Water stones: Water stones are popular for sharpening Japanese knives because they provide a smooth and consistent sharpening experience. For VG-10 knives, it's best to choose a water stone with a high grit, such as a 3000-8000 grit stone, to achieve a razor-sharp edge.
For a Japanese knife use a 1000 grit stone, for a German knife an 800 is perfect. You will find stones with other grits such as 250 (used for repairing a knife with major damage to an edge) or 400(used for forming a new edge on a dull knife). These are tools to be used for their intended purpose....
A sharpening stone, also known as a whetstone is a kitchen essential used by professional chefs across the globe. While honing rods take slightly less time to maintain knives than whetstones, they are incredibly durable and resilient and help your knife cut through any type of meat, fruit, or vegetable.
The Meaning of Different Whetstone Grits
Furthermore, for repairing a dull knife you should go for 1000 to 3000 grit. And, 4000 to 8000 grit is used for refining the edge of a knife which is the finishing process. Finally, if you are sharpening a knife used for cutting meat you should choose 4000 to 6000 grits.
All the person needs getting started is a 1K stone. More than enough for incredibly sharp knives. Starting out really don't need anything higher than 1k, higher grit stones can give someone starting out issues.
Many whetstones require to be soaked before you can sharpen with them and generally speaking, you'll need to do this for between 15 and 20 minutes. Some whetstones can be stored in water permanently which eliminates the need to soak them before each use.
Most pros would agree that pulling the blade edge across the whetstone produces the best results. Not only will it bring the knife to its sharpest but it's also a much more effective way to remove chips and imperfections from the blade.
Natural whetstones: Single bevel-like Yanagiba knives are often sharpened using natural whetstones, such as Arashiyama or Ohira stones. These stones are made from natural materials and have a high hardness, making them ideal for sharpening Yanagiba knives.
Another term often used for sharpening stones is whetstone. Both terms mean exactly the same. After all to whet is to sharpen! It is a rather dated term but one that is still used regularly.
Finishing stones number range: #4000 to #8000
The only bit of advice you should follow is this: If you are using your knife to cut meat, then you can happily stop at #4000 or #6000 grit. If you are only using it for vegetables or fruit go all the way to the #8000.
Electric pull through sharpeners remove way too much metal and shorten the life of your knife by years. Ceramic wheel sharpeners tend to take chips and chunks out of thin Japanese blades. Because of the mechanics of use, it is impossible to apply the same amount of pressure throughout the blade.
The correct sharpening angle for the blade edge of the best Japanese knives is 10 - 15 degrees on one single side. On a one sided blade, or single bevel the angle would therefore be 10 - 15 degrees in total.
It's best to buy a whetstone with a 1,000 grit stone (a baseline minimum) and a fine grit stone of 5,000-6,000 (for giving the knife a fine finish) to achieve the best results. An electric sharpener should have moderate coarseness and a moderate speed that will minimize damage to the blades.
Due to their hard core, they stay sharp for a very long time. The softer outer steel makes them easier to sharpen. The softer outer layers protect the core steel from external agents. Several layers of steel allow for creativity in forging and make it possible to produce knives with different patterns.
This takes practice, and you have to be careful, as using a whetstone incorrectly could weaken or damage a blade's edge. It can be fixed, but still – practice and caution are key. Another thing to keep in mind about whetstones is grit, indicated by the numbers on the side of the stone.
For rough sharpening – to remove chips along the edge or to restore an unusually dull blade – you will need stones from 120 to 400 grit. We recommend stones from 120 and 240 grit in this case. For normal sharpening, stones from 700 to 2000 grit are used. We recommend stones from 700 to 1200 grit.
While some stones – like those made of diamond or ceramic – can be used dry, they still usually benefit from a little water. Soaking the whetstone is important because it helps protect the stone from damage and wear. Sharpening your knives with a dry stone won't hurt the knife, but it will damage the stone over time.
When sharpening a single-edged blade, start sharpening from the reverse side and repeat the process of reverse side > face side > reverse side > face side until the edge is formed (sharpen at a 7:3 ratio: sharpening the face side around 7 times and the reverse side around 3 times).
Tsubaki oil (or camellia oil, oil drawn from the camellia plant) has long been used as an beauty product in Japan. Although Korin does not carry the tsubaki oil for cosmetic purposes, the shine enhancing, smoothing and conditioning properties make it a great product for your knives.
A whetstone can help you to keep the blade of a knife nice and sharp with just one or two strokes, which saves time in the kitchen.
Short answer is whatever feels comfortable and works for you. I tend to do back and forth while gradually moving up and down the blade. On my cheap utility knives, this works fine all through the grits, then I finish with edge leading on the steel.
Using even pressure, slowly drag the knife over the stone toward you down the length of the stone while simultaneously moving the knife such that the contact point moves toward the tip of the blade.