Sharpeners are often seen in everyday life. Sharpeners are almost always available in supermarkets, kitchenware stores, and other places that sell knives.
Many people recognize sharpeners as a useful kitchen item that can easily restore the sharpness of knives.
TOGIBU mainly introduces and sells whetstones, but what is the difference between sharpeners and whetstones?
〇Advantages of sharpener
- You can maintain the knife in a short time.
- Even first-time users can easily use it.
- Easy to store
The biggest advantage of sharpeners is that they make it easy to sharpen knives.
Using a whetstone to sharpen a knife takes several minutes, and if you try to seriously sharpen a knife that is in poor condition, it may take more than an hour. Some people may find it difficult to find time for this in their busy lives.
With a sharpener, it can be done in just a few seconds to a few minutes, so you can start working as soon as you feel like it.
In addition, the sharpener can be used by simply setting the cutting edge in a designated spot and moving it back and forth. It can be used without worrying about the angle or amount of force, so even beginners can use it easily.
Furthermore, there are types that are small enough to fit in the palm of your hand, and types with magnets that can be attached to the refrigerator, so you can store them anywhere in the kitchen.
Although a sharpener is a very convenient maintenance tool, there are also disadvantages that you should be aware of.
This disadvantage is a major factor in the difference between whetstones and whetstones.
〇 Disadvantages of sharpener
- It becomes dull quickly
- This may cause the blade to spill and cause the blade to fall apart.
In fact, the purpose of using a sharpener is not to sharpen the edge of the blade, but to roughen it, or to put it more simply, to ``create fine jags on the blade.'' By roughening the tip of the blade, it temporarily improves its grip on the food, so its sharpness will not last long and may actually damage the blade.
Also, if you look closely at the shape of the knife, you will notice that it has a gentle curve towards the tip, and the angle is not constant. However, sharpeners do not allow you to adjust the angle, making it impossible to sharpen in a well-balanced manner, resulting in poor sharpness.
In this way, maintenance with a sharpener cannot replace knife sharpening with a whetstone. However, a sharpener is a very convenient item for those who are not yet accustomed to using a whetstone or who don't have time to use a whetstone but want to improve their sharpness right away.
Therefore, we recommend using a sharpener as a supplementary role. Basically, maintenance with a whetstone should be done about once a month if you use it on a daily basis. If you are concerned about the sharpness during this time, you may want to use a sharpener.
In addition to regular maintenance of your whetstone, you can enjoy your everyday cooking more stress-free by using it as an item that helps you in your daily life.
