Expert Advice

[stevebot]

http://www.knifeplanet.net/55-experts-share-knife-sharpening-tips/

[Ken S]

Excellent source of good information, Steve. I will save it on my iPad for reference.

Ken

[Ken S]

This topic reminds me of my favorite Mark Twain quote, "Man is the only animal with the one true religion, all seven of them."

I believe it is naive to think that there is only one "best method" to sharpen knives. With a long background in photography, I was always amused by articles about "fifteen film developers". I would have preferred fifteen articles each written by an accomplished photographer who had used one of the developers successfully for a long time.

With technique and equipment, I have been fascinated with learning why someone chose the particular equipment or evolved into the technique. I will use two well known persons to illustrate this:

First is the technique demonstrated by Jeff Farris in his videos. These have probably been the basis for most of us learning how to use the Tormek. Jeff needed to quickly convey a relatively foolproof technique to beginners. Jeff's results needed to be good for the person to purchase a Tormek. The person had to be able to use this technique to satisfactorily produce sharp edges with his new Tormek. Edge quality was more important than speed.

Next we have Steve Bottorff. Like Jeff, Steve has honed his technique over many years. However, Steve's business model concentrates on doing a good job quickly in a farmer's market or culinary store environment. Steve's driving motive has been producing a quality edge in a fast paced environment. Thus he uses the Tormek differently than Jeff did and has developed a lot of manual dexterity and control.

A home sharpener would have a different set of priorities. In all cases, the person must strike a balance between quality, speed, required expertise and cost. In this regard, whether used entirely or as art of a broader technique, the Tormek is truly a machine for all seasons.

The sharpeners quoted in this article are all experienced. I plan to study them all. Some of the advice will be incorporated into my personal technique; some will just be reference.

Please note that at least two members of this forum are included in the article, Steve and Robin Bailey of Bath, England. If I lived in the UK, I would certainly get to know Robin. 

Thanks for posting this, Steve.

Ken

[Herman Trivilino]

I especially like #16. Keep the bevel angle constant along the entire length of the blade.

Now, why didn't I think of that? 

[SharpenADullWitt]

This topic reminds me of my favorite Mark Twain quote, "Man is the only animal with the one true religion, all seven of them."

I believe it is naive to think that there is only one "best method" to sharpen knives.

First is the technique demonstrated by Jeff Farris in his videos. These have probably been the basis for most of us learning how to use the Tormek. Jeff needed to quickly convey a relatively foolproof technique to beginners. Jeff's results needed to be good for the person to purchase a Tormek. The person had to be able to use this technique to satisfactorily produce sharp edges with his new Tormek. Edge quality was more important than speed.

Next we have Steve Bottorff. Like Jeff, Steve has honed his technique over many years. However, Steve's business model concentrates on doing a good job quickly in a farmer's market or culinary store environment. Steve's driving motive has been producing a quality edge in a fast paced environment. Thus he uses the Tormek differently than Jeff did and has developed a lot of manual dexterity and control.

A home sharpener would have a different set of priorities. In all cases, the person must strike a balance between quality, speed, required expertise and cost. In this regard, whether used entirely or as art of a broader technique, the Tormek is truly a machine for all seasons.

The sharpeners quoted in this article are all experienced. I plan to study them all. Some of the advice will be incorporated into my personal technique; some will just be reference.

Please note that at least two members of this forum are included in the article, Steve and Robin Bailey of Bath, England. If I lived in the UK, I would certainly get to know Robin. 

Thanks for posting this, Steve.

Ken

You can call me naive then, because I thought the one best method, was what the end user found themselves most comfortable with and used. (sure we aren't far apart  )
My point though is I may be using a hand tool and instead of going to a different section of the house to use my Tormek, I might just pull out the bench stones and give a quick touch up.  I think a lot of us learned stones, probably first, either from scouts, or a parent/grandparent, etc.  We'd learn other techniques from them as well (bench grinder for a yard sale find, then finish off with some other method).  Not that different then watching Jeff verses Steve.  Jeff is probably closer to the average Tormek end user, Steve is I would think closer to some of the commercial users (even some in Tormek's video's), where you do a lot in a little time.
You don't arrive there, typically, without exposure to other techniques.

[Ken S]

SaDW,
Correct, we are not far apart. Some of my non Tormek sharpening tools get frequent use. Mill files come to mind, especially the second cut and smooth cut (less brutal than the hardware store standard bastard cut). However, I always get permission from Sweden before using any non Tormek tools.

Ken

[Ken S]

(just kidding.... )

Ken