Home Cooks - Knife Maintenance Between Sharpenings?

[Eversor13]

Hello all,

As a home cook, I'm wondering what the best way is to maintain the sharpness of a knife between sharpening sessions, how do some of you do it? Would a nanocloth strop loaded with CBN spray do the trick, if so, what micron level? I'm sure there are some out there who keep a knife sharp with stones only, if that's the case, what stone do you traditionally start on and finish on?

Also, do you all just have a "stone drawer" or "strop drawer" at home in the kitchen you raid before preparing a meal?

Thank you

[Kit Craft]

I am a nut...I use bamboo shoe racks to house my stones. That aside, I am particular about my edges so I touch up much more than I need to. Stropping on a simple stack of slack newsprint with white number two I could probably get by for 6-8 weeks if I were less particular about my edge. Twice that or more on crox loaded felt or balsa. But since I AM particular about my edge I dry strop on a Kitayama 8k as needed. That changes throughout the season as I don't need the same level of maintenance for butchery as I do for canning/drying/freezing fresh veg. However, I would say a handful of strokes per side about every 9-12 meal preps. So that is about ever 3-5 days. I can get by on just the 8k for a few months before needing to drop back to a 2-4k though. I could get by without a 1k for probably a year or more.

Now, that is all on a well maintained and very thin at the edge white 2 blade. Soft 1075 (52-54 hrc) hits a 2k every time I use it.

[dafox]

I am a nut...I use bamboo shoe racks to house my stones. That aside, I am particular about my edges so I touch up much more than I need to. Stropping on a simple stack of slack newsprint with white number two I could probably get by for 6-8 weeks if I were less particular about my edge. Twice that or more on crox loaded felt or balsa. But since I AM particular about my edge I dry strop on a Kitayama 8k as needed. That changes throughout the season as I don't need the same level of maintenance for butchery as I do for canning/drying/freezing fresh veg. However, I would say a handful of strokes per side about every 9-12 meal preps. So that is about ever 3-5 days. I can get by on just the 8k for a few months before needing to drop back to a 2-4k though. I could get by without a 1k for probably a year or more.

Now, that is all on a well maintained and very thin at the edge white 2 blade. Soft 1075 (52-54 hrc) hits a 2k every time I use it.

On the Kitayama, is that dry stropping?

[Bensbites]

I am a nut...I use bamboo shoe racks to house my stones.

I have to see this. Photo?

[Kalaeb]

I am a nut...I use bamboo shoe racks to house my stones.

I have to see this. Photo?

Kind of curious myself.

As far as sharpening...my petties get alot of use. My wife and kids both use them. With the kid factor they get used a little harder than normal. I will strop every few days and drop to a 1k-6k progression about once a month. On my larger chefs knives, probably every 6 to 8 weeks, sujis maybe every 6 months.

[Kit Craft]

@ dafox Yes, dry stropping. When this no longer works I switch to scrubbing on the stone wet. When that no longer works I fall back to the SP2k, wet and scrubbing then back up to the Kitayam.

As for a photo, I have better light in the daytime. I will take a photo of my go-to stone set in the morning. What is in rotation is on the rack beside my prep table. Everything else is in the mudroom (fitting, I know...). It really is nothing special, just a bamboo shoe rack sitting in the corner but with stones rather than shoes.

[Gregory27]

I have one day off a week when my 4 year olds are in daycare. It's my "get stuff done day" which includes knife maintenance. I just do some light work on stones, 4k Nubatama for my stainless, Belgian Blue for my carbons, green brick for my Sabatier, and 1k Nubatama for my Victorinox boning knife and breaking knife. Nothing intense enough to raise a burr, just a touch up. Then a stropping on 1 micron balsa and/or bovine, as desired.

I do have a stone drawer. Big enough for all of my stones to be in a nice row, with various accessories, and my travel bag and stones. Unfortunately, I'm maxed out on my neat row space, and I want my first natural sometime soon. Maybe I can talk my wife into a second, natural stone drawer...

[cwillett]

Sunday night I run my three main knives over a balsa strop loaded with 1 micron diamond paste, then a leather strop. If the knives push cut paper along their length, I call it good. If they'll only slice cut, I make a note and the next week I'll put the knife usually on a Kitayama 8k. If cuts the paper roughly, then it needs more attention. The gyuto (Yahiko white 2 nashiji) has only needed one full progression (1k->5k->8k) since I've owned it (6 months). It has very strong edge retention. My nakiri (blue 2) behaves similarly. But a Masakage Yuki petty (also white 2) seems to need a progression about once a month, with the occasional trip to the Kitayama replaced with passes on a Rika 5k. My newly thinned, and now strong performing, German knives seem to have better edge retention than the Yuki.

[Kit Craft]

Sunday night I run my three main knives over a balsa strop loaded with 1 micron diamond paste, then a leather strop. If the knives push cut paper along their length, I call it good. If they'll only slice cut, I make a note and the next week I'll put the knife usually on a Kitayama 8k. If cuts the paper roughly, then it needs more attention. The gyuto (Yahiko white 2 nashiji) has only needed one full progression (1k->5k->8k) since I've owned it (6 months). It has very strong edge retention. My nakiri (blue 2) behaves similarly. But a Masakage Yuki petty (also white 2) seems to need a progression about once a month, with the occasional trip to the Kitayama replaced with passes on a Rika 5k. My newly thinned, and now strong performing, German knives seem to have better edge retention than the Yuki.

Full progression once a month! What do you do to that poor little petty?

[gladius]

As a home cook, I keep knives keen using natural stones when needed - for me that is every few uses as I am very aware of and prefer the very sharpest edges. I use Coticule, Hakka or Ohira Tomae with but a few drops of water: I place some shelf liner on the breadboard, stone on top and use a few edge trailing strokes to get edges extra sharp again. Simple, takes one minute and can go seemingly indefinitely before dropping back to a medium grit stone. Natural stone edges really do last.

[Bob Z]

I'm a newspaper stropper with usually white or green compound and bare newspaper like Carter uses. I tried the leather strop but its difficult to keep it loaded and usable, newspaper seem easier.
When the edge needs more I like the https://www.chefknivestogo.com/mac-blac ... g-rod.html. It does very well but at this point im thinking that its not going to be long before i need to use a stone.
I always wonder if a higher grit stone is better than some strops but only have a 8k splash and go, so the lower grits like the Sue Rika 5k i just cant seem to wait for the soak etc.

[cwillett]

Full progression once a month! What do you do to that poor little petty?

My wife is hard on it, but not that hard. I just don't know what is going on with it. It will take a great edge, but lose it quickly. I thought I might be putting a wire edge on it, but none of the other knives behave like this. I've tried full progression, 1k only, 1k->strop, 1k->8k, 1k->5k. I got a felt strop to knock off a wire edge if that was the case, and it hasn't helped retention. This weekend I'm going to take it to a 320 and try to reset things. The size and geometry fill a solid role in my kitchen, but I just wish the edge retention was better than awful.

[ken123]

I touch up mostly with 1.5 micron (12k) or 0.75 micron CBN emulsion (24k). This keeps them quite sharp and it takes almost no work at all. I do it when the edge is not cutting to my standards. I prefer nanocloth or Kangaroo leather. Even Kangaroo with no compound makes an excellent strop.

---
Ken

[Kit Craft]

Full progression once a month! What do you do to that poor little petty?

My wife is hard on it, but not that hard. I just don't know what is going on with it. It will take a great edge, but lose it quickly. I thought I might be putting a wire edge on it, but none of the other knives behave like this. I've tried full progression, 1k only, 1k->strop, 1k->8k, 1k->5k. I got a felt strop to knock off a wire edge if that was the case, and it hasn't helped retention. This weekend I'm going to take it to a 320 and try to reset things. The size and geometry fill a solid role in my kitchen, but I just wish the edge retention was better than awful.

Seems there is just so much variation with a Yuki. Some people get them extra thin, some medium and some thick. You have poor edge retention and I think mine has the best edge retention of any White # 2 I have used. Not white in general because there is some wicked white # 1 out there and I have also never used a honyaki but in general mine has good retention. Sorry yours does not. I mean, petties seem to lose their edge faster due to not having as much edge to use but not that fast.]

[Kit Craft]

For those of you wanting a photo, here is my basic setup for my go to stones. I have a similar setup but used plastic storage racks from lowes. The rest of my stones are in the mudroom, which is tore apart atm...this place is a fixer upper in progress so forgive the construction on the right-hand wall.

As you can see, the Kitayama is a bit loaded up from being used as a dry strop.

[Eversor13]

For those of you wanting a photo, here is my basic setup for my go to stones. I have a similar setup but used plastic storage racks from lowes. The rest of my stones are in the mudroom, which is tore apart atm...this place is a fixer upper in progress so forgive the construction on the right-hand wall.

As you can see, the Kitayama is a bit loaded up from being used as a dry strop.

Kit... that's awesome! I'm in an apartment with entirely too little kitchen space, I wish I could have more space to devote to knife (and other) stuff. Thank you all for your input on how you maintain your knives. From the sounds of it there's a lot of ways to do it, but one acceptable way would be to use nano cloth with a CBN spray/paste/emulsion. That would probably be the easiest for me, as I'm sure I could find a place to keep the strop in a cabinet or drawer. I have several different spray sizes, I suppose I will experiment to find the one that works best.

[Kit Craft]

That rack is stackable too. But I am not sure I would like that idea with as many stones as I have on it. I think if I were to stack another set on it I would limit it to four stones per section.

Not as cheap an option as it seems as I built an addition where the porch used to be and attached to the garage so that I could have my own space... The good news is now that we have re-purposed a little portion of that and the garage as a mudroom and now we have a larger kitchen. I hate the layout as it is the old kitchen with a 10x20 box attached to the back but all in due time...

[Puduu]

Nice setup! I'd love to have something like this to ease drying stones after use and prevent mildew.

Alas, I'm the only in my family who would like something like this.

[easilver]

I have a piece of balsa on the counter with 1.5µ CBN. I strop when an edge needs a little love. This does a really nice job.

Next touch-up level up is naturals - Aono Aoto - Meara - Yaginoshima. I think this is like 3k - 6k - 10k progression, but ken will correct me if needed.

My normal spruce-up sharpening is 1k - 2k Nubatama then the naturals.

Full progression adds the 140 then 320 Nubatama.

[old onion]

I found these lid organizers in a Dollar store,Walmarts have them too.They work great for storing stones on their sides.You can bend the wires for wider stones. I dry my stones in these as well.
https://www.stage.com/p/lid-organizer-i ... cadevice=c