Getting Takayuki sharper

[ChefKnivesToGo]

Hi,

I just got a Takayuki VG10 150mm Petty knife for Christmas and I noticed it wasn't really sharp out of the box so I did a light job on it with my Shapton glass 1000 and 6000. It came out a little sharper but not really up to the same sharpness I expect from a Japanese knife. For comparison, I had a Kotetsu Blue 2 180mm santoku and a Toijro R2 Gyuto which I can get sharp enough to my liking.

Any thoughts/ideas on how to get the Takayuki sharp? Thank you in advance and Happy New Year!

[jmcnelly85]

Spend enough time on the 1k until it’s screaming sharp, then try the 6k. “Sharp as new” isn’t a philosophy found on all Japanese knives, a new Japanese knife often needs an edge completely your own to shine. Once you’ve established a clean bevel on your coarsest stone the rest should be much easier. Sometimes it can take a little bit of grinding to get a crisp, clean edge, but once you are there it should be easy to keep it there.

Sometimes, vg10 is stubborn, take your time and you’ll get it there.

[Kekoa]

If you have a coarser stone than #1000 that can be a great help in speeding things up. Otherwise jmcnelly85's advice hits the nail on the head.

Something that might help as well is to put sharpie on your bevel then as you sharpen you will see where the stone is removing material and help you make any angle corrections if necessary. If you have any stray sharpie on the blade when your done alcohol will take it right off.

[Robstreperous]

Spend enough time on the 1k until it’s screaming sharp, then try the 6k. “Sharp as new” isn’t a philosophy found on all Japanese knives, a new Japanese knife often needs an edge completely your own to shine. Once you’ve established a clean bevel on your coarsest stone the rest should be much easier. Sometimes it can take a little bit of grinding to get a crisp, clean edge, but once you are there it should be easy to keep it there.

Sometimes, vg10 is stubborn, take your time and you’ll get it there.

Couldn't have said it better myself. Lots and lots of time with the 1K. Or... drop it down to a 500 or so. Really reset the edge then take your time. I've had great experience with my Takayukis and I have no doubt your patience will be rewarded.

[Ourorboros]

On the comment that sometimes VG-10 is stubborn - depending on the heat treatment, getting rid of that burr can be an issue.

[darien87]

Yikes. How sharp do you guys like your knives??? I just got a Takayuki Nakiri and it's pretty dang sharp out of the box to me. I still need to practice sharpening though. I'm a total noob at it.

[aporigine]

Yikes. How sharp do you guys like your knives???

Sharp enough to pare a regular minute down to a New York minute!

I just got a Takayuki Nakiri and it's pretty dang sharp out of the box to me. I still need to practice sharpening though. I'm a total noob at it.

I’ve handled a coupla different Takayuki knives, and the ootb sharpness varied. A VG10 damascus was just ok. I’ve gravitated toward knives made by Itsuo Doi, and ootb they were top-rate. My Homura sujihiki is still on its as-shipped edge. Of course, the Homura series (not Guren) is a bit up-budget.

[salemj]

I don't mean to hijack here, but I'll just say that I bought a couple knives as gifts recently and sent them straight to the recipients. I was horrified when I visited them later and tried the knives: they were totally dull. Not just "meh," but couldn't cut paper without any use. I'm not sure if it was a "batch" issue, or if these knives often come dull (not something I have ever read regarding reputation of the brand), but it was like they weren't even taken to the belts properly for bevelling.

I think that sometimes a knife might miss a treatment or something. When this happens, the advice above - starting low, spending lots of time on the low stone until a very clean, even bevel is established that isn't just sharp, but very sharp, clean of burrs, and as consistent as you can get it, and then treating higher stones just as polish - is definitely the right way to go!

[ared715]

Just like the hap40 issue another member was having, those Damascus VG10 can be a bit more laborious in the deburring department. Try getting a really nice sized burr on both sides of the knife with your 1k first. Then go to 6k and just use very light pressure and strop a lot on the stone. VG10 is known to be a hard burr removal stainless due to the allowing elements.

Stopping on a stone 4k-6k should work if the bevel has been set correctly. You just need to feel back and forth until the burr has been removed. It will take longer then expected but once you figure it out, you'll have a fine cutter.

Good luck!