What's everyone up to right now?

[Angrboda]

Looking at knife sharpening gear.  I think I found a good set for freehand sharpening.  A good guided sharpening system is over $90 by the time you get all the needed accessories.  Freehand requires more skill and attention, but I'm fairly fastidious and clever.  I think I can handle the challenge.

I took the same plunge a few years ago and spent a mere £15 on an amazon basics double sided whetstone. 1000 grit on one side and 6000 grit on the other.
Sure, I've scraped bits of the side of the blade on the first few goes.... but eventually I got good enough.
Some people will tell you that the blade must go left to right, others will claim that it must go to and fro... I say do whatever is easiest for you. The goal is to get material out of the edge at a consistent angle on both sides and along the whole edge. How you get there is up to you.
I do to and fro and I'm happy with the results I get from my knives. They feel like they get sharper than when they were new!
Make sure you then don't use those knives on any hard surface or you'll blunt them very quickly (I classify "hard surfaces" as anything that's not a cutting board).
Good luck!

Do you use diamond or ceramic stones?

[pocaracas]

I took the same plunge a few years ago and spent a mere £15 on an amazon basics double sided whetstone. 1000 grit on one side and 6000 grit on the other.
Sure, I've scraped bits of the side of the blade on the first few goes.... but eventually I got good enough.
Some people will tell you that the blade must go left to right, others will claim that it must go to and fro... I say do whatever is easiest for you. The goal is to get material out of the edge at a consistent angle on both sides and along the whole edge. How you get there is up to you.
I do to and fro and I'm happy with the results I get from my knives. They feel like they get sharper than when they were new!
Make sure you then don't use those knives on any hard surface or you'll blunt them very quickly (I classify "hard surfaces" as anything that's not a cutting board).
Good luck!

Do you use diamond or ceramic stones?

Amazon don't say, so I'm guessing ceramic, even the way it looks and feels is ceramic.
Mine is one of these: https://www.amazon.co.uk/AmazonBasics-Wh...B089HKKN4Z

[BrianSoddingBoru4]

Looking at knife sharpening gear.  I think I found a good set for freehand sharpening.  A good guided sharpening system is over $90 by the time you get all the needed accessories.  Freehand requires more skill and attention, but I'm fairly fastidious and clever.  I think I can handle the challenge.

I took the same plunge a few years ago and spent a mere £15 on an amazon basics double sided whetstone. 1000 grit on one side and 6000 grit on the other.
Sure, I've scraped bits of the side of the blade on the first few goes.... but eventually I got good enough.
Some people will tell you that the blade must go left to right, others will claim that it must go to and fro... I say do whatever is easiest for you. The goal is to get material out of the edge at a consistent angle on both sides and along the whole edge. How you get there is up to you.
I do to and fro and I'm happy with the results I get from my knives. They feel like they get sharper than when they were new!
Make sure you then don't use those knives on any hard surface or you'll blunt them very quickly (I classify "hard surfaces" as anything that's not a cutting board).
Good luck!

Damned good advice. Anyone who uses glass or ceramic cutting boards should not be allowed to own quality kitchen knives.

Boru

[Disagreeable]

Drinking a lot of coffee!

[Angrboda]

Do you use diamond or ceramic stones?

Amazon don't say, so I'm guessing ceramic, even the way it looks and feels is ceramic.
Mine is one of these: https://www.amazon.co.uk/AmazonBasics-Wh...B089HKKN4Z

This is what I've got my eye on right now. They say that diamond stones are more forgiving for a beginner and they work faster. Hard to tell. There's a lot of crap out there.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07YZ57ZVZ/

, and they don't wear like .

[Disagreeable]

I love Amazon.

[brewer]

Just got a call for a political survey. Based on the questions it was obviously republican. At the beginning the person indicated that if the survey was not completed in full that the responses would be invalid. After answering about a dozen or more questions, and before the survey was complete I 'mysteriously' lost connection. 

I wonder what conclusion I can come to?

[pocaracas]

Amazon don't say, so I'm guessing ceramic, even the way it looks and feels is ceramic.
Mine is one of these: https://www.amazon.co.uk/AmazonBasics-Wh...B089HKKN4Z

This is what I've got my eye on right now.  They say that diamond stones are more forgiving for a beginner and they work faster.  Hard to tell.  There's a lot of crap out there.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07YZ57ZVZ/

, and they don't wear like .

Yeah, that guy on the video you put on the youtube thread does like those diamond ones better... but he does caution against cheap ones.
A good thing about those is that they don't require all the water that mine does which makes for a more convenient experience and the particles should be more even than on mine.

[Angrboda]

This is what I've got my eye on right now.  They say that diamond stones are more forgiving for a beginner and they work faster.  Hard to tell.  There's a lot of crap out there.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07YZ57ZVZ/

, and they don't wear like .

Yeah, that guy on the video you put on the youtube thread does like those diamond ones better... but he does caution against cheap ones.
A good thing about those is that they don't require all the water that mine does which makes for a more convenient experience and the particles should be more even than on mine.

I think I'm going to go with something like yours to start. I'll have room to grow later.

[Angrboda]

I found my Shaoxing wine. I was thinking about buying a bottle when I was at the market earlier. Good thing I didn't.