Why don't I sharpen other things?

Hey folks,

I am often asked if I sharpen:

Lawn mower blades;
Pet grooming shears;
Ice augers;
Scissors;
Shears

I've forgotten some things but for the most part the answer is "no" and I hate telling people that.

(I do sharpen scissors now and have done a few pairs of salon shears with good results by the way)


I see myself as a kitchen knife specialist though and it took me years and years to build up the confidence to be able to sharpen knives to a level where I feel comfortable to charge people for my skills because I believe that I can more than satisfy their sharpening needs .  So even though I can sharpen a lawn mower blade (it's not that hard), I don't enjoy it and I am not 100% confident in the final result. My passion is knife sharpening, passion leads to success (along with Practice, Persistence and Patience). If I can make it the sharpest lawn mower blade that the person has ever seen than I'm not comfortable with doing it.

I don't want to do a lawn mower blade and do a half assed job on it and then have the owner think I am just a mediocre sharpener.  In my business, word of mouth is absolutely crucial, it is what I have relied on for 3 years now. I have been blessed with favourable comments and recommendations,  I do not want to jeopardize that by just making a lawn mower blade a little better.

I tell people if they are absolutely stuck I will do them but I don't charge them.

MORITAKA YANAGIBA......sweet

Speaking of word of mouth......one of the things I appreciate most is feedback, and it doesn't come often. I know people are pleased and I also know that people would be quick to let me know if they were not. I think that the majority of folks just don't consider taking the extra few minutes to let me know about their level of satisfaction. 

When that does happen, it brightens my day, it's freaking awesome in fact.  I'm not asking for much, just a quick email to say "thanks Peter, I'm happy" that would be enough.

Thanks for reading my Blog, that is very cool and nice of you.