JT Hats
James grew up on an Ozarks farm where tools like axes and picks were still used in the daily routine and the blades of stockman's pocketknives served their original functions. Receiving his first pocketknife at age four he got it open by himself nearly a year later and spent his formative years wandering the woods with a succession of ever larger knives, a book of matches and a rifle.

A veteran of Vietnam, James also served in Alaska during a stint in the Army, receiving his first intensive culinary training by setting a record for extra KP at Ft. Richardson.

Settling in the Pacific Northwest after his discharge, James crewed on sailing yachts in local races, backpacked hundreds of miles of mountain trails in search of good trout fishing, and occasionally attended college.

His first serious job as a civilian resulted from answering a Seattle Post Intelligencer want ad requesting someone who could lift 120 pounds repeatedly and wasn't afraid of fire. James apprenticed to John Frazier -- the most knowledgeable traditional foundryman in North America at that time -- for the next six years.

Returning to the Ozarks James made his living by growing ginseng on a hand-terraced wooded hillside and selling handmade wood turnery, furniture, sculpture and architectural carvings. James harvested trees from his own land, processing logs into posts and beams and turnery billets with saws, axes, froes and planes. Since many tools he needed were no longer available, James built his own forge from a barbeque grill, a vacuum cleaner and a 55 gallon steel drum, found a chunk of railroad track for his first anvil, and taught himself blacksmithing -- creating his own knives and tools from scrap steel and sweat.

Changing economic pressures eventually forced James back to the restaurant industry in Branson, Missouri, and later to even more success as a maintenance engineer for one of Branson's largest condominium resorts. Finally escaping to Indiana, James now makes his living telling true stories as a freelance writer.



Chef’s Choice Kitchen Knife Sharpening Steel | Diamond Fine Grit

1 min read

Chef's Choice Kitchen Knife SharpeningFew tools in the kitchen are handier than a sharpening steel — except perhaps a diamond hone. The Chef’s Choice 12-inch Diamond Hone Knife Sharpener is an example of what happens when you combine the cutting ability of fine industrial diamonds with the traditional chef’s honing steel. The result is a familiar tool that works better than ever.

Ultra-fine grit industrial diamonds, embedded in a thin but permanent matrix laid over an oval rod of solid steel, form the cutting surface of this modern sharpening tool. The wide section of the oval allows more diamond-coated steel to contact the edge of the blade, which means faster results. This hone works well enough to actually shape a steel edge, not just reset it. The edges of cutlery usually fold in use, and ordinary hones straighten them up again. The diamond hone does remove steel and form a new edge. With the diamond hone, you’ll be able to maintain an edge longer between major refurbishings.

If you’re new to diamond abrasives, expect fast cutting at first and then a tapering off. New diamond coatings hold many small diamonds above the level of the tool’s average surface. That first surface is rougher and cuts faster, but the scattered chips wear away quickly and expose the tool’s true surface. The hone cuts slower after that breaking-in period, but does finer work. The resulting knife edge should be polished and razor-sharp.

Diamond hones last for years, but results are better if the hones are kept clean. Rinsing off the hone after use flushes out tiny particles of steel lodged in the surface. As with any abrasive, a glazed surface layer won’t cut.

Find this Chef’s Choice Diamond Hone Knife Sharpener:

JT Hats
James grew up on an Ozarks farm where tools like axes and picks were still used in the daily routine and the blades of stockman's pocketknives served their original functions. Receiving his first pocketknife at age four he got it open by himself nearly a year later and spent his formative years wandering the woods with a succession of ever larger knives, a book of matches and a rifle.

A veteran of Vietnam, James also served in Alaska during a stint in the Army, receiving his first intensive culinary training by setting a record for extra KP at Ft. Richardson.

Settling in the Pacific Northwest after his discharge, James crewed on sailing yachts in local races, backpacked hundreds of miles of mountain trails in search of good trout fishing, and occasionally attended college.

His first serious job as a civilian resulted from answering a Seattle Post Intelligencer want ad requesting someone who could lift 120 pounds repeatedly and wasn't afraid of fire. James apprenticed to John Frazier -- the most knowledgeable traditional foundryman in North America at that time -- for the next six years.

Returning to the Ozarks James made his living by growing ginseng on a hand-terraced wooded hillside and selling handmade wood turnery, furniture, sculpture and architectural carvings. James harvested trees from his own land, processing logs into posts and beams and turnery billets with saws, axes, froes and planes. Since many tools he needed were no longer available, James built his own forge from a barbeque grill, a vacuum cleaner and a 55 gallon steel drum, found a chunk of railroad track for his first anvil, and taught himself blacksmithing -- creating his own knives and tools from scrap steel and sweat.

Changing economic pressures eventually forced James back to the restaurant industry in Branson, Missouri, and later to even more success as a maintenance engineer for one of Branson's largest condominium resorts. Finally escaping to Indiana, James now makes his living telling true stories as a freelance writer.



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