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Comment by cpt1138 | Hacker News Reader

The Reddit app on IOS. Something has always bothered me about most of the apps on IOS but I couldn't put my finger on it until I started using the reddit app. The UX is so good that it makes everything else feel awkward. I think that everything else was actually awkward and that's what I didn't like.

Cutco knives. All my life I've known what makes a good knife and that you should pay a lot. I think this is fine in the rare case that you have some someone to sharpen and hone them for you every day. Since getting Cutco knives I've come to realize that no other knives are for regular home use where you never have the time or skill to properly care for "other" knives.

Fixed gear bikes. I ride bikes a lot and when I finally got a fixie it was like that was finally the bike that felt like an extension of myself. I watched some videos about how cassettes work and understand the effect of being directly connected is what I'm feeling.

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I dunno about the cutco thing. You could get a really nice chefs knife, paring knife, bread knife, boning knife, honing steel + a set of 5 steak knives + the best electric sharpener for less than the price of their small set ($682). I would say most people never bother to send in their knives for sharpening (or know/care that they're not sharp anymore), plus shipping knives is a pain and you are out those knives while they're being sharpened.

Plus the "guilt trip your neighbors/friends/parent's coworkers into a sale" strategy doesn't really sit well with me.

That's exactly what I mean. I've spent hundreds of dollars on "great" knives that I never bothered to send in for sharpening that I never use. The ones that I STILL DO NOT send in for sharpening and remain ultra sharp are the ones I use constantly.

Cutco is crap. Part and parcel of using a knife is learning to sharpen one.

Counter-example: Tojiro DP... Amazing knives for the price.

Again the reality, for me, is I don't take them in to be sharpened. One does not sharpen their own knives, one hones their own, and takes them to professionals to sharpen.

The reality is that most people have never even seen a sharp knife.

Unfortunately, sending them in to be sharpened is not likely to give you a sharp knife either, most sharpening services are crap. There is no way to really sharpen a knife for $5. A specialist who does hand sharpening is going to cost at least $30.

To reliably have truly sharp knives is best to sharpen them yourself. Start with a decent blade, eg an entry level Japanese gyuto something like a Fujiwara FKM, JCK Carbonext, Tojiro DP, or a Sugimoto cleaver. Sharpen with Japanese waterstones. Diamond is bad for the knife, oilstones and ceramics are way way too slow for modern hard knife steels. Get a medium (1000-2000) and a fine waterstone (5000-6000), the Bester 1200 and Suhiro Rika 5000 are excellent and not very expensive. Then learn how to sharpen. It takes a bit of study and practice and will feel awkward at first, but once you get it, it is not at all difficult or time consuming.

The difference is everything. For example, the reason you cry cutting onions is because your dull knife is crushing the cells and spraying onion juice aerosol everywhere. A sharp knife does not do this. Chives cut with a dull knife turn mushy right away because of the tissue damage but will keep hours if cut with a sharp knife.

Alternatively, get a $15 two sided whetstone and try sharpening whatever knives happen to be present.

Cheap knives even tend to be softer steels which are easier to sharpen.

This won't lead to the very sharpest knives, but for most people it will still produce a vast improvement in sharpness and it's only $15 gone if they decide they'd still like better stuff or to throw the stone in the trash.

It's takes a few multihour sessions and ~$200 in whetstones but you can become a good home sharpener.

Once you can get your own knives from "crushes tomato" to "I didn't even realize I'd take off the the tip of my thumb until I realized there was blood everywhere, doctor" in ~20 minutes of work on the stone you'll never want to go back.

Just don't fall down the straight razor hole. It will consume you and turn you into a shaving bigot.

I prefer Alien Blue to the new Reddit app. I hope I never end up losing it, since it's no longer on the app store.

I liked Alien Blue too, but the UX on the Reddit app really impresses me only in the context of most other apps being not so UX impressive.

Did you ever try riding clipless pedals?

I ride clipless (Speedplay X) on all my road bikes.

The effect isn't as notable on a road bike. On a mountain bike (riding off-road) it definitely gives the oneness sensation you describe.

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