Graef CX125 Mode D'emploi page 21

SHARPENING THE TRADITIONAL
(SINGLE BEVEL) JAPANESE BLADE
Traditional Japanese knives such as the sashimi blade shown here are single
sided and have a large factory bevel on the front side of the blade. There are
a large number of manufacturers of knives of this type used widely to prepare
sashimi. The factory bevel (Bevel A) is commonly ground at about 10 degrees,
but there are exceptions and that angle is not standardized at the factories. De-
signs of the traditional Japanese knives and the detailed structure of the cutting
edges likewise vary widely from one manufacturer to the next, however there
are some similarities. The cutting edge consists of a small primary facet on the
front face of the blade below the large bevel and a much smaller secondary
microfacet along the back face. Commonly the back side microfacet can be
easily seen only with a hand magnifier. The back face is ground flat at the
factory or more commonly it is slightly hollow ground to ensure that an effective
microfacet can be formed there as part of the cutting edge. Because of the lack
of standardization, the manual approach used to sharpen these knives in Asia
has proven difficult, laborious and time consuming. The Graef Model CX125
is designed to sharpen all traditional Asian blades and to create a factory-
quality edge.
Before you start to sharpen a traditional blade, examine it carefully in order
to confirm that you have the traditional single bevel blade and to determine
whether you have a right or left handed type. It is essential that you follow ca-
refully the sharpening procedure and sequence as described below in order
to achieve the optimum edge on your traditional blade.
Again confirm which side of the blade has the large factory Bevel A. Hold the
blade in your hand (as when you are cutting) and if the large factory bevel is
on the right side of the blade, the blade is right handed. For the right handed
blades start sharpening in the left slot of Stage 2 so that only the beveled side
(right side) of the edge will contact the honing wheel.
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