# fixing an uneven bevel



## r0bz (Jun 30, 2021)

I was wondering how do you fix an uneven bevel knife

what I mean is let's for the example say you have a knife that was sharpened at 30 degrees on one side and 20 on the other and it's supposed to be 20 on both sides how do you fix that?


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## Benuser (Jun 30, 2021)

What is the problem you're actually facing?


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## r0bz (Jun 30, 2021)

Benuser said:


> What is the problem you're actually facing?


one side is sharpened at a lower angle
i need to reprofile it to be the same angle at both sides

i would say one side is 15 degrees and one side is 19 degrees

i want to make both sides be 15 degrees or 19 degrees


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## Benuser (Jun 30, 2021)

Do you experience steering?


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## r0bz (Jun 30, 2021)

Benuser said:


> Do you experience steering?


no, i don't experience steering
simply the edge bevel looks bigger on one side let's say 1mm on 1 side and 1.5 on the other I didn't measure the numbers are only for explanation


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## Carl Kotte (Jun 30, 2021)

r0bz said:


> no, i don't experience steering
> simply the edge bevel looks bigger on one side let's say 1mm on 1 side and 1.5 on the other I didn't measure the numbers are only for explanation


If it doesn’t steer and there are no other issues, I would consider leaving it as is.


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## r0bz (Jun 30, 2021)

Carl Kotte said:


> If it doesn’t steer and there are no other issues, I would consider leaving it as is.


and should i sharpen it same angle next time even though the edbe bevel is not the same on both sides ?


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## Benuser (Jun 30, 2021)

Carl Kotte said:


> If it doesn’t steer and there are no other issues, I would consider leaving it as is.


Absolutely. The both sides of the are rarely identical, so neither the bevels will. Changing a good working geometry is a waste of material. Width will be lost.


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## Benuser (Jun 30, 2021)

r0bz said:


> and should i sharpen it same angle next time even though the edbe bevel is not the same on both sides ?


Best start sharpening one side behind the edge, at the lowest possible angle, and increase it only little by little, until you have reached the very edge. I use a permanent marker and a loupe for checking. If the very edge has been reached, there should be a clear burr on the other side. 
Repeat the same on the other side. 
By this way you may restore a previous configuration and splendidly ignore angles and proportions.


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## ian (Jun 30, 2021)

1) Leave it alone. It’s fine.

2) If you want even angles, you just sharpen at the angles you want and eventually the previous bevels will disappear.

3) The uneven bevel width may not be the result of uneven bevel angles, it also depends on the geometry of the knife above the edge. When we say “15 degrees”, we usually mean the angle between the edge bevel and the line that joins the edge and the (middle of the) spine. Even if these angles are the same on the two sides, the bevels can appear to be of different widths. Here’s anexample where the blade face is concave on the left side and convex on the right.







4) if it doesn’t steer, leave it alone.


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## r0bz (Jun 30, 2021)

ian said:


> 1) Leave it alone. It’s fine.
> 
> 2) If you want even angles, you just sharpen at the angles you want and eventually the previous bevels will disappear.
> 
> ...


''After sharpening I noticed that on the right side of the knife, the primary bevel was significantly wider than the primary edge / bevel on the left side. I'm pretty sure this is because I have acidentally sharpened the knife at a lower angle on the right side, but I wanted to know if you guys have ever ran into something like this. Any ideas?''
Uneven primary edge
i have the same problem as the guy who wrote that post
its the primary edge thats uneven on one side compared to the other one


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## Delat (Jun 30, 2021)

If you really want to stick with the same angle (which can be good for developing muscle memory when starting out), then go with 15 degrees on both sides and initially you’ll just have a microbevel on the 19 degree side. Over time it’ll catch up and fully overtake the original steeper bevel.

I actually changed a 50/50 bevel to 10/20 just for practice. Nothing wrong with asymmetric bevels if you’re comfortable maintaining them, and they’re fairly common.

edit: got my visualization reversed as pointed out by Ian below. I should’ve said to sharping the 15 degree side at 19 degrees, but instead said the opposite.


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## r0bz (Jun 30, 2021)

Delat said:


> If you really want to stick with the same angle (which can be good for developing muscle memory when starting out), then go with 15 degrees on both sides and initially you’ll just have a microbevel on the 19 degree side. Over time it’ll catch up and fully overtake the original steeper bevel.
> 
> I actually changed a 50/50 bevel to 10/20 just for practice. Nothing wrong with asymmetric bevels if you’re comfortable maintaining them, and they’re fairly common.


and if i want to make both sides 19 degrees what do i do ?


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## ian (Jun 30, 2021)

r0bz said:


> ''After sharpening I noticed that on the right side of the knife, the primary bevel was significantly wider than the primary edge / bevel on the left side. I'm pretty sure this is because I have acidentally sharpened the knife at a lower angle on the right side, but I wanted to know if you guys have ever ran into something like this. Any ideas?''
> Uneven primary edge
> i have the same problem as the guy who wrote that post
> its the primary edge thats uneven on one side compared to the other one



I know that. I'm telling you that the width of the primary bevel does not tell you the angle you sharpened at.


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## ian (Jun 30, 2021)

Delat said:


> If you really want to stick with the same angle (which can be good for developing muscle memory when starting out), then go with 15 degrees on both sides and initially you’ll just have a microbevel on the 19 degree side.



If you're not hitting the apex on both sides when you sharpen, you'll have trouble deburring and won't get a good edge. If you do this, you need to at least deburr at 19 degrees or higher on the 19 degree side.


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## r0bz (Jun 30, 2021)

ian said:


> I know that. I'm telling you that the width of the primary bevel does not tell you the angle you sharpened at.



so how come the sharpie trick shows that if you sharpened at the too low an angle you sharpen in front of the edge won't it make the primary edge bevel bigger?

btw I am confused I'm not trying to argue i am just asking questions


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## r0bz (Jun 30, 2021)

ian said:


> If you're not hitting the apex on both sides when you sharpen, you'll have trouble deburring and won't get a good edge. If you do this, you need to at least deburr at 19 degrees or higher on the 19 degree side.


i have one side 15 degree and one side 19 

what do i need to do in order to make the 15 degree 19 that is what i am trying to figure out


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## ian (Jun 30, 2021)

r0bz said:


> so how come the sharpie trick shows that if you sharpened at the too low an angle you sharpen in front of the edge won't it make the primary edge bevel bigger?
> 
> btw I am confused I'm not trying to argue i am just asking questions




This assumes the overall geometry of the knife is constant from picture to picture, but I'm saying the geometry of the knife on the left can be different from the geometry on the right.



r0bz said:


> i have one side 15 degree and one side 19
> 
> what do i need to do in order to make the 15 degree 19 that is what i am trying to figure out



Just sharpen both sides at 19 if you must change it.

But can you even hold an angle that's always 19 instead of 15? I'm not sure I could even tell the difference between 16 and 14 without using a jig. Just chill out about it.


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## Delat (Jun 30, 2021)

ian said:


> If you're not hitting the apex on both sides when you sharpen, you'll have trouble deburring and won't get a good edge. If you do this, you need to at least deburr at 19 degrees or higher on the 19 degree side.



Ooops, got my visualization reversed! You’re entirely correct. I was picturing switching to 19 degrees on the 15 degree side.

I sharpened a new blade at 15 dips and I can see I now have a microbevel covering about half of the original bevel, which is a lower angle.


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## r0bz (Jun 30, 2021)

ian said:


> Just sharpen both sides at 19 if you must change it.


do the same amount of passes/trokes tho ?


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## ian (Jun 30, 2021)

Yes


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## r0bz (Jun 30, 2021)

ian said:


> Yes


thanks for all the information !!!!!


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## r0bz (Jun 30, 2021)

Benuser said:


> Best start sharpening one side behind the edge, at the lowest possible angle, and increase it only little by little, until you have reached the very edge


what does it do to the edge ? 
you mean you are basically thinning the knife every time you sharpen?


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## coxhaus (Jun 30, 2021)

I am not sure you will be happy at 19 degrees cutting tomatoes. Why not sharpen both sides at 15 degrees? Is there a problem with the steel?

If you shouldn't do 15 how about 17 degrees?


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## r0bz (Jun 30, 2021)

coxhaus said:


> I am not sure you will be happy at 19 degrees cutting tomatoes. Why not sharpen both sides at 15 degrees? Is there a problem with the steel?
> 
> If you shouldn't do 15 how about 17 degrees?


I'm not quite sure about the Rockwell of the knife its written molybdenum vanadium stainless steel I guess it between 56 and 58
and u might be right its not very good for the tomatoes


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## Jovidah (Jun 30, 2021)

I honestly wouldn't stress too much about specific angles, as long as they're consistent. 
The most important things IMO:
-Does the knife wedge? If yes, then thin on both sides.
-Does the knife steer? If no, I personally wouldn't care less how asymmetrical the bevels look. If it does, look up the few threads floating around where asymmetry and steering are described far better than I am able to, which explain where you should thin to counter steering.
-A few degrees in edge angles won't make a huge impact on cutting performance, as long as it's not too low an angle (will hurt edge retention), or a complete axe. But IMO it's more important that it's thin enough behind the edge than to have 1 or 2 degrees less of edge angle. What you can always do is err on the low side and then put on a tiny microbevel of just a few swipes at a slightly lower angle.


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## r0bz (Jun 30, 2021)

Jovidah said:


> too low an angle (will hurt edge retention)


can you explain more on that ?



Jovidah said:


> or a complete axe


what do you mean by that ?



thank you for the help


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## r0bz (Jun 30, 2021)

Jovidah said:


> -Does the knife wedge? I


a little bit how do you suggest thining?



Jovidah said:


> do is err on the low side and then put on a tiny microbevel of just a few swipes at a slightly lower angle.


what does err mean?


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## Jovidah (Jun 30, 2021)

There's a limit to how low of an angle any steel can hold before it either starts chipping or bending. So hypothethically a 1 degree angle would be sharpest, but it's just not going to work in the long term because the steel won't hold up to that. Similarly, some really high angle would be extremely sturdy but you'd eventually start noticing a loss in cutting performance. You can totally go nuts trying to minmax this to find the 'perfect' angle, but in the end it's very much in marginal gains territory. So personally (and I think a lot of people do this) I just go for a 'roughly 15 degrees angle' and stick with that. 

Thinning is basically just similar to sharpening but at a much lower angle. Think of it as just trying to take the shoulders off the bevels. 
What I meant by 'erring on the low side' is that I sort of low-ball my 15 degree angle... and then when I add a microbevel at a higher angle the end it will give you some sturdyness back without any noticable loss in performance. Just in case I ended up taking the angle a bit too low. 

If you look around there should be at least some threads about microbevels. I vaguely recall Jon (from JKI) also talking about microbevels in at least one of his videos.


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## Jovidah (Jun 30, 2021)

I think what Benuser is describing is a way to basically.... do the thinning and sharpening all in one go. I often do it in a similar way, where I basically just thin a bit and then eventually just increase the angle at the end.


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## r0bz (Jun 30, 2021)

Jovidah said:


> I think what Benuser is describing is a way to basically.... do the thinning and sharpening all in one go. I often do it in a similar way, where I basically just thin a bit and then eventually just increase the angle at the end.


should I thinn on the 240 gritstone? 
lay the knife completely flat? 0 degrees 
also how will i know that i thin the same both sides i will count the strokes but is that good enough ?


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## cotedupy (Jun 30, 2021)

r0bz said:


> what does err mean?



Err... now there's a good question! And one of many quirks of the English language...

In this instance: 'to err on the side of' means to chose one thing over another. But 'to err' in other uses means to make a mistake (as in 'error'). Both have the same etymological root - Latin 'errare' - 'to wander'.


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## r0bz (Jun 30, 2021)

cotedupy said:


> Err... now there's a good question! And one of many quirks of the English language...
> 
> In this instance: 'to err on the side of' means to chose one thing over another. But 'to err' in other uses means to make a mistake (as in 'error'). Both have the same etymological root - Latin 'errare' - 'to wander'.


thanks man


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## Jovidah (Jun 30, 2021)

r0bz said:


> should I thinn on the 240 gritstone?


I usually start on the lowest grit stone I have yes, because this tends to not go very fast. Then when I think I'm done I go to finer grits mostly to make it look less crappy. You can go nuts and go all the way to a mirror polish, but from a pratcitcal perspective that's taking it too far as it will make the blade more sticky.



> lay the knife completely flat? 0 degrees


At least a slight angle, for three reasons. One - and most important - is that a flat grind is not the best grind you can have (it has very poor food release), its better to have a slightly convex grind. Two...trying to thin the entire blade will make it take even longer. Three... it will make your entire blade look like crap instead of just a smaller part. 



> also how will i know that i thin the same both sides i will count the strokes but is that good enough ?


Yeah I just roughly count it out, or just try to roughly swap the knife over to the other side every now and then. If you somehow go wrong here you end up in scenario 2 where the blade starts steering and you can just correct it again.


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## Delat (Jun 30, 2021)

I seem to recall OP is using an old German knife. I sharpen my Wusthof CrMoV knives at 20+ degrees.


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## coxhaus (Jun 30, 2021)

Delat said:


> I seem to recall OP is using an old German knife. I sharpen my Wusthof CrMoV knives at 20+ degrees.



I have done both with Wusthof knives at 20 degrees and 15 degrees and 15 degrees cuts much better. I have not had any chips in my knives. I have my big Henckels still at 20 degrees for tough stuff but I don't really try to use it for cutting tomatoes. It will but not like a knife at 15 degrees.

At first, I was worried about sharpening 15 degrees so I used 17 degrees but I worked my self over to using 15 degrees slowly but surely. I have like 30 kitchen knives. All my chefs' knives are now at 15 degrees except my 11.5-inch chef knife. I have chefs' knives 6 inch, 8 inch, 9 inch and (2) 10-inch kinves. I have probably 8 Wusthof Classic knives out of my 30 kitchen knives. The rest are all Henckels 4star knives which seem about the same to me as Wusthof Classic knives.


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## ian (Jun 30, 2021)

cotedupy said:


> In this instance: 'to err on the side of' means to chose one thing over another. But 'to err' in other uses means to make a mistake (as in 'error'). Both have the same etymological root - Latin 'errare' - 'to wander'.



Oh, an interesting discussion! I think these two uses of the word are consistent. In the first usage, it's like you're trying to strike a balance between two things, but then you F up, and you just make sure that your F up is on the side of one of them. You don't use this expression when you clearly prefer one to the other. Like, 

"I'm going to err on the side of arriving early" 

means you're going to try to arrive basically on time, maybe a bit early, but definitely not late. You wouldn't say

"I'm going to err on the side of not strangling Herbert when I next see him."

Although actually, Herbert is a real Fer, so maybe this isn't the best example.


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## Jovidah (Jun 30, 2021)

If I remember correctly even Wüsthof themselves 'sharpen' their knives at 15 degrees these days, at least in some lines. I think the influence of what degree you sharpen at is proportional to the thickness behind the edge. The thinner it is behind the edge, the less it matters.


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## Jville (Jun 30, 2021)

r0bz said:


> i have one side 15 degree and one side 19
> 
> what do i need to do in order to make the 15 degree 19 that is what i am trying to figure out





r0bz said:


> can you explain more on that ?
> 
> 
> what do you mean by that ?
> ...


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## BillHanna (Jun 30, 2021)

Fuxkin Herbert


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## coxhaus (Jun 30, 2021)

Jovidah said:


> If I remember correctly even Wüsthof themselves 'sharpen' their knives at 15 degrees these days, at least in some lines. I think the influence of what degree you sharpen at is proportional to the thickness behind the edge. The thinner it is behind the edge, the less it matters.



That is what pushed me over the edge as not to worry using 15 degrees for Wusthof knives. Wusthof themselves now recommend 15 degrees. They cut so much better at 15 degrees.


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## M1k3 (Jun 30, 2021)

BillHanna said:


> Fuxkin Herbert


Or is it 'Erbert'? @juice


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## juice (Jun 30, 2021)

M1k3 said:


> Or is it 'Erbert'? @juice


Depends on how American you are!


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## cotedupy (Jun 30, 2021)

ian said:


> Oh, an interesting discussion! I think these two uses of the word are consistent. In the first usage, it's like you're trying to strike a balance between two things, but then you F up, and you just make sure that your F up is on the side of one of them. You don't use this expression when you clearly prefer one to the other. Like,
> 
> "I'm going to err on the side of arriving early"
> 
> ...



It took me a minute to get what you were saying here, but yes - you're right aren't you... 'to err on the side of caution' is basically 'to _error _on the side of caution'. I'd never thought of it like that. It's a very slight implied semantic shift of the same words' meanings - err/error - without a necessarily negative connotation.

Just so this isn't too much of a random (but interesting) tangent for OP, I shall throw my 2c in regards to the original question... I am firmly of the Hedonistic School when in comes to sharpening. Just do what feels good. Don't worry about angles too much, sharpen at whatever seems right, and if the bevel feels too fat then thin it a little. It's certainly not as complicated as English!


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## r0bz (Jul 1, 2021)

i dont know how to remove posts


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## Benuser (Jul 1, 2021)

coxhaus said:


> That is what pushed me over the edge as not to worry using 15 degrees for Wusthof knives. Wusthof themselves now recommend 15 degrees. They cut so much better at 15 degrees.


This is clearly the result of marketing considerations. With their machine made V-edges they go even lower, 13° IIRC, but the steel doesn't take or hold such values. Had 2 brand new ones who came undeburred OOTB, one with the most spectacular wire edge I've ever seen. 
Going from 17 to 15dps may feel very differently, but only if the blade is very fat behind the edge, as @Jovidah rightly suggested. If it were thinned properly, it wouldn't make any difference, performance wise. The difference for the edge retention would be huge, though. The Krupp's 4116 they use has a poor edge stability, so it won't hold a straight 15dps edge. Better go for a convexed one, ending at some 20dps. After good thinning, of course. Get rid of the shoulders, and reduce the thickness at 5mm above the board. Curious what you measure there. Thinning will improve the edge retention because less force is required, and the contact with the board less violent.


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## Jovidah (Jul 1, 2021)

Regardless of the angle, the OOTB edge on all my Wüsthofs was really underwhelming. Not that I care much about it, but you'd expect soemthing better after all the marketing mumbo jumbo...


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## Benuser (Jul 1, 2021)

Jovidah said:


> Regardless of the angle, the OOTB edge on all my Wüsthofs was really underwhelming. Not that I care much about it, but you'd expect soemthing better after all the marketing mumbo jumbo...


Neither do I care much, as the first thing I do with any knife is sharpening it. Just wondering how a common end user will deal with it.


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## coxhaus (Jul 1, 2021)

Benuser said:


> This is clearly the result of marketing considerations. With their machine made V-edges they go even lower, 13° IIRC, but the steel doesn't take or hold such values. Had 2 brand new ones who came undeburred OOTB, one with the most spectacular wire edge I've ever seen.
> Going from 17 to 15dps may feel very differently, but only if the blade is very fat behind the edge, as @Jovidah rightly suggested. If it were thinned properly, it wouldn't make any difference, performance wise. The difference for the edge retention would be huge, though. The Krupp's 4116 they use has a poor edge stability, so it won't hold a straight 15dps edge. Better go for a convexed one, ending at some 20dps. After good thinning, of course. Get rid of the shoulders, and reduce the thickness at 5mm above the board. Curious what you measure there. Thinning will improve the edge retention because less force is required, and the contact with the board less violent.



I can tell a difference which is what counts.

I sharpened a salmon knife at 20 degrees and it would not cut fish worth a dam. I gave up on the salmon knife and put it away and bought a sushi knife. It wasn't until later I sharpened the salmon knife at 15 degrees that it started working again.

There is a difference in cutting tomatoes at 20 degrees and 15 degrees on a Wusthof Classic knife that I can feel. Maybe if you have a cheap Wusthof I don't know as I only buy Wusthof Classics.

The only knife I have at 20 degrees any more is a big Henckels 4star 11.5 chefs' knife. Just in case. I use if for light chopping and big stuff. I gave away my bone chopper as it was too hard on my cutting boards. Most meat nowadays I buy is already processed. I don't buy half a cow any more.

PS
The salmon knife is a very thin flexible blade so sharpening angle makes a difference for all those people who don't think so on thin blades. At least for me any way.


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## Bobby2shots (Jul 1, 2021)

Jovidah said:


> If I remember correctly even Wüsthof themselves 'sharpen' their knives at 15 degrees these days, at least in some lines. I think the influence of what degree you sharpen at is proportional to the thickness behind the edge. The thinner it is behind the edge, the less it matters.



Actually, they sharpen from 10 to 14 degrees,,,, depends on the particular blade.


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## Bobby2shots (Jul 1, 2021)

Which specific Wusthof models are you guys referring to? There's a heckuva performance range and price difference here,,, from the very inexpensive Gourmet series, through to their flagship 1,000+ layer Damascus powder-steel knife which sells for $2,000. U.S.D.


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## coxhaus (Jul 1, 2021)

Bobby2shots said:


> Actually, they sharpen from 10 to 14 degrees,,,, depends on the particular blade.



I thought I had seen 14 degrees before but I was not sure so I did not want to say anything. I guess I will need to learn free hand to use lower settings.


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## Benuser (Jul 1, 2021)

coxhaus said:


> I thought I had seen 14 degrees before but I was not sure so I did not want to say anything. I guess I will need to learn free hand to use lower settings.


When introducing their PETec sharpening, they came with V-edges of 13dps IIRC. Edges this steel doesn't take.


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## coxhaus (Jul 1, 2021)

I have a Wusthof sushi knife and it will need 9 degrees for sharpening. I can't do that with my current setup. I need to buy the free hand adapter.


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## Bobby2shots (Jul 1, 2021)

coxhaus said:


> I have a Wusthof sushi knife and it will need 9 degrees for sharpening. I can't do that with my current setup. I need to buy the free hand adapter.



Which specific model are you referring to? Is it possible that you're mistaking 9 degrees with 9 inches? Wusthof had a 9" Yanagi knife which was supposedly sharpened to 14 degrees. (discontinued)


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## ian (Jul 1, 2021)

Angles schmangles.


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## coxhaus (Jul 1, 2021)

Bobby2shots said:


> Which specific model are you referring to? Is it possible that you're mistaking 9 degrees with 9 inches? Wusthof had a 9" Yanagi knife which was supposedly sharpened to 14 degrees. (discontinued)



You are correct I made a mistake. It is a Wusthof Yanagi knife. But I will need the free hand adapter to 14 degrees unless 15 works. I have not sharpened it as I only use it for sushi. I used my salmon knife in the real old days but it does not cut fish as well. The fish is a little ragged using the salmon knife.


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## tostadas (Jul 1, 2021)

Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought a yanagiba is typically single bevel, sharpened only on 1 side. Sounds like way too acute of an angle for any German steel to hold.


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## coxhaus (Jul 1, 2021)

tostadas said:


> Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought a yanagiba is typically single bevel, sharpened only on 1 side. Sounds like way too acute of an angle for any German steel to hold.



The knife cuts nice clean fish no ragged edges. We do sushi about 1 day every other week but my granddaughter is here so no sushi. It has been fine for a few years. I mainly buy salmon and we end up having sushi a couple of times. I cut no bones just fresh fish meat. I use the salmon knife for skinning. 

I am no pro sushi cutter. I just do this at home because I like sushi.

If I had known about this site, I might have bought a different knife. The handle does match.


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## Bobby2shots (Jul 1, 2021)

tostadas said:


> Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought a yanagiba is typically single bevel, sharpened only on 1 side. Sounds like way too acute of an angle for any German steel to hold.


From what I can see, there appears to be some confusion as to how different dealers market these Wusthof "Yanagi's". (currently discontinued). Cutlery and more for example, claims 28 degrees and double bevel. If that's correct, then the knife is more like a short 9" sujihiki, or better yet, a slicer-carver. I have no idea if Wusthof made several versions of this knife, but it seems to me that I've also seen them sold/marketed as a single bevel knife.


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## coxhaus (Jul 1, 2021)

Bobby2shots said:


> From what I can see, there appears to be some confusion as to how different dealers market these Wusthof "Yanagi's". (currently discontinued). Cutlery and more for example, claims 28 degrees and double bevel. If that's correct, then the knife is more like a short 9" sujihiki, or better yet, a slicer-carver. I have no idea if Wusthof made several versions of this knife, but it seems to me that I've also seen them sold/marketed as a single bevel knife.



It is a single bevel knife. I have a right-hand version.


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## Bobby2shots (Jul 1, 2021)

coxhaus said:


> It is a single bevel knife. I have a right-hand version.



OK, that might confirm it. Does it by any chance have a small micro-bevel on the left side? I'm wondering of this knife has a 70/30 (or similar) bevel alignment. Did you get any paperwork that might indicate the actual bevel angle, or, a "how to sharpen" guide?


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## Bobby2shots (Jul 1, 2021)

Is the back of the blade hollowed out (dished or concave)? Completely flat?


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## Benuser (Jul 2, 2021)

A true single bevel would indeed suppose a hollow back resulting in a crazy thin edge. Not very realistic with the Krupp's 4116 steel Wüsthof uses, as its structure is are already too coarse and too soft to allow with double-bevelled blades an inclusive angle of 30°, and leads to edge instability.


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## coxhaus (Jul 2, 2021)

I looked this morning and the back of the blade is concave. There is a small micro bevel on the back edge. This is the cleanest cutting knife I own. I have no idea on the sharpening angles.


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## Bobby2shots (Jul 2, 2021)

Well, after digging around trying to find the bevel angle(s), I came up with several,,,,, ranging from 28*, 17*, 14*, and 10*. These were all posted on different vendors' websites,,, ,so,,, I went to Wusthof Canada's website, and there, under their "how to sharpen" link, they state that all their Asian style knives are sharpened at 10 degrees. There was nothing available specifically for their Yanagiba since that knife has been discontinued.

My advice would be 1, get a good strong light. 2, place the back of the blade flat on a flat surface. 3. If there is a back-bevel, you should see a shadow-line under the apex of the knife bevel. Tilt the blade until the apex contacts the flat surface and the shadow-line disappears, and that'll give you an idea of what angle to sharpen the back-bevel. (if there is one). The main bevel should be easy to figure out.

As long as you're in the ballpark, the precise angle is not important,,,, just make sure you're ultimately sharpening the apex of the blade.


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