Here's the process of having items sharpened at Cardinal Sharp:
You text or call me at 612-246-7192 or email [email protected], describe what you'd like sharpened, ask any questions, and arrange either pick-up or drop-off
At the arranged time, either you drop your items off with me or I pick them up from you
I sharpen your items – woohoo! (I will generally need your items for ~24 hours)
I contact you to arrange a time for pick-up or drop-off so you can start using your freshly sharpened items!
Here's an overview of the process I go through when sharpening a knife:
Inspect the knife – check for overall sharpness, nicks, tip damage, bent blade
Determine what initial grit stone to use – duller knives start with courser grits
Determine what final grit stone to use – most knives I'll finish at 1000 grit but utility knives I'll typically stop at 600 to leave "micro-serrations" whereas knives that are intended for push-cutting (e.g., santokus) I'll finish at 2200
Mount the knife, determine the bevel angle of each side of the blade and lock the angles in – using the existing bevel angles allows me to remove only as much steel as necessary
Load up the initial grit stones and form a "burr" on one side, then the other – forming a burr along the entire length of each side ensures the sharpest possible edge
Proceed through the remaining stones – here is where I get my Zen on
Final test and clean with isopropyl alcohol – your knife is ready!