#knife care

[kitkatcadillac]

im mostly putting this here for ME learning things but if it is helpful to YOU to know then blessings upon ye in the form of knife care and maintenance. we all love sharp and nice kitchen knives

[lunasalittleloony]

I just bought a whetstone and honing rod for my chef's knife and i'm so excited to sharpen it again!! It's been like a year since I last put an edge on it and it's held up well but it definitely needs a touch up.

I really should have done this sooner, a nice knife should be taken care of. After I sharpen it I'm going to polish it too since the mirror finish is a little tarnished. I need polishing compound and blade oil though.

[cobratecknives]

How to Care for Your OTF Knife

Out the Front Knives (or OTF Knives) have many benefits and uses, whether around the house, at work or just as a great piece to a knife collection. However, just like with any knife, it is very important to remember to always properly care for your knife, and in this article we will discuss some techniques for proper OTF Knife Care. Why is Knife Care so Important? Because of how OTF Knives deploy, the mechanism that deploys the blade can take a beating over months of solid use. Since OTF Knives are so perfect for everyday carry, they are especially prone to damage from wear and tear, and from their frequency of use.

These factors, and others, can affect the spring mechanism on your OTF Knife and cause it to misfire, or maybe not even fire when pushed at all. When using your knife as an important tool, or for your self-defense, every second counts and you want to be sure that your knife is always ready to go when you need it. Not only will maintenance ensure your knife always fires when ready, but it will greatly extend the lifespan of your knife even through frequent use.

Get The Proper Tools

Using the proper tools for your job is very important to ensure a proper clean of your OTF Knife. A solid maintenance routine will include an OTF knife being cleaned every month or two, more or less depending on the frequency of use.

To throughly clean your knife, you will need a few different materials. A good quality knife lubricant will prevent the spring from getting stuck in either the open or closed position. Gun oil, rem oil or WD-40 will also be sufficient to clean the spring mechanism.

Learn How to Properly Clean

While OTF Knives may come in a variety of shapes and sizes, learning proper cleaning technique will apply to cleaning any of them. The basic steps are to use compressed air to clean the surface initially, use your knife oil (gun oil or rem oil will work as well) to lubricate the spring mechanism of your knife, testing the firing a few times to ensure proper lubrication, and then once again blowing compressed air to remove any excess oil.

There are many available resources on proper OTF Knife Maintenance that will be much more in depth, and will go over every single detail of the OTF cleaning process.

Make it A Habit

For optimal performance of your OTF knife, you will need to develop a habit of proper cleaning and maintenance. Depending on your use, once every 1 or 2 months will ensure that your knife is always reliably working when you need it to. OTF Knife Care is extremely important to make sure that your knife is always firing and sharp when you need to use it.  We hope that you are able to use these and other resources to properly care for your OTF knife so that it is a great tool for years to come!

[ripplemakesmusic]

Knife Care And Storage

[cobraandvulture-blog2]

Chef’s Knife Care Basics

[exchangegooddeeds-blog2]

Knife Care Basics

[panoramarestaurant]

Knife-care Mistakes That are Killing Your Knife

Quality tools are not cheap and a chef’s knife is no exception. How you treat and take care of your knife is the single most important factor that will determine how long your knife will last. If you’re meticulous about your knife care routine then you can appreciably extend the life of even the cheapest of knives and if you’re not careful then even a custom made Japanese chef’s knife won’t last beyond a few short weeks. Today we will discuss the mistakes that most of us make while taking care of our knives – at times without even realizing it. Moreover, we’ll share with you how to avoid these. Steel, ceramic or stone chopping boards: If you are looking to cut your knife’s life in half within a few days then chopping on any one of these boards is the easiest way to achieve that. Using your knives on these boards is nothing short of abuse. It can curve and blunt your blade. Ideally, you should be using either a wooden board or a plastic chopping board. But if you need it for a professional kitchen then you must use a plastic board because it’s tricky to ensure 100% hygiene for wooden boards. Not using the correct knife for the task: Well, if you’re going to pry open an oyster with a chef’s knife then the result isn’t going to be very pretty. Not only will it damage the knife but it makes your job a lot more difficult and most likely it will affect the texture of the food as well. Leaving your knife in water: This is true for any knife; not just an expensive chef’s knife. Leaving your knife soaked in water makes it very easy for rust to creep up your blades. Also, make sure to slot your knife securely in a knife box rather than storing it with cutlery items because the constant clattering and rubbing will severely damage the edges. To clean your knives all you need is a mixture of soap and hot, clean water and a cloth to wipe it clean. Excessive sharpening: There can indeed be too much of a good thing. Yes, you do need to sharpen your knives to make sure they do their intended job. But excessive sharpening is actually counterproductive in that you could end up with the thicker part of the blade, which will blunt a lot sooner. If you’re not a professional chef then you most likely don’t need to sharpen that often. Depending on your use, every 2-4 weeks is fine. Not cleaning immediately after use: After cutting or chopping you wipe your knife clean – the sooner the better. Because, if your knife dries with food particles on, then it’ll need vigorous rubbing to be cleaned. One it’s not very safe to handle a sharp blade in such a way, plus the acidity of the food leaves your knife open to rust. We’d love to hear from you! Drop us a PM on our Facebook or Instagram. For more useful tidbits on knife-care be sure to visit our blog. Here’s to sharp knives and great food! Team Sharp Pebble

[ask-discworld-death]

Any tips for sharping a blade? My knives are always too blunt.

REMEMBER THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SHARPENING AND HONING. NO MATTER HOW MUCH YOU SHARPEN A BLADE, IF IT NEEDS HONING IT WILL NOT CUT.

FOR SHARPENING, REMEMBER THAT YOU NEED TO REMOVE THE MATERIAL NECESSARY. IF YOUR BLADE IS PARTICULARLY DULL, YOU WILL NEED MORE OF A COARSE STONE. REMEMBER, AT THIS STAGE YOU ARE PUSHING YOUR MATERIAL AWAY FROM THE BLADE, SO YOU SHOULD CUT INTO THE STONE -- ALBEIT NOT LITERALLY.

IF IT NEEDS TO BE SHARPENED JUST A LITTLE, USE SOMETHING WITH A FINER GRAIN. REGARDLESS OF HOW MUCH YOU ARE SHARPENING, REMEMBER TO KEEP YOUR BLADE WET WITH THE PROPER FLUID, RESIST THE TEMPTATION TO USE TOO MUCH PRESSURE, AND USE THE SMOOTHES STROKES POSSIBLE.

ALSO REMEMBER THAT BLADE EDGES ARE ANGLED, AND THAT THE SHALLOWER THE ANGLE YOU SHARPEN AT, THE THINNER THE ENTIRE TAPERING BIT IS, AND THEREFORE THE WEAKER. WORK NICKS OUT SEPARATELY, OR IT WILL DAMAGE THE BLADE MORE IN THE LONG RUN.

HONING IS TECHNICALLY ALSO A PROCESS OF SHARPENING A BLADE, BUT WHEN YOU HONE WITHOUT SHARPENING IT CAN USE VERY DIFFERENT MATERIALS, AND SO CAN HELP TO KEEP A BLADE WORKING WITHOUT NEEDING TO SHARPEN AS OFTEN. MANY TIMES, WHAT CAUSES THE PERCEIVED DULLNESS IN A BLADE USED OFTEN IS USUALLY NEARLY OR TOTALLY IMPERCEPTIBLE IMPERFECTIONS IN THE BLADE. TO HONE, USE SOMETHING SOFTER, LIKE A STURDY CLOTH OR LEATHER, AND PULL IT ALONG THE BLADE FROM SPINE TO EDGE. THIS CAN ALSO HELP TO PULL OUT SOME NICKS, ALTHOUGH ONLY MORE MINOR ONES. THIS IS SOMETHING YOU USUALLY NEED TO DO MORE OFTEN THAN TRUE SHARPENING, DEPENDING ON THE BLADE. THINNER, MORE PRECISE BLADES USUALLY REQUIRE MORE HONING OF THIS SORT, AND IT IS AN IMPORTANT PART OF MAINTENANCE FOR ANY KIND OF BLADE.

PLEASE USE ANY AND ALL BLADES RESPONSIBLY.