Choosing the Right Knife: The First Step in Sharpening Success

It’s a long title, I know. But it pretty much sums up everything I want to say (LOL). No matter what knife you use, sharpening it is inevitable. When it comes to choosing a knife, it’s crucial to pick one that’s easy to sharpen—not in terms of hardness or steel type, but structurally! This is especially true for knives with straight edges like Usuba, KamaUsuba, Takohiki, and Sobakiri.

Have you ever been sharpening your knife and thought, ‘If I do this here, it should turn out like this… Wait, why isn’t it working? That’s odd!’? Choosing a knife that’s structurally easy to sharpen might solve that problem.

Of course, the way you sharpen and the condition of your whetstone can significantly impact the result as well. If you’re thinking about buying an Usuba, KamaUsuba, or something similar, keep in mind whether you’ll be able to work well with that knife and if you can sharpen and maintain it properly over time.

• 2011-03-03