Hello,

New here, but want to start with nice sharp knives...so I want to buy a decent stone. I was looking at the Smith's 8" tri stone diamond system. Does anyone have this? Is a 6" stone enough or is 8" preferred..it seems 6 might be kind of small but never using one, I'm unsure. Also, the finest stone is a 1000 grit arkansas stone. Is this high enough or does polishing with a 4000 grit or above really make a difference? Thank you! this will get me off to a good start! Loving this site!

Frank C

I do not have this particular stone (perhaps someone else can respond), but in my opinion, an 8-inch stone might be easier to work with - especially if you are sharpening chef's knives. Perhaps contact the manufacturer on the grits as each manufacturer labels them differently. Their 1000 grit may be equivalent to a 4000 grit in another brand. It is confusing, however, ask the supplier which two stones are best - one for sharpening the blade and one for polishing it. Hope this helps!

thanks for the quick reply Kimberley! I will check with the manufacturer. Hopefully someone can tell me if the diamond stones work as well as the regular Whetstone method. After all the positive comments from people sharpening their knives this way, I can't wait to try it!

Most stones are available at woodworking stores if there is one close to you. I think they are cheaper to buy there than at a kitchen store. Just a little FYI.

How long should a knife last? If you loose some metal when sharpening, is there a point you throw out old knives?

Good question, depending on the quality of the knife some can last a lifetime. I have already had some of my knives for 20 years now. I suppose if it keeps an edge, meaning that is can still be sharpened and cuts well then it is still good to use.

Of course, if the handle or tip breaks off or something crazy like that then that is a different story. In that case, I would say it might be time to retire the knife. Cheers!

I didn't realize when I bought my diamond-cut steel that it does more than just hone the blade. Does this mean if I'm not honing quite properly I could damage the edge? Could I cause the lifespan of the knife to decrease with this kind of steel?

I'm not really comfortable with the idea of sharpening my knives on my own yet, so I'm wondering if I would be better off with a different kind of steel?

I find that diamond steels actually shave (more like tear) at your knife's edge rather than align it. They are handy for cheap knives and will give an edge to a dull knife, but a rough and not a long-lasting one. Though it's always a matter of preference, many of my chef colleagues with serious knives would never allow a diamond steel to touch their precious hardware. I recommend a quality stainless or ceramic steel.

Is there a recommended whetstone size? I was pricing different whetstones but they come in many varied sizes. Thanks.

A larger stone works best with a larger chefs knife where smaller stones work well for paring knives. That being said, either can be used to sharpen any kind of knife. I prefer a larger stone (8 inch) but ultimately it comes down to personal preference.

You may also want to read through this thread as this is touched upon about 8 comments above as well. Cheers!

Can you re-sharpen quality knives that have completely lost their edge?

My husband always sharpens his own pocket knife but NEVER sharpens my kitchen knives, quite frankly, very irritating!

You should be able to with a whetstone and a lot of elbow grease :-)

i am not a beginner with sharpening. I wood work and sharpen on a slow speed wheel, scary sharp sandpaper, turning tools, chisels, plan blades, you name it--even carbite steel. I could just never turn a burr on a knife--not that my knives weren't sharper that most peoples.
I got out my fine diamond plate and starting using the way you show in video. I got a burr! I sharpened the first knife--a cheap 8 inch chefs and then I switched to 1200 grit wet/dry sandpaper on a glass plate to polish it. It is sharper than it ever was--not really sharp out of box. I sharpened and polished five knives, as I was off work for holiday and had time. Then I looked at my bird's beak knife. I took it through the steps and it is as sharp as when I got it.
Then I went back to work and all of the knives in my room were dull from people using them when I was off. I was not happy, but got out my steel and put most of them back to where they will slice through a tomato, no problem. We have a knife guy that comes and replaces our knives with sharpened knives but I guess he hasn't been there since thanksgiving.
Any way this is just one of many great lessons.

I just finished looking at the lessons and armed with that and what you have written, I am going to try again to sharpen my knives. I think taking enough time to do a good job along with the right materials are essential.

I've noticed that the more expensive, higher quality knives request the consumer to hand wash the knives as opposed to placing them in the dishwasher. Any reason for this?

I think it has to do with dishwashers knocking the knives around. Where I work no knives go to the dishroom for safety reasons. With my home knifes the small paring knives that have wooden handles will dry out from dishwasher. And I have a Shun Classic that I wash and dry by hand to protect my investment, but really I never put my cheap high carbon knifes in the dishwasher because they will rust. I think when you start caring about how sharp your knife is and the proper way to cut with it, you just start to thinking about the proper way to clean it.

Well said Marion! Cheers!

I have been sharpening away. I got a good deal on DMT diamond plate fine/very fine (600/1200) with stand. I sharpened my boss's knife and the knives at the carving station. Very good. Well, tonight I was at my mother's house and she complained about a santoku that she had bought. It never was sharp. I picked up a piece of paper and it sliced right through it. Okay, I thought, I'll take it home and put through the paces. I saw it had little chips in blade. I worked it with the new plates and will take to my mom tomorrow and see if she likes it. My mom is 87 and retired from cooking at 81. I hope it's now sharp enough for her.

Just the same as I do not purchase already made pie crusts, cookies or breads, I would prefer to sharpen my own knives. Don't get me wrong, I am sure Joe Schmoe pro knife grinder would do a fine job for however much he charges, but I feel an incredible amount of pride upon completing a job that I would have previously purchased. You also find in time that the spoils of your labor taste and or work better anyway!

If I understood correctly, you sharpen one side of the knife for some time until you feel the edge folding up on one side with your finger and that's supposed to be the signal to sharpen the other side of the knife? And then you touch again? And then once this is done, you do 20 motions (or whatever it was) on side then 20 motions on the other, and gradually decrease the strokes. Did I describe the method correctly?

I'm confused whether you're supposed to start counting the motions from the very beginning once your knife touches the whetstone (which would make more sense since you know you're working both sides exactly the same amount) OR if you just start doing on side until the finger test and then do the other side, etc. - as described in the first paragraph above? If the latter, which seems to be what the video described, why not the former since it's more exact? And if the former, what's the point of even counting down strokes evenly towards the end and not from the beginning since, for all you know, the finger test might deceive you into thinking that you've created an even edge and thus the gradual stroke countdown won't do away with the error?

Also, how long is the entire process suppose to take?

Thanks for your help!

It all depends on how dull the knife was and type of steel used in the knife.
If you can feel the burr all way down the first side, you count the same number of strokes on second side to even the angle. You should if the burr again on the second side. You then work through the sides with even number of stokes on each side. Feel the burr on the first side and even the angle on the next side. The burr will raise faster each time because you are removing less of the steel each time. One knife I did, took 80 strokes to feel the burr for the first time.
I take a "magic" marker and mark the edge. The metal that is removed can be seen by the shiny steel on the edge. You want to have an even shiny edge down the entire knife.
Once you work one knife to sharp, you will have an idea of how to sharpen knives. Practice helps you learn holding the knife at the right angle and how to pull the knife across the stone for an even edge.

Great idea Marion. I have been sharpening for years but that is a new and interesting methodology. Thank you.

Like Victoria I am also wondering about sharpening serrated knives, though I am also interested in bread knives and tomato knives? I didn't notice a response yet. Also should serrated knives be honed?

Thanks in advance

You may be able to take serrated knives somewhere to be sharpened, but you will not be able to sharpen them yourself on a whetstone. Cheers!

I watched all the knife videos, and wanted to know if you would sharpen all of your knifes like the video or just ones with straight blades. For examble my bread knife can I sharpen that the same way or not?