Prices

[Smallfarmtown]

If this is not an appropriate topic please let me know. I am close to start changing for my sharping. Would any one email me there price list, preferably for knifes and wood turning tools I thought I would primarily do knifes, but there is interest in wood tools. I don't  know what I would charge or if I want to fork over the $425 for the wood turning set. My Tormek T8 is a month old, all my family and friends are thrilled with edge's I have been getting. My email address is rickengellant@gmail.com.

[Johan]

Here is a website with prices https://www.sharpening-service.co.uk/onlineshop/

[Naf]

I newbie... so take with grain of salt... I read myriad posts here... see some say some people charge $1 per blade inch. I not do this commercially, but that price make me think:  1) There stuff must be cheaper than mine 2) They must be much faster than me 3) This price might be from sixties 4) Commercial sharpeners might be poverty stricken 5) They do whole bunches of swords or 6) They not taking into account recent inflation.   Realize that not give you recommend pricing, only thoughts related this.

[John_B]

I have a limited client list for sharpening. I am retired and do not want to have my days filled with sharpening. I charge $5 US a knife. Most think this is too inexpensive and round up, normally to $50 or $100 depending on number of knives they bring. I keep a book with all of my set up information so it is easier and faster the second time around.

I also give free training on knife usage and steeling if they want.

[BeSharp]

I newbie... so take with grain of salt... I read myriad posts here... see some say some people charge $1 per blade inch. I not do this commercially, but that price make me think:  1) There stuff must be cheaper than mine 2) They must be much faster than me 3) This price might be from sixties 4) Commercial sharpeners might be poverty stricken 5) They do whole bunches of swords or 6) They not taking into account recent inflation.   Realize that not give you recommend pricing, only thoughts related this.

1) I started by charging $1 (Canadian) per inch, but soon switched over to $10 per knife. Just easier to calculate in the midst of a farmers market. More for Globals, Shuns, Miyabis, ceramic knives because harder materials, angle changes (16 degrees for Shun), different grinding compounds, and people spending that much more on such knives will pay more.
2) Yes, speed matters, hence my multiple Tormek setups.
4) Don't expect to make a lot of money from this
5) Swords are a pain, I would stay away. Gritomatic does sell an interesting sword sharpening jig.
6) You're limited to charging what people will pay. If they paid $60 at (a big box store) for 15 knives, they're not going to pay $10 to sharpen each one. I learned how to gently suggest why they are not worth doing, and point them to buying fewer, but better quality knives. In fact, my #1 marketing material is a one-pager, "Best Value Chef Knives". We have to appreciate that most people simply don't know what brands are good steels.

[lpnicholas]

When I started sharpening knives 11 years ago, I charged $5.00 US+tx per knife, regardless of size from pocket knives to the chef knives. Today, I charge $6.50 US+tax per knife. When it comes to machetes and swords. I decide price after seeing them and the work involved. When your on a customer call and they want to figure how much they're going to pay for their knives. Explaining the price per inch is a pain. Price per knife is just simpler. I've considered raising my prices but with inflation on the rise, people will be giving up certain non-essentials. I'm worried knife sharpening will be considered non-essential, so raising my prices will only hasten the decision. What I'm wondering is what others charge for mail order pricing?

[BeSharp]

Actually, with rising food prices, people will eat out less and eat in more, so I think knife sharpening demand would increase.

[sharpening_weasel]

Hey there!

I charge USD $1.50 per inch, plus an additional $2.20 for wear and tear on stones. I use the SG-250 and the SJ-250, and debur on a hanging felt and leather straight razor strop. I've found it's really not that hard to charge per inch, just get a decent metal combo square and you're good to go. I don't mean to tread on any toes here, this is just what I find to be the case with the work I do. If there are serious chips/nicks/major re-profiling needed, charge for that too, whatever seems reasonable. That's my personal metric- you have to find what works for you/the time you're putting into each knife/your skill level/the level of sharpness you're able to get. Something that helped me immensely was to calculate out the number of knives I could do per hour at different sharpening rates, and seeing which ones worked best as a use of my time. I also do woodworking tools. If you're looking to do those too, I'd recommend starting with the square edge jig- it's great for chisels and plane blades, two of the more high volume woodworking tools that I tend to sharpen. Just be prepared to see some absolutely wrecked chisels, and don't hesitate to tell your clients to just get a new chisel. Often the budget chisels are less expensive to get a new one of than to fully restore to a functional edge.
Cheers, and happy sharpening!