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.
Global Diamond Sharpening Steel 10 Inch | Vanadium Chrome | Yoshikin Knives
58 sec read
Made from a solid rod of chrome vanadium stainless steel and embedded with a matrix of fine industrial diamonds, this unusual honing steel was developed for the Global knives manufactured by Yoshikin of Japan. Global recommends sharpening with their series of ceramic powder stones, an improvement over the Japanese waterstone method. The thin sharp blades of Global knives don’t fare well when honed with the usual sharpening steel. The cutting edge could be chipped rather than reset.
The diamond steel makes this old and very convenient approach to edge maintenance appropriate for fine Global cutlery. The flattened oval applies more of the diamond grit to the knife edge, shaping by steel removal rather than resetting. The action is like a fine grit whetstone without the mess.
Use some caution. If you work with this hone too aggressively, the same old chipping problems could result. The hone also needs some breaking it before it will do its finest work. In a diamond abrasive, the new stone or steel contains many diamond crystals set just above the level of the intended abrasive surface. That makes the first few uses fast but rougher than expected. Using the hone on cheaper knives will remove that top layer of crystals, leaving a flatter abrasive that polishes more and grinds less.
Steel particles could build up on the diamond matrix and clog the grit, but regular rinsing after use will keep the Global 10-Inch Diamond Sharpening Steel free of problems.
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.
The Diamond Edge Pro knife and scissors sharpener from Smith Abrasives combines electric and manual sharpening systems for quick and accurate refurbishing of knives...
Made from a solid rod of chrome vanadium stainless steel and embedded with a matrix of fine industrial diamonds, this unusual honing steel was developed for the Global knives manufactured by Yoshikin of Japan. Global recommends sharpening with their series of ceramic powder stones, an improvement over the Japanese waterstone method. The thin sharp blades of Global knives don’t fare well when honed with the usual sharpening steel. The cutting edge could be chipped rather than reset.
