Soak the Stone:
Immerse the whetstone in water and soak for at least 10-15 minutes or until no air bubbles continue to rise. This ensures the stone is fully saturated for optimal sharpening. You may find that you need to pour more water onto the stone during sharpening if it seems dry on the surface or if you want to rinse off slurry during sharpening, or if the friction increases.
Set Up Your Workspace:
Place the whetstone on a non-slip surface like a tea towel or a whetstone holder to keep it steady during sharpening. Do not put it on a chopping board to avoid metal fragments getting onto food surfaces.
Sharpening Angle:
Lay your knife flat and place the tips of two fingers perpendicular to the sharp edge of the knife, half on the knife blade and half on the whetstone. Lift the back of the blade till you feel the knife edge is flush with the whetstone surface. This tells you the angle of the knife edge. The trick is to maintain that angle while moving the knife back and forth across the length of the whetstone. The knife should be at an angle to the whetstone.
Alternatively, you can use a sharpie or magic marker and colour in the blade. If your angle is correct and consistent along the length of the knife, then only the pen on the edge of the blade will be worn away. You can easily clean the sharpie with nail polish remover afterwards. With a bit of practice your muscle memory will remember the feel of the correct angle.
Sharpening Motion:
Using moderate pressure, slide the blade across the stone in a smooth, consistent motion, pulling and pushing the knife away from you. Cover the entire length of the blade evenly and work in sections for longer knives.
Alternate Sides:
Sharpen one side of the blade until you feel a burr (a slight raised edge at the very tip of the blade where the two sides meet. You should be able to feel it with your thumb pad or your finger nail should catch on it). Then switch to the other side. Repeat until the burr is removed and a sharp edge is formed.
Rinse and Repeat:
Periodically rinse the stone and your blade to remove metal particles and keep the stone surface clean.
Dry and Store:
After sharpening, dry the stone thoroughly before storing it in a cool, dry place to prevent damage.
