Sharpener for Serrated Knives in Your Boat Galley

A year ago, I wrote about choosing knives for a galley and included a bit about being sure to get a good sharpener to go with it.

One of my recommendation was the DMT FSKF Diafold Serrated Knife Sharpener – Fine, available on Amazon (photo below).  I still recommend it.  I particularly like it for three reasons:

• It’s a diamond sharpener and they work really well to hone knives;
• It’s small and the handles fold to protect the sharpening surface; and
• It can sharpen both straight and serrated knives

The fact that it’s a lot less expensive than many other steels that don’t do as much is only a plus.

I recently discovered that the manufacturer, DMT, has put out a YouTube video on how to use this sharpener to sharpen a serrated knife (below).  If you watch clear through to the end (I know, it’s a bit long-winded), it also demonstrates how to use this tool to sharpen a non-serrated blade.  I had a sharpener very similar to this on Que Tal (I think it was a previous model) and loved it . . . but it stayed on the boat for the new owners.

Further, if you already have a sharpening steel with a reasonably small end — at least in comparison to the serrated knife you have — such as the sharpener that came with my knife set and the serrated knife in that set (shown in the photo at the top of this article), you can use the same technique as that shown in the video.

Keeping your knives sharp not only saves labor but, oddly enough, is actually a safety item.  You’re much less likely to cut yourself if your knife cuts easily and cleanly.  And if you ever have to sever a line under tension — as I once did in a near disaster aboard a friend’s boat — being able to do so like “a hot knife through butter” could save a boat, if not lives.

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