Guided Sharpening Systems?

[The Meat man]

I've been wanting to buy a good guided sharpening system ever since I began using harder steels like ZDP-189 and Maxamet.

My previous sharpening experience has been freehand sharpening on stones/sandpaper, steels like 8Cr13MoV and 1095. While I'm good enough freehand with the stones to get these steels hair popping sharp, the story changes (obviously) now that I've moved to harder, higher carbide stuff.

I recently reprofiled my CPM M4 Advocate - the factory bevels must have been something like 22 or 23 dps - and man! I did it, but it took me hours and I don't even want to think what Maxamet would be like... :eek:

Right now I've had no trouble keeping any of my knives sharp, since I'm touching them up on the Sharpmaker, with a 40° microbevel. But some day, I'm going to eventually have to reprofile them.

Now the question: I've got my eye on the Edge Pro apex 4. It seems to be a very well made and quality system. The only thing is, it's pretty pricey. Not impossibly so, but still, $255 is a lot of money.
The cheaper option is the Lansky system. I haven't really heard much about this one but it seems to be pretty good as well for less than half the price.

What say you? Any of you have opinions/recommendations on one or the other system?

Thanks!

[Larry_Mott]

I'd say go for the KME. IMO it's what Lansky should have been :) The Edge Pro cramps my hand holding the knife (might well be just me so i don't really blame the equipment) but all my knives i have sharpened so far on the KME has come out great, with symmetrical sharp edges, easy to maintain with the Sharpmaker

[The Mastiff]

None are perfect and they all work so pick one and have at it. I used a Lansky as my first guided system and it can put sharp edges on your knives. I bought the diamond upgrades and the "sapphire" finishing stone and they do pretty nice edges. The diamond stones will not last too long if you press too hard but that is universal to all diamond sharpeners IME. I use them wet with windex. I use the system only when reprofiling.

I free handed for decades and was surprised at how easy a guided system made the act of getting beautiful bevels and a really sharp edge. Ittook a lot of the skill out of it. :)

The multi hundred dollar systems are better but for very little money the Lansky can get you in the game.

Joe

[Bloke]

I persevered with a Lansky for over a decade. I have the five stone standard set, the five stone diamond set, the three stone Arkansas stone set, the sapphire stone … it’s a PITA.

Any of the systems that clamp knives like the Lansky can be painful. Particularly with knives that have distal tapers. All that said you can certainly achieve excellent results but most often sharpening becomes an exercise in frustration.

A friend of mine has an EdgePro and it’s a good system no doubt.

I opted for a Hapstone Pro. It’s a hybrid of the EdgePro, robust, made of steel and very versatile, allowing you to clamp within reason any stone you like.

The latest model I think is the version 7 and a better system than the earlier model that I have which I’m still very happy with.

All that said I don’t think any guided system will speed up sharpening too much and any given stone will only cut as fast and as much as it cuts. :)

[The Meat man]

What stones were you using to have any reprofile take hours?

There are many advantages unique to the different guided systems. I'm a diehard freehand sharpener, but if I were to go with a guided or assisted system, I like the simplicity of the sharpmaker. Affordable stones that get the job done and are narrow enough for curved blades. It may not be the fastest for re-profiling a high carbide blade, but 9 out of 10 times I'd be doing most of the work on a coarse diamond stone anyway (and finishing the re-profiling on the sharpmaker) to preserve my SM stones.

I was using the $25 Smith Tri-stone set. Coarse and medium are some kind of synthetic, the fine is natural Arkansas.

I also used the Sharpmaker, using the medium (brown) rods.

[The Meat man]

I persevered with a Lansky for over a decade. I have the five stone standard set, the five stone diamond set, the three stone Arkansas stone set, the sapphire stone … it’s a PITA.

Any of the systems that clamp knives like the Lansky can be painful. Particularly with knives that have distal tapers. All that said you can certainly achieve excellent results but most often sharpening becomes an exercise in frustration.

A friend of mine has an EdgePro and it’s a good system no doubt.

I opted for a Hapstone Pro. It’s a hybrid of the EdgePro, robust, made of steel and very versatile, allowing you to clamp within reason any stone you like.

The latest model I think is the version 7 and a better system than the earlier model that I have which I’m still very happy with.

All that said I don’t think any guided system will speed up sharpening too much and any given stone will only cut as fast and as much as it cuts. :)

What I'm really looking for is something to take out the human error factor. (Or at least reduce it.)
That's partly why it took me so long - I'm not terribly good at it so I really took my time trying to make sure I did everything right and consistently. So a good guided system probably would speed it up anyway. :)

Thanks for the suggestions. I probably should just save up for a bit longer and get a really nice system..

[The Meat man]

What stones were you using to have any reprofile take hours?

There are many advantages unique to the different guided systems. I'm a diehard freehand sharpener, but if I were to go with a guided or assisted system, I like the simplicity of the sharpmaker. Affordable stones that get the job done and are narrow enough for curved blades. It may not be the fastest for re-profiling a high carbide blade, but 9 out of 10 times I'd be doing most of the work on a coarse diamond stone anyway (and finishing the re-profiling on the sharpmaker) to preserve my SM stones.

I was using the $25 Smith Tri-stone set. Coarse and medium are some kind of synthetic, the fine is natural Arkansas.

I also used the Sharpmaker, using the medium (brown) rods.

Ok, that makes a lot of sense. I've owned many smith's. They do get the job done but wear out quickly. A DMT extra course stone can be a sharpener's best friend. Great for reprofile jobs and re-flattening worn waterstones and whetstones. You can apex your bevel extremely quickly and move on to whatever methods or guided system you prefer.

Exactly, I think that was part of my problem. And it didn't help when I tried lapping the coarse stone (was that a dumb idea?) Because all it did was clog it up and render it nearly useless, so actually a good bit of the reprofiling work was done with the medium.

I considered getting a DMT bench stone set, but I think for now I'll go with a guided system till I get a better feel for these super hard steels. Then I may go back to freehand. I kind of like the process of freehanding: it's a good skill to have. :)

[bh49]

I love my WE

[kiwisailor]

Tried it once. Tasted terrible.. :eek:

[ozspyder]

Tried it once. Tasted terrible.. :eek:

Bahaha ! :p
Onya Bear Grylls :D

[Eli Chaps]

I've had a KME for years and it is outstanding. As has been said, they all have pro's and con's. i did a ton of research before settling on the KME. It is, in my opinion the best compromise of all things when comparing the guided systems. They have really expanded lately and have a deep well of options.

Go on YouTube and search for Dean O. He has some great KME videos.

[JD Spydo]

I've actually heard that DMT's Aligner unit is a pretty good sharpening kit. You could use that diamond DMT unit for basics and then do fine finish work with a Spyderco 204 Sharpmaker with UF stones. I've actually given thought to getting one of those DMT units myself because I do like the way diamond stones do a more rapid stock removal on really banged up blades.

For serrated edges I've had two really trusted friends tell me that the VEFF unit is great for most serration patterns. I've also given thought to getting a VEFF unit as well. Like Mastiff said there are a lot of guided systems out there.

One more tip I could give you is there is a system/kit out there made by SKARB and I have one of those and they are quite interesting and do a great job on PE blades. And they don't cost as much as some kits do. It would be a good one to get started with anyway.

[The Meat man]

Well, I finally took the plunge...Hapstone V7 sharpening system is due to arrive Friday. I'm really excited! Can't wait to try experimenting with different edge angles and grit finishes.

It kind of cut into my knife budget for the next several months, but it'll be fun to play around with. S110V at 10 dps, anyone? :p

Thanks to Bloke for all his helpful PMs and also the rest of you for your great suggestions!

[Bloke]

Way to go Connor! And always glad to be of any assistance mate. :)

I’m sure you’ll be very happy with your new Hapstone. They’re a good versatile system.

Brother Sharp Guy has the same late model I’m fairly sure and I know he’s very happy with his.

[awa54]

...but it'll be fun to play around with. S110V at 10 dps, anyone? :p

Only try that particular combo if you *need* to prove to yourself that S110V *really doesn't* work at low angles!

I'll take 15dps primary bevel and a quick 20dps micro-bevel applied with the Sharpmaker & brown rods any day.

[The Meat man]

...but it'll be fun to play around with. S110V at 10 dps, anyone? :p

Only try that particular combo if you *need* to prove to yourself that S110V *really doesn't* work at low angles!

I'll take 15dps primary bevel and a quick 20dps micro-bevel applied with the Sharpmaker & brown rods any day.

Yeah, I don't know how well that would work.

I might try taking my Super Blue down to that though. It's not a super hard use knife anyway.

[Evil D]

Now the question: I've got my eye on the Edge Pro apex 4.

Ah, I missed the Hapstone post. I'll leave this if anyone else cares :D



It's a bit of a waste of money. That's what I started out with and I wish I had gone this route....buy their cheapest combo just to get the EP itself, then buy the whole set of 1x1/4x6 Moldmaster stones here https://www.congresstools.com/catalog/c ... ory/?id=27

Then you need to make some aluminum blanks to glue them to which is pretty simple if you can get aluminum strips from a hardware store. Otherwise it may be easier to buy EP stones and then replace them later with Moldmaster stones.

The other stuff the EP comes with I only used a couple times. The instructions from the DVD can be found online and the I've never used the carrying case and I prefer my Sharpmaker over the round ceramic rod. Their course stones did cut pretty well but also dished very quickly.



I also HIGHLY recommend these, they are essential IMO.
https://www.chefknivestogo.com/edproesacpa.html
https://www.chefknivestogo.com/anglecube.html

[justjohn]

I opted for the KME Precision Knife Sharpening System Deluxe Kit. Not cheap, but it includes everything you should need to keep your blades extremely sharp. I have been using it for about 8 months and have found it to have a low learning curve, excellent selection of stones, and it is built extremely well. In addition the company is First Responder/LE/Military friendly....I figure my Spyderco knives are quality so my sharpener should be too.

[Sharp Guy]

Well, I finally took the plunge...Hapstone V7 sharpening system is due to arrive Friday. I'm really excited! Can't wait to try experimenting with different edge angles and grit finishes.

Great choice Connor! I bought a V7 last November and I'm really happy with it. The beauty of it is you can use a wide variety of stones including Edge Pro plates which are very handy for mounting strips of SiC sandpaper (for polishing) or just buy adhesive backed polishing tape. Otherwise you can mount just about any stone right on the arm without messing with plates.

As David mentioned, the Moldmaster stones are great. I had 2 sets of 1/2" x 1/8" x 6" Moldmaster stones that originally bought to clip to the Sharpmaker rods. When I got my Hapstone I started using them on that. I really like the 1/2" wide stones for small blades. The 1/8" thick stones are a little thin so last night I ordered some 1/2" x 1/4" x 6" Moldmasters in several grits, a set of 1" x 1/4" x 6", and some fine aluminum oxide stones to play around with. I also have some Venev bonded diamond stones that work pretty well on the hard stuff. So I should be set for stones for awhile. :)

If you haven't already thought about it consider buying a digital angle finder (angle cube). It's a must IMO.

Don't be afraid to shoot me a PM if you have any questions or need any tips. I'm sure you're in good hands with Alex too. He was a big help when I first bought mine.

If anyone's interested, Hapstone just came out with a lower priced unit that looks pretty good. Not sure if there are any real limitations compared to the V7 but it looks pretty good for the price.

https://www.gritomatic.com/collections/ ... -sharpener

[JD Spydo]

There is a very little known guided sharpening kit called the "SKARB" sharpening system. I got one of those at one of the BLADE Shows a while back and I'm really satisfied with it. It's one that you can use your own benchstones with and it's relatively easy to set up and use. They used to advertise in two of the major knife magazines but anymore I don't hear much said about them. It's a shame too because they are a decent unit. I tend to like most of the systems that allow you to use your own stones with.