The “Four Pressure Levels” System Teaches You How to Sharpen Knives by Touch
By learning how to sharpen your knife by touch, you’ll find that your knives last longer and are easier ( and safer ) to use – even more than an automatic sharpener that can sharpen your knives and shorten their lifespan. Developed by master sharpener Peter Novlan, this method is a robust “four pressure” system you can learn at home.
The video above is a good start-to-finish guide on how this method works, but if you don’t have time for everything (or save up for later), here’s how it shakes itself out, from the accompanying article. in KnifePlanet (link below 🙂
The pressure levels are taken from P4-P1 and this is just the notation I chose, I prefer NOT to equate numbers with actual degrees of pressure, i.e. P4 does not necessarily mean 4 pounds of pressure.
The reason I say this is because no one feels locked into using the original 4 pounds of pressure to form the burr, you need to use the pressure needed to create the burr on the knife you are sharpening. It can be very blunt and therefore require more pressure than a knife, which is not that bad, so you won’t need to apply that much pressure. HOWEVER, during the transition from P4 to P1, P4 is still the most pressure you will use, be it 4 or 2 pounds.
P4 is therefore the highest pressure used to burr on both sides of the knife, and P4 is used only once in a single knife process. Once a burr forms, you need to reduce the initial pressure by 50%. LESS IS MORE, start easy and adjust as needed. In other words, when you approach the knife with the intent to form a burr, use moderate pressure to start and see how it goes. If you think you need to cut the knife a little, do so, but just be vigilant. (More on this at the end)
P3 is a significant drop in pressure, still on the same stone, but remember you don’t want another burr to form, so just keep that in mind, especially on these rough stones. Your goal is to rough the stone, just clean the edge, and you don’t have to spend a lot of time on this level of pressure. I just go from heel to tip, then back from tip to heel, then turn the knife over and repeat. Then I lower the pressure again to P2.
P2 – Pressure is a very light pressure, this pressure will not cause burrs on a large stone, well, it will take forever, this is that light, it is a very, very soft and focused movement when you LIE the stone with the edge of a knife, everything at one angle, of course, as close to it as possible.
P1 is the least pressure you can handle without dropping your knife. This is a really nice and very light movement as you move the edge of the stone from heel to tip, tip to heel, and then repeat on the other side. (Or if you start at tip, tip to heel and back from heel to tip)
The entire guide is well worth reading if you want to follow the step-by-step instructions , but the important thing to remember here is to get yourself a good whetstone and act slowly and easily. It takes practice before you can move faster, but as you feel lower, you will learn what a “burr” is and how it feels when you smooth it out. Click “Play” on the video above or the link below to find out more.
Pressure system: 4 pressure levels for knife sharpening | KnifePlanet