A sharp knife makes cooking more enjoyable. It makes cutting easier, which allows for more precise cuts and makes it easier for you to master your knife skills. A sharp knife is also safer because it gently slices through food rather than using brute force to cut. This results in less slips of the knife and fewer accidents.
Knife sharpening may seem like a daunting task…What are the different types of sharpeners? How do I use a knife sharpener? What method is right for me? How much time will this take? These are just some of the questions that probably come to mind when it comes time to sharpen your knives.
Types of Knife Sharpeners
There are many options available to sharpen your knife. Sharpening stones, electric and sharpeners using rotating wheels are just some of the options.
Electric sharpeners are convenient when sharpening knives that are frequently used. However, these sharpeners tend to be much bulkier than the other choices and the user has less control of the sharpening process.
Sharpening stones can be somewhat difficult to use because they require some practice and are pricey depending on the type of stone purchased.
Knife sharpeners that use rotating wheels are very simple to use. These sharpeners have two specially hardened wheels that intersect and rotate when a knife is slid through creating the angle for sharpening the blade’s edge. Manual sharpening methods provide the most control and are sometimes considered the best knife sharpener.
How to Sharpen a Knife
Learning how to use a knife sharpener is a skill that every home chef should master. The process varies depending on the type of sharpener you choose to use.
Electric sharpeners work in steps. There are usually three slots in the machine to run knives through. The first slot shaves off the knife creating a fresh edge and the other two shapes the knife. The downside to this method is the user has no control over the amount of knife that is shaved off.
When using a sharpening stone run the blade over the stone at a 22.5 degree angle while applying moderate pressure. The angle needs to stay constant as you repeat this process about 10 times. Then turn the blade over and repeat. Next flip the stone over and use the fine grit side to repeat the process. Finally, finish by using sharpening steel. This can be a time-consuming process so be prepared to dedicate some time to practice.
Knife sharpeners with rotating wheels are very easy to use. It is not as time-consuming and you have complete control over the sharpening process. First take a damp washcloth and place it on the counter. This prevents the sharpener from sliding. Hold the sharpener at the edge opposite the rotating disks and slowly run your knife through the wheels at a 90 degree angle. Start at the end of the knife and pull towards yourself ending with the tip. Repeat this step four to six times. This will leave your knife with a nice sharp edge again like it just came from the factory. Be sure to wipe your knife every time after sharpening to avoid knife shavings.
Rada Cutlery offers a Quick Edge Knife Sharpener that is ideally suited to both left and right-handed users. The sharpener’s use is not limited to Rada knives. Archery enthusiasts even use this sharpener for sharpening the blades of their arrows. The sharpener itself is very small and can fit in a tackle box nicely or in your kitchen drawer. Like Rada knives, the sharpener also comes with a lifetime guarantee on base, wheels and assembly.
Made in America
Rada Cutlery is manufactured in Waverly, Iowa and uses 100% Made in the USA materials and construction. Rada Cutlery products include kitchen knives and utensils as well as stoneware, cookbooks, and quick mixes. Rada Mfg. Co. has been manufacturing Rada Cutlery fundraising products and helping non-profit groups fund raise since 1948. Last year we worked with over 19,000 churches, schools, teams and clubs. Fundraising with us is fun and easy to do. There are no upfront costs and your group will make a 40% profit!
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Can I sharpen my Rada tomato slicer on the Rada knife sharpener?
The Rada Quick Edge Knife Sharpener is best used on straight edge blades. We do not promote using it for the Tomato Slicer but we have heard from customers who take the time to sharpen one serration at a time using it.
I read somewhere that after a length of time the knives will need a professional sharpening, is this true?
There are many ideas on the best knife sharpening practices. Some people say they have used our knives for 20 years and never sharpened them and others say they choose to sharpen them every month. The difference is in the person using the knives and what they consider a sharp knife.
Many of us never used a truly sharp knife before having Rada Cutlery in our kitchen. Our expectations are lower and Rada Knives do an amazing job of holding their sharp edges. A chef has a higher standard and is used to using a steel in the kitchen for keeping their blades razor sharp.
Regarding your question, most knives are never sharpened by a professional sharpener. That is not to imply that a professional sharpener would not do a good job. There are just many other ways of sharpening knives and everyone seems to have their own preference.
One option is the Rada Cutlery Quick Edge Knife Sharpener. It is an easy way to restore your cutting edge. View the Quick Edge Knife Sharpener at http://www.radacutlery.com/kitchen-utensils/rada/quick-edge-knife-sharpener.
We suggest you choose the knife sharpening method that makes the most sense to you.
A final comment is that Rada Knives are made from surgical quality, high carbon T420 stainless steel. This recipe provides our kitchen knives amazing sharp edge retention. Further, Rada Cutlery is hollow ground for easy sharpening.
I have a question and maybe you guys can help. A friend of mine sells your knives and he told me about your guys knife sharpeners and I had to get one. But I use it on all my knives, not just kitchen knives but folders, fixed blades that are stainless and fixed blades with high carbon steel blades. I’m an outdoorsman and I have a slew of knives. But I started thinking about the “grinds” that knives have, not all knives have the same grind. Like let’s say a Skandi grind. The steel tapers down to the cutting edge, but towards the blade it has a secondary grind that makes these knives even sharper. Will your sharpener with the tungsten wheels hurt Scandi grinds? Are the good for all knives? I’ve been thinking about this but I figured I’d ask you guys. The person reading this might not even know what in the world I’m talking about. But maybe you can find out. Please email me at thomash6080@yahoo.com
Thank you for your note and question. Our knife sharpener works on many types of blades. The intersection of the sharpening wheels is 38 degrees. I cannot reply specifically reqarding your Skandi grind but suggest that you pay attention how the edge is sharpening and draw your conclusion based on the evidence.
The key to the Rada Quick Edge Knife Sharpener is the sharpening wheels are specially hardened to be harder than knife blades. The simple sharpening process help align the cutting edge of your knives!
I have rada knives that I’ve had for many years. They still cut well, but the handles are starting to turn our hands black when we use them. Any suggestions on how to prevent this?
It sounds like a bad case of oxidation. Oxidation is a natural process for aluminum caused by exposure to air and water – similar to how a shiny new penny darkens over time. There are some variables that increase the severity of the oxidation including dishwasher heat cycles in washing/drying (newer models seem to be more extreme), water quality and detergent variations (government mandate to remove phosphates).
The best solution seems to be using an aluminum polish to clean the handle. The Barkeeper’s Friend brand is available at many stores and is pretty effective. You can follow the link below for information about caring for your Rada Cutlery kitchen knives and utensils. http://www.radacutlery.com/about/knife-construction
Mary Jo, thank you for sharing your question!
Seems like I’ve found Knife sharpener that falls to affordable knife sharpener category for my upcoming post
I didn’t realize that in this day and age, there are different tools to sharpen a knife, I have always been accustom to using a sharpening stone. Now that I’ve gotten older, it’s hard to sharpen my knives with a sharpening stone, because I shake so much, and I have come dangerously close to cutting myself. I think I might try the electric sharpener that you mentioned, and hopefully it won’t shave off too much of my knife.
There are several ways to go about sharpening a knife. We’re quite proud of our Quick Edge Knife Sharpener, which is small, inexpensive, and very easy to use. If that sounds good to you, check the Rada Knife Sharpener out!
I have dependably been habituate to utilizing a honing stone. Since I’ve gotten more seasoned, its difficult to hone my blades with a honing stone.knife sharpener offers a lot of options if you want to get different types of knife.But I utilize it on all my blades kitchen cuts as well as envelopes, settled cutting edges that are stainless and altered sharpened pieces of steels with high carbon steel sharpened pieces of steels. There are numerous thoughts on the best blade honing practices.It’s really a great and helpful piece of information. I am satisfied that you simply shared this helpful info with us. Please stay us informed like this. Thank you for sharing.
How do I sharpen my serrated Rada steak knives?
Hi Robert! Our serrated knives are manufactured in such a way that they shouldn’t ever need sharpening. If you have any more questions or think there is an issue with your steak knives, contact our customer service at 1-800-311-9691, or by email at CustomerService@RadaMfg.com. Thanks for using Rada products!
I Purchased one of these sharpeners years ago. Not once have I had any issue with it or an edge that I have put on a knife. If I can sharpen one of my Wilkinson Sword kitchen knives and slice a ripe tomato paper thin then I’m impressed. Keep selling them. Thanks
Thanks, Rick! We’re glad to hear you’ve gotten so much use out of your Rada Knife Sharpener. We take pride in our products and feedback like yours keeps us going!