[wtdedula]

Hello All;

I got a mandolin slicer about 6 months ago and love it and also a new paring knife last weekend. It seems as hard as I try to prevent it, I am always cutting myself on the mandolin never serious (yet) but one day, it could be. And just this weekend, I accidentally cut myself while using my paring knife. I recall one time while in the grocery store I heard a women talking about using her mandolin too and how she cut herself and had to go to the hospital. This seems like an easy thing to do considering the construction of a mandolin. Even though there is a food pusher and guard on mine, sometimes the food is too small for that to work correctly. 

So I'd like to get some opinions from the group how to prevent accidentally cutting myself in the future. What do you do to stay safe ? I have been almost ready to sell the mandolin because I deemed it too dangerous. I'm wondering what you fellas think about cut-resistant gloves ? Are these widely used in the foodservice industry ? Are they sanitary ? Do you recommend any particular type/brand ? 

Thanks for any advice you can provide. 

Tim

 

[millionsknives]

I have a benriner and I sharpened the blade.  The difference from out of the box is night and day.  If you're putting a lot of pressure on vegetables to push it through the blade, your blade is dull.   It will be 'stuck' until it zooms real fast.  This is how accidents happen.  Sharpen the blade if you can, some are not removable and you are just screwed.

Definitely YES for cut gloves when using mandolin or shucking oysters.

As for paring knife... do better at not cutting yourself and also sharpen it.

 

[chefwriter]

When using the mandoline, try using an open hand method, with fingers fully extended and only the palm putting pressure on the food being sliced. And of course, don't rush it. Safety first, then speed. 

 

[jimyra]

I always use a cut resistant glove.

 

[brianshaw]

In addition to all the fine advise on mandolin use above... become more accepting of waste.  When the item being cut is too small set it aside and deal with it using a knife.

 

[chefross]

Been using a madolin for many years....with lots of cuts to prove it.

The wire mesh gloves IMHO are useless as they are not sanitary, carry lots of germs, and get stuck in the blades of the mandolin.

I see people using the tool with a wire mesh glove and a latex glove over that......Do I want shredded pieces of latex in my food????

Having to ruffle cut 2 50# bags of carrots teaches you how to use the cutter correctly.

MillionKnives is right on the money. Keep the blades sharp and you won't have to push so hard.

If you choose to go the other route, you can go without any protection but just go slow and take your time.

Gaufrettes for 200??????

 

[chefwriter]

As long as it's been brought up, how do you sharpen the blade on a mandolin?  Mine isn't dull yet but I"m sure it will be someday. 

I have the stainless steel one, made in France. I don't think I can remove the blade. 

 

[chefross]

As long as it's been brought up, how do you sharpen the blade on a mandolin? Mine isn't dull yet but I"m sure it will be someday.

I have the stainless steel one, made in France. I don't think I can remove the blade.

I have a Chef's Choice hand held blade sharpener that looks like a pizza cutter with 2 blades that will fit on either side of the mandolin blade.

I bought it on Amazon.com

 

[millionsknives]

I removed the benriner blades and sharpened on a waterstones 1000 grit and 2000 grit

 

[wens]

I wonder how fine a grit actually improves the edge. I only used my 1200 when I sharpened mine, but maybe some experimentation is in order.

 

[millionsknives]

IDK but it took some effort to remove the burr.  I wouldn't bother with finishing stones on this steel.  FYI it is highly asymmetric edge