Even people who rarely cook, have a knife. This is perhaps the most important tool in the kitchen of any housewife. Over time, the properties of the blade are lost: when cutting vegetables and other products, the steel becomes deformed, the blade becomes dull, and cooking becomes a real torment. Sharpening helps restore the shape and properties of a deformed blade.
Materials for the production of knives
An important role in the sharpness and life of the knife is played by the type of steel or the materials from which it is made. You should pay attention to this when choosing the method by which the blade will be sharpened. Most often, steel for knives is made from an alloy of iron and carbon. Various metal impurities are added to such alloys. It can be chrome, nickel, molybdenum. The sharpness, the period of use, the formation of plaque and rust - the quality of steel is responsible for all this.
For example, an alloy with the addition of chromium or nickel over time can lead to oxidation of the blade. The food will have a metallic taste. But such products remain sharp for a long time. Steel with carbon and molybdenum will help to avoid such troubles. Knives made from such alloys are less susceptible to corrosion.
Ceramic knives are popular with some housewives. The blade remains sharp for a rather long time. But the knife tip and handle quickly break due to its fragility, which makes ceramic knives impractical to use in the kitchen.
Worth mentioning is Damascus steel. The quality and sharpness of the blade at a high level. Such knives can retain their property and purpose for years and do not require sharpening. But in everyday life, almost no one uses knives made of Damascus steel.Most often it is intended for the manufacture of knives. The cost of such blades is very high.
Sharpener selection
First, you need to figure out how to sharpen the blade with a sharpener, and how to properly set the angle for convenient and safe operation. You should know that there is no single exact value of the angle to sharpen the point. Its value depends on the material of which the knife is made, as well as the purpose of the tool. The universal and most optimal angle, depending on the purpose of the blade:
- ordinary kitchen knife used for domestic purposes - 30-35 °;
- a knife for fish - 25 °;
- cutting knife - 25-30 °;
- for cutting and chopping vegetables - 35 °;
- table knife - 55-60 °.
Nowadays, there are a lot of ways to sharpen. These are grinding stones, whetstones, and round steel rods with a handle, and even machines with abrasive wheels. Roller sharpening is more popular among housewives. Using them is very convenient. A small device consists of special millstones (rollers), which are coated with abrasive or diamond spraying.
As a rule, such rollers are initially located at an angle of 45 ° to the blade, and it is no longer possible to set the sharpening angle by yourself. Since the sharpening angle is 40–50 ° to the cutting edge, it is impossible to sharpen scissors, table knives or other cutting tools on it. And also there are grinding systems for knives. They allow you to adjust the angle of sharpening. With their help, you can get a very good result.
Such a grinding system consists of a set of bars. In addition to bars (3-5 pieces), the set includes abrasive pastes. The main advantage of blade sharpening systems is the ability to process any cutting products and devices, even ceramic ones. The systems are durable and safe, make it possible to set the exact angle. Replacing the whetstone, you can get the perfect sharpness of the blade. Sharpening systems are quite expensive, and they are used more in production than in everyday life.
A more modern and simpler method is to use Chinese round sharpener, which will become an indispensable tool for home. Using it is quite simple. You only need to insert the knife between the two abrasive rollers. This versatile device is suitable for those who want to quickly cope with the procedure.
High-quality and fast results can be obtained using electrical appliance. With an electric grinder in a few minutes you can return the knives to their former sharpness, as well as polish them. A special automated system itself chooses the angle of sharpening, which makes it even more convenient to use.
Compact Products
Pocket sharpeners, they are also called manual, are small in size, they can be carried with you. Most often there is a ring on them, which makes them look more like a keychain. Sharpeners of small dimensions are of several types:
- whetstone or stones;
- mini brass knuckles;
- improvised means.
Sharpening stones can sharpen not only the blades of various knives, but also scissors and other products. Grinding stones are divided into several types. There are so-called Japanese water stones. They are available with different grain sizes of the abrasive surface, which helps to quickly sharpen a knife or any other tool in a short time. In addition, such products have a budget cost, and the service life is very high.
Abrasives of this kind should be soaked before work for 20 minutes in water. Air should come out of the stone. If the stone is used dry, the abrasive will quickly clog up with dust and particles of steel, the stone will become smooth and lose its properties.
A brass knuckle sharpener is the cheapest fixture of all. This budget model is a good option for temporary use. Such sharpening is suitable for use in the country or during outdoor recreation. The handle of the device is put on the arm like brass knuckles. The second hand holds the knife and leads along the point processing zone. Usually a brass knuckle sharpener has 2 zones: the ruling and the polishing.This sharpening also has a minus: when turning, the knife can slip and injure the hand.
The tools at hand will also become indispensable assistants if there is no special sharpener. It could be ordinary cobblestone, second knife, leather belt or glass. In all cases, you should be careful. You can also sharpen the blade on the protruding ring at the bottom of the ceramic plate. The main thing is that the surface is a little rough.
Triple
Triple knife sharpeners are gaining popularity. They are easy to care and work. The device consists of a handle, at the end of which is abrasive material, divided into 3 gutters (connectors): with diamond chips, made of tungsten steel, ceramics. Diamond spraying helps damaged blades regain shape. The tungsten-steel connector gives the blades a V-shape, and the ceramic completes the process with high-quality polishing.
See how to sharpen knives properly in the next video.
