Very cool. Thank you!
I was just talking about getting an electric sharpener yesterday. I’m creeped out now.
[QUOTE=RaisinROM, post:55, topic:339171]
HERE’S THE THING: I took my good knives to a professional (on the spot) sharpening person thinking that my knives were going to get sharpened on a flat stone BY HAND. I was shocked to see that he put them through a gadget (that looked similar to this one) and sharpened each knife in about one minute. I was NOT IMPRESSED.
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Yes, but they were sharp, weren’t they? My shop did the same thing and I was impressed. Or were you going more for the “quaintness” and not for the utility? I don’t care as long as it works well.
Wait, what? Obviously they are becoming popular so they had to either hire a ton more people or drop the service, and when you can take a knife to any good butcher you trust and have your knife sharpened, do you blame them? I mean, come on. You’ve used their knives. Do you think that something like that can’t break under mass appeal? It is no indication that their business “is struggling” as you suggest. If anything it indicates it is thriving like mad and they are going through growing pains and having trouble meeting supply demands let alone offer free services.
n41
Ya, this is NOT good for all your kitchen knives! This is GREAT for your Asian knives that are only sharpened on one side (to create a non symmetrical 15-degree edge) and American/European are sharpened to about 20-degrees and have a symmetrical edge.
If you have good knives (Henckels/Wusthof), or even average quality knives for that matter, that are not Asian style do not use this sharpener, you will ruin your knives!
[QUOTE=glibdud, post:48, topic:339171]
ARGH. One of the big reasons I sprung for my expensive Shuns was the lifetime free sharpening. And now it no longer exists? Well, I may purchase this sharpener, but after that, they’ve lost a customer.
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Same here… Sucks was a big factor in the cost justification.
@koneco: I think you mean “steel” not hone. Honing is essentially sharpening (stock will get removed) although with a much finer grit.
It is the steel that straightens out the kinks and bends of the blade so that the cutting edge can be properly applied.
I agree with the posters that suggest professional sharpening. This is an art that requires a lot of patience and practice to attain a reasonable proficiency. Not the sort of thing that most people are willing to put up with.
I will confess that I sharpen all my tools and utensils. I also shave with straight razors, that–you guessed it–I sharpen, hone and strop myself. However, putting fine edges on blades is sort of a hobby of mine.
If you want to enjoy the performance of knives and preserve your investment, by all means seek the services of a competent professional.
I did a little research, because I haven’t used this device before. It turns out the Shun sharpener is made by the same company that makes Chef’s Choice sharpeners. This is one of only two brands that I’ve ever seen recommended by knife enthusiasts (I don’t even remember the other, as Chef’s Choice is almost always the recommendation).
Unfortunately, the Shun model doesn’t perform as well as the Chef’s Choice sharpeners, but will probably still do better than not sharpening at all.
If I may quote somebody who actually has first-hand experience: “While the Shun is much better than almost any non-Chef’s Choice machine, it’s so inferior to the other four [Chef’s Choice machines].”
The only place I have ever seen a sharpening service that uses an electric sharpener (Bass Pro) uses the Chefs Choice. They also have people who sharpen on cardboard wheels for a small fee. The cardboard wheels are a step above the Chefs Choice, but still not in the same league as any of the higher end whetstone systems, or just freehanding on a whetstone.
I have a Lansky and it’s great for tiny knives and awful for anything else.
Long story short: If you want to say you care about your knives and their edges, learn to use stones or a stone jig. If you want to have reasonably sharp knives that are sharper than most of the home cooks who toss their knives in a drawer, get a Chefs Choice. If you want something a little worse than the Chefs choice for real cheap, get this.
[QUOTE=Josephus, post:59, topic:339171]
To really quickly sharpen any non-serrated knife, chisel, of metal, the best technique is to get a set of sandpapers of increasing grit, about 60-80 through 600, and pass the edges over them in order of increasing grit. At each level, make certain you’ve removed any visible gouges in the edge before moving to the next level. It’s surprising how quickly that edge will sharpen using this system.
This is so much quicker than using sharpening stones, and does a much better job.
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Google: Scary Sharp
No. While some Asian knives are only beveled on one side, most Shun knives, including the one they put in the picture with their product, are beveled on both sides, just like European knives. This sharpener puts a 16 degree bevel on both sides.
If one ever wants to start a nasty “war” online head to one of the wood working forums and proclaim “the best way” to sharpen chisels, knives, planes, etc. These discussions show up all the time and are religious in nature.
That said I strongly suggest skipping this Shun gadget and buy a very simple to use sharpening set consisting of a jig and circular, square or triangular ceramic and/or diamond rods.
Lots of online folks sell the spyderco sharpmaker. I bought one at a NYC knive show from Spyderco after the rep took an exceedingly dull pocket knife and made it able to shavie my forearm in less than a minute. No oil, no water, no mess.
AG Russell sells A.G. Russell™ Field Sharpener™
LeeValley.com sells a “Knife Sharpening Set”
Both of these vendors have excellent return policies the last time I bought from them, but you might want to check on knife sharpeners before you press the buy button.
All of these put wonderful edges on Shun knives and just about everything knife made from decent steel.
Best of all they don’t need electricity, are quiet, and let you control what is going on.
[QUOTE=Josephus, post:59, topic:339171]
To really quickly sharpen any non-serrated knife, chisel, of metal, the best technique is to get a set of sandpapers of increasing grit, about 60-80 through 600, and pass the edges over them in order of increasing grit. At each level, make certain you’ve removed any visible gouges in the edge before moving to the next level. It’s surprising how quickly that edge will sharpen using this system.
This is so much quicker than using sharpening stones, and does a much better job.
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Scary Sharp Method works well, but, if you haven’t been using your kitchen knives to prune trees or cut baling wire, there is rarely any reason to start at anything under 400-600. You are sharpening, not re-beveling. This is especially true for Shuns, which have a very thin secondary micro-bevel (about a threads width) of 16°.
As far as doing a better job… I hope you are referring to Scary Sharp Method and not this electric sharpener. There isn’t an electric sharpener in the world (that I can afford, anyway) that can do a better job than someone with average motor skills and 2-3 decent stones, or, an absolutely flat slab of granite (or glass) and some 3M lapping film.
[QUOTE=kiltedbear, post:64, topic:339171]
Wait, what? Obviously they are becoming popular so they had to either hire a ton more people or drop the service, and when you can take a knife to any good butcher you trust and have your knife sharpened, do you blame them?
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Yes. We don’t all know a local knife sharpener, and though it would probably be easy enough to find one, trustworthiness is a bit more difficult to establish. It’s significantly easier to trust the manufacturer to sharpen their own knives properly.
Plus, you know… a local sharpener would probably ask for money.
There’s a LOT of available workers out there these days. Sure, knife sharpening is a skill, but it can’t be that hard to train someone on proper use of their sharpening equipment. I’m sure the process is a lot less manual for the manufacturer than for a small time sharpener. Point being, if business was booming, I don’t think it would be difficult to scale their operations up a bit to meet demand.
All that said, I don’t know exactly why they decided to drop the service, and I don’t really care. Part of the value of the knives when I bought them was the promise of free sharpening for the lifetime of the blade. They’ve decided to no longer honor that. It shouldn’t be a surprise that customers are very disappointed.
[QUOTE=comma, post:73, topic:339171]
Scary Sharp Method works well, but, if you haven’t been using your kitchen knives to prune trees or cut baling wire, there is rarely any reason to start at anything under 400-600. You are sharpening, not re-beveling. This is especially true for Shuns, which have a very thin secondary micro-bevel (about a threads width) of 16°.
As far as doing a better job… I hope you are referring to Scary Sharp Method and not this electric sharpener. There isn’t an electric sharpener in the world (that I can afford, anyway) that can do a better job than someone with average motor skills and 2-3 decent stones, or, an absolutely flat slab of granite (or glass) and some 3M lapping film.
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they were pretty deceptive in that “quality post”, weren’t they? I was referring to the sandpaper technique. you’re right in general, though I do with some regularity need to repair gouges from my chisels. I suspect the steel isn’t so great, but it is amazing how quick those gouges will go away with some quick sandpapering. btw, I bought some float glass to produce that perfect flat surface, but you don’t really need it, just a fairly flat surface and the different sandpapers.
nobody’s pointing out that you can still use the ridiculous machine with knives that have a different angle already; use it a couple of times, and it will impart the angle of its’ grinders regardless of where the knife started.
I was disappointed as well. I bought my Shuns here on Woot, and the lifetime sharpening was definitely in the plus column when I hit the “I want one” button. I don’t know why they can’t just phase it in with new models/lines and make it clear to the purchaser that lifetime sharpening doesn’t apply. Or require registration online for lifetime sharpening, or something. Owners prior to the change can register, and new owners would be flagged.
Anyhoo, if you are lucky enough to live in the Portland, Oregon area, you can take your Shuns down to the Kershaw sale (Shun’s are made by Kershaw) that they have every year, and they will sharpen them while you shop/wait.
[QUOTE=lbogy1, post:46, topic:339171]
what is the alternative? Through away serated knives?
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Serrated are generally touched up with a round or triangular stone, by hand. I don’t know of any automated way to do it. If you’re talking micro-serrations, there’s no fixing those. When they’re too dull/sawtoothed to work well you have to pitch them.
I’m a little confused about the angles. People are saying knives like Wustof have a larger angle, but I’m reading the description on Amazon for the Wustof 6-inch cook’s knife, which I have, and it says it’s sharpened to dual 14 degree angles, for a total of 28 degrees. Now, people are saying the shuns are sharpened at 16 degrees, but does that mean 16 degrees per side, equaling a total of 32 degrees, or does it mean 8 degrees per side, equaling 16 degrees? If it’s 16 degrees per side, then that would mean my Wustof edge is actually steeper than the Shuns, which seems to go against what people are saying.
Here’s the Amazon link with the description: http://www.amazon.com/Wusthof-979779-Classic-6-Inch-Cooks/dp/B00005MEGR/ref=sr_1_3?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1326746126&sr=1-3
And here is the description, for those that don’t want to click:
“Prized possessions of professional chefs, Wusthof knives are an invaluable asset of any kitchen. Every element of this renowned cutlery contributes to its precision and ease of use. In Solingen, Germany, each piece is hand-forged in 38 manufacturing steps by skilled craftsmen. The high-carbon stainless steel blades are hardened to maintain a sharp edge and full tangs provide perfect balance with riveted, high-impact composition handles. Wusthof’s newest state of the art technology incorporates a new computer controlled method for putting the edge on Classic knives. This technology allows for an exacting edge from the tip of the knife down to the heel of the knife. With this newer precision, the knives are made sharper to 14 degrees per side for a total of 28 degrees. The knives are now sharper and this refinement increases the sharpness retention because exacting angles and edges last longer than edges sharpened by hand. The result is a knife that is 30% sharper and the ICP (Initial Cutting Performance) lasts twice as long.”
So, let’s have the low down…
[QUOTE=Jmulls, post:41, topic:339171]
When you go to Shun’s sharpening webpage, they have the following statement:
For an electric sharpening option we recommend the Shun electric sharpener, which matches the 16° angle of our cutlery
I got one of these as a gift, and am afraid to use it…I turned it on and it sounded like a garbage disposal chewing ice… There was no way one of my knives were going through that thing.
I also have had terrible experiences with Shun’s new sharpening people (east coast), and will never send a knife back to them… Find someone local, go to a few upscale restaurants and ask them who they use, you will be glad you did… As for my shun electric sharpener… It looks nicetucked away in its box, and it will stay there.
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In agreement with you here. West Coast company here; will never send them off to any of their companies with any of my knives.