Sharpmaker?

[Surfingringo]

Irrespective of how you use the SharpMaker, technique etc. I’ve always found the concept of using the corners of the stones to sharpen anything other than SE’s and tight recurves a bizarre and puzzling concept.

For example, I if all you had was a triangular file to sharpen a PE blade, would you use the points of the file or the flats? :confused:

Hey Bloke, I use the corners almost exclusively for my work knives and fillet knives. If you rub the corners off two brown rods together briskly for 10-20 seconds, you will break through the coating and the surface of the corners will be more coarse than that of the flats. The result is that you can get a notably more aggressive edge from sharpening on the corners of the brown rods than you can on the flats. I would compare the finish from the flats of the brown rods to about a 2000 grit diamond. The corners give a finish closer to what you would get from a 1200 diamond. The other advantage of using the corners is that when they get clogged, you can just rub them together again and remove enough material to get a fresh cutting surface. I’ve never had any success trying the same thing with the flats and eventually the flats of the brown rods will get so clogged that they lose their bite and they don’t seem to respond to cleaning the same way the white rods do.

[Bloke]

Irrespective of how you use the SharpMaker, technique etc. I’ve always found the concept of using the corners of the stones to sharpen anything other than SE’s and tight recurves a bizarre and puzzling concept.

For example, I if all you had was a triangular file to sharpen a PE blade, would you use the points of the file or the flats? :confused:

Hey Bloke, I use the corners almost exclusively for my work knives and fillet knives. If you rub the corners off two brown rods together briskly for 10-20 seconds, you will break through the coating and the surface of the corners will be more coarse than that of the flats. The result is that you can get a notably more aggressive edge from sharpening on the corners of the brown rods than you can on the flats. I would compare the finish from the flats of the brown rods to about a 2000 grit diamond. The corners give a finish closer to what you would get from a 1200 diamond. The other advantage of using the corners is that when they get clogged, you can just rub them together again and remove enough material to get a fresh cutting surface. I’ve never had any success trying the same thing with the flats and eventually the flats of the brown rods will get so clogged that they lose their bite and they don’t seem to respond to cleaning the same way the white rods do.

Fair enough, Lance. :)

I haven’t forgotten all your help when I was struggling and I’m not about to try to teach father how to suck eggs.

You know I only use my SharpMaker to touch up and mirobevels I can generally live without so I don’t use it very much and I don’t struggle when I do. I don’t use the corners for a couple of reasons. Primarily because it only takes a slip or two, easily enough done using the corners and you’ve lost your tip.

We all have our idiosyncrasies and one of mine is, if the first 1/16” -1/8” isn’t the sharpest part of the blade the knife’s useless. It won’t skin, fillet, pick splinters, ... you may as well be without a knife. Who cares if your knife is a razor at the heel but your tip is rounded, blunt and won’t cut diddly?

[Gamecock]

I only use a Sharpmaker now, unless I’m sharpening someone else’s knife who let it get really, really dull. This video helped me a lot in learning to use it to quickly get super steels sharp on it.

https://youtu.be/-MHe_8wTHmg

[Doeswhateveraspidercan]

I only use a Sharpmaker now, unless I’m sharpening someone else’s knife who let it get really, really dull. This video helped me a lot in learning to use it to quickly get super steels sharp on it.

https://youtu.be/-MHe_8wTHmg

Great video and Lance has one also showing a similar application. https://youtu.be/DI8lTj-F8gA

Also agree about cracking the surface on the corners of the rods for a more aggressive cut.

One of the most important things I have learned is not trying to do the whole blade at once but in sections and avoid the tip coming off the corners and only do the tip with the flats. I have also found that I can make the flats on the brown rod more aggressive but you have to rub them together for a bit until they produce a smell in the air it is hard to decribe the smell but you will know it when you arrive and then you are done it does not take long.

Lastly nothing better than Barkeepers friend powder for cleaning ceramics or you could use a Japanese nagura stone rust erasers work also.

[Tdog]

Like others, I use the Barkeepers Friend and a Scotch pad but find the erasers do seem to make the stones work better. Lansky makes one and there is another called "Supereraser" which seems more course than the Lansky. Both work well. Stones seem to cut better after using the eraser.

[Bloke]

it is hard to decribe the smell

[Edward_Scissorhands]

Edward, same for me.

My explanation is that the flat side is not flat but curved.
Therefore the edge does not get good/sufficient contact.

But I am still new to sharpening and I sharpen normally only a few minutes, not half an hour to an hour.

I think I have this issue, too. When I use the edge of the stones, I feel like I'm making good, solid contact with each stroke. When I switch to the flat part, I have a hard time keeping the blade perfectly flat with the stone. It seems like I am making more contact with the leading edge. This seems to agree with what I see visually, since the edge (of the flat part) gets dirtier than the flat part itself.

Is there anything wrong with just using the edges of the stones all the time. Say start with the brown and then finish with the white?

[Edward_Scissorhands]

It's hard to get full contact on the flats.
I checked yesterday on the flats only a small portion is in contact with the blade. This means also that you have unsharpened spots.
Maybe with more strokes you can equal that out.

I don’t quite follow what you’re describing.

All I can think is you’re not contacting the stone close to the blade’s tip(?) and you won’t unless you lift the handle as you approach the belly and tip at the end of your stroke in order to keep the blade’s belly and tip tangent to the stone.

It’s easy to demonstrate, a little harder to describe but basically when you finish the stroke you’re blade/knife should be about 60degrees off horizontal.

This is something like were your knife should finish at the end of the stroke. You need to keep blade tangent to stone, heel to tip, every stroke.



If you were sharpening a Wharncliffe blade you’d need to keep the blade horizontal though the entire stroke.

Hope all this makes sense. :)

Thanks! I was wondering about this as well. What you're describing makes sense.

[Bloke]

Thanks! I was wondering about this as well. What you're describing makes sense.

You’re most welcome Edward!

It’s often the little things we sometimes overlook or aren’t quite aware of that make all the difference. Hope I did help a little and you’re whittling hair in no time. :)

[Wartstein]

I think I have this issue, too. When I use the edge of the stones, I feel like I'm making good, solid contact with each stroke. When I switch to the flat part, I have a hard time keeping the blade perfectly flat with the stone. It seems like I am making more contact with the leading edge. This seems to agree with what I see visually, since the edge (of the flat part) gets dirtier than the flat part itself.

Is there anything wrong with just using the edges of the stones all the time. Say start with the brown and then finish with the white?

Nothing "wrong" necessarely.
But the corners will wear a lot faster than the flats, you´ll have to clean them a lot more frequently and you have to be REALLY carefull to not rounding off your tip...
I´d rather work on technique and mainly (not exclusivly necessary) use the flats on PE blades

[Doeswhateveraspidercan]

it is hard to decribe the smell

Laughed like crazy when I saw that. Good one!

[Edward_Scissorhands]

I think I have this issue, too. When I use the edge of the stones, I feel like I'm making good, solid contact with each stroke. When I switch to the flat part, I have a hard time keeping the blade perfectly flat with the stone. It seems like I am making more contact with the leading edge. This seems to agree with what I see visually, since the edge (of the flat part) gets dirtier than the flat part itself.

Is there anything wrong with just using the edges of the stones all the time. Say start with the brown and then finish with the white?

Nothing "wrong" necessarely.
But the corners will wear a lot faster than the flats, you´ll have to clean them a lot more frequently and you have to be REALLY carefull to not rounding off your tip...
I´d rather work on technique and mainly (not exclusivly necessary) use the flats on PE blades

Thanks, I will keep this in mind. As far as rounding off the tip, how do I avoid that? By not going all the way to the tip of the blade when using the corners of the stones?

[Evil D]

I would recommend being extra aware of how much pressure you use when only using the corners. Let the grit do the work, not force.

[Sharp Guy]

As far as rounding off the tip, how do I avoid that? By not going all the way to the tip of the blade when using the corners of the stones?

Go slow, especially when you get near the tip. Also, I put the stones in with the flats facing each other. Then I angle the blade inward so I'm actually using the corner. Seems to work well for me and much less risk of rounding the tip

[Evil D]

Thanks, I will keep this in mind. As far as rounding off the tip, how do I avoid that? By not going all the way to the tip of the blade when using the corners of the stones?

If you put a strip of duct tape real close to the corner it helps. If you find yourself cutting through the tape you're probably using too much pressure.

[Doeswhateveraspidercan]

The sharpmaker got a workout last night. At first I was disappointed in the diamond rods and the UF rods and was thinking the white rods a bit rubbish, the brown rods where where I settled until recently when I had to repair the Jumpmaster2.

This is where the diamond rods were invaluable and I ran all the rods I had to Ultra Fine and discovered something.

You need the diamond rods to really make the other rods work properly, Grit progression is a reality despite what some think.

If you get the grit progression in order then the more refined rods do their job and give an edge that is not limited to push cuts and slides off materials but you have to get the progression right.

Feel, flip and remove the burr with ever progression then you will have something really good.

Redid my Cruwear Para3, the fully SE Stretch and the M4 no longer jade but sapphire Dodo.

All have crisp cutting edges but you have to start with diamond or I guess CBN and work the grits up. Light pressure doing the blades in sections with an up and down accurate scrubbing motion followed by full blade sweeping motion and flipping feeling and removing the burr is the ticket.