sharpeners

[jwinva]

I'd like input on knife sharpeners for a working knife.Looked a ceramics and steels.Confusing about angles.

[frogjake]

all these new fangled sharpeners are "cool" .  You have to remember there were millions of knives sharpened with a regular old wetsone over the last couple thousand years.
I was taught by my Dad and it has served me well over the last 30+ years.  Ask around your hunt club, or maybe some older dudes in your neighborhood, I'm certain they would love to pss on this knowledge

[Joel]

There's so many different sharpening systems out there, it's a bit confusing.  There are regular whetstones, Akransas stones, water stones, crock sticks in various configurations, sharpening wheels and belts etc.  If you use just a regular type of edge, i.e. not convex, then the Lansky systems, and their clones seem to work well.  I had one for years before I became a knifemaker and started using a convex edge; which I sharpen on a belt grinder. In fact the Lansky is the only manual system I'm familiar with except for regular sharpening stones. It's available with both regular and synthetic(diamond) stones. Someone else who is familiar with other types of sharpeners might post something.  As far as edges go, I use the finest edge I can that doesn't result in the edge chipping or rolling.  A lot of whether it does that or not depends on the actual edge thickness and the knife hardness( Rockwell C).  You'll have to experiment with your knives to find out the best edge for each.

[prairiedog555]

Mr. Joel,
I was wondering about knife sharpening.  I have had a professional sharpen knives out of his truck and I saw him use a belt sander.  So I am wondering if I could do this also.  I have a belt sander.  What angle and what grit would you use.

Thankyou

[The Gamemaster]

Working for years in the Machining / Welding trade, I came across a pretty interesting tool for sharpening knives.  It's called a Tiger Wheel.

A Tiger Wheel is nothing more than a flapper wheel that is mounted on a circle instead of being mounted on a shaft like one that you would use on a high speed die grinder.

When a Tiger Wheel gets wore out to the point where it is no longer any good for the removal of material when you are doing welding / machining - it is ready for sharpening knives.

A Tiger Wheel will not dig because it is not one continuous grinding wheel, it is hundreds of small pieces of sand paper all bonded together.  What you do is take several small passes on each side of the blade until you can re establish an edge in the shape that you desire.

Once this shape is established, you can get your Lasky's out and finish the job to a more precision edge.  It will literally take hours out of your sharpening job.  The main job of any sharpening system is to sharpen an edge onto the blade - which some people make it even to the edge of the blade and others puts a double edge - where the edge that you cut with is sharp and is on a different angle than the rest of the blade - which puts more material behind the edge - which makes the edge stronger and last longer - but is not as sharp as a edge that follows the contour of the blade.

Once you establish your edge, if you keep your edge sharp, all it will take to sharpen your knife is just a few passes on the whetstones with the oil that is supplied with the kit.  I use all 3 stones because usually when the knife gets dull it is because it hit bone or your cutting board and the edge is no longer sharp.  The course stone removes the majority of material and the medium stone shapes it and the fine stone hones the edge.

If you spend all your time with the fine hone stone - it will take forever to put a good edge on your blades and will wear out your stone prematurely.

[The Gamemaster]

http://www.weldingmag.com/323/Issue/Article/False/21433/Issue

[rickyp]

I have a Remington big game knife that had a very bad edge one it so bad I could hardly cut butter. I was about to trash it when I was at walmart and saw a smith sharpening system on sale for $10. I figured I would give it a go and am so happy I did.  It puts a razors edge on my knives. it is a jig system with a diamond stone  and a fine stone. it isn't fancy or expensive but works great

I use a 25 degree angle on all my knives and I can shave with them and they last for several deer


http://smithabrasives.com/sa/products.html  I use the little $30.00 kit that is listed on the bottom of the page.

[mcwoodduck]

I have a number of knife sharpeners from the simple to the electric. There is a big difference between honing and sharpening.  Honing you true up the blade and sharpening you remove metal.  Try the steel that the kitchen knives came with first.  3 5 2.  Three passes on one side, 5 on the other and back to 2.  Place the knife on the steel like your trying to slice a thin layer off and work your way down the steel slowly.  It should take any ripples out of the edge.  Sharpening takes the flat spots out of the edge.
The best I found is the three diamond stone from Cabala's.  Comes in a plastic case and you need to get the red handle as well.  Read the instructions and see what angle you want to use, lock the blade into the holder  and draw the stone a few times.  Works great.  I used to go through pocket knives every 6 months cause they would get dull and were too small or had serrations and were hard to sharpen.  The kit has sharpened the whole lot and I have been carrying my Gerber air ranger for 2 years now.  The kit also has a 4th stone for serrated blades.  About $60 but worth it.
It is easy to use and will keep an edge.  I usually do not use the fine on my everyday knife but leave it course, it stays sharper longer.  But the fillet knife gets the fine edge and I could do surgery with it if needed.
I have one of the plastic sharpeners that looks like a handle with the chain saw sharpener blades in it, and you zip your knife through it a few times.  Works well for pocket or hunting ( anything with a thick blade and a steep angle on the blade) and you can toss it in your pack or camp gear but it took the edge off of my $50 butcher knife when I was getting ready to slice up rib eye steaks.  Keep it away from your $ cooking knives!!!!!!
I also have an old timer flat steel that works well in the field to true up the blade when skinning or butchering game. 

[Woodbutcher]

 It ain't what you buy, it's what you know!
 It isn't the abrasive, it's the constant angle. Sharpening by hand shifts the angle every time. A jig of some sort maintains a consistent angle. You're only working with a very tiny area, it's very easy to miss. If you sharpen by hand, unless you're pretty skilled, all you're doing is wearing away steel. Power tools will get an edge hot, which is very bad, and remove a lot of steel, not necessary.
 Chisels and wood planes need frequent touch up, and the edge needs to be precise. Put the blade in a jig, and 5 to 10 strokes get it done. I'm using emery cloth glued to a flat surface, and water with dish soap, (Oil turns black and gets on everything.) and my jigs are a block of wood. My knives get the same.
 Did you know that you can strop an edge with cardboard?
 When you've got a means of maintaining consistency then choosing abrasive and angle is easy.
                                                   Woodbutcher
 
 

[mcwoodduck]

Sorry the kit I spoke of comes with a blade holder that has 4 different angles where the guide rod from the stone goes and you slowly slide the stone over the blade.  there are 4 more angles on the other side of the clamp and is easy to do both sides.  You can even change the angle if you wish.  One of my friends sharpens at one angle and finishes at an other to get a really sharp knife.  It just doesn't last long.

[rickyp]

I have tried the using 2 angles to sharpen my knives  and you can get a really Sharp blade but like stated it doesn't last long. the problem is as the edge gets thinner it tends to fold over with use. I  found I like the 25 degree angle the best it gives a good sharp edge and last a good time

The chefs choice sharpener used the same principle of several  angles and works good for kitchen knives but not so good for field and every day knives.

[James B]

I have bragged up the SharpMaker for years and its great but maybe even more simple and fool proof is the Spyderco SharpMaker. I got one for CHRISTmas and man does it work.

[James B]

http://www.thebladeshop.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=370&gclid=CJjv06uj0pACFQmgGgod70SIXQ   

Here it is.

[nodlenor]

Lansky makes one of the best knife sharpeners I have ever used. You don't need to worry about holding the right angle on the blade, it does it for you. I'm not very good at sharpening freehand and I figure a lot of other people aren't either. The Smith system is similar. I agree that the 25 degree angle is the best.

[bluntweapon]

 I have been sharpening knives for a lot of yrs (over 30). A couple of yrs ago i started using wet dry sandpaper on a piece of class for scandia's (flat grind. sharp but to delicate for me ) or on a piece of leather napa will carry from 80grt up to 2500 grt. A mouse pad works as well. Try different thicknesses/firmness to get one you like. place the paper on top spray with a little water or use dry ( i like water as it self cleans and helps hold paper in place on glass) To sharpen start with a coarser grit and move to fine trying not to make to big a jump between grts. Use a stropping motion like a barber with  straight razor. To start lay blade flat then lift spine off of surface ( a little practice and the exact angle for you blade is easy to find) and start stropping stropping  moving the knife in the direction that the spine is pointed. when you get a burr switch sides. a piece of newsprint and plain leather will remove burr and give you a polished convexed edge cheap

[Don Krag]

I've tried a LOT of sharpeners over the years. I like Lansky for small pocketknife blades. I hate it for large blades, blades with distal tapers or special surface finishes. I always seem to go back to a crock stick/sharpmaster type rig. I've never had a problem getting a blade scary sharp using one of these. Now, I start with a 30 micron belt on the grinder, then the coarse stick followed by the fine one. Although for large camp knives, I'll put a convex edge on using just the belt grinder.

[SharonAnne]

i have used a 6" oil stone for 25 years freehand. my hunting knife will slice through a sheet of newspaper under its own weight. Slice, not tear. it is a 6" marbles. a gift from my father-in-law.  it hardly needs a touch up after butchering a deer.