How to Select a Chef's Knife - Sharpening Your Knives

FORSCHNER KNIVES and CUTLERY

Care of Your Chef's Knife
Wash any knife immediately after using with hot, soapy water. Do Not Soak. Do Not put your knives in the dishwasher, it will split wooden handles and dull the blade. Before using your Chef's Knife, realign its edge with a sharpening steel.

Sharpening Your Knives

Mike the Butcher says that most people sharpen their knives too often and don't "straighten", "align", "hone" them often enough. Working in the butcher shop cutting meat all day, he'd sharpen his knives maybe twice a year but straighten them several times a day. That's what the chefs are doing on the cooking channels with those steels, straightening that very fine, sharp edge. This edge is so fine that every time you hit a bone, a countertop or cutting board it lays to the sides a little making your knife appear dull. This is when your edge needs to be straightened. Most people find it hard to determine the 20 degree angle to straighten an edge with a steel or are hesitant to swing that blade towards their hand (which you don't really do since the pivot comes out off the wrist). There is a tool that will straighten your edges, on the first page of this site all the way at the bottom of the page is the EdgePro, it will also straighten wavy and serrated edges.

Now, a diamond steel is about the only thing that will take metal off the blade to sharpen if you apply a little pressure by laying the tip of the steel on a surface while you sharpen. You should not sharpen your knives using grinding wheels, too much heat will temper the edge, that's the reason also why none of your knives should go in the dishwasher.

Mike has a diamond steel at home that he uses because he gets the 20 degree angle and his wife has an EdgePro, every time before putting up the knives after using them, she runs them across the EdgePro three or four swipes and they are ready for the next time.

Some professional knife sharpeners use wheels made off pressed cardboard, one with a high carbide grit coated with goose grease, the finishing cardboard wheel has slits every couple of inches to reduce heat and has a white buffing compound coating.