# Can you use a Furi sharpener with Global knives



## gidds (Dec 14, 2009)

Hi there,

Great forum, and thanks in advance for any advice you can give.

I have some Global knives (steel ones) and I was wondering whether this Furi sharpener will work with them: *Furi Ozitech Diamond Fingers Pro Knife Sharpener* (amazon.com/Furi-Ozitech-Diamond-Fingers-Sharpener/dp/B000F8SIOW) - incomplete link as I am new here 

I received it as a gift but don't want to ruin my Globals! I am just a keen home chef, so don't need a super-pro edge.

Also if anyone has used the Furi sharpener - is it any good?

Thanks again in advance for your thoughts.

gidds


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## boar_d_laze (Feb 13, 2008)

Hi Gidds,

Your Globals are sharpened to a 15* edge angle on each side. That's a 30* included angle, FYI. The Furi sharpens (if you can call it that) to a 20* edge angle (40* included) As you can see, it's a more obtuse angle than the knife is made for. The obtuse angle itself won't make the knife duller, but it will make it ACT duller, and go shorter between sharpenings, too.

I'm not sure if "ruin" is the right word or not. The Furi sharpener is a poor system for any knife, worse for yours. Globals aren't exactly the top performers of the knife world anymore, but they're darn decent knives and are worth maintaining in the way they'll work best.

Getting back to the magic fingers of Furk: They are pretty easy to use in terms of having a low learning curve, and those who made the gift to you may have been impressed by having knives that were even half sharp as a result of their own efforts. Getting knives sharper than they were, in the privacy of your own kitchen, is something which escapes most modern people. It's empowering when it happens.

Oddly, there's no such thing as a "super-pro" edge. Many (actually probably "most" by a large margin) professional chefs and cooks don't have the foggiest concept of how to sharpen a knife well themselves; and seldom if ever use knives which are actually sharp.

As a home cook, just like a pro, you want to sharpen a knive until it's "very to extremely" sharp, and resharpen it when it becomes merely sharp. In your own words, as a "keen home cook," you should have a keen knife always. In my opinion sharpening is part of good technique for the home cook.

The easiest way to do that is with a Chef's Choice (electric) sharpening machine. Chef's Choice makes sharpeners in the "Asian" 15* angle that would be fine for your Globals and sell them for less than $100 USD. A lot of old timers have the mind set that machines will hurt your knives. Used properly, a Chef's Choice will do less damage than almost any alternative; and far, far less than a system like your Furi.

Other good methods are learning to "freehand" sharpen on whetstones (either oilstones or waterstones), and a "rod-guide" system such as the EdgePro Apex.

As do most "knife" people, I use stones, freehand. However, it is a skill which requires a skill (not that it's all that hard), and a good stone kit does end up expensive. The strengths of the method are that once you've mastered the skill, you can sharpen practically anything; and you can learn to do it at a very high level indeed.

Rod-guides are much simpler to learn, but are a bit of a PITA. Also, the good ones are expensive. You're looking at something more than $150 going in.

Less good but less expensive, are the "slot guide" manual sharpeners such as the Minosharp Global sells for its knife. They're a lot of work to take a knife from dull to sharp, and an enormous amount of work to do any sort of repairs. Everybody and their uncle make slot guides: Chef's Choice, Wusthof, and so on. Most of them are angled at 20* and are totally inappropriate. Of those with 15* angles, like the Minosharp and the MAC rollsharp ... well, not great.

The same is true for "V" stick systems such as the Spyderco Sharpmaker.

Neither the slot guide nor the "V" stick will provide anywhere near an appropriately fine edge. I guess you could say they're OK for "touchups," but not for real repair, sharpening or polishing.

A not inexpensive "V" stick alternative is the "Warthog," which actually is pretty good, efficient, versatile and so on. Not cheap, though.

In addition to a good sharpening system, you'll want a good "steel." The steels that Global packages with its sets is too rough to be very good. I suggest a fine (as opposed to coarse or medium) ceramic, like the Idahone 10" fine (under $25 USD).

I've tried it. Not to be harsh, but no Furi knife or sharpener is any good.

Sorry to be the bearer of bad tidings, don't shoot the messenger.

Hope it helps,
BDL


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## gidds (Dec 14, 2009)

Wow, thanks for the great info Boar.

Looks like the Furi sharpener is destined to become a passed-on Christmas gift! It was a gift from work so they will never know...:lol:

I've only just got the knives, so hadn't really looked into sharpeners. I'll check out the options you listed - the electric one sounds like it could be the go.

Again, thanks a lot - really appreciate you taking the time to help a rookie out with your knowledge.


All the best,

gidds


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## ryan.brosseau1 (Jul 24, 2009)

BDL-

Do you really think that the mac/fiskars roll sharp is that bad. I have used one at the behest of the Canadian Mac rep and while I wouldn't use it in a professional setting it seemed to work ok. I mean in a professional setting it just doesn't keep up with the amount of use my knife gets. 
But in a home setting a knife would seemingly get so much less use that honing on the roll sharp and properly sharping at longer intervals would be sufficient, especially for a beginner or casual user. 

I guess my question is; is the roll sharp a good enough product for day to day edge maintenance for a home cook. 

BTW.. you should write a book on this stuff.


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## boar_d_laze (Feb 13, 2008)

The Rollsharp ends up with a decent medium/coarse edge. Considering how coarse it is, it takes a long time to do profile/repair and a long time to come up from darn dull to sharp enough. As long as you don't actually hurt your knives, don't let them get too dull, and don't demand too high a polish it's one of the better slot type sharpeners.

If I seemed to consign it to some lower circle of the netherworld, that was just bad writing. I believe Pierre aka Pete McCracken uses a Rollsharp in a fairly busy pro kitchen where he and his MACs are the mainstay and he swears by it. 

Also, individual situations can be nuanced. For instance, some knives which combine a fair degree of hardness with toughness and flexibility, like MAC Superiors don't do as well on stones as they do in a Rollsharp or Minosharp. 

It may not be profound or particularly insightful to say the "best" method and kit depend on which knives you're tyring to sharpen, and to what degree of sharpness and polish you want to take them. The better slot guides have their strengths and weaknesses; but a Chef's Choice can do everything they do faster, better, and for not too much more money.

Interesting stuff,
BDL


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