Finally got my boning knife sharpening routine down after 6 years of fighting it

I used to just run my boning knife over a steel a few times and call it good. Then I'd wonder why I was fighting through silver skin and tearing up bellies on every hog. About 4 months ago I picked up a set of whetstones from a local shop in Raleigh and started doing a proper edge every Sunday night. Now I can break down a whole pig in under 45 minutes without fighting the blade. Anyone else switch from steel-only to stones and notice a huge difference in your cuts?

3 comments

3 Comments

michaelgrant2d ago

Got a ceramic rod after reading @reese_hayes71 and it changed everything for me too.

reese_hayes712d ago

If you really want to change your cuts, stop sharpening completely for a month and just hone. Get yourself a smooth ceramic rod and use it every 10-15 minutes while you work. A freshly sharpened edge is actually too aggressive for clean boning work on hogs. It catches on the grain and drags. A well honed but slightly dulled edge slides through fat and silver skin way cleaner. I broke down three pigs Saturday and didn't touch a stone once. That Sunday night sharpening routine might be making more problems than it solves.

nancyjones2d agoMost Upvoted

Used to think you needed a fresh edge every time but this actually makes a ton of sense.