Over sharpening?

[z1r]

Hi Drubieg,

I guess it depends on how sharp you like to keep you knife. I like to keep my EDC sharp enough to shave hair. If I use it, I check it at the end of the day. If it isn't sharp enough for me, a few strokes on the Sharpmaker fine stones restores the very sharp edge without removing much steel.

sal

This is pretty much what I do. Just a few strokes after use is all it takes.

[Drubieg]

Thanks for all the responses. Some good stuff here.

[sethwm]

Hi Drubieg,

I guess it depends on how sharp you like to keep you knife. I like to keep my EDC sharp enough to shave hair. If I use it, I check it at the end of the day. If it isn't sharp enough for me, a few strokes on the Sharpmaker fine stones restores the very sharp edge without removing much steel.

sal

Sal, you use 15dps or 20dps for that?

Hi Sethwm,

For most of my knives I like to use 15 DPS. Sometimes I have to profile. Lately (getting old), I find that if the edge angle is off, I'll profile to 15 mostly and occasionally micro at 20 DPS, until the 15 takes over the 20, then I stick with the 15, if that makes sense? I use a loupe to "Scope the Edge" almost every time I sharpen.

sal

Sal, That makes sense, thanks for the detail. I noticed you said you used the fine rods on the sharpmaker. I do something similar. But I also love my goldenstone, but it's set at 20 dps. I notice you guys provide a shim with the webfoot that converts it from 20dps to 15dps. I'd love to be able to pay for something similar for the goldenstone so I can do a 15dps touchup on that stone too! Logistics aside, I'm curious if you think that's a bad idea.

[cabfrank]

I'd like to get one that converts my old 20 only Sharpmaker to 15 as well.

[sal]

Hi Sethwm,

We don't have anything to convert the old 20 DPS Sharpmakers. You'll need to purchase a new 204.

I designed the fixture to convert the Goldenstone and Webfoot to 15 DPS. You can probably order it by itself from the SFO. I don't know if they're available yet. I travel with a Golden stone and webfoot and I use it often for 15 DPS.

sal

[JoviAl]

I sharpen my knives after every day’s usage (Monday to Friday), which often leaves them fully blunt or even slightly chipped. I use a KME with diamond plates followed by leather strops and diamond paste for my PE blades and a sharp maker for whichever SE blade I’m carrying. I see very little steel eroded even on my Magnacut mule which I always carry and gets a hammering. I’m very careful to only raise the slightest burr I can get away with before progressing through the grits and cleaning up the edge with strops. A knife like my mule usually lasts me between 18 months and 2 years solid use before it looks like a thin filleting knife and is impractical to use any more.

[KawRiverrat]

My knives have seemed to last much longer since Ive started making more use of leather strops to touch up my knives edge when needed.

However I'm better at sharpening now than I used to be. I dont do things I used to do & I keep an extra knife in my pocket 4
when my idiot friends ( I still luv them, but they still B idiots with a knife, my knife ) & other non knife folks ask 4 my knife

There is so much room for variation in how long an edge or the knife actually lasts from use & multiple sharpenings that it
becomes a mute point without pictures or better explanation. Under these circumstances, a hard thang to define or prove
on the interwebs.

I mean, no one knows the exact pressure, how hard I push when sharpening, or the angles, or grind profile I put on my
knife ... or the stones I use !
With out this & other knowledge its just a hard thang ! Jeff, From KS

[zenith2]

I guess it depends on what is a “full sharpening”.

Here is my two Manix I had at hand.

One is Maxamet and the other a reground 154CM hollow grind original that the earliest review I can find I did is dated 2012. It is a heavy user with my Gayle Bradley, Military, Atlantic Salt.

A broken tip, regrind and only a few millimetres off the blade. A “full sharpening” is done 3-4 times per week. That means 320 grit, strop and it shaves.

Either way. 11 years later and a few mm off the edge. Not bad IMO so maybe we are overthinking things.

[Superflex]

I find if the edge held straight down wont hold on my fingernail held at 45 degrees to the edge, I need to run it across the sharpmaker for 10 or so strokes. It's usually back to shaving sharp at that point.

[Drubieg]

Either way. 11 years later and a few mm off the edge. Not bad IMO so maybe we are overthinking things.

Haha that’s something to think about right there

[Fireman]

[TkoK83Spy]

That knife is actually supposed to look like that. The Mosquito I believe it is?

[Bemo]

I sharpen my knives after every day’s usage (Monday to Friday), which often leaves them fully blunt or even slightly chipped. I use a KME with diamond plates followed by leather strops and diamond paste for my PE blades and a sharp maker for whichever SE blade I’m carrying. I see very little steel eroded even on my Magnacut mule which I always carry and gets a hammering. I’m very careful to only raise the slightest burr I can get away with before progressing through the grits and cleaning up the edge with strops. A knife like my mule usually lasts me between 18 months and 2 years solid use before it looks like a thin filleting knife and is impractical to use any more.

This is great info. What grit do you typically use?

[JoviAl]

I sharpen my knives after every day’s usage (Monday to Friday), which often leaves them fully blunt or even slightly chipped. I use a KME with diamond plates followed by leather strops and diamond paste for my PE blades and a sharp maker for whichever SE blade I’m carrying. I see very little steel eroded even on my Magnacut mule which I always carry and gets a hammering. I’m very careful to only raise the slightest burr I can get away with before progressing through the grits and cleaning up the edge with strops. A knife like my mule usually lasts me between 18 months and 2 years solid use before it looks like a thin filleting knife and is impractical to use any more.

This is great info. What grit do you typically use?

For a polished edge:
300 - 600 - 1500 on diamond plates, then 6 micron, 3 micron, 0.5 micron and 0.1 micron stropping pastes, followed by plain kangaroo leather. It gets a wicked edge that’ll pop hairs in about 20 mins.

If I know I’m going to be hacking up loads of green stems and want an aggressive coarse edge I do a fixed 300 on one side of the blade and 1500 on the other in the dual grit fashion, followed by a stropping on the 6 micron then straight to plain kangaroo leather. That is faster and is still comically sharp but not as cosmetically pretty. It is much better for cutting tough rubbery stems on plants than a polished edge.

My SE is less a labour of love - I just go at it on the sharp maker until it shaves. I care not if it looks nice, as I only use SE for dirty jobs that would instantly dull a PE blade.

[JoviAl]

Oh, and if there’s a chip on a PE blade (S90V I’m looking at you now) I’ll start with a 140 plate to rapidly remove stock.

[sethwm]

Hi Sethwm,

We don't have anything to convert the old 20 DPS Sharpmakers. You'll need to purchase a new 204.

I designed the fixture to convert the Goldenstone and Webfoot to 15 DPS. You can probably order it by itself from the SFO. I don't know if they're available yet. I travel with a Golden stone and webfoot and I use it often for 15 DPS.

sal

Looks like the fixture is not sold separately. This is the response from customer service:

"Unfortunately we do not have those available. It may be an individual product in the future, but at this time we only have the sets with the stones and bases."

[sal]

Hi Sethwm,

I think that we're still sorting the models. I'm pretty sure it will be available in the future by itself.

sal

[Bill1170]

Oh, and if there’s a chip on a PE blade (S90V I’m looking at you now) I’ll start with a 140 plate to rapidly remove stock.

The Atoma 140 grit diamond plate is wonderful for reestablishing an apex on damaged/neglected knives. Very free-cutting, dry or wet.

[sethwm]

Hi Sethwm,

I think that we're still sorting the models. I'm pretty sure it will be available in the future by itself.

sal

Woohoo! Thanks Sal.