Edgecraft Chef'sChoice 315XV Instructions page 3

You are likely aware of which of your knives have 15 degree edges and which have the older
20 degree edges. Until recently virtually all knives sold in America were either made in Europe
or the U.S. and these were universally sharpened at 20 degrees. Around year 2000 Asian
style knives sharpened at 15 degrees became popular. Within the last few years most popular
European and American brand knives converted to 15 degree edges.
The Model 315XV Asian Sharpener designed with the latest sharpening, polishing and stropping
technology from Chef'sChoice gives you a precision sharpener that can quickly restore your
contemporary 15° Euro/American and Asian style knives to their original factory sharpness. This
new sharpener incorporates the highly precise angle control and the unique stropping materials
that has made Chef'sChoice sharpeners the choice of leading chefs worldwide.
You will appreciate how the ultrafine abrasives in the stropping disks of this sharpener delicately
hone and polish the extraordinary sharp edges characteristic of the contemporary blades. By
following these Instructions you can also, if you wish, convert any of your thinner traditional
20° Euro/American style knives to the narrower 15° angle edge and experience a significantly
improved performance. These instructions describe how each of your contemporary Euro/
American and Asian style knives, including the traditional single sided Japanese blades, can be
edged with the Model 315XV.
Contemporary 15° knives differ from traditional 20° Euro/American style knives in that the most
popular contemporary blades have a thinner cross section where the edge facets are formed.
In addition each cutting edge facet is generally set at an angle substantially less than the
conventional facets on traditional 20° Euro/American blades. The thinner blade behind the
edge facets and the smaller angled facets of contemporary 15° blades reduce the amount of
effort needed to cut or slice. Contemporary 15° type blades are ideal for preparing, slicing and
chopping vegetables, for filleting fish and for preparing the popular sushi and sashimi. For more
information on the design of contemporary 15° Euro/American and Asian style knives refer to
the Description of Contemporary 15° and Traditional 20° Blades, page 9.
underStandIng the Chef'SChoICe
®
The Chef'sChoice
contemporary Euro/American and Asian style knives, all Chinese style cleavers and the
traditional style single side Japanese blades. Because of the narrow sharpening angle and the
fine diamond abrasives used in this sharpener,
it is not recommended for routine sharpening
of thick sporting knives, the heavier European
style chef knives and European cleavers. These
thicker knives can be sharpened in other
®
Chef'sChoice sharpeners such as Models 120,
15, 2000 and 2100.
The Model 315XV sharpener has one sharp-
ening stage 1 followed by a stropping stage
2 as shown in Figure 1. The sharpening stage
hones the edge at about 15 degrees with a fine
diamond abrasive. The second stage strops and
You made a good ChoICe
ContemporarY 15° KnIveS
®
315Xv Sharpener
Model 315XV is designed to create a factory sharp 15° edge on all
Power
Switch
Figure 1. Model 315XV Sharpener.
3
Stage 1
Stage 2
Left Right
Left Right
Slot Slot
Slot Slot
Knife
Holding
Spring