Professional Knife Sharpener????

We're not looking for a guy on a bicycle with a grinder and a whistle...we're looking for a location that can sharpen knives properly and professionally. TIA.

Hi Ferret! When I lived in Joco I had Guillermo the butcher sharpen my knives. He did it with the stone and they came out wonderfully sharp. He didn't grind them.
Maybe a butcher at Tony's? Do you have a favorite butcher in this area? Guillermo wouldn't take any money for it so I bought him his favorite gourmet coffee beans for a trade.

There are no pro knife sharpeners in the area. I asked my buddy Josef at Joe's Chicken place beside Bubbas BBQ, and he did them on his steel. Minimal charge; not quite good enough, though. I therefore buy new ones at the Chil1 CookOff and now sharpen them every time with my own steel, instead of letting them get dull. This is a whole lot easier when you live alone.

Yes, a good butcher. Or, if you're willing to wait, the folks from the knife factory in Sayula, the Ojeda family, usually have a booth set up at the Feria de los Maestros in Chapala, during November. We've had them sharpen our knives before....just drop them off on the first day, and pick them up on the last day of the Feria. They sharpen Ojeda knives for free (for life!), but they'll sharpen your others as well for a small fee.

I agree about avoiding the guy with the whistle and the bicycle. I've heard it's a mistake. Now, maybe a machete.........

The knife making family from Sayula comes to the Feria next month and since we bought knives from them, we take them to them and they sharpen them for a minimal charge every year.
I don't know if they would do sharpening for non-customers, but you can ask.

The Feria Maestros del Arte will be at Plaza de la Ribera in West Ajijic this year. Last year the Ojeda family charged 10P per blade for sharpening.

Thanks for the tip on the Ojeda family. The Feria will be around the corner from us this year...very convenient. We are customers from last year (2 knives) but the set that needs attention is my Henkels which were purchased in 1982.
We have always used a steel before and kept them very sharp except for the ONE time we used a bicycle guy and it took quite a lot of effort to return them to a good sharp state. Unfortunately, you need good arm and shoulder strength to accomplish this and we are no longer in that department.
Mike...you wanna set up a side business? ;) Your logo could be "Sharp on Electronics and Knives"

Grinding knives is NOT the way to sharpen them. In fact I've had a set of heckles ruined by one of the those itinerate characters who wanders the streets. Their grinding wheels remove far too much metal. Better suited for axes, picks and lawn mower blades

After years of being frustrated with dull kitchen knives, no matter how expensive, I actually went to a knife sharpening course.
There I was taught they were two best methods – a wet stone and using ceramic rods. I chose the rods because of their convenience. I use a setup from Spyderco against the side of the two rods in a stroking motion d The Tri-angle. Basically two triangular shaped 6 in long rods held in a plastic base at 30 degree angles to perpendicular. You hold the knife perpendicular and run the blade across the rods in a sweeping motion to cover the entire length of the blade.
Throw away your sharpening steel. It doesn’t sharpen. All it does is re-align the metal crystals on the edge of the blade for a more precise cut but the blade has to already be sharp.
Do a Google search for products and techniques

SunFan

Rosa Venus wrote:Yes, a good butcher. Or, if you're willing to wait, the folks from the knife factory in Sayula, the Ojeda family, usually have a booth set up at the Feria de los Maestros in Chapala, during November. We've had them sharpen our knives before....just drop them off on the first day, and pick them up on the last day of the Feria. They sharpen Ojeda knives for free (for life!), but they'll sharpen your others as well for a small fee.

We bought a set of Ojeda kitchen knives and they are a great bargain for what they are.
I won't even touch them they are so sharp they scare me but my wife loves them. Worth
the time and money to go there and purchase some good knives.

Z

They are excellent knives. Scary, too. You could cut your digit off and not feel the pain. (Kidding). The family brings some beautiful ornamented knives to the Feria, too. $$ but worth it.

SunFan wrote:Throw away your sharpening steel. It doesn’t sharpen. All it does is re-align the metal crystals on the edge of the blade for a more precise cut but the blade has to already be sharp.SunFan

Agreed, but if you DO start with them sharp and steel them every time, you keep them sharp. But as I pointed out, you kind of need to be the only person using them; the rest of the family never does it.

I like the sound of the pan flutes they play.