Ceramic Knives - WOW!

Post by **Strong Eagle** » Tue, 10 Aug 2010 8:21 pm

Splatted wrote:The ol' staysharp knives kept sharp through placing the blade of the knives back in their holder - the holder being the blade sharper through the action on inserting and pulling out the blade.

Why couldn't a ceramic blade be sharpened in same way? (just wondering...)

It's all about the hardness. The typical scale sets diamond at 10. A good ceramic knife (zirconium oxide with additives) is around 8.5. The best metal knife has a hardness rating of about 6.5. So, you can find a whetstone or ceramic sharpener for a metal knife but currently, only diamond, usually in the form of dust glued to a substrate, can sharpen a ceramic knife.

JR8 · Post by **JR8** » Tue, 10 Aug 2010 8:51 pm

QRM wrote:
JR8 wrote: What I find now though, is what ever I do I don't seem to be able to get back close to getting that edge. I have a diamond dust coater sharpener, and the usual honing steel to get a two stage finish. Plus I have been to a knife-skills course at prof. culinary school, so I'd like to think I have right approach. I'm starting to wonder if honing steels wear out (15 years old). Might have to look at that.
Been using one of these and works a treat better if you bolt it to your work top, you do have to change the honing steels as they do wear out. http://goodtobuy.ipcshop.co.uk/shop/hom ... ssional330

sierra2469alpha point about a good wood block is true though you have to watch out they can get mouldy down the slots. ha ha should get one of these for the misses http://www.inthekitchen.org/entry/stabb ... fe-holder/

Thanks for the link. Is the sharpener the kind with intersecting sets of two washers on each side of the groove? If so, I have seen them, but (perhaps completely wrongly) have rather thought of them as poor cousins to more traditional sharpening/honing steels.

p.s. The supermarket at the top of Ion. I went in the first week it opened and it had a sign up saying roughly - buy butchery products and drop off your knives to be properly sharpened for free, and collect them when you next visit. Nice marketing strategy that one... but one that could be very useful as well if they do a proper job.

Talking about geting cut. I have managed to cut myself, and quite badly, from washing up a Henckels knife, but from vigorously wiping the top side of the blade. The top edges also can be much sharper than you expect!

QRM · Post by **QRM** » Tue, 10 Aug 2010 9:01 pm

JR8 wrote: Thanks for the link. Is the sharpener the kind with intersecting sets of two washers on each side of the groove?

Nope they have two long honing type steels rods that are mounted in a V shape

sierra2469alpha · Post by **sierra2469alpha** » Tue, 10 Aug 2010 9:13 pm

SE you can call me anything but late for dinner.

JR8 · Post by **JR8** » Tue, 10 Aug 2010 9:26 pm

QRM wrote:
JR8 wrote: Thanks for the link. Is the sharpener the kind with intersecting sets of two washers on each side of the groove?
Nope they have two long honing type steels rods that are mounted in a V shape

Hmmm.... very interesting!

Thx

Splatted · Post by **Splatted** » Tue, 10 Aug 2010 10:06 pm

Strong Eagle wrote:
Splatted wrote:The ol' staysharp knives kept sharp through placing the blade of the knives back in their holder - the holder being the blade sharper through the action on inserting and pulling out the blade.

Why couldn't a ceramic blade be sharpened in same way? (just wondering...)
It's all about the hardness. The typical scale sets diamond at 10. A good ceramic knife (zirconium oxide with additives) is around 8.5. The best metal knife has a hardness rating of about 6.5. So, you can find a whetstone or ceramic sharpener for a metal knife but currently, only diamond, usually in the form of dust glued to a substrate, can sharpen a ceramic knife.

So what you really need then is a diamond encrusted staysharp knife holder

Post by **x9200** » Wed, 11 Aug 2010 6:44 am

Splatted wrote: So what you really need then is a diamond encrusted staysharp knife holder

There is no problem to manufacture such "holder" and the price would not be a killer. Same for more common and cheaper but also very hard WC (tungsten carbide). My guess is that hardness is important only for practical side (you don't want to spend days sharpening the knives) but to do it right and not chip off some microparts of the blade you would probably need lots of skills. In principle you should be able to sharpen ceramic knives using very fine grades of sand paper.

Post by **nakatago** » Fri, 02 Sep 2011 10:22 am

I know, I know, this thread is kinda old.

Anyway, I saw this online and I thought it might be neat.

http://www.iainsinclair.com/products.php?page=1

It certainly is lighter than a Swiss army knife and more compact--it can fit in your wallet!. It seems legal under Singapore law (I did a quick and shallow check--under three inches, not a flick knife/switchblade). I'm actually thinking of ordering one once I justify, albeit irrationally, why I want one.

aster · Post by **aster** » Fri, 02 Sep 2011 6:19 pm

Black ceramic knives (made in a vacuum-type environment) are supposed to be even better.

Every time I use a ceramic knife I think of a light saber, even though there is no colourful light nor any humming sound involved.

JR8 · Post by **JR8** » Fri, 02 Sep 2011 6:30 pm

Every time I take my Wusthof 10" steel chef's knife out of the block it makes a satisyingly loud Tzzzzzziiiiiiiiiiinnnnngggg noise.

Post by **nakatago** » Fri, 02 Sep 2011 6:36 pm

aster wrote:Black ceramic knives (made in a vacuum-type environment) are supposed to be even better.

Every time I use a ceramic knife I think of a light saber, even though there is no colourful light nor any humming sound involved.

I remember an episode of the original Iron Chef; the challenger chef brought his own custom knives. They were as half as long as katanas and you could actually pass them off as short swords! Now imagine those being durable ceramic!

JR8 · Post by **JR8** » Fri, 02 Sep 2011 6:45 pm

nakatago wrote:
aster wrote:Black ceramic knives (made in a vacuum-type environment) are supposed to be even better.

Every time I use a ceramic knife I think of a light saber, even though there is no colourful light nor any humming sound involved.
I remember an episode of the original Iron Chef; the challenger chef brought his own custom knives. They were as half as long as katanas and you could actually pass them off as short swords! Now imagine those being durable ceramic!

Yep, I remember watching the very same episode!

JR8 'Conan the Barbarian of his kitchen'

p.s. In knife-class I got to use a Wusthof 12" 'Wide' chef's knife. All I can say is wow! But you have to special order them and they're something like £200.

Post by **nakatago** » Fri, 02 Sep 2011 6:48 pm

Looks like I'll be passing by Tang's...

JR8 · Post by **JR8** » Fri, 02 Sep 2011 7:07 pm

nakatago wrote:Looks like I'll be passing by Tang's...

Que? You're going to Tangs issit?

QRM · Post by **QRM** » Sat, 03 Sep 2011 8:23 am

JR8 wrote:Every time I take my Wusthof 10" steel chef's knife out of the block it makes a satisyingly loud Tzzzzzziiiiiiiiiiinnnnngggg noise.

I get the same satisfyingly loud Tzzzzzziiiiiiiiiiinnnnngggg noise when I go to the urinals.

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Ceramic Knives - WOW!

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