Reddit reviews Winware Stainless Steel Sharpening Steel, 12-Inch

I know you said you don't have money for a sharpener, but a sharpening rod is pretty cheap, and will help it stay sharp for a while. He might want to pick one up in a month or two if he notices the sharpness lessening. I've used that knife for years and I wouldn't worry about it rusting or breaking or anything. It's a great knife and can take a decent beating. I'd just make sure to tell him to only use it on wood or plastic cutting boards or the blade will dull pretty quickly.

Just spend the $8. http://www.amazon.com/Winco-K-12S-WINCO-Sharpening-12-Inch/dp/B001N0ULJG/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1420475058&sr=8-3&keywords=honing+rod

I have several of those fibrox knives. I would also recommend everyone get a whetstone, angle guide, and honing rod. No matter if you have that particular knife or not, something as simple as this, this, and this will make it so easy to maintain an ultra sharp edge. A few drags on the honing rod will help keep your knife sharp, and when that doesn't cut it (heh) use your whetstone. You'll never have to suffer through using a dull blade again.

To go with this, here is a good value knife sharpener. It's good for about 40 knife sharpenings, which is plenty for me for its cost. It allows me to sharpen all of my knives twice a year (which means a single set of blades is good for about 2 years), and it has cheap replacement blades too.

Would also recommend a honing steel like this to use each time you use your knives to extend time between sharpenings.

This one is great and cheap

Came here to say I bought this Victorinox 8-inch chef knife and this honing steel. I have no complaints so far. I would probably go with Mercer, though, since you're a student and cheap is always better (at least it was for me during those times), haha.

It could be for your [honing steel] (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001N0ULJG)
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My Winco honing stick is rusting. How do I prevent my honing stick from rusting?

I use this steel which is less than $16 .. it works well for me. Amazon has quite a few stones that I am sure are good.. I have this one and have no complaints with it either. I like that the case for it has non slip feet and places the stone at an angle for you.

If you're serious about cooking, knife sharpening is an invaluable skill. Get yourself a steel and the shittiest old chef's knife you can find in the back of your parent's silverware drawer. Then do what Gordon Ramsey tells you to until that knife is sharp and you're confident enough to do it on your good knife. My knives are as sharp as the day I bought them and it's never cost me more than a $10 steel and 30 seconds of my time before and after using them,

As a cutler, I'd recommend using this only for "steeling" a knife. Essentially replacing one of these.

If you try to hone with a cup, you're gonna have issues.

Just roll with the Victorinox fibrox 8 inch, a good whetstone and steel if you're trying to be cheap.

https://www.amazon.com/Victorinox-Fibrox-45520-Frustration-Packaging/dp/B008M5U1C2

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B001N0ULJG/ref=yo_ii_img?ie=UTF8&psc=1

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0016VC46A/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1501371759&sr=8-1&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_FMwebp_QL65&keywords=king+1000+whetstone&dpPl=1&dpID=31xyvQ0MXCL&ref=plSrch

It's something like one of these but I don't know if that's exactly it or not, can check when I get home later on.

It also heavily depends on the type of steel you use. I use a forged steel knife, as opposed to a blade that was say, press cut out of sheet steel.

I highly recommend getting a decent knife. I use An eight inch Mercer. Providing I use it on a wood cutting board, it lasts me about six to eight months. Honing steel every once and a while doesn't hurt either.

I have a Victorinox Cutlery 9-Inch Wavy Edge Bread Knife and a Victorinox 8 Inch Fibrox Pro Chef's and absolutely love them both. My brother, who is a chef, was impressed with both. He typically uses Global knives, which start at around $150 and go much higher.

With the chef's knife, I make sure to use a sharpener like this one every other time I pull it out (just rub it together 3 or 4 times each side) to keep the edge nice and straight. It actually can cut through tomatoes with minimal effort. Almost as good as the bread knife!

I don't really ever do precise work because I'm lazy so I've not found the need for a pairing knife. But I can see it being essential.

Start with this

and learn to use it. It's a million times more useful, and it's an essential chef skill.

I have a $5 pairing knife that takes an edge well but looses it fast. I have a $25 stamped wusthof that takes an edge well and keeps it pretty good. I just bought my little brothers (2 of them) Misen chefs knives (a kickstarter thing) and they are pretty dang nice.

 

I can sharpen an axe to where I can shave with it by hand. Showing off is all that is good for. I have used water stones, diamond, the top of a car window, and even a plain ole rock. But once a month or so, I sharpen them with on this.

 

But every day, I hone them with one of these I bought at goodwill.

 

My advice to anyone is learn to use and sharpen the tool before geeking out on expensive stuff. Knowledge and practice will bring you a lot more satisfaction. I would rather hear a great guitarist on a crap guitar than a crap guitarist on a great guitar.