Master the Art of Japanese Knife Sharpening with Traditional Waterstones Review

An excellent, thoughtful book introducing knife sharpening in general and Japanese knives in particular. Principles and techniques very well presented to understand the technique of knife sharpening.

Wow! This little guide is excellent. Packed with information, everything is explained simply and directly. Excellent guide to using water stones. Although this guide is intended for sharpening Japanese knives (which have a hard steel core embedded in an iron "sleeve"), these methods can be applied to other cutting tools and knives as well. Includes special moves for each knife type.

Really strong book. I'm constantly looking for a book that is consistent in tradition, style, refinement and usage, but it just doesn't seem to be there. But there are many excellent books on each of these subjects. Although there are a few minor translation issues, this book was very easy to understand and gave me the confidence to use the methods. The book is spiral bound so it's a pleasure to work with while practicing.