Most of us used various methods to sharpen our knives before we came to buy our Wicked Edges. I venture to guess we sharpen knives as much because we like to have a sharp knife, to use, as we like to sharpen knives just for the enjoyment. Many of us came to buy our Wicked Edge sharpeners because we enjoy using this tool and other knife sharpening tools or toys, if you would.
As much as knife sharpening is a means to an end, so are touch-ups. Another tool, or toy and another process to practice, or enjoy.
Call it a “rolled edge”, a “dulled edge” or a “chipped edge”. All these are terms we choose to use to describe damaged and/or worn knife edges that are not as sharp as we like them to be. The process to sharpen our knives with our Wicked Edges is deliberate, with effort, and time consuming. Because of this some knife user’s choose to employ different methods to “touch-up” their knife edges to prolong the usefulness of their sharpened edges.
I have no issue with their touch-up methods and devices. I enjoy my tools and toys as much as the next one. I do agree that thse methods have their place and their value. Just like others have shared touch-ups with alternate methods and devices are not without their challenges. I make the effort to profile, then sharpen my knives with my Wicked Edge. I’m not generally willing to take this profile to a touch-up device that will effect or alter that profile and knife edge. If it’s a knife I just have to use that is unusable without the touch-up, I may make the exception.
If I make an exception, the first touch-up tool I try is a leather hand strop. Not without it’s challenges, in technique, the leather strop I find to be the least aggressive way to help bring back usuable edge sharpness with out altering the W.E. profile.
I seldom find myself in this position. I take “Organic’s” tact to simply reach for another sharp knife. When I find myself using these second and third choices it becomes time to start touching up knives with the W.E. Yes its a time consuming process but still it’s much quickler and simpler to touch-up a W.E. profiled edge then one that the profile has been altered using one of the preferred touch-up tools or methods. I spent too much time and effort, with pride, to profile and sharpen my knife collection with the W.E., to create the necessity to do it again.
Like “Readhead’s” knife block full illustrates, I have another sharp knife I can use to avoid forcing me to reprofile my knives, that have been touched-up with other devices. I employ, as those gentlemen do, a detailed and complete sharpening log and utilize my alignment and/or advanced alignment guides, that, with experience, now allows me to position the knives for touch-ups just like I had originally clamped, profiled and sharpened them. The W.E. touch-ups are quick and easy, matching my original edges with very little effort. That’s the beauty of this sharpener, it allows repeated precision, accuracy and sharp edges. That’s why I try to only use the W.E. With a collection of knives there really is no reason not to.
