A good illustration of the need for different blade angles in a kitchen is the recent post about the knife missing a large hunk of the blade due to using it to cut a lobster. (The choice of knife might have been done more carefully as well.)
A Sawzall blade which routinely had to cut through nails as well as wood would be a poor choice for cutting dovetails. Likewise a dovetail saw would be easily destroyed by a nail infested 2x4.
My Chinese cleaver used for slicing vegetables can and should be sharpened to a different angle than the heavier chopping cleaver of a more carnivorous person. Vegetables are boneless.
A paring chisel should be ground to a finer bevel than a dovetail or mortising chisel which is hit with a mallet.
Is the exact angle critical? I think we live in a world of tolerance ranges. If I needed a chisel for paring in a size that I only had one sharpened for dovetail chopping, I would use it. Being very sharp covers a multitude of sins. It might not be the ideal tool, but it would work.
One of the joys of skillful sharpening is the ability to adapt edges to specific uses. We can grind a knife or chisel specifically for very light, intricate paring. We can grind the same tool for more utilitarian use. A good chef or woodworker would want that flexibility.
I believe a "compleat" sharpener also uses the edges he creates and maintains. Whether the blade is a chef's knife, chisel or for a lawn mower, the person who sharpens that blade should have a working knowledge of how the tool behaves under different degrees of sharpness. The true test of a sharp kitchen knife is on the cutting board, cutting whatever the intended use is.
I am one of the forum who regularly proclaims the value of being able to sharpen a simple chisel edge. That is an important foundation block in sharpening. I would not minimize it. However, once the basics become solid, there is a whole range of options to adapt the tool to the job and the individual worker. I believe both the satisfaction of doing basic work well and the creativity of choices add to the satisfaction of the sharpener.
Ken
A Sawzall blade which routinely had to cut through nails as well as wood would be a poor choice for cutting dovetails. Likewise a dovetail saw would be easily destroyed by a nail infested 2x4.
My Chinese cleaver used for slicing vegetables can and should be sharpened to a different angle than the heavier chopping cleaver of a more carnivorous person. Vegetables are boneless.
A paring chisel should be ground to a finer bevel than a dovetail or mortising chisel which is hit with a mallet.
Is the exact angle critical? I think we live in a world of tolerance ranges. If I needed a chisel for paring in a size that I only had one sharpened for dovetail chopping, I would use it. Being very sharp covers a multitude of sins. It might not be the ideal tool, but it would work.
One of the joys of skillful sharpening is the ability to adapt edges to specific uses. We can grind a knife or chisel specifically for very light, intricate paring. We can grind the same tool for more utilitarian use. A good chef or woodworker would want that flexibility.
I believe a "compleat" sharpener also uses the edges he creates and maintains. Whether the blade is a chef's knife, chisel or for a lawn mower, the person who sharpens that blade should have a working knowledge of how the tool behaves under different degrees of sharpness. The true test of a sharp kitchen knife is on the cutting board, cutting whatever the intended use is.
I am one of the forum who regularly proclaims the value of being able to sharpen a simple chisel edge. That is an important foundation block in sharpening. I would not minimize it. However, once the basics become solid, there is a whole range of options to adapt the tool to the job and the individual worker. I believe both the satisfaction of doing basic work well and the creativity of choices add to the satisfaction of the sharpener.
Ken