we forgot to look at my knive sharpening machine Tormek on your last visit. The rotating wetstone allows to grind a precise angle and then polish the edge to a mirror using the leather disk and polishing paste. I suggest you bring your valuable knives and after a short show of do's and don'ts you'll be spending the next couple of hours grinding and polishing. The steel (or in my case the ruby stick I showed you) is only for realigning the edge. Once the edge is gone there is no quick and easy fix but patiently grinding and polishing a new precise and regular edge.
Speaking as soldier and hobby chef, blades are sharpened with stone and steel. Killing and gardening edges are sharpened with stone. I only let steel near my kitchen knives. I've got gadgets but no longer use them. If you use ceramic wheels or gadgets that you draw the knife across, you end up with a wavy blade. I have a butchers steel. My knives are like razors. The secret is: little and often.
Re choice of fizz, our favoured go to for special occasions is Murganheira at around €10,50. Currently chilling is a gold medal winning 2015. The locals pronounce my name Geoff as Gayoff with a hard G or some cheat and I'm Mr G!
Re. Sharpening knives, the only way to do it properly is with a series of wet stones. I enjoy using my (very expensive) Japanese knives which are like razors when I first get them but need sharpening to keep their edge. They have a narrower angle on the cutting edge than European knives which is one of the reasons they are so sharp but they dull more quickly and are quite delicate. I use a 300 grit stone first to remove any nicks and get back to a straight edge, followed by a 1000 grit stone to do most of the actual sharpening. Work on one side, using long strokes and even pressure, forwards and back until you feel a “burr” on the opposite side, then turn over and repeat until the burr has gone and started to reappear on the first side. Repeat a couple of times using less strokes each time. Finally a 6000 grit stone for the final polish and to get that. “razor sharpness”. There are plenty of videos on how to do it but practice is key. I use a clip to maintain the correct angle and happily grind away my finger tips!
we forgot to look at my knive sharpening machine Tormek on your last visit. The rotating wetstone allows to grind a precise angle and then polish the edge to a mirror using the leather disk and polishing paste. I suggest you bring your valuable knives and after a short show of do's and don'ts you'll be spending the next couple of hours grinding and polishing. The steel (or in my case the ruby stick I showed you) is only for realigning the edge. Once the edge is gone there is no quick and easy fix but patiently grinding and polishing a new precise and regular edge.
Speaking as soldier and hobby chef, blades are sharpened with stone and steel. Killing and gardening edges are sharpened with stone. I only let steel near my kitchen knives. I've got gadgets but no longer use them. If you use ceramic wheels or gadgets that you draw the knife across, you end up with a wavy blade. I have a butchers steel. My knives are like razors. The secret is: little and often.
Re choice of fizz, our favoured go to for special occasions is Murganheira at around €10,50. Currently chilling is a gold medal winning 2015. The locals pronounce my name Geoff as Gayoff with a hard G or some cheat and I'm Mr G!
Re. Sharpening knives, the only way to do it properly is with a series of wet stones. I enjoy using my (very expensive) Japanese knives which are like razors when I first get them but need sharpening to keep their edge. They have a narrower angle on the cutting edge than European knives which is one of the reasons they are so sharp but they dull more quickly and are quite delicate. I use a 300 grit stone first to remove any nicks and get back to a straight edge, followed by a 1000 grit stone to do most of the actual sharpening. Work on one side, using long strokes and even pressure, forwards and back until you feel a “burr” on the opposite side, then turn over and repeat until the burr has gone and started to reappear on the first side. Repeat a couple of times using less strokes each time. Finally a 6000 grit stone for the final polish and to get that. “razor sharpness”. There are plenty of videos on how to do it but practice is key. I use a clip to maintain the correct angle and happily grind away my finger tips!
https://www.kai-europe.com/kitchen/schleifzubehoer.php?lang=en
https://youtu.be/AVzfKkfBdhk
Have fun and mind your fingers!