How to maintain your knife
Proper maintenance ensures that your knife will last a lifetime. Once you have chosen to invest in a quality knife, it is important to take good care of it so it maintains its strength.
Due to the hardness of the VG10 steel and the rust-resistant properties of the Damascus layers, you can easily keep your knife sharp for a long time if you follow a few simple tips:
- Always wash the knife by hand with a soft brush/sponge and dry it immediately after. Never put the knife in the dishwasher.
- Store the knife in a wooden knife block or on a magnetic rack. Never store the knife in a kitchen drawer with other utensils. For example, use our oak knife holder for this purpose.
- Do not use the knives for frozen food or bones. Instead, use a knife intended for that purpose - for example, a boning knife.
- Always use wooden cutting boards or soft plastic boards. Avoid glass, stone, or ceramic boards, as they will dull the knife immediately.
- Avoid scraping food off the cutting board with the sharp edge of the blade. Make it a habit to turn the knife over so that you scrape with the spine instead of the blade edge.
- Regularly use our ceramic sharpening rod. It aligns the edge and gives the knives a light honing. Always use a ceramic sharpening rod for Japanese hard-steel knives, as it is harder than standard sharpening rods. If you use a regular steel rod, you risk "chipping" the knives.
- When needed, our whetstone can be used for sharpening and subsequent polishing. Read how to use the whetstone here.
- One of the benefits of Japanese hard-steel knives (VG10) is that they rarely need sharpening. When sharpening is required, we recommend sending them to a professional knife sharpener.
