The best angle for your knife is often the angle that the manufacturer has set from factory/smithy. The maker knows what steel is in the blade, along with its unique characteristics such as hardness and toughness vs brittleness. They also know for what purpose the knife is made and have chosen a steel and an edge angle based on that. Of course, budget and design are also factors that matter, but we speak in general terms here.
Another advantage with replicating the existing edge angle is that you remove a minimal amount of steel, which will lead to a quicker sharpening and a longer life span for your precious knives.
So, to cut things short, here’s a step-by-step guide on how to repeat the existing edge angle when sharpening your kitchen knife on a Tormek T-1 Kitchen Knife Sharpener (video instruction below):
- Color the bevel with your EM-15 Edge Marker.
- Insert your knife into the plastic clip of the angle guide and adjust the angle so that the whole bevel touches the grinding wheel (approximately).
- With the machine turned off, rotate the grinding wheel by hand. Check where the coloring has been removed.
- Adjust the angle and repeat until the coloring is removed on the entire width of the bevel. Now the angle is right and it's time to start sharpening!
If you want to know the exact number for future reference, just check the angle indicator on the angle guide. It won’t get much simpler. Happy sharpening!
See the video below where we first show how to find the correct edge angle on your kitchen knife and then how to sharpen it on a Tormek T-1 Kitchen Knife Sharpener.
