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.


Victorinox Firestorm Knife Sharpener | Ceramic Manual European, Coarse & Fine 2 Stage 49000

1 min read

Victorinox Firestorm Knife Sharpener For occasional sharpening of less expensive knives in the common European pattern, the Victorinox 49000 Firestorm could be a handy kitchen tool. Use a more advanced sharpening system on your best cutlery.

Two sets of ceramic wheels in the sharpener offer two stages of grit — coarse for the four-wheel tan set and fine for the two-wheel white set. Start off with the tan stones to reset the knife’s 25 degree bevel and finish up with a few careful passes through the white stones to polish and hone the edge.

Be careful to hold the sharpener steady while in use. You’ll need firm pressure to prevent the sharpener from skating on a smooth countertop. Drawing the blade through the sharpener at anything but 90 degrees to the stones reduces efficiency and increases wear on the wheels. Keeping the edge in contact with all the stones in the sharpening sets can be tricky. The small ceramic abrasive wheels do a lot of grinding for their size, so use a light touch and keep the stones clean. Rinse off steel particles with clean running water after use to prevent clogging the pores of the stones with metal.

Harder steel and thinner blades require something more advanced than the Firestorm, but this compact sharpener could still do a good job on utility knives, paring knives, and even larger blades built for tough chopping jobs. Once the Firestorm reshapes the bevel, using a honing steel improves the quality of the cutting edge.

Also consider longer-lasting diamond grit sharpening systems like the Chef’s Choice 450.

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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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