Tell me about Japanese Knives

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Check out this knife. It will not break the bank and it will make you a J blade enthusiast.


GB,

Thanks for the site. I just placed my first knife order. I am glad you guys are here because you stopped me from spending a grand on knives..lol

Thanks again,
Luis
 
No cookie sheet is needed. This thing grips the table like a french whore :LOL:. Wow this Edge pro is amazing!!! I just got done sharpening 2 knives and holly cow at 320 they slice paper.. What is hte water bottle for? Also how do oyu clean the stones? My 220 truned dark gray after 2 knives.

They self clean when you flatten them.
 
Don't use soap. Never use soap. Use only water and an abrasive. This happens automatically when you flatten the stones. I'm assuming you know that the stones need flattening.... yes? no? If no, you need a flattening medium.


Ohhh ok. Did not know that. Thank you for the information. I ordered an extra set of stones to have for spares and the silicon carbide media to flatten the stone. I don't know how to flatten them though.
 
Ohhh ok. Did not know that. Thank you for the information. I ordered an extra set of stones to have for spares and the silicon carbide media to flatten the stone. I don't know how to flatten them though.

Stones dish when they are used because the steel seldom touches the far ends. Although I've seen some ancient Arkansas stones that looked like the profile of a soup bowl and were used with some success, the bottom line is that the stones must be flat in order to hold a constant angle.

The silicon carbide, if it is in powder form, should work well. You will need a hard, flat surface though, like a granite reference plate or something. Here's what you can do inexpensively; Go to Home Depot or Lowes, borrow a carpenter's square from their tool department, and buy a square of ceramic tile (10" or greater) that passes the flat test. Then all you have to do is sprinkle some of that silicon carbide on the tile and rub the stone on it until it's flat. Make some X's in pencil on the stone first, and when they're gone the stone is flat.

I use a DMT XXC (extra extra coarse) diamond plate and flatten ALL of my stones under running water. Many people will say that the XXC should only be used to flatten coarse stones but it just ain't so. I use the XXC all the way to my 10k polishing stones with no issues whatsoever.
 
Check out this knife. It will not break the bank and it will make you a J blade enthusiast.


Just a heads-up for anyone interested in this knife; CKtG carries this same knife for the same price but offers free shipping. And a discount is also available, too. I have ordered from Korin and they're a great store, but CKtG is a fantastic seller, with an amazing selection of stuff (more than Korin by far where knives are concerned). Plus, they're in Wisconsin, so if you're a grain-belter like me shipping is lightning fast. No, I'm not on the payroll!:ROFLMAO: I'm just a satisfied customer. The owner, Mark Richmond, is a knowledgeable guy and and has even accommodated me with some special orders.
 
Just a heads-up for anyone interested in this knife; CKtG carries this same knife for the same price but offers free shipping. And a discount is also available, too. I have ordered from Korin and they're a great store, but CKtG is a fantastic seller, with an amazing selection of stuff (more than Korin by far where knives are concerned). Plus, they're in Wisconsin, so if you're a grain-belter like me shipping is lightning fast. No, I'm not on the payroll!:ROFLMAO: I'm just a satisfied customer. The owner, Mark Richmond, is a knowledgeable guy and and has even accommodated me with some special orders.


Thanks Rob for the heads up. I ordered from Mark the Sanotku of the Tojiro DP but forgot about this one. I will place my order as well for this one.
 
You're gonna love how it comes off your Edge Pro. The edge is okay OOTB but you'll be amazed at how it will cut fresh off the highest-grit EP stones.
 
Can anyone tell me if ceramic knives are brittle? What happens when I twirl and knock one off the bench?
 
Yes, they are brittle. What happens when you drop them...well, that depends on luck. I saw some tool on youtube post a vid where he repeatedly dropped a ceramic knife onto a tile floor with no damage. However, it never hit tip first- that can break the tip off of even a steel knife, and will often completely shatter a ceramic. A few friends of mine have dropped ceramics and had them break in half. Again, it depends on luck plus how it lands/what it lands on.

The edge is brittle, too. Ceramic is very hard but not very tough. Imagine, for instance, a knife made completely of glass. Glass is very hard, but imagine using that hard edge to cut some frozen food. You could easily chip the edge up pretty badly.

Ceramic knives probably have their place but they're not made for hard use.
 
You're gonna love how it comes off your Edge Pro. The edge is okay OOTB but you'll be amazed at how it will cut fresh off the highest-grit EP stones.


Rob,

I just got the Tojiro Santoku. Holly snikes is this knife sharp OOTB. You said I can get it sharper than this ;). Wow I am placing another order for more of these..lol
 
A bit of practice with your EP and you'll get a knife sharper. At least I can...of course, I've been at this awhile!:LOL:


My neighbor brought me 3 Forschner Fibrox that were soo dull. He is a butcher at Publix and uses them daily. He was telling me how hard they are to cut with. When I got done with them damn they were sharp. I love this EP. It is the best thing I bought, I wished I would have knew about this device years ago :).

I am waiting for him to call me to tell me how sharp they are. I have learned soo much in the last week on this system. I was putting too much force into sharpening that they would come out mediocre. Now I am developing a light stroke to sharpening and it is making a world of difference. I got a brand new set of stones from Ben in the mail yesterday. He shipped my replacement fast. His service is top notch.

 
My neighbor brought me 3 Forschner Fibrox that were soo dull. He is a butcher at Publix and uses them daily. He was telling me how hard they are to cut with. When I got done with them damn they were sharp.

Hmm, sounds like a good way to get in good with your butcher! I'm suprised that a butcher doesn't sharpen his own knives though.
 
Hmm, sounds like a good way to get in good with your butcher! I'm suprised that a butcher doesn't sharpen his own knives though.


He just became a butcher :). He was telling me that the older guy that has been a butcher their uses stones and will not do anyones but his own. I told him I will take care of his knives if he buys the stones. He said no problem so I will take care of his knives going forward.
 
He just became a butcher :). He was telling me that the older guy that has been a butcher their uses stones and will not do anyones but his own. I told him I will take care of his knives if he buys the stones. He said no problem so I will take care of his knives going forward.

That makes sense! And sounds like a good arrangement. I am sure you will get the deals on the best cuts!
 
Don't use soap. Never use soap. Use only water and an abrasive. This happens automatically when you flatten the stones. I'm assuming you know that the stones need flattening.... yes? no? If no, you need a flattening medium.

I wanted to back up and expand on this. Waterstones are friable- they break down with use, constantly exposing fresh media/grit. That's the secret to why they cut so fast at nearly all grits. The matrix (often ceramic or resin) is water-permeable. If you get contaminants like oil (or some soaps) on the stone it will wick right thru the surface, giving you problems later. It can gum up the binder and mess up the surface of the stone, which you don't want.

That said, I will report that some people use a couple drops of dish detergent mixed into the water bottle they use to wet the stones during use. Mea Culpa- I sometimes do this with the stock EP stones and I've never had a problem (I'm to chicken to try it on my spendy stones, though). It seems to help the OEM ones a bit.
 
I have learned soo much in the last week on this system. I was putting too much force into sharpening that they would come out mediocre. Now I am developing a light stroke to sharpening and it is making a world of difference. I got a brand new set of stones from Ben in the mail yesterday. He shipped my replacement fast. His service is top notch.


I see your Sharpening Kung-Fu is getting stronger!:cool: That's such a huge thing that I want to reiterate it- go slow, go light. When you learn to always do that, an incredible edge is inevitable. A light touch and a deliberate stroke- those are essential. Ultimately, think of each stroke as being purposeful, "Zen-like", even. Why draw your knife across the stone if you don't have a specific plan and purpose for that stroke? As you get better you will literally plan each and every movement of the knife and stone to maximize your edge. And I don't mean five years from now- I mean in five weeks.
 
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