.
like this
http://www.amazon.com/Accusharp-1-AccuSharp-Knife-Sharpener/dp/B00004VWKQThose sort of things aren't bad for light work; they use ceramic rods set at an angle for removing metal. Just the thing for the common stamped blade of uniform thickness.
The next step up ( at a whopping $17.97 ) is this:
http://www.knivesplus.com/lanksyknifesharpenerlk-ldtb2.html
Same idea, but tend to work a bit better with forged blades IMHO. I use those to get my knives literally sharp enough to shave with; if I cant remove the hair from my arm, I keep sharpening until I can. Might take a whole 5 minutes.
Posted 2 years ago # -
turnedNOTburned
Grandview/Columbus, Ohio
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Another option that I use,
Depending on your tolerance for cheap imported tools..
Get a fine belt (400-600 grit, start lower if your a newbie) Do a little research on the net, start with an OLD cheap knife for practice - you WILL mangle it the first few times, but, you'll catch on quickly. Use a light touch and it'll take less than 15 seconds a blade. Worst case scenario, if you mess'em up, you can have them professionally sharpened.
Mine will keep a good edge for 2-3 months (based on how I use it, and being careful to only use on wood/poly cutting boards), before I have to knock the edge back into place with a steel.
I'm overdue for a sharpening, I'll do that today and post pics/video, and post. I'm SUCH a geek for sharpening.... heh
Posted 2 years ago # -
michaelcoyote
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rus wrote >>
Sharpening knives isn't rocket science.Never said it was..
I'm just saying that most people aren't going to learn for whatever reason.
Like I said, I do it myself, and while I'm not a pro, it's not too terribly difficult. My knives do tend to be sharper than most.
That said, I'd still like to see how a pro does re-edging some old damaged knives I have.
turnedNOTburned wrote >>
Another option that I use,
Depending on your tolerance for cheap imported tools..
Harbor Freight Belt Sander
Get a fine belt (400-600 grit, start lower if your a newbie) Do a little research on the net, start with an OLD cheap knife for practice - you WILL mangle it the first few times, but, you'll catch on quickly. Use a light touch and it'll take less than 15 seconds a blade.Light touch is right, if you're too overzealous, you can overheat the blade and damage the temper. I would imagine if you just hit it for a second or two at a time you'd be fine.
Do you do any polishing?
Sadly I don't have a place to set up even a small belt sander here.. I think between that and a polishing wheel I'd probably be able to recondition damaged knives.
turnedNOTburned wrote >> Mine will keep a good edge for 2-3 months (based on how I use it, and being careful to only use on wood/poly cutting boards), before I have to knock the edge back into place with a steel.
I'm overdue for a sharpening, I'll do that today and post pics/video, and post. I'm SUCH a geek for sharpening.... hehI do enjoy sharpening. It's a nice Sunday afternoon activity. I'll start a big pot of soup, wash all my knives and inspect them for sharpness.
A steel is great for reconditioning knives. I hit my knives with a steel every month or so. It seems to make a before-after difference.
Proper storage will also go along way to protecting an edge.. I use plastic clip type blade guards to keep my knife blades from getting dinged up in the drawer.
Posted 2 years ago # -
rus
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michaelcoyote wrote >>
rus wrote >>
Sharpening knives isn't rocket science.Never said it was..
I'm just saying that most people aren't going to learn for whatever reason.Hey, if a company wants to make money off the lazy, no problem by me. Hell, charge them extra for rush handling and sell an anti-rust coating while they're at it.
michaelcoyote wrote >>
Proper storage will also go along way to protecting an edge.. I use plastic clip type blade guards to keep my knife blades from getting dinged up in the drawer.
There's this thing called a knife block....
Posted 2 years ago # -
michaelcoyote
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rus wrote >>
michaelcoyote wrote >>
Proper storage will also go along way to protecting an edge.. I use plastic clip type blade guards to keep my knife blades from getting dinged up in the drawer.There's this thing called a knife block....
Which takes up far more space and commonly comes packaged with knives I don't want or need. I've seen blocks that go in drawers, but again these are usually packaged with knives.
The guards are cheap, they work and they save space. They also make it easy to throw my knives in a bag (wrapped in a towel of course) if I have to cook somewhere that isn't my kitchen.
If a knife block works for you though, far be it for me to dissuade you from it.
Posted 2 years ago # -
0Angle
A brewery or my kitchen or my bicycle.
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Blair (the knife guy) used to sharpen my knives in exchange for beer. Bartering is awesome! When he sold his mobile business, it wasn't the same. He is a true master. He inspired me to get a stone and decent steel, but he put an edge on my knives that no amateur (like me) will ever achieve.
Posted 2 years ago # -
michaelcoyote
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0Angle wrote >>
Blair (the knife guy) used to sharpen my knives in exchange for beer. Bartering is awesome! When he sold his mobile business, it wasn't the same. He is a true master. He inspired me to get a stone and decent steel, but he put an edge on my knives that no amateur (like me) will ever achieve.Yeah, He seems like a nice guy and David from Bluescreek Farms swears by him. I'd like to try him out just to see what a pro service can do. Do you know if you can still do dropoff and pickup?
Posted 2 years ago # -
0Angle
A brewery or my kitchen or my bicycle.
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michaelcoyote wrote >>
0Angle wrote >>
Blair (the knife guy) used to sharpen my knives in exchange for beer. Bartering is awesome! When he sold his mobile business, it wasn't the same. He is a true master. He inspired me to get a stone and decent steel, but he put an edge on my knives that no amateur (like me) will ever achieve.Yeah, He seems like a nice guy and David from Bluescreek Farms swears by him. I'd like to try him out just to see what a pro service can do. Do you know if you can still do dropoff and pickup?
I'll check with Dave & Cheryl and Jerry & Ann Marie
Posted 2 years ago # -
turnedNOTburned
Grandview/Columbus, Ohio
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michaelcoyote wrote >>
Do you do any polishing?
Sadly I don't have a place to set up even a small belt sander here.. I think between that and a polishing wheel I'd probably be able to recondition damaged knives.Funny you mention that, I have a buffing wheel thats been setting on my shelf for a year thats made for exactly that purpose. I've used one before and have struggled as I usually round over the edge. Good inspiration to practice this afternoon...
I'm at Junctionview Friday night and mosta the day Sunday, you're welcome to drop by and try your hand at it, just tweet me.
Posted 2 years ago # -
turnedNOTburned
Grandview/Columbus, Ohio
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0Angle wrote >>
Blair (the knife guy) used to sharpen my knives in exchange for beer. Bartering is awesome! When he sold his mobile business, it wasn't the same. He is a true master. He inspired me to get a stone and decent steel, but he put an edge on my knives that no amateur (like me) will ever achieve.It would be SO awesome to learn from him. I wonder if he would ever take an apprentice?
Posted 2 years ago # -
lifeliberty
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not for the timid
Posted 2 years ago # -
rus
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michaelcoyote wrote >>
The guards are cheap, they work and they save space. They also make it easy to throw my knives in a bag (wrapped in a towel of course) if I have to cook somewhere that isn't my kitchen.Cooking somewhere that isn't your kitchen.
Yeah. That's exactly why I'm carrying knives in a bag. Right next to the duct tape and trash bags.
Posted 2 years ago # -
Tenzo
Chicago Lakeshore
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michaelcoyote wrote >>
rus wrote >>
michaelcoyote wrote >>
Proper storage will also go along way to protecting an edge.. I use plastic clip type blade guards to keep my knife blades from getting dinged up in the drawer.There's this thing called a knife block....
Which takes up far more space and commonly comes packaged with knives I don't want or need. I've seen blocks that go in drawers, but again these are usually packaged with knives.
The guards are cheap, they work and they save space. They also make it easy to throw my knives in a bag (wrapped in a towel of course) if I have to cook somewhere that isn't my kitchen.
.$15
Posted 2 years ago # -
Tenzo
Chicago Lakeshore
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Speaking of knife rolls.
I was taking my knives with me once and packed them in my carry on, without thinking.When I arrived and unpacked my bag I thought; "sh1t! I could have gotten in trouble for this!"
Good thing I didnt take a nail clipper
(true story)
Posted 2 years ago #
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