got some kitchen things, have a question...

16 years ago

I went to some thrift shops and flea markets today... the thrift shops were pretty much a bust, but I did find a plastic rolling pin that you can fill with ice water for only 50 cents. I have a silicone rolling pin already, but thought this one might be better for making pies. Then I went to a flea market and couldn't control myself when I saw the household area. The first thing I got was a garlic mincer... I've never liked garlic presses because they are hard to use and clean and they create waste, PLUS this one came with the silicone garlic peeler that you all rave about. Haven't tried it yet. I also go some flexible cutting mats (2 for a dollar!), which I plan to love. You all raved about yours on previous threads, so I knew they must be a good thing. I only have one cutting board, and quite often it's in the dishwasher when needed, so these will be a nice supplement. It will also be nice to be able to pour the veggies right in the pot after slicing. When I try to scrape them off of the rigid plastic cutting board I have now, half of them miss and wind up on fire when they fall under the pot and hit the gas flame.

But.... the thing I have the question about is the sharpening stone. It was only a dollar fifty, so if you all tell me it's terrible and will ruin my knifes, I'll throw it away... but I thought it would be fun to get the technique down before I get a good stone. It has a course and a fine side... but there were no directions. I watched some videos online, so I think I've got the angle right, but how in the world do I know if I'm supposed to use water on the silly thing or not? It doesn't say it's a whetstone, does that mean by default it's a "dry" stone? I don't want to cause damage to anything by using it the wrong way... I would have thought it to be a pumice stone for scrubbing toilets if the box hadn't said sharpening stone!

Thanks as always :o)

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Comments (10)

kframe19
16 years ago
It looks to be a fairly standard sharpening stone.

It's always a good idea to use a stone with some form of lubrication. The only ones that really don't need it are diamond stones.

Water is normally OK for stones like that. Just rewet often.
sheesh
16 years ago
I don't know what you do with the stone, but I suggest you cut one of those plastic mats to fit under your stand mixer. It'll make moving it a whole lot easier.

Nice finds!

Sherry
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BeverlyAL
16 years ago
I don't know about the stone, but I think Sherry is right about using a mat to make moving the mixer easier. Thanks for the hint Sherry!

As for the rolling pin, it looks like my old one is still making the sale rounds. I guess it's good. I just never make pastry anymore.
readinglady
16 years ago
It looks like a standard inexpensive combination stone, not a water stone. It has one coarser (start) side and one finer (finish) side. If it were a water stone, it should say that on the box.

Water stones are very soft and crumble. The water actually forms a slurry or paste with the disintegrating stone and that's what sharpens the blade.

For a regular oil stone you need either a light mineral oil (drugstore) or you could use a 3-in-1 oil like sewing machine oil. Whatever you start out with you want to continue with.

The oil is actually to prevent the stone from being gummed up with metal filings. In other words, it's a kind of protective barrier, so be generous with it.

If you find your stone is no longer sharpening and seems to be gummed up, you can clean it with plain soap and water. Air-dry and then re-apply oil.

If you have questions when you're sharpening, post again. And enjoy your purchases, especially the flexible mats! You'll love those.

Carol
mustangs81
16 years ago
Don't nothing about the stone but I have found a few uses for the cutting mats. One example: I put wire shelves (like in the link below) in the freezer to better utilize the head room; the mats are perfect shelf liners allowing me to easily slide food in and out.

Bobby, If you ever come to visit me (remember, I'm only 1 1/2 hours from you) I will take you to my favorite gadget store-it's at a flea market; what could be more fun??

Here is a link that might be useful: Shelves
marlingardener
16 years ago
Your stone is much like one sold at Harbour Freight. It is an oilstone, which means you oil it before use, rather than putting water on it. The angle you want for knives is 20 degrees, starting with the coarse side and then moving to the finer side for sharpening. We have one for garden tools and hand tools. I'd never use it with my good kitchen knives. It just doesn't have the finesse needed for kitchen knives.
dcarch7 d c f l a s h 7 @ y a h o o . c o m
16 years ago
From the colors of the combination stone, It looks like it's an aluminum oxide stone and not a carborundum stone.

I prefer to use water on an aluminum oxide stone because it is more porous.

dcarch
vacuumfreak
Original Author
16 years ago
That is a really good idea about the mixer... thanks. It is rather difficult to slide around. The knife sharpener dulled my chef's knife beyond belief. I used it with water. I had to use the electric sharpener just to get it back to where it would slice a potato. Guess I didn't lose much money on it, so it's OK... plus I learned a lesson!

Oh Cathy, spending a day with you and buying all kinds of kitchen toys... I can't think of ANYTHING that would be more fun. We'll have to make that happen!
annie1992
16 years ago
OK, Bobby, when you and Cathy go gadget shopping, be sure to post pictures! That should be a lot of fun.

The stone looks much like the one in my kitchen drawer, Dad always used oil with it, I don't know about water. He just used the sewing machine oil that was always on his workbench and he always sharpened all my knives for me. I was on my own for a while but since Elery spent his teen years working in that Italian grocery and part of his duties were in the butcher shop part, now he sharpens for me. What a guy! (grin)

I concur with putting one of those plastic mats under your stand mixer. I've done it since I got the mixer, my counter is deep and I'm short and the rubber feet kept it from sliding easily. Now I give a tug on the plastic mat and my mixer slides right out!

Annie
rachelellen
16 years ago
Any stone can be used with water, while using oil on a water stone can ruin it. So, if you don't know what the stone is for sure, you're better off using water.

I learned to sharpen my knives at the Japanese restaurant where I worked in my early 20's. We put a cutting board over the sink, with a wet towel to hold the stone steady, and positioned the dripping faucet over the stone so that there was never any danger of the stone not having a nice layer of water on it.

If I were you, before I attempted to sharpen any of my really good knives, I'd buy a few cheapies from yard sales or a Chinese market to practice on first. Get the hang of it before you move on to favorite knives, because it's too easy to ruin a good knife if you don't know what you're doing.

got some kitchen things, have a question...

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kframe19

sheesh

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