I build knives for them to be used and used often. Knives are utilitarian in nature, they are made to be used. The knives I make might be beautiful but they show their elegance when in your hand being used. With some basic guidelines and occasional TLC your knife will last a lifetime and beyond.

RULE #1

Never wash your knife in a dishwasher.

Rule #2 – Just like Fight Club, see rule #1, Never wash your knife in a dishwasher or let if soak in water.  The high heat and aggressive detergents in a dishwasher are brutal on all knives. The dishwasher will cause the handle material to shrink or expand and the high temp with the aggressive detergent can cause even the toughest steel to degrade.

Rule #3 - Hand-wash (or at least rinse & wipe dry) the blade of your knife after and between uses. Carbon has a tendency to react with acidic foods (especially fruits & proteins). Keeping your knife clean helps lower the reaction time.

DO NOT allow food and excess moisture to remain on your blade as this will cause your knife to corrode and begin to rust.

CLEANING & STORAGE

Use regular dishwashing soap and a sponge or slightly abrasive scouring pad and wash by hand. Don’t put in a soapy sink with a bunch of other items, it’s not only dangerous but the edge can get damaged in the process, prolonged soaking also isn’t great for the handle.

Those magnetic strips are great for storing knives as it allows them to dry completely and keeps the edge away from anything that could dull it. Those wood blocks are ok too, drawers are the worst. We provide a kydex or leather sheath for every knife in case you do want to store it in a drawer you can use it to protect the edge.

SHARPENING

How often you will have to sharpen your knife depends on how often, and how, you use it as well as what kind of cutting board you are using (wood or plastic only please).

Regarding the difference between Carbon and Stainless - in a nutshell: Carbon is softer, which allows you to get a wicked edge more easily - but takes more maintenance overall. Stainless Steel is harder, a bit more elbow grease to get an great edge, but it does then tend to stay sharper for longer.

There is a great deal of information online to walk you through the various sharpening processes. If you would like to sharpen your own knives by hand, we suggest using wet stones and defer to fellow knife maker Bob Kramer who provides wet stone sharpening instruction as excellent as they can get.

Please do not use the electric sharpeners. They don’t work and will chew up the cutting edge.

Patina

Over time and use all High-Carbon Steel blades including Damascus will develop a thin coating called a patina. This is caused by a reaction between the metal, the foods you are cutting, and the air. Each patina is unique and is a good thing as it will help protect the blade from corrosion.