First Chip and First Free

[ambjeb]

Hey all,

Just want to make sure I am on the right track. I got my first chip today in my white#1 Nakiri by bumping it on the faucet. It looks like it is just in the cutting edge near the front edge of the top two pictures. If I am looking at this correctly it should just be repaired in the process of normal sharpening correct? It will be my first attempt at freehand sharpening so any pointers are also helpful...... Love the knife, it is the $50 Tojiro, great knife so far...

[d_rap]

Hard to know where to begin with advice, there's so much here and elsewhere to search up and sooo much to say about sharpening, but fire away with some more specific questions.

Thank you for the clear pics, that really helps diagnose.

That chip is no big deal. You can sharpen it out at the normal angle that you would sharpen the knife, but you will want to start with a fairly low grit stone, 400 some would say below (depending on what you have of course), and after you get a burr, you will need to keep sharpening, up and down the entire length of the blade on both sides in order to maintain the geometry of the knife, until the chip disappears. Make sure you don't sharpen at too low an angle, or the process will take forever. Feel for the very edge, back off just slightly, and sharpen until the chip is gone.

[Bensbites]

After years of home cooking I can say I have chipped one knife and it was worse than yours. I just let it sharpen out. You’re will take less time.

[ambjeb]

David, Thanks! The lowest I have is a 800 so I will use that. When you say to feel for the edge and back off, can you describe how you do that I have heard pulling the blade down the stone and lowering the spine until it slips but I really don’t understand. Thanks!

[d_rap]

You'll get various opinions on this, so this is just my experience speaking, but especially if I have a chip to repair I want to err on the side of a higher angle (numerically). Chip repair with an 800 is no time to lower the bevel angle.

I'd suggest going in the opposite direction. Starting with the spine fairly low, simply tip the knife up on the stone until you reach the edge, feel for the existing bevel, see no daylight between the edge and the stone (assuming it's flat, lol). On most stones that will make a telltale sound: "feedback." Sharpen at that angle or just ever so slightly lower (tipping the spine down toward the stone just a hair, ever so slightly).

Sharpie drawn along the very edge should just come off evenly at and just above the edge, for maybe like one mm thickness or less. Actually draw marker the whole length of the edge on both sides and see where you are removing sharpie. See if it's even, and not too high. Literally a mm or so. It helps if you gently test along the stone with the sharpie applied before wetting the stone. If you take this approach, you won't be removing sharpie all the way to the depth of the chip, if you are that's too low an angle, but you'll see that you're contacting the edges of the chip along with the rest of the edge. Now just work at this angle on both sides until the chip is gone. Dry and add sharpie at any point in the process to see exactly where you're removing material. Apply sharpie on both sides to see that you are working evenly. If the sharpie is coming off several mm up the blade, your angle is too low: tip the spine up.

If any of that is unclear I can share pics or a video. Let me/us know. Be patient with the 800. That's going to take a bit of time, as in maybe 10-15 minutes (that's a guess, and there are things I don't know of course), could be a bit more.

[ambjeb]

David, Thanks! That is very detailed and very appreciated. Am I pulling the blade towards me or pushing it away? Pics and videos are always helpful, I’m a visual learner lol.

I have an 800 Naniwa stone and a 400 grit atoma. Is that useful or just for flattening.

Thanks again!

[d_rap]

I would use an atoma 400 for this job, yes, sure. That's actually a bit high grit for most flattening. Good for this job.

And I would push and pull. Let the atoma do the work, not too much pressure. But lots of different possible approaches.

Peter Nowlan, a real expert, has some great videos here and on his blog.

PM me if you want to really get into some detail. I'd be glad to help if I can.