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.
With the advent of affordable industrial diamond abrasives, sharpening systems like this Chef’s Choice 464 Pronto have actually begun to work properly. Older versions of this patented idea used hardened steel wheels or ceramic rods and yielded uncertain results, but the Pronto produces consistent results with a minimum of practice.
The Pronto is set to restore western-style blades to a standard twenty degree bevel, so it isn’t intended for thinner Japanese cutlery and shouldn’t be used on that type of blade. For any standard plain-edge American or European kitchen knife, it should work well. The diamond wheels are long-lasting and the sharpener itself is built stoutly, but few people would choose a manual sharpener like this to rework a kitchen full of dull tools. Restoring knives with the Pronto will still require persistence and elbow grease.
Start out with an old knife for practice, and draw the blade smoothly through each slot, keeping the blade level and pulling back straight. Pulling to either side puts more stress on the wheel than is needed and may nick the blade and cause it to jam. Don’t press down more than lightly — the knife shouldn’t bounce and stutter across the wheels.
Many high-quality knives have polished bevels that blend with the main blade. This sharpener incorporates a two-stage system in each honing slot, restoring the main bevel at the same time it polishes the edge. The result will not be factory-perfect, but it does a good job of restoring old knives to a practical and useful condition.
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...
With the advent of affordable industrial diamond abrasives, sharpening systems like this Chef’s Choice 464 Pronto have actually begun to work properly. Older versions of this patented idea used hardened steel wheels or ceramic rods and yielded uncertain results, but the Pronto produces consistent results with a minimum of practice.
