Furi TechEdge - Sharpening for Dummies

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omniphile

Joined
Jun 17, 2006
Messages
75
As a bit of a gadget-geek and keen amateur cook, I recently got the Furi TechEdge kit to see how it went. I wanted a quick way to maintain functionally-sharp cooking knives as well a simple system that would minimise damage to the blade edge by family members incorrectly using steels/stones etc.

In some respects the Furi system seems to be a dream answer. It won't make the world's sharpest edge, but it allowed me to restore a damaged edge to shaving sharpness (on some old F. Dick knives) in less than 90 seconds per knife. And it is virtually idiot proof.

Once the knives were sharp, I hid the 2 coarsest attachments, and left the finest one set up on the kitchen bench (it takes very little space and being immediately at hand, encourages people to "swipe" the knife over it at every use. If I had to make a guess, I'd say the fine attachment gives the same honing as a medium-fine steel, but the flexible fingers on it vastly reduces the risk of damaging the knife.

Out of the box, the edge restorer attachment (the coarse one) is set at a 40 degree bevel (20 per side). I reduced this to 10 per side and this suits me better.

This is probably one of the easiest sharpeners I have found for idiots and novices alike.

Cheers
omniphile
 
I must admit is does look strange. It's a variation of a pull-through sharpener and (in my opinion only) is easier to use than even the Sharpmaker. Their website has some small videos showing the steps at:
http://www.furitechnics.com.au/Equippe/sharpening/sharpenmain.htm

The edge restorer unfortunately only allows changing the bevel in 10 degree increments on each side which I found a little limiting. But it is very quick and safe for use by absolute novices, elderly grandparents etc and is foolproof (even for my family and me :8 )

And they can't easily ruin my knives.

Edit added: But, kel_aa, don't get me wrong. I doubt it will be as good as a stone/Sharpmaker/sharpening-steel combination in a skilled user's hands. All I'm suggesting is it seems to give very adequate, safe and quick results for Joe and Jenny Average.
 
So you have used a Sharpmaker before?

It does look like a pretty straight-forward set up for the kitchen countertop. However, one thing that concerns me is that most of the movement is horizontal, hence you don't get the vertical (or angled) scratch lines that in my opinion make the knife cut better. But really, how often do you need to sharpen/touchup your kitchen knifes anyways, unless your family keeps tossing them around the sink and using them on plates? Are you really particular about having a sharp knife?

PS: The attitude towards sharpening steels is mixed among us.
 
The problem with the Sharpmaker (and any steel) is that unless you stroke VERY gently the lateral pressure on a thin edge is so high that it can easily bend the edge causing chips and metal fatigue.
I have never tried the Furi sharpener although I like the knives.
Greg
 
omniphile said:
If I had to make a guess, I'd say the fine attachment gives the same honing as a medium-fine steel, but the flexible fingers on it vastly reduces the risk of damaging the knife.
Click to expand...

How are the knives getting damaged on steels, are these diamonds/ceramics or grooved butchers steels?

This is probably one of the easiest sharpeners I have found for idiots and novices alike.
Click to expand...

Any comments on edge holding?

Greg said:
The problem with the Sharpmaker (and any steel) is that unless you stroke VERY gently the lateral pressure on a thin edge is so high that it can easily bend the edge causing chips and metal fatigue.
Click to expand...

Are the contacts points on the Furi greater than the flat on the Sharpmaker?

kel_aa said:
... you don't get the vertical (or angled) scratch lines that in my opinion make the knife cut better.
Click to expand...

This is mainly made for people who can't/won't sharpen and thus you are comparing bowling ball edges to honed. It doesn't matter than really how they are honed as long as the edge meets. In general the worst sharpened job you are likely to do will impress the hell out of someone compared to what you find in kitchen drawers.

-Cliff
 
Hi Cliff (and all)

1. I usually catch my wife trying her best to keep a relatively constant angle (she claims anyway) while using a steel, but then she gets impatient and as she increases speed it seems like a random number generator selects any angle between 5 and 85 degrees. Then there is the problem of using the guard to stop the blade. However, I'm partially to blame too. I have a grooved and very elongated Friedrich Dick ellipse-shape sheel (it is not far from being a double sided flat steel). If I recall, it is a diamond multi-cut. After a year or so of trial and error, I grew to absolutely love it and learnt to use feather-touch pressure. But I seem to have problems communicating this to my wife and in-laws :(

2. I did some tests on edge-holding overnight (after seeing your post) and am very pleasantly surprised. Using Dick kitchen knives, and only chopping/slicing/dicing meat and veges etc for about an hour of continuous use, I didn't feel any noticeable dulling at all. I also pulled out some loupes (I was prompted by another thread) and examined the edge bevel. Using a 10X and a 12.5X illuminated loupe, there was absolutey no visible difference in the edge or the edge-bevel.

I tried to find out the type of steel used in the chef's knives on the net without success. I'm sure they use a forged blade, and the only other marks on the blades are "Stainless Steel", "1447-23" and "Made in Germany", as well as the maker's mark. The only info I could find on the net said their current knives are drop-forged, high-carbon, stainless steel, but I don't know if this holds true for me because I bought them in 1985. I sharpened these to 10 degrees per side (a total of 20).

3. I read kel_aa's comments with interest and using the loupes I saw exactly what you meant. I would now suggest the finest of the Furi honers is probaly equivalent to a coarse-medium sharpening steel because under magnification I could easily see scratch marks that ran absolutely parallel to the cutting edge along the entire length of the cutting-edge bevel (and even followed the curve towards the knife tip exactly parallel to the cutting edge - I hope that's not an oxymoron). These scratch marks cover all of the bevel - so it appears the contact points in all three attachments are consistent over all of the bevel.

As a comparison, I found my old Loray Sharpening Jig Kit (from 1982) and honed up an old Gerber. Looking at that under magnification, the scratch marks were there (but about half the depth or less at a guess), and at 45 degrees to the cutting edge instead of being parallel. It's also fair to say the Gerber "felt" sharper, but not by orders of magnitude.

Kell_aa, I have used a sharpmaker (or a close facsimile) when a friend loaned me his for a couple of days. But that was about 20 years ago and I don't actually recall how good the results really were, but it was quite simple for me to use.

But I still maintain this is a worthwhile purchase (because I have to justify it to myself :) ) to have handy in the kitchen on the bench. So far, my wife is happy to swipe the knife 3 times every time she pulls one from the block, and she seems to be doing it properly. Only time will tell if this is maintained - but so far I'm not complaining.

Thanks for all your feedback and thoughts to *everyone* who has contributed. If any of this helps or warns a potential user, it is worthwhile.

Cheers
omniphile
 
omniphile said:
... a random number generator selects any angle between 5 and 85 degrees.
Click to expand...

I have seen that too and then you end up with having often a very obtuse edge on the knife so you are either forced to stay with that edge or regrind it.

I did some tests on edge-holding overnight ...
Click to expand...

Thanks for the details, I would be curious if you noticed a difference long term between frequency of honing on the Furi vs the Dick or other similar steel.

I still maintain this is a worthwhile purchase ...
Click to expand...

While I like the Sharpmaker for ease of micro-beveling, and some of the Bladeforums regulars will laugh at this, I know lots of people who find it too complicated and would be much more suited with a sharpener which may be less optimal in terms of sharpness/edge retention if it was easier to use.

-Cliff
 
Hey, I calmed down after a while.:D

I don't see the Sharpmaker belonging on the kitchen counter. This Furi set-up looks much more at its place. I am surprised that you sharpen your knives (and get your loved ones to do the same) so much. It's usually months at our house. It doesn't get that bad using a soft board and taking care not to knick the edge with steel/ceramic objects.
 
I am now hanging my head in shame. I knew I would never be as good as most people on this list at sharpening, but I at least thought I was adequate. But with the probing questions by Cliff and kell_aa, it forced me to provide some sort of empirical evidence that I was doing the right thing, or at least the thing right.

Further investigation showed I was wrong. I can't tell a 10 degree angle from a parallel line!

As a matter of interest, I used the Dick multi-cut sharpening steel for about 5 minutes (rather than just giving it a few swipes) and then looked at the edge with one of my loupes. I was amazed how far off I was. If I had to make a guess, instead of steeling at 10 degrees each side for the bevel, it looks like my "perception" of 10 was closer to about 15+ degrees!! In other words, I could see a distinct second bevel at (or very slightly more than) halfway up the intended primary bevel. More importantly, this line was so distinct that the micro-bevel "scratches" were untouched above the line and virtually (but not totally) disappeared below it.

Thank you to everyone (especially kel_aa and Cliff) that made me justify my statements. If it weren't for you, I would have gone on blissfully thinking that any problems were a result of tool-failure and not operator incompetence.

Cheers
omniphile
 
kel_aa said:
I don't see the Sharpmaker belonging on the kitchen counter.
Click to expand...

Razor Edge makes a nice steel for that, the "Mouse Trap".

omniphile said:
... blissfully thinking that any problems were a result of tool-failure ...
Click to expand...

Examining edges under magnification solves the bulk of sharpening problems. Even 5-10 magnification is enough to prevent a lot of frustration and misleading conclusions.

-Cliff
 
It was designed basically for production cutting where many people are using blades and you need a very safe and easy to use steeling system. You just draw the blade through the slots and the counterweights provide the necessary resistance and set at the "right" angle, both according to John Juranitch. It also has two settings, one for regular steeling and one which you do occasionally when steeling fails to be productive which basically uses much more force at a more acute angle. It solves a lot of problems for novice sharpeners and is very durable.

-Cliff
 
From reading all these posts, this here novice is more comfortable with the the descision I made to buy the "Deluxe" ,or whatever they call it, version where you get 3 flavors of sharpening material-impregnated "Fingers" ( there
are NO paternity tests required )
 
Anybody wanna buy a Warthog? -j/k No "sharpening gadget" discussion would be complete without one!
 
ive got a whole host of sharpening gadgets, diamond hones, sharpmaker, paper wheels, felt buffing wheel and the furi fingers.
they work pretty well... the fingers maintain a constant angle against the blade so even if you push the blade down deeper into the fingers and spread them ...it doesnt make that much of a difference to the bevel angle. a constant 40 degrees is maintained.
you dont have to worry about angles at all when you use one of these.... with a steel, you need to work out what angle to swipe at.
you also get a bigger more consistant surface making contact with the blade instead of just one rounded edge of a steel.
the diamond fingers will give you a toothy edge that works well with softer steels. I find trying to use the honing fingers on soft steel just gives you a wire burr that will collapse when you try to use the knife so i dont hone the blade. just leave it at the diamond fingers finish.
the tungsten cutting V shape insert just peels steel off the bevel to set the initial 40 degrees.
once the bevel is set.. the diamond fingers and the steel hones work very quickly.
for general kitchen use.. id highly recommend it.. especially to those who dont have the know how to sharpen by eye and hand with stones or wheels.
 
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