Ask Gaz, Vol 1 - Your knife, life and business questions answered!

We spend a lot of time talking about knives. Probably too much time, if we're honest! So we thought it was about time we handed things over to you guys.

Welcome to Ask Gaz – a new series where Gaz answers the questions you've sent us about knives, sharpening, Community Cutlery and everything in between!

We'll be answering some of the more in-depth questions here on the blog, where Gaz can get properly stuck into things. For the slightly less important stuff – including where exactly in Lancashire Gaz acquired his dulcet tones – keep an eye on our Instagram Stories!

First up: sharpening stones, serrated knives, expensive Japanese knives and how we actually got Community Cutlery off the ground.

Where to start? Should I buy a sharpening stone for my knives or a nice new knife first?

Interesting question. Personally, I'd say buy the new knife. If you need one, that is. It's definitely more fun than buying a sharpening stone.

But – and this is important – once you've got a good knife, you need to be able to look after it.

Learning to sharpen your own knives properly is one of the best things you can do. There's something really liberating about not having to wait until your knife is completely blunt and then send it away to be sharpened. Once you understand how to use a whetstone properly, you can keep your knives performing as they should for years.

So if you're choosing between the two right now and genuinely need a new knife, I'd go for the knife. Enjoy it. Then make learning how to sharpen it your next job. And don't wait until it's absolutely knackered before you do!

What's the best way to keep a serrated knife sharp at home?

I'm afraid there isn't a particularly easy shortcut with serrated knives (or any knives for that matter!).

Unlike a standard straight-edged knife, which you'd usually sharpen on a whetstone, a serrated knife needs to be sharpened by working on the individual serrations. You do that using a small sharpening file that fits the shape and size of the serrations.

The important thing is learning the proper technique rather than just having a go and hoping for the best. Done incorrectly, you can easily take the points of the serrations and make the knife worse rather than better.

If you want to learn how to do it yourself, I've covered the process in my book Do Maintain: How to Sharpen Your Knives, Scissors and Garden Tools. There's no magic gadget, unfortunately. You need the right tool, a bit of knowledge and a fair amount of patience.

Can you sharpen a knife with a vegan strop?

No – because a strop doesn't actually sharpen your knife.

That's an important distinction. Sharpening removes material from the blade to recreate a sharp edge. A strop is used after a knife has been properly sharpened to help maintain that edge for longer.

As you use a knife, the very fine edge begins to lose its alignment and performance. Regular stropping can help maintain a sharp edge and delay the point at which the knife needs to go back onto the whetstones for a proper sharpen.

So think of your whetstones as doing the sharpening and your strop as helping you look after the results.

Get your knife properly sharp first then strop it regularly to keep it that way.

My wife thinks Japanese knives are too expensive. Can you explain the difference and true value?

This is a very subjective one, because ultimately it comes down to what you value and where you choose to spend your money.

For most people, a high-end Japanese knife probably does seem expensive. But most of us have something we're willing to spend more money on because we appreciate the difference. It might be a bike, a golf club, a jacket or an even a bloody hoover - they each have relative value to the user. 

A good Japanese knife is no different. At the higher end, you're often buying something that has gone through numerous handmade processes and passed through the hands of highly skilled craftspeople – from blacksmiths and sharpeners to handle makers and finishers. You're paying for high-quality materials, scarcity, specialist knowledge and craftsmanship, as well as a knife that's designed to feel and perform beautifully.

Will it fundamentally do something that a six-quid knife from IKEA can't? No. They'll both cut a carrot. But that's not really the point.

A well-made Japanese knife should feel better in your hand, take and hold an excellent edge, cut exceptionally well and, importantly, give you a lot more enjoyment every time you use it. If you cook regularly and appreciate well-made things, that matters.

Looked after properly, it's also something you can use for many, many years.

So are expensive knives worth it? If you don't care about knives, probably not. If you love cooking, craftsmanship and using beautiful, well-made tools, I'd say, absolutely.

How much money did you need to start Community Cutlery? Would love to try it in Italy.

This is a difficult one to answer because we didn't really start Community Cutlery with a big lump of investment.

The business grew very organically. We started with a sharpening service and sharpened knives from home for years. The money we made from sharpening went straight back into the business, which gradually allowed us to buy equipment and stock and grow what we were doing.

We did invest money at different points along the way, but there wasn't a moment where we said, "Right, here's £50,000 – let's open a knife shop."

For a long time, we simply kept putting the money the business made back into it rather than taking it out ourselves.

Looking back, I think that was actually a good way to grow – particularly when you're dealing with products like handmade Japanese knives, which can be difficult to source and aren't available in unlimited quantities.

Trying to get too big too quickly could have caused us all sorts of problems.

If I were giving advice to somebody wanting to start something similar now, I'd say there's a lot to be said for starting small. Learn what people want, build relationships with good suppliers, reinvest what you make and allow the business to grow at a rate you can actually manage.

That's certainly how we did it anyway and it seems to be working!

Got a question for Gaz?

That's your lot for the first series of Ask Gaz.

We'll be answering more of your knife and sharpening questions in the next one – including which whetstones Gaz recommends and the cheapest way to keep a good knife sharp.

And if you're here to find out whether Gaz is from Blackburn or Clitheroe, we're afraid you'll have to head over to Instagram for these groundbreaking updates!

Got something you want to ask him? Send us your question on Instagram and we'll add it to the pile for next time. Cheers!