Best Knife Blade Material

Your sharpening technique may make a bigger difference in your edge than the steel itself. Ben Dale from Edgepro doesn't bother with the different steels

Do you use a steel? I rarely sharpen my victorinox and it stays pretty sharp. I just put a steel to it once per week. I think it is odd that you are dulling it so fast on vegetables.

My go to knife is a mercer mellenia. It's ~$20 and I like it better than my victorinox for some reason.

Most of my knives are Victorinox. I sharpen each on a Japanese stone every six months and then use a steel every time I use them. They stay plenty sharp.

You will notice a difference when you steel a knife. I have to steel my knife at least once while I am trimming brisket. I am doing a case (5) at a time.

eddieh70301 said:

I have a few inexpensive knives, such as Victorinox & Dexter Russell. The knives I have are good but dont hold a sharp edge and I have to sharpen them every other time of use.
Is there a good Chef knife that is made of good material that will hold a blade for more than two uses?
I dont want to spend any more than $50-$75, so that will eliminate the Ken Onion knives or SHun.
I want this knife strictly for chopping veggies.

Click to expand...

I use Whustof and Victorinox and don't have issues with continued use. I do lightly touch up before use with a steel, but they will hold a great edge for about 8 months before I have to resharpen. The angle that you sharpen the blade at makes all the difference in the world.

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Vegetable weapon


http://www.japanesechefsknife.com/HKVSeries.html

http://www.japanesechefsknife.com/FKMSeries.html#FKM
No.7 or No.8

Noooo, no ceramic hone.

A good stone is the one great method for getting a great edge. Beyond that, any of the sharpening systems do a great job as well. As for the steel, you want a smooth steel bar, can be any type of steel and can be tapered or straight. But, it must be smooth. My preference over the years is an old German carbon steel, lightly tapered and smooth. Did I mention, it needs to be smooth? I focus on that, because almost all modern store bought steels are ridged and do more to destroy an edge than does cutting on granite. Talk to old people, someone you know over 80 years old has a spare one.

I have used Dexter-Russel knives for going on 40 years and they hold an edge just fine. Seen em used in butcher shops, slaughter and breaking houses and every fishery on the West Coast, they will hold an edge if sharpened and steeled right.

On edit: Throw that Accusharp in your EDC bag in the trunk, someday it may come in handy, but, that day will NEVER be in your kitchen on fine or even mediocre cutlery.

I don't like diamond steels either, the diamond grit tends to tear the edges up on a good edge. A steel works by simply taking the microscopic edge you create on the edge of the knife and straightening it. And abrasive material actually serrates that edge and leads to a rough cut, and a much faster dulling of the blade.

This is just my opinion, but, even a smooth steel rod is better than most steels sold on the market nowadays. Diamond chips, ceramic, serrations etc...all gimmicks to get people to buy something because most people never understood why the old steels were just smooth steel bars

Agree with Landarc 100%!! SMOOTH steel. Here is what I use. You can get them at Woodcraft stores. It only takes a light touch, because all you are doing is straightening out a "rolled edge" on your blade. You may also look at what surface you are using to cut on. If it is a hard surface it will roll your edge quickly. Read up on some of the knife forums on the web, there are several.

Sorry, forgot the picture!:crazy:https://search.yahoo.com/search;_yl...l&fp=1&cop=mss&ei=UTF-8&p=woodcraft burnisher

A thing I was just reminded of by a PM, I actually rarely use my steel anymore. I prefer to strop my knives after washing, by using a wet piece of paper (I prefer newsprint) laid on top of my finest and flattest stone. Then I simply swipe the blade a couple of times, each side across the wet paper. Works great.

Run, do not walk to the nearest trash can and throw that Accusharp thng in the trash! All it does is chew the metal away from your knives and will ruin an expensive knife just as fast as a cheap knife. What you are experiencing is the Jagged edge you have created from the Accucrap is rolling over when you chop/slice on a hard surface. Never mind whether or not it is on a chopping block. If you could see it under a scope, it would show an edge rolled over on one side. The purpose of a good steel ( like landarc I prefer a smooth one ) is to re align the edge back to somewhat straight, and therefore not needing to be re-ground again as often. Any blade steel will dull under use, some less than others, but it is all in the angle of the grind verses the make up of the steel and the corresponding heat treatment. My kitchen knives are a good Soligen ( made in Soligen Germany, not a type of steel ) stainless steel. I sharpen them about once every two months when the steel will no longer bring them back to where I want them.

Every time you sharpen a knife, you remove some of the steel, so after a time the knife is worn down to nothing. A good knife will last a lifetime and then some if properly sharpened and taken care of. The sharpener you are using gouges away the steel and leaves a jagged edge that appears to be sharper, but in reality it is just a jagged piece of metal and will fail and roll over after the first use, and then require re sharpening. Run a Q-tip over the edge after you have sharpened a knife on it and you will see what I am saying.

If you have a good knife brand, and want to see what a good sharpening will do for it, then PM me and I will sharpen them for you and return them for the cost of the postage almost by return mail. I have a small sharpening business on the side and sharpen kitchen knives all the time and return them to their owners along with a band aid because they normally do not know what a sharp knife is like.

I will not charge you for sharpening your knives, but will do it as a courtesy for being a member here.

Have a Blessed day!

Omar

You can go just as deep into the rabbit hole with knives as you can with BBQ. There's some great advice in this thread

Dump that acusharp! It scrapes your blade down to useless. Here is a cheap option that does a good job.
[ame="http://www.amazon.com/Smiths%C2%AE-Diamond-Field-Sharpening-Kit/dp/B000UVV1G6/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1408768002&sr=8-2&keywords=Smith%27s+Diamond+Stone+Precision+Sharpening+Kit"]Amazon.com: Smith's® Diamond Field Sharpening Kit: Home Improvement@@AMEPARAM@@http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41ymuspju-L.@@AMEPARAM@@41ymuspju-L[/ame]

A smooth steel or a very fine diamond steel will serve you well.

I sharpen with the Smith's every 18 months or so and use a fine diamond hone very lightly every time I use my Ed Wustoff knives. 35 years and sharrrrrrrrrrp!

I use a leather strop after every use with my knives. All my knives are hand made with either D2(carbon steel), AEB-L which has more stainless in it, or my favorite but the most costly is CPM S35VN. That stuff holds an edge forever, doesnt rust, and has a very fine molecular structure so it can be scary sharp... good maintenance is key though.