Thoughts on Sharpeners

[Guest The Itis]

Looking into buying a sharpener for my edc knives. I don't have anything fancy, just 8cr14mov and AUS-8 type stuff.

Not looking to buy a Spyderco triangle thing, just thinking about a traditional waterstone or a ceramic rod pull through type.

 

Any recommendations or opinions on what style of sharpeners to look for or avoid? Someone told me to avoid ones that use carbide and stick to ceramic. Is that good advice?

[Spots]

Depends. Do you like to sharpen, or do you just want sharp knives? If you dont care how they get sharp, but a 1 x 30 belt grinder from harbor freight. 120, 220, 320, 400, 600, 800 grit belte and a leather strop belt. I can make a butter knife shave in less than 5 minutes. Just take it easy and keep the blade cool to the touch using water

Tapatalk ate my spelling.

[RichardR]

The only time I'd use carbide is when I need to seriously reprofile an edge, but you have to be careful because it'll remove a lot of metal from the knife.

Smith's makes a pretty good sharpening system that is quick, easy & affordable, comes with a clamp, honing oil, angle guides and diamond & ceramic stone, bout $20 if I recall correctly, that's what I'd probably recommend to someone getting started.

[Guest The Itis]

Got a name of the model or kit from Smith?

[RichardR]

http://www.smithsproducts.com/product/spsk/

[peejman]

I have that Smiths kit and it works pretty well. I'm terrible at sharpening by hand so having the guides helps a lot.

One thing I've learned is that the angle on the blade and the angle of the sharpener don't always match, even if they're supposed to be the same. I had trouble with one of my pocket knives which should have been a 25 deg edge. I tried to just touch up the edge because it wasn't that dull. The more I tried, the duller it got. I looked at the edge with a magnifying glass and it was clear the sharpener was at a different angle than the factory edge. I ended up having to reprofile it with the coarse stone to get it sharp.

[Jamie Jackson]

We've used a [url=http://www.cabelas.com/catalog/product.jsp?productId=1158341] Smith's Edge Pro Pull-thru Knife Sharpener [/url] for a few years now on working knives, both kitchen and utility and have more than pleased with the results.

The blades are replaceable and inexpensive as well. So keeping an extra set on hand should be a consideration, imho.

Edited August 13, 2013 by prag

[UncleJak]

I was a hard-core wet stone guy....until I got that same belt sander Spots has.

sent barefoot from the hills of Tennessee

[Trekbike]

I have a Lansky kit and I'm satisfied since I just need to maintain an edge and not create one. It is similar in principal to the Smith kit shown above.
Edited August 13, 2013 by Trekbike

[xjsnake]

Avoid any of the carbide pull through types. They will hog up your blade in a hurry.

 

The lansky and smith's kits mentioned above are good and if you are merely touching up knives you can't beat a lansky turn box. I do 70-80% of my sharpening on one because I don't let them get very dull to begin with. http://www.amazon.com/Lansky-4-rod-Crock-Sharpener-LCD5D/dp/B000B8FW0E

[Guest The Itis]

I have that Smiths kit and it works pretty well. I'm terrible at sharpening by hand so having the guides helps a lot.

One thing I've learned is that the angle on the blade and the angle of the sharpener don't always match, even if they're supposed to be the same. I had trouble with one of my pocket knives which should have been a 25 deg edge. I tried to just touch up the edge because it wasn't that dull. The more I tried, the duller it got. I looked at the edge with a magnifying glass and it was clear the sharpener was at a different angle than the factory edge. I ended up having to reprofile it with the coarse stone to get it sharp.

 

I was wondering, do most factory blades use 1 of a few blade angles? Like that Smith kit has 2 options, is that supposed to cover mostly anything you could possibly have?

 

I've got a few damascus blades (non edc) as well and definitely don't want to fudge those up with mismatched angles. How does one go about figuring out what angle he should sharpen a particular blade with?

Edited August 13, 2013 by The Itis

[mikegideon]

I was wondering, do most factory blades use 1 of a few blade angles? Like that Smith kit has 2 options, is that supposed to cover mostly anything you could possibly have?

 

I've got a few damascus blades (non edc) as well and definitely don't want to fudge those up with mismatched angles. How does one go about figuring out what angle he should sharpen a particular blade with?

 

You sure you wanna hear the answer to that? :) 

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=LJTRb59retI

[DWARREN123]

I use a small tri shaped fine stone and a ceramic rod, works very well for me.

[Dolomite_supafly]

I have used soft Japanese water stones for a VERY long time. They work as well as anything out there and it is very hard to mess a knife up because they are slower than some of the other methods. Once you have a nice edge it is very easy to maintain it. It isn't that hard to learn to use them. And once your muscle memory has remembered the angle it gets a whole lot quicker.

[frankmako]

i use to use stones and work myself to death.  now i got one of the smith kits and it seem to work well.  i am going to get the knife belt grinder from sportman's before the year end. 

[TMF]

I use one of those nifty Gerber pocket sharpeners for my pocket knives. Every month or so my S&W or Gerber gets a little dull I run it through a few times and get it razor sharp again in 30 seconds. I'm not a knife guy though other than my beat up daily carry. I do have a very expensive Benchmade and a stupid expensive Chris Reeve, but those don't see any action to dull them up. Edited August 13, 2013 by TMF

[Trekbike]

How does one go about figuring out what angle he should sharpen a particular blade with?

 

The Lansky kit has four angle choices.  This is what their manual says about the angles.  YMMV.

 

• 17 deg - A severe angle only recommend for razor blades, X-Acto blades or similar tools.  Provides an extremely sharp but highly delicate edge.

• 20 deg - A commonly used angle for higher grade, quality blades.  Provides an excellent edge for these types of knives.  Ideal for kitchen knives.

• 25 deg - The recommended angle for most knives that need a durable, sharp edge.  Ideal for hunting and outdoor knives.

• 30 deg - An outstanding angle for knives that see the heavy use of cutting cardboard, wire or carpets.  Only for heavy duty use.  

[peejman]

I was wondering, do most factory blades use 1 of a few blade angles? Like that Smith kit has 2 options, is that supposed to cover mostly anything you could possibly have?

 

I've got a few damascus blades (non edc) as well and definitely don't want to fudge those up with mismatched angles. How does one go about figuring out what angle he should sharpen a particular blade with?

 

 

Generally...  pocket knives, multi-tools, and other "utility" blades are 25 deg for the best combination of sharpness and durability.

 

Kitchen knives are generally 20 deg edges for better sharpness.  Durability is less of a concern as you're typically not cutting rope or cardboard with a kitchen knife. 

 

You can set the kit up and use a flashlight and magnifying glass to look closely at the angle of the blade and angle the sharpener it at to determine if they match.  Put the light behind the stone and look for light leaking through the gap between the blade and stone. 

 

My assumption is the 25 deg version on my kit is a little off.  It doesn't take more than 1 deg of error for the sharpener to not work very well.  That said, it only took a few passes with the coarse stone to reshape the edge.  It doesn't remove a lot of metal. 

[mikegideon]

 

My assumption is the 25 deg version on my kit is a little off.  It doesn't take more than 1 deg of error for the sharpener to not work very well.  That said, it only took a few passes with the coarse stone to reshape the edge.  It doesn't remove a lot of metal. 

 

The factory edge can be off too. With a fixed angle sharpener, the odds of hitting dead on every time are slim, so you wind up doing some reprofiling. As long as you use a sharpie on the edge to see where the stone is hitting, you can grind enough away to get there. 

[mikegideon]

I have used soft Japanese water stones for a VERY long time. They work as well as anything out there and it is very hard to mess a knife up because they are slower than some of the other methods. Once you have a nice edge it is very easy to maintain it. It isn't that hard to learn to use them. And once your muscle memory has remembered the angle it gets a whole lot quicker.

 

I'm too spastic to do freehand sharpening, even with a Sharpmaker. I can get them sharp, but they look like it was done by a wobbly old geezer. :) My favorite quick and dirty is my Worksharp. It's just a baby belt grinder. I won't use it on my good knives, though.

 

Still, it's kinda like mil dot math. You need to know how to do it in case you get caught without your cool toys. You can sharpen a knife on the bottom of a coffee cup, or a brick if you have the skills.

Edited August 13, 2013 by mikegideon

[peejman]

The factory edge can be off too. With a fixed angle sharpener, the odds of hitting dead on every time are slim, so you wind up doing some reprofiling. As long as you use a sharpie on the edge to see where the stone is hitting, you can grind enough away to get there. 

 

True.  But its been off on 2 of 3 pocket knives I've sharpened with it.  Doesn't really matter either way.

 

The sharpie is good idea to see where the stone is hitting.  I've just used a flashlight to look for facets.  1 facet  = good angle.  2 (or more) = get the coarse stone out and go until there's only 1. 

[mikegideon]

True.  But its been off on 2 of 3 pocket knives I've sharpened with it.  Doesn't really matter either way.

 

The sharpie is good idea to see where the stone is hitting.  I've just used a flashlight to look for facets.  1 facet  = good angle.  2 (or more) = get the coarse stone out and go until there's only 1. 

 

You don't make facets with the sharpie method. You don't sacrifice any steel at all if you do it right. If I didn't have a bunch of fairly expensive knives, I would get one of the guided systems like the Lansky, or the one mentioned above, and just flog the primary bevel into submission. That's what you wind up doing with the high end sharpeners in a lot of cases anyway, especially when the edge is off center. If you have different angles on each side, you're probably best off fixing it. 

 

There's another small issue with fixed guide angles. As the stones wear, they wear at different rates. The difference in thickness will add to the angle error. In fact, the change in thickness over time will change the angle. Of course, you can replace the stones and eliminate the error. 

[mikegideon]

 and a stupid expensive Chris Reeve.

 

Let me do a quick thread jack. I used to think CR knives were stupid expensive too, until I got it. You can use those knives hard. Before and after, cost was $1.50 + Shipping.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?annotation_id=annotation_725408&feature=iv&src_vid=39BhwRYrMJs&v=1ZC2jDugvqs#t=20s

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=39BhwRYrMJs

[Guest Lester Weevils]

I'm not good at sharpening. Have a smiths three stone set with the angle guide, and a smiths carbide/ceramic/steel pull thru, and assorted stones including a diamond stone. And occasionally will sharpen something with the 4.5" belt sander, but don't have one of the narrow-belt sanders.

 

It just seems that some knives will take a sharp edge regardless of sharpening method and other knives don't want to get "razor sharp" regardless of method, though perhaps a person more skilled could get em sharp.

 

I don't have any expensive knives. For years carried a tiny leatherman "technician" multi tool that the tiny blade could be made razor sharp just with the smith's pull thru sharpener. All my "easy to sharpen" knives seem to get real sharp just with the pull thru sharpener.

 

I misplaced the leatherman edc and for a couple weeks been toting a Frost Cutlery toothpick style pocket knife with about a 3" blade. Bought it used at a pawn shop for a couple of bucks. Seems well made, made in japan. The blade claims, "Surgical Steel". I can get it "fairly sharp" but can't get it shaving sharp with any tool at my disposal. Unless my problem is just lack of skill, certainly wouldn't want to use this "surgical steel" to do any surgery. :)

[TMF]

Let me do a quick thread jack. I used to think CR knives were stupid expensive too, until I got it. You can use those knives hard. Before and after, cost was $1.50 + Shipping.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?annotation_id=annotation_725408&feature=iv&src_vid=39BhwRYrMJs&v=1ZC2jDugvqs#t=20s

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=39BhwRYrMJs

 

No doubt you can.  Of course, my EDC knives are always in the $50 and below range for a reason.... I tend to lose them sometimes.  I would never carry a $500 EDC type like the Sebenza; not because they aren't great knives, but because I don't trust myself.  My CR sits in my safe.  It does not come out to play and probably never will.  If I ever was to mar it I would not be able to send it back to CR.  It is irreplaceable and I would never, ever trust it to any parcel service.