(Part 2) Top products from r/chefknives

The Tojiro DP is the most knife dollar for dollar on the market, but you have a few options that could be a bit more interesting or appropriate.

• Minamoto Hamon 180mm santoku: It's really cool looking! Minamoto does great small, light western handled knives on a budget. The Minamoto Nashiji line in blue #2 is criminally underrated. The Minamoto handle has a partial tang that leaves it quite light and has some interesting contouring that is generally liked, though not across the board. This knife's fit and finish is a bit better than the average Japanese knife at this price and it's a pretty good performer.
  
  
• Takamura Chromax Santoku: To get this out of the way first: this is not a fully stainless knife. Chromax steel (it's A2) contains 5% chromium and some people have it stain more readily than others, though few owners have actual rust issues. Takamura is an excellent maker and this knife is the affordable way to get one. It is missing a bolster, which helps keep costs down, but it has a cool hammered finish and better steel performance than you're likely to see from anything else in this price bracket.
  
  
• Tanaka VG10 210mm gyuto: You would think, from all the love Tanaka gets online, this would be the automatic pick. It's a stainless steel knife from a reputable maker with a neat cladding, chiseled kanji, and a good heat treatment, and it's in budget (before shipping). Unfortunately, Tanaka's knives have a deserved reputation for weak fit and finish. A Tanaka is likely to come with a mediocre or bad edge, a rough heel and choil, and scales that might not fit terribly well. Because I know about your own knife history I would trust in your ability to get the knife into great working condition, but I would not blindly suggest this to someone I didn't know a gift. The upside is Tanakas have excellent bones and, when prettied up, they compete with and thrash knives that are much more expensive.
  
  
• Mac Chef 7.25" gyuto: Here it is, the safe pick. In home kitchens, Shun and Global are the big visible brands. In professional kitchens, they can't match Mac. Macs are durable, they're comfortable, they're simple, and if you find the right knife they're still affordable. I have personally bought this knife multiple times because it's the perfect first good kitchen knife. It's large enough to practice good knife skills but small enough it's not intimidating, the steel is a hair's breadth from immune to rust, it's difficult to chip, it's a joy to sharpen, it looks nice, and it's a pleasure to use. The Tojiro DP is a good bit more chip prone, though it does hold an edge better, and I like the Mac's handle a little better.

500$ is an astronomical budget for beginner water stones, so let me just make sure that's out in the open.

Yes, 8k is on the high end of what you want to finish most kitchen knives on. Something along the lines of a Wusthof will retain a coarser edge more readily. Harder steels will generally retain a higher grit edge for longer. This is a gross over-simplification, but is sufficient for this conversation.

Since you want to go with splash and go and, from what I gather, this is intended to be a somewhat special gift for a special person... I'm going to forgo the budget options in the splash and go category, since I'm personally not a fan of them and wouldn't want them for myself.

All of that out of the way, you're going to want at bare minimum one medium grit stone (about 1k to 2k grit). If you have somewhat harder knives or if your skill is sufficient, you can make good use of a finishing stone for certain tasks (about 3k-8k is recommended for kitchen tasks, although you can go higher). You can make do without a flattening stone or plate for a little while, so you can view this piece as optional, but recommended since it will improve your mileage with your stones by keeping them flat and your angles consistent. Lastly, you might want a stone holder. These are generally adjustable rubber contraptions designed to keep the stone in one place while you're sharpening and help raise it off whatever surface you're sharpening on for comfort.

For a medium grit splash and go stone, the Naniwa Professional 1k would be my primary choice as a forever stone. You'd be hard-pressed to find any detractors for this stone among regulars on this sub or elsewhere. It's a great stone.

There are a few other options that I'd also recommend, but personally don't favor as highly as the Naniwa for the price. Those are the Shapton Pro 1k the Maido 2k and the Gesshin 1200 Splash and Go. Each of these stones will be splash and go, but will cut it slightly varying speeds, dish somewhat differently and feel a little bit different while using. Each of these are solid choices, but I have a preference to the Naniwa Pro.

For a finishing stone that is splash and go, I'd probably recommend the Gesshin 5k Splash and Go as my primary choice. The Naniwa Professional 5k is, like the rest of the line, an amazing stone in my opinion. The price is double that of the Gesshin, though, and I don't think it's worth dropping the money on as a first finishing stone regardless of budget; it's simply hard to justify that difference in price unless you're really discerning in what you want. I guess the Shapton Pro 5k deserves an honorable mention because it has a lot of fans. It's a little too glassy feeling for me and lacking in feedback so I wouldn't recommend it to a beginner sharpener.

For a flattening plate, I'd recommend either a DMT 325 diamond plate or an Atoma 140/400 grit diamond plate. The Atoma plates are constructed a little better in my opinion, but any of those plates will work for you as long as you keep its primary function to flattening your stones. The 140 Atoma will be the quickest at its job, but will leave somewhat deep scratches in your finishing stone so you'll want to smooth it out with your medium grit stone after lapping.

For a stone holder, you can honestly just stack some towels up or make your own out of some stuff around the house, but I like using a dedicated stone holder like this one.

That's about it. Keep in mind I kept my recommendations on the high end given the occasion seems to be special and your budget was fairly high to begin with. If you'd like some more budget recommendations just let me know.

I don't own a sashimi knife, but as far as an intro knife and keeping budget in mind, I would trust a brand like Tojiro for quality and pricepoint. For example, this one uses a well known stainless steel (VG10) and has a western handle - should be an easy transition to use it and easy to maintain. Another one with carbon steel and japanese handle could also work out well if he is diligent with cleaning the blade.

As for whetstone, the most important factor when it comes to sharpening is the user's technique. That being said, AFAIK sushi knives often benefit from a more polished higher grit. A combination stone would likely suffice for a while, like this sharp pebble stone. I've never used it myself, but this is a common stone for people to start out with. I can personally vouch for the naniwa (non-professional) 1000/3000 combination stone, which I started off with.

Hope that helps.

yeah thats a petty.

The differences between the white and blue paper steels are best described here. Top right are usually are more expensive. White paper steel is very pure and very reactive, easier to sharpen but less wear resistance than blue. Some say the heat treatment of any of the white or blue steels will matter more than the steel itself. In any case, the shops in Tsukiji sell a lot to chefs and market workers so the majority of their stuff should be good.

a 240mm Gyuto seems right up your alley. The Masamoto V1 carbon steel one in either the western or wa-handle is good. Be sure it has the V stamped on the back side.

If you're in Kappabashi, you may find the Misono "Dragon" for a good price (seen here on Amazon). A lot of people like it. But its easily available online so its not so much a prize in my mind.

You might find a Masamoto Sohonten brand in Kappabashi as well. They are different from Masamoto Tsukiji. The Masamoto KS gyuto is mono-steel white #2 and has a good reputation.

oh heres another thing to read thorugh: http://yayasyumyums.blogspot.com/2011/08/knife-shops-in-japan-tokyo-kyoto-osaka.html

My all time favorite bread knife is the Mac Superior Bread Knife

This is the best bread knife you can get in the sub $100 range. The scalloped serrations will be perfect for a pastry chef who must delicately cut softer pastries.

Edit: Your other two options are the Mac Professional Bread Knife. Same blade as before, but with a higher end fit and finish. The budget option is the Tojiro Bread Slicer. This is a "knock off" of the Mac Superior. It has the best bang for your buck, but the fit and finish is lacking.

I have owned the Tojiro and Mac Superior, and own a couple knives in the Mac Professional line, so I am familiar with it's construction.

That is not a terrible starter, but you can find a better quality King comb stone.
https://www.amazon.com/KING-KW65-Combination-Whetstone-Plastic/dp/B001DT1X9O/ref=sr_1_5?keywords=whetstone+knife+sharpener+king&qid=1551396328&s=gateway&sr=8-5.

A Shapton 1500 can be had for around $40usd, & will produce a very fine edge & will not dish as quickly. I have sharpened half a dozen knives and there is no visible dishing. Plus it is a splash & go, no soaking needed.
https://www.amazon.com/Whetstone-Sharpening-Shapton-Ceramic-KUROMAKU/dp/B001TPJARE/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=shapton+1500&qid=1551396805&s=gateway&sr=8-1

The thing with that Pebble is the 1000 grit side will dish pretty easily and fast. We have one at work. One of my cooks bought it. It will produce a nice edge, and the 6000 side will polish pretty nicely. The base is actually pretty nice.

You could do worse than Wusties but you could do a lot better as well. As noted most "sets" are simply ways of selling you knives that you don't need. i.e. the set you cited contains a 5" Kiritsuke prep knife - what is that?

If you've got to go German this pair will serve you better and keep $100 in your pocket. https://www.amazon.com/Wusthof-Classic-Ikon-piece-starter/dp/B00005MEHP/ref=sr_1_2?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1494507125&sr=1-2&keywords=wusthof+ikon+classic+chef

I started with German but have since "graduated" to Japanese cutlery. An inexpensive knife like either below will be a better performer and easier to sharpen than any Wustie.

https://www.japaneseknifeimports.com/collections/gesshin-specials/products/gesshin-210mm-stainless-gyuto

http://korin.com/HSU-INGY-210?sc=27&category=280068

The Chef or Gyuto will be your most important knife. Suggest you start with one of your liking and then build your other knives as required.

I really can’t recommend that sharp pebble stone. It is cheap (not meant as a disparaging comment), but it’s very slow. Very frustrating to sharpen on. I had it for about a year and I never liked to sharpen on it. For great bang for the buck sharpening setup, I really like what I have. King pb-04 (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B008FU4332) and the shapton pro 2k (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B002LW54RO)

There are definitely other great combos out there, but I think this set provides probably the best experience for the amount of money spent.

I'll play devil's advocate here: sometimes knife blocks are put together sensibly and are good value. A set of matching knives also looks good in a home cook's kitchen.

This is decent quality and good value. Make sure go get a hone and a decent cutting board if you don't have either.

Save the rest of your budget for when you have more experience of using your knives and have a better idea of what you want from them.

I understand that rockwell hardness may seem very important when first buying good knives (I was just as obsessed with it when I was looking for my first), but it's not really all that. 58, or even 56 is ample (especially when you are honing them before use), my victorinox fibrox (56 rockwell) still takes a wicked edge and holds it long enough to do everything I need to do as a home cook.

Also is there any reason why you need a santoku AND a 20cm chef knife? They fulfill very similar roles.

I would recommend this wusthof combo and either the fibrox bread knife or the opinel

If you really crave something with higher rockwell and some swanky looking damascus maybe look at these and maybe this (bear in mind this company ships from japan so it will take a little longer and cost an extra 10 pounds to deliver)

for storage I recommend magnetic racks, these ikea ones are cheap and have very secure, strong magnets

it really only takes a few minutes to sharpen a knife. There is some setup time, if you have to soak a stone, and increase time for how many stones you have in your progression.

For the average home user, a single 1000 grit stone is probably enough. The recommend chosera stone is great, but is about $70, the shapton pro 1000(or 2000) is ~$40 as will do just as good.(FWIW I own and love the chosera 800, but recommend the shaptons)

https://www.amazon.com/Kuromaku-Ceramic-Whetstone-Medium-Grit/dp/B001TPFT0G

https://www.amazon.com/Medium-Grade-Millstone-Mastermind-Shaputon/dp/B002LW54RO/

What knives are you sharpening?

It sounds overwhelming, but sharpening is stupidly simple in theory, and you'll get the hang of it quickly.

Check out japaneseknifeimports on youtube for great videos.

https://www.amazon.com/Kiwi-Brand-Stainless-Steel-21/dp/B001FEJ0WO
Lol I know Ill probably get downvotes for that link... but the fastest vegetable cutter I have ever worked with uses this knife. He has $150 knives and everything between... but he loves his kiwi lol. I think we can get them locally for $5 from an asian market.

That being said, I recently dropped $150 on a bunka because I was happy to have that sort of knife in my roll.

I really like this knife, it's a great size/profile and I enjoy the handle. Gets way more use than most of my expensive stuff. Takes an edge pretty easily and holds it for months at a time with occasional honing.

($46 w/ prime)
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000UANWH8/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Agree. The 8” will be good when you break down heavy vegetables like squash/pumpkin. You’ll also need a good peeler, I recommend this. Hope this helps!

>you should only buy a sharpening stone if you want to get in the knife hobby ( which I'm not getting into at the moment.

If you're getting into the knife hobby or cook very frequently, its a good idea. But I don't generally recommend it heavily to the average home cook. Though if you are lacking in a good knife sharpening service nearby, you may want to learn anyway. Or get another blade so you aren't left without a good one when you ship out the other for sharpening.

>disagreement on whether the king 1/6 k stone is good and worth it

It's a budget stone. It's not bad for the price and will get the job done. But its not really "recommended" if you're serious about your tools.

>that you only need a 1k stone

Technically, yes. Think of it as the equivalent of your chefs knife in a sense. You can most things with it just fine, but having other stones will let you do more things easier. Just like having other knives will let you do some things easier. Get my analogy?

>you shouldn't hone Japanese knives or only use ceramic and I've read somewhere that you can use steel on a tojiro dp gyuto

Ceramic is fine, but some folk aren't as adept at honing and that can lead to chipping and damage on harder blades. If you're on a budget, the Lansky Sharp Stick is decent for VG10 knives and won't be too hard on the edge. I have no idea what to expect from the Tromintina.

When using a flattening stone..take a pencil and draw a two lines from corner to corner in an X pattern across the face of the stone. Then soak your sharpening stones as you would normally. Mount the referencing stone on your stone holder and place the sharpening stone X side down. Hold the sharpening stone down with your full palm with your other palm down to create solid pressure on the full stone across as much of the surface as possible. Stroke in an X pattern - upper left to lower right corner a few times and then switch to upper right/lower left a few times. Rinse sharpening stone and see how much of the penciled X has been removed, when it's gone from the center of the stone (should be the most worn area) then you're done. Don't forget to periodically rinse the flattening stone occasionally during the process to keep it's grit open and available.

and a little more info:

I'm a whore for Shapton stones, loved the way they sharpened and their longevity. I preferred the Professional Series but according to Shapton the glass were supposed to last longer because you can use all the stone down to the glass, I didn't buy into that idea. https://www.sharpeningsupplies.com/Shapton-Professional-Series-Stones-P741C84.aspx

You need to buy one of these if you haven't already gotten one, specifically with the center support. Way better than using a wet towel on the edge of the sink. https://www.amazon.com/POWERTEC-71013-Sharpening-Holder-2-Inch/dp/B00NFB2MTI

Link to Norton Flattening Stone: https://www.amazon.com/Norton-Flattening-Stone-Waterstones-plastic/dp/B00067ZSJ0/ref=sr_1_6?s=hi&ie=UTF8&qid=1505326146&sr=1-6&keywords=flattening+stone

Shapton has their own lapping/referencing plate but it's $500: https://www.sharpeningsupplies.com/Shapton-Diamond-Reference-Lapping-Plate-P516C84.aspx
Link to Dick Polish (yes, that's really what's printed on the handle) https://www.knifemerchant.com/product.asp?productID=1393

And find a Sally's Beauty Supply Near you and get one of these bottles. Small enough that when filled it's not too heavy to wield and good for adding water to your stones during sharpening: http://www.sallybeauty.com/sheer-mist-trigger-sprayer/SBS-292048,default,pd.html?list=Search_Results#q=spray+bottle&start=1

Aside from the one knife I have, I don't actually use a steel. But if I had to get one with the intent of actually using it I would go with this Victorinox smooth steel.

If cost wasn't an issue I would look at ceramic hones but you have to be careful here as well because most of these have a grit to them. The MAC ceramic rod, for example, has a smooth side and a grooved side.

The Messemeister: "Ceramic is very hard and it has a slight abrasive characteristic so it can actually sharpen as it aligns the edge".

Idahone rod is "considered a fine rod and has a 1200 grit".

The Idahone might be the best option because, as u/UncannyGodot points out, most knives that people use a hone on probably aren't sharpened to a very high grit anyways.

i don't use honing steels so I might not be the best to suggest...maybe a Messermeister Ceramic Rod. the fibrox have fairly soft steel so what you have might be okay already.

For stones, a King 1k/6k water stone is probably the first one that most people will pick up. It's good for value and fairly easy on the pocket.

As for videos, I learned a lot of mine from ryky tran/burrfection (two channels same guy) on youtube. There are plenty of good/intensive playlists on sharpening but I find myself relating more to him. He blunts his knife on a brick and sharpens on the spot while explaining what he's doing. He's quite easy to understand and more targetted at non professionals/home cooks.

I also watch Richard Blaine, but he's much more technical (he just released a video on honing). They are fairly lengthy which is why i don't watch very often and he makes awkward dad jokes.

I just picked up the Tojiro Kitchen Knife F-502 for home use as I wanted something to try out the nakiri form/fit and still have something that I'd use for quite a while. VG-10 sandwiched between stainless with a nice long contoured western handle that allows for a variety of grips. However, it's pretty light and thin.


When you say hard vegetables, do you mean like butternut squash and other thick-skinned ones? If you're bent on Japanese blades, maybe consider a Usaba? That's supposed to be a heavy single-bevel knife devoted to hard vegetable prep. Or maybe a Deba (single-bevel) / Western-style Deba (50/50 grind) to split through those hard veggies.

That looks really well done, nice job on it.

Let me ask you, I bought one of these knives a while back from Amazon

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001FEJ0WO?

Its awful metal, but I really like the shape. Do you think it would be viable to put a similar curve or smile on the edge of a Torijo ITK?

Something like [this](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00NFB2MTI/_encoding=UTF8? coliid=I1OVDD8OA30BSQ&colid=39RFP342YBA78) for a holder and agreeing with the 5k Rika suggestion. Use it, love it.

most chefs i've worked with agree, this is about as good a knife as money can buy

https://www.amazon.com/Mac-Knife-Professional-Hollow-8-Inch/dp/B000N5H2XU

and this is right up there with it

edit: misono also makes a clad gyuto that is about as good

https://www.amazon.com/Misono-Swedish-Carbon-Steel-Gyutou/dp/B002B76H1G/

in my very brief time using both of them, i'd have to say they aren't wrong

Thanks! Will this one work about the same or is there something inherently better about the Brod Taylor models? Finally, does the pull through sharpener eliminate the need for one of these if get the pull through with fine and course slots?

the two i use the most are yoshihiro gyoto and a shun petty. edge retention and sharpnes are fantastic.

i actually do have a few paring knives - those, that i never use because my wife uses those and doesnt let me sharpen them, im just happy she is ok with the petty and the her short santoku being sharp (the other two knives she uses)

i need want a 3-4" paring actually in carbon steel, just cant decide on a brand and metal. with my limited experience i found white steel being quite chippy and think maybe AS wouldnt be as much. for general peeling tasks i just use a $3 peeler like those.

i personally like the 1k/3k suehiro better than the king. the 1k side in particular i think is quite a bit nicer than the king.

https://www.amazon.com/Suehiro-Japanese-Whetstone-Sharpening-Sharpener/dp/B00SPBWNMO/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1499023336&sr=8-1&keywords=suehiro+1000+3000

This. Honestly, just get it fixed. If you can't, in my opinion, that pampered chef knife looks overpriced to me.
Also for a similar price here are some options I like better. The Tojiro is one of my favourite intro Japanese knives.
https://knifewear.com/collections/tojiro-dp/products/tojiro-dp-gyuto-210mm-f-808
https://shun.kaiusaltd.com/knives/knife/sora-chefs-knife
https://www.amazon.ca/Kiwi-Ponit-21-Chef-Knife/dp/B001FEJ0WO

Sorry to kind of hijack this post. But I’m looking for a birthday present for my girlfriend. Originally I was planning on buying her a knife set, but 5 minutes on this sub showed me that’s the wrong choice lol. From what I’ve seen, most people say to just buy a chefs knife, pairing knife, and a bread knife. Is the chefs knife in this link https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00GHN6T40 the Tojiro DP you mentioned in your comment? Thanks in advance for any help!

https://www.amazon.com/DMT-D8C-Dia-Sharp-Continuous-Diamond/dp/B0001WP1L0/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1496436524&sr=8-2&keywords=flattening+plate

So would something like that be ideal?

Definitely consider the Mac Superior Bread Knife.

In addition to being a good bit cheaper than the Misono, it's a fucking laser with bread, I cant recommend it enough. Never met a cook that didnt like it. I have to keep it hidden in my roll almost all the time or it it'll disappear for my whole shift.

This: http://www.chefknivestogo.com/takamura2.html

and this: http://www.chefknivestogo.com/kosldbu17.html

...or if he makes bread on a regular basis, switch one of those out for this: https://www.amazon.com/Mac-Knife-Superior-Bread-2-Inch/dp/B000MYZSYM/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1498721441&sr=8-1&keywords=mac+bread+knife

...or (again, if he's into baking big loaves of bread) just get him a Gude or a Herder Grandmoulin and be done with it,

The first two are awesome for the price, they both have exceptional fit and finish for the price, and they both perform at a high level. Neither is reactive like carbon, and personally, in a home kitchen, dealing with carbon is a time waster I prefer not to deal with. The petty is wicked thin/sharp and the 170mm Bunka looks more expensive than it is, and is just plain fun to cut with and the one I now reach for instead of the 240mm gyuto that cost twice as much.

Those are the two I gift on a regular basis, I think your Dad will be stoked with either or both.

Was it for aesthetic reasons? They don't all look industrial. I have one that just looks like a strip of wood. There's also magnetic blocks, perhaps one of those would be a good compromise.

Edit: Note that I have not tried either of the products I linked above and I just noticed that several reviews of the block say that the magnets are too weak to hold the knives safely. I still think it's a good concept if it's acceptable to your SO, but it's probably worth looking into other brands.

You might be right, but it might be coming down to the following choices:

​

Wusthof Classic Ikon

Wüsthof Classic Ikon Bread Knife 23cm Black - £89.00

Wüsthof tr9606 N Christmas Set 2 Knives Classic IKON (Chef's + Paring) - £103.36

Wusthof Classic Ikon Utility Knife 12 cm - £51.90

Wusthof Hanging Sharpening Steel with Black Base, 26 cm - £18.58

Total (including shipping): £265.84

​

Tojiro DP

Tojiro DP Cobalt Alloy 3 Layers Bread Slicer 215mm - £49.93

Tojiro DP Cobalt Alloy 3 Layers Chef Knife(Gyuto) 210mm - £57.73

Tojiro DP Cobalt Alloy 3 Layers Petty Knife(Utility) 120mm - £35.89

Tojiro DP Cobalt Alloy 3 Layers Petty Knife(Utility) 180mm - £42.91

King Combination Grit Waterstone (Grinding stone) Sharpening Whetstone with Stand #1000/#6000 - £35.89 (added to get free shipping over a certain price point)

Total (including shipping): £220.12

​

Does this look ok?

Idahone-Ceramic-Sharpening-Black-Handle

Would you recommend buying the angle guides (please recommend which ones to buy with this rod)? I didn't fare very well with the whetstone I mentioned in OP.

this is a honing steel, you can use it when your knife starts to feel dull, it will re align the edge.

this is the wusthof ikon. Personally I love the handle.

well i cant help w a serrated recommendation, cause im not really a fan, unless for bread, and i just dont see any advantage and i dont think you will find anything of any quality in that price range. i would advise finding a 5-6" thin as a whisper petty/utility for the job and learn to keep it sharp enough you wont miss serrations. tojiro has a few in that price range https://www.amazon.com/Tojiro-DP-Petty-Utility-Knife/dp/B000UANWH8, http://www.chefknivestogo.com/topr15pe.htmlhttp://www.chefknivestogo.com/topr15pe.html

also you can keep a look out places like ebay or thrift stores for something that might suit.

I'm a fan of this guy - https://www.amazon.com/DMT-D8F-Dia-Sharp-Continuous-Diamond/dp/B0001WP1L0

That one you linked is smaller than the normal stone shape which is bad for flattening. That said, I have the fine version of that and use it for touching up smaller knives and really like it.

I use this one and it’s alright. I set it in a tray to collect water and use a non slip mat beneath the tray.

Aside from King, Suehiro is also good and inexpensive.

I prefer Tojiro, but if you can, handle one in person before you buy, see if you prefer it to the Victorinox.

That is indeed a rather coarse stone. Grit rating is probably pretty close to the standard most people refer to.

Using lubricant and extremely light pressure will get you a really sharp knife off that stone. If the finish from factory is rough, go out with a bottle of water and flatten the stone against a tile or brick or something.

You can just get yourself a ceramic stick and use it after your current stone if you plan to do more push cutting/ wet shaving. Use water with the ceramic as lube and use ultra light force when apexing the edge.

https://www.amazon.com/Lansky-8-Ceramic-Sharp-Stick/dp/B000B8FW0O/ref=sr_1_3?s=amazon-devices&ie=UTF8&qid=1504583376&sr=8-3&keywords=lansky+ceramic

https://youtu.be/OPGGo3W15HQ

https://www.amazon.com/Norton-614636855653-8-Inch-Combination-Oilstone/dp/B000XK5ZDY/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1539581754&sr=8-3&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=norton+india&dpPl=1&dpID=41epHsuXYbL&ref=plSrch

https://www.amazon.com/Ceramic-Whetstone-Sharpening-Workstone-QA-0124/dp/B001NI5JUY/ref=mp_s_a_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1539581796&sr=8-4&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=naniwa&dpPl=1&dpID=31wXmlIa8-L&ref=plSrch

https://www.amazon.com/Suehiro-Japanese-Whetstone-Sharpening-Sharpener/dp/B00SPBWNMO/ref=mp_s_a_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1539581832&sr=8-6&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=suehiro&dpPl=1&dpID=31tOs0shD%2BL&ref=plSrch

https://www.amazon.com/Kuromaku-Ceramic-Whetstone-Medium-Grit/dp/B001TPFT0G/ref=mp_s_a_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1539581898&sr=8-2&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=shapton+pro&dpPl=1&dpID=41uhuBgfaBL&ref=plSrch


just wat i could find in 5 min on mobile

Got this 1000/6000 one

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https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01FZZUL30

https://www.amazon.com/Sharp-Pebble-Sharpening-Waterstone-Whetstone/dp/B01FZZUL30/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?crid=1MY4EAZDQCJOI&keywords=whetstone+knife+sharpener&qid=1551375873&s=gateway&sprefix=whetstone%2Caps%2C194&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1

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What are your thoughts on this stone? Also, as someone that has never sharpened their own knives how do I know I'm doing it properly?

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https://www.amazon.com/Tojiro-2-piece-Chefs-Knife-Set/dp/B00GHN6T40

This shapton one here, right? https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B001TPJARE?

Pro tip: you can still buy on amazon.com! It's 35 USD after standard shipping to Canada (Waterloo). There's also a few options on amazon.ca that are around the same price with prime (mercer and good coking)

I use a magnetic knife block screwed to the wall. Typically with knife/tool sets you really only use one or two of them frequently and the rest sit around uselessly, so the money would be better spent elsewhere. The more you spend on a knife, typically the better the steel, grinds, heat treatment, handle quality, and general fit and finish.

Edit: you can get freestanding mag knife blocks too:

https://www.amazon.com/Magnetic-Holder-Natural-Cutlery-Display/dp/B00ECCG524

is this one any better or worse?

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01FZZUL30/ref=ox_sc_act_title_5?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=A17XH7UOBRAY0Y

No, $50 just for the knife alone. What's the difference between this kind of stick that someone else recommended and the whetstone?