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c/butchersquinn_nguyenquinn_nguyen9d agoProlific Poster

Old timers used to sharpen every 15 minutes but now people ignore it

I was working a side of beef last Saturday at the shop and this young guy next to me was fighting his knife something fierce. He kept forcing it through the muscle and making a mess of the fat caps. I asked him when he last hit the steel. He said like an hour ago. Man that stuff drives me crazy. When I started back in 2003 at a shop in Portland my mentor would stop every 15 to 20 minutes and run the blade across the steel. Even if it felt sharp. It keeps the edge straight and saves your wrist in the long run. Now everyone just wants to grind on a stone once a day and wonder why their cuts look ragged. Anyone else notice new butchers skipping the steel way too much?
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2 Comments
schmidt.grant
That 'fight the knife' part hit me real hard. I swear half the young guys in my shop think honing steel is some kind of medieval torture device. If they spent as much time steeling as they do fighting the meat they might actually finish their shift with some wrist left.
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grant_perry
Did I just hear my dull knife crying in the drawer?
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