Organic

Everybody seems to love the Steel Will Cutjack knife. Those go for about $40, don’t have a thumb stud, have a standard blade grind, and come in D2 steel.

You should check out this thread on flexible kitchen knives. There are a couple of great looking solutions for flexible blades discussed in there. As far as the bevel widening towards the tip, this can likely be fixed by repositioning the knife in the clamp. If the knife is relatively straight through the profile except for the tip, try clamping…[Read more]

Welcome Brian,

I’m not too far from your neck of the woods. I live and work in the Worcester area.

The pro pack 2 is a good setup and you may decide that you don’t need anything else to get the sharpening results you’re after. The self-centering jaws and one-handed lever action of the generation 3 clamp is a great luxury to have if you ever decide to upgrade. As long as you’re aware of the extra adjustments that you may have to make with the…[Read more]

Can we expect to see anything new for the show this year?

The choice of witch grit to end your progression of stones is a personal one. I try to tailor the edge to the cutting task that the blade is intended for. A coarser finish will be better for some cutting tasks than a highly polished edge will be.

The ceramic stones are great. I like the 1.4 / 0.6 micron ones. They are not necessary, but I think…[Read more]

I’m glad to hear that the sale generated lots of revenue for your great company.

I did not spatchcock any turkey this year. Instead I made sweet and sour chicken for Thanksgiving.

Without strops I tend to find that a 1000 grit edge will push cut paper, but you will need to start the cut with a slicing motion at first. Also, there may be some catching throughout the cut and it won’t feel totally smooth.

Stropping is an essential part of my sharpening routine. It takes the edge from sharp to SHARP! I highly recommend i…[Read more]

Scissors adapter, advanced alignment guide, 12” guide rods.

I think what you’re experiencing is a symptom of the small bit of play in the system. The angle can vary a little bit based on where you grip the stones as a result of the rods and stones not being a 100% perfect fit. I have not personally measured it, but I have seen others say it can be as much as a 0.3 degree per side difference between holding…[Read more]

The threading on the rods has remained consistent so the new 10″ rods should fit with no issue.

I agree that the alignment guide could be improved upon. In addition to the issues you have encountered, I have found that larger knives sometimes extend beyond the measurable range of the grid. I typically hold the grid and pin tightly in place with one hand and the knife in the other while lining everything up. I then stabilize the knife with…[Read more]

I don’t know if it is possible to strop too much when done properly. I sharpened a knife yesterday that came out hair whittling sharp and I used a full progression of strops: 14, 10, 4, 2, 1, and 0.5 micron. The  edge cleanly cuts hairs with the hanging hair test and can also whittle hair as well.

The edge geometry might be important for this cu…[Read more]

You won’t be disappointed. It is a beautifully made tool.

Check out this thread.

You don’t have to get 10 individual knives. You can sharpen a beater a few times in a row and you don’t have to worry about how much steel you’re removing. This can actually be informative as well since it will give you the chance to try a few different angles on the same blade and see how that affects the edge.

Thrift shops and craigslist are g…[Read more]

It looks like you have considered the relevant concerns. I have the Gen. 3 pro model and it is a great unit. If I were to do it again I would go with the pro pack 3 because it includes almost everything you could want (most of which I have since acquired) and the ability to do asymmetrical grinds appeals to me. If you think you’re more likely to…[Read more]

Welcome Steve!

I’m also a big fan of Japanese style kitchen knives. Their blades put all of the big European manufacturers to shame.

Like Marc said, start on something that you won’t be bummed about messing up. You’ll want to get some practice in before you go for your favorite knives.

After the 1000 I like to use the 1500 grit diamond stone…[Read more]

Jacob,

Did the knife feel sharp after the 600 grit stone? I like to test the sharpness as I progress through the grits by using phone book paper. This is convenient because you don’t have to remove the knife from the clamp in order to test the edge. Once you have raised a burr on both sides and then cleaned it up with alternating strokes the…[Read more]

Aaron,

I’m confident we can get you some sharp edges. If you don’t get a sharp edge after following Marc’s directions then I would suggest that you write out a detailed description of your sharpening process and post it so we can get a sense of where it might be going wrong.

Here’s a good video about creating a burr and getting the edge apexed…[Read more]