Sharpening Basics: Learning to Sharpen Exactly Where You Intend

2023.1.14

The questions we receive most often are about sharpening.

The ultimate goal of sharpening is simple: to make the knife cut well.

From there, we continue sharpening to improve other qualities, such as how easily the knife passes through and separates from the food.

To achieve that extra level of performance, however, you first need the fundamentals of sharpening.

And for me, the fundamental skill is being able to sharpen exactly where you intend to.

I think this is where many people struggle.

They know, “This is the part I want to sharpen,” but when they put the knife to the stone, they cannot actually make the stone contact that specific area.

Being able to consistently put the intended part of the blade against the stone is the first important step.

Once you can do that, you can begin shaping the blade into the form you actually want.

I may sound a little presumptuous saying this, but it took me a long time and many knives sacrificed along the way before I could reliably sharpen exactly where I intended.

Because I work at a knife shop, I can practice on knives with Aike—a forging defect in which the steel and iron do not bond properly—or on knives that already have scratches or other imperfections.

Professional cooks, however, cannot afford to use their knives so freely for practice. They also have to think about their actual cooking work at the same time, so I imagine it can be quite difficult for them.

We have introduced things such as Hamaguri edges in the Suisin Feature articles, but come to think of it, I have never really explained the fundamentals of sharpening.

In 2007, I am thinking about making a video about basic sharpening.

I believe the foundation is to “sharpen with a point, not with a surface.”

But I would like to make a video that expresses this idea in a much more practical and realistic way.

Eventually, perhaps I could even make it into a DVD…

I am still learning myself, but honestly, I would like to be able to demonstrate sharpening practically in front of everyone.

No matter how good a knife you buy, it would be a waste if you cannot sharpen it properly.

I still have a long way to go before I can match the knowledge, skill, and experience of professional sharpening craftsmen who have their own workshops.

But I would like to share what I have learned and what I am capable of at this point in my own journey.

Today is already the first day of December!

This year, I reduced the frequency of updates for the Suisin Feature articles, which gave me the opportunity to work on various other things.

My batteries are fully recharged! And I’ve been preparing plenty of new material.

December looks like it will be a month of preparation for 2007.

P.S. I was working until late last night on the “About Hardness” page.

I’m still looking for a good way to explain hardness using examples related to knives, so please wait a little longer.

Daily Practice — 2006-12-01 (00:00)