Our household knives are dull. My hunting knives are the epitome of dull. (This is where I normally would put in some definition-dictionary joke: but I will refrain). Just know that it would require effort to draw blood from flesh in their current condition.
For a month Kim and I have been looking for places to get our knives sharpened. On the interweb there are more cautionary tales than recommendations making it difficult to find a reputable place in Edmonton. Then as luck would have it, Jeremy (an alumni of Kim's lab) was visiting from California and has been sharpening knives as a hobby for the past couple years. The above kit is his.
Accordingly, a venison dinner - knife sharpening transaction ensued.
Jeremy's kit was ~$275, but there are a variety online for as low as $100. They come with a series of stones and can do all the necessary angles. I am sold on it, or at least the idea. You will likely save money in lifetime sharpening costs, have really f**king sharp knives (I already cut myself), and be able to sharpen knives in exchange for beer + food. Jeremy made it look easy and our knives were as good as new.
On a secondary product placement note, my Gerber took an edge way better than my Buck knife.
I've got this kit from Lansky:
ReplyDeletehttp://lansky.com/index.php/products/dlx-5-stone-system/
Same idea as the one shown above and works quite well--enabled the Wolverine to slice and dice the bears with ease in Manning 2 Mays ago. It comes with a number of stones and the ability to change the sharpening angle at 3 different settings.
These guys make kitchen sets as well.
Tiggy - do you sharpen your knives often? I wish I had known you had this (or maybe I did and forgot)
ReplyDeleteField knives, yes; kitchen ones no. I can bring the Lansky up to Calgary next week for Tom to pass along if you'd like.
ReplyDeleteI've got a three-stone Lansky system somewhere - shows how often I use it. I should dig it out and give it another go.
ReplyDeleteMy go-to is this: http://www.leevalley.com/en/wood/page.aspx?p=33009&cat=1,43072,67175,67177&ap=1 (the small one). It doesn't have the same fixed-angle capability of the Lansky systems, it's all guesswork and feel, but it makes stuff sharp. Its one of those tools I enjoy using, too, which is a quality I like. I use it for kitchen knives as well as outdoor gear (hunting knives, fillet knife, etc.).
This system looks extremely excellent, by the way.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I've got a knife (Browning 509 Sambar) that's a real bastard to sharpen, but will get through skinning a whole elk/moose before it needs a touchup. Harder steel is my guess (the 509 is 440C, which doesn't mean anything to me at this point) - maybe the Buck will hold an edge longer than the Gerber?
ReplyDeleteIt might actually Oliver. Anecdotally it remained functional way longer than my Gerber (it was also Joe's before and I suspect he never had it sharpened). Both knives took him over an hour as they needed serious work.
ReplyDeleteThis is crazy that all you guys have these kits hidden away. My feeling is the fixed angles are particularly important for nice kitchen knives. For my hunting knives, as long as I can gut a deer with it I am happy. Which reminds me, I have a new duck cleaning system. I will try to get a few more this year and post the technique.
I'm not sure if anyone will read this as it's an old post now...but fyi - the Lanfear B&B in Terrace is run by the president of the Steelhead society AND he just opened up a sharpening business on the property...i feel like if any of you go to Terrace to fish, you should look this place up! http://www.dozzi.ca/ is the website...
ReplyDeleteThat is awfully appealing (though I've also found a great little spot to tuck a tent away next to the road but out of sight on the Copper).
ReplyDelete