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Harbor Freight ceramic kitchen knives--who is guilty among us? (raises hand)

I have seen these during the last few visits I've made to a HF store. Today I went to buy a couple other things and decided to get a knife too (the medium-size, $11 one).

I've been aware of ceramic kitchen knives for years, but when they first came out they cost a fortune and I didn't care enough about kitchen knives to want one. The idea of a ceramic being tough enough to make into a thin knife blade is fascinating though, and the HF knives are so cheap that they're only ~2X what a decent steel one would have cost--so I decided why not. It is odd how you can see the shadows of your fingers on it when you hold it up to a light.

I have already heard that one requirement of these knives is that they cannot be stored where they will rattle around with anything else (that is, in the drawer with most of the other knives) since the edge will chip easily. Also you can't pry with them or strike anything hard.

After getting home and getting it out of the package, I noticed it doesn't seem very sharp. I haven't tried cutting actual food with it yet, my assessment of "not very sharp" is just scraping my finger on the edge, and slicing a couple pieces of paper. The plain steel knives I normally use can be honed sharper in 15 seconds, and a new razor blade is WAY sharper. Is this normal for ceramic knives, or just for a Harbor Freight knife?

Second, do you sharpen these things? I have a couple diamond knife sharpeners around but I would assume even the finest of them to be too coarse. ...Since you're not raising a burr, the grinding would have to be a very fine texture. I would guess the best way would be some mirror-finish/optical diamond polishing compound and a sheet of paper or similar. I don't have any diamond compound around and a tube would cost $16 from Enco, so I would be spending $16 to sharpen a $11 knife.

Reply to
DougC
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I've had them a couple years and they work great. The apparent sharpness to the touch is deceiving, they cut foods very well (remember to slice and move the blade in two directions, not just try to press it through the food). Their non-reactivity is nice for onions and tomatoes and citrus.

As for sharpening, yes, diamond is required, don't discount the extra fine purple DMT sharpeners, do the sharpening in the correct direction and you should effectively get micro-serrations, but you really shouldn't need to sharpen them at all, just use them.

Reply to
Pete C.

I bought a Kyocera many years ago and it was very sharp at first, but you are right that they are nearly impossible to sharpen. I had no luck with fine diamond polishing film.

Kyocera will re-sharpen their own brand for free if you pay shipping.

Here is how they do it. It is not clear to me what they are using for their final buffing wheel.

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Reply to
anorton

I picked up a Wasabi 8" chef's knife at a garage sale - for $1.

It was pretty sharp already, but scary sharp now.

Cuts bond paper without slicing! It just parts the paper.

DON'T drop it!

Reply to
Richard

I have one and it works fine so far.

i
Reply to
Ignoramus6888

Mine broke when I tried to cut a sweet potato one-handed. It cut halfway through, paused, and then went through quickly, right into the plastic cutting board at 100mph. My 6" chef's knife was left in two pieces, the entire blade and the handle with the small tang in the end. Broke my heart, it did.

My Japanese (can't remember the name, Eagle something at 1/3 the price of the big brands) chef's knife was truly ScarySharp(tm).

Reply to
Larry Jaques

I'm kinda partial to the Cavendish carving set I paid $0.50 for a couple years back. The case is a bit ratty looking and the steel has lots of patina but it holds a good edge.

Reply to
grmiller

Years ago I called Kyocera about their recomended procedure for sharpening their alumina zirconiaum knives and they said to return them as it was proprietary. I thanked them for their time and told them I would instruct my customers to find some other brand. FWIW a 600grit resin bond 100conc diamond wheeel works fairly well, you do not want to breathe the dust or draw the brittle edge out too thin. You might be able to get a wheel no longer suitable for grinding carbide saws from a sharpener for coffee and donuts.

Reply to
beecrofter

One could not be a successful Leftwinger without realizing that, in contrast to the popular conception supported by newspapers and mothers of Leftwingers, a goodly number of Leftwingers are not only narrow-minded and dull, but also just stupid. And when they engage in anal sex their progeny grow up to become right wing conservative lackeys of the corporate world.

Asch-hole

Reply to
beecrofter

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