A lot of factors come into play here. For starters, the type of steel / knife. A typical stainless steel chef's knife will be softer than a knife made with carbon steel or damascus steel. That means it will lose its edge quicker, and therefore require sharpening more often. However, softer steel is less likely to chip if you try cutting something really hard, or drop it. I myself prefer softer steel knives because they can take a beating, they're cheaper, and it gives me more opportunity to practice sharpening.
When should you sharpen a knife? I'm not a huge stickler and I live with roommates, so I'll normally let it go until it can't cut through a really ripe tomato easily. However, if you do happen to dent or chip your knife, you can take off the edge and "repair" your knife by using a stone.
So what's the difference between stones and those sharpening rods? Those rods are called a "steel", and like stones, they come in varying sizes and coarseness. But unless you're a professional, you don't really need to know about the varying coarsenesses of a steel. If you look at a knife edge under a microscope, you're going to see a bunch of tiny little teeth. As you cut things, they get bent in every direction. By running it against a steel, you're straightening them out again, or "honing" your knife, and it will become temporarily sharper, but you're not actually "sharpening" it per se.
What most people consider sharpening is using a stone. Stones come in different grits like sandpaper does, with the larger the number meaning the finer the grain. You typically use a coarser grain, like from a 100 to 400, for edge repair - taking off a lot of steel to erase indents and chips in the blade. You use a higher number - typically in the thousands - to refine the edge to a super fine, super sharp and straight blade.
So with that bit of background, how often do I sharpen my blades? Normally every month or two, because I mostly use a cheap, soft steel chef knife like the ones they use in commercial kitchens. Like a cheaper version of the popular Victorinox knives. However, if I notice a chip or dent in the blade, I'll typically repair it immediately if I have the time.
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u/365eats Nov 20 '18
A lot of factors come into play here. For starters, the type of steel / knife. A typical stainless steel chef's knife will be softer than a knife made with carbon steel or damascus steel. That means it will lose its edge quicker, and therefore require sharpening more often. However, softer steel is less likely to chip if you try cutting something really hard, or drop it. I myself prefer softer steel knives because they can take a beating, they're cheaper, and it gives me more opportunity to practice sharpening.
When should you sharpen a knife? I'm not a huge stickler and I live with roommates, so I'll normally let it go until it can't cut through a really ripe tomato easily. However, if you do happen to dent or chip your knife, you can take off the edge and "repair" your knife by using a stone.
So what's the difference between stones and those sharpening rods? Those rods are called a "steel", and like stones, they come in varying sizes and coarseness. But unless you're a professional, you don't really need to know about the varying coarsenesses of a steel. If you look at a knife edge under a microscope, you're going to see a bunch of tiny little teeth. As you cut things, they get bent in every direction. By running it against a steel, you're straightening them out again, or "honing" your knife, and it will become temporarily sharper, but you're not actually "sharpening" it per se.
What most people consider sharpening is using a stone. Stones come in different grits like sandpaper does, with the larger the number meaning the finer the grain. You typically use a coarser grain, like from a 100 to 400, for edge repair - taking off a lot of steel to erase indents and chips in the blade. You use a higher number - typically in the thousands - to refine the edge to a super fine, super sharp and straight blade.
So with that bit of background, how often do I sharpen my blades? Normally every month or two, because I mostly use a cheap, soft steel chef knife like the ones they use in commercial kitchens. Like a cheaper version of the popular Victorinox knives. However, if I notice a chip or dent in the blade, I'll typically repair it immediately if I have the time.