Sharpening a knife

[rocky99213]

If a knife is used a lot, and you would sharpen it regularly, wouldn't the knife disappear eventually.

[WeHaveFreshCookies]

If you sharpened a knife every single day, it would still take you damn near 20 years or more to make that happen. And if you use a knife enough that you need to sharpen it every day, the blade would snap long before then.

[MushookieMan]

At 5/17/12 05:34 PM, rocky99213 wrote: If a knife is used a lot, and you would sharpen it regularly, wouldn't the knife disappear eventually.

No, it wouldn't disappear, because even if it became extremely worn down, a normal person would throw it out and buy a new one before that point.

[Elfer]

Yes, eventually. Sharpening removes metal, so enough sharpening will eventually reduce your knife to a thin strip of metal. In theory you could sharpen until it disappears completely, but it would stop being a knife before that point.

I have a kitchen knife that I've used maybe 600 or 700 times over the past couple of years, and I keep it pretty sharp. I'd say I've taken somewhere in the ballpark of a millimeter off the edge so far. Someone who uses a knife professionally for a lot of volume (say, a prep cook) could potentially wear a knife out completely.

[envyitall]

It would take a long time, sweetheart.

[Mumbo]

My knives are like... 3 inches wide and a quarter inch thick.

[RWT]

At 5/17/12 05:34 PM, rocky99213 wrote: If a knife is used a lot, and you would sharpen it regularly, wouldn't the knife disappear eventually.

Nope.