Sharpening a Tanto blade on the sharpmaker?

[Z2KCT]

Just a question on sharpening tantos i have a lum tanto folder and a southern grind spider monkey with a tanto blade i would like to be able to sharpen.

However when i sharpen a tanto I can sharpen the top edge, but on the main cutting edge i can only get the back half of the edge sharpened.

Why is this?

Thanks!

[farnorthdan]

What are you using to sharpen with? Have you tried coloring the edge/bevel to see were you removing steel? The edge may have an uneven grind from the factory and need a re-profile. Just some quick thoughts :)

[Z2KCT]

What are you using to sharpen with? Have you tried coloring the edge/bevel to see were you removing steel? The edge may have an uneven grind from the factory and need a re-profile. Just some quick thoughts :)

Ive been using the sharpmaker. Also it could need a reprofile but ive noticed im having these issues with all tanto blades.

[Evil D]

I know this may not help, but one of the best things I ever did with one of my tantos is put it on my Edge Pro and reprofile the kink out from the tanto grind so it has more of a traditional tanto belly instead of the hard corner. This makes sharpening and using much better and it still has the thick tanto tip for hard use. It also sharpens on the Sharpmaker now just like any other knife.

[Z2KCT]

I know this may not help, but one of the best things I ever did with one of my tantos is put it on my Edge Pro and reprofile the kink out from the tanto grind so it has more of a traditional tanto belly instead of the hard corner. This makes sharpening and using much better and it still has the thick tanto tip for hard use. It also sharpens on the Sharpmaker now just like any other knife.

I like this idea. Will probably do this. Thanks!!!

[Evil D]

I know this may not help, but one of the best things I ever did with one of my tantos is put it on my Edge Pro and reprofile the kink out from the tanto grind so it has more of a traditional tanto belly instead of the hard corner. This makes sharpening and using much better and it still has the thick tanto tip for hard use. It also sharpens on the Sharpmaker now just like any other knife.

I like this idea. Will probably do this. Thanks!!!

FYI, you're going to get a weird bevel at the point where the tanto kinks upward. It'll get real wide right there and probably be wider at the tip than the rest of the blade because the steel is so thick at the tip. Just pointing this out before you commit to it.

[Able Dog]

Hmm, I've had the opposite problem. I can get the main portion of the blade sharp, but struggle getting the kissaki (tip) sharp.

Some of my difficulty is due to the chisel grind on said knife.

[Evil D]

The straight portion should sharpen just like any wharnie, but then transitioning into the tip can get tricky. The hardest part is keeping that sharp corner if you actually want to keep it, over time it's going to round off if you're using the Sharpmaker.

I could have my terminology backwards here but my understanding is that this is a "Americanized tango"



While this is a more traditional Japanese tanto




I very much prefer the traditional tanto, I think they're better looking and are definitely easier to sharpen. The Americanized style do make great utility blades though since the straight portion still cuts like a wharnie, but sharpening them works best on bench stones where you can isolate each blade angle and sharpen them individually to maintain that sharp corner.

[farnorthdan]

You can sharpen it on the SM but a fixed system works way better, for me that sharp point at the transition is an important part of the blade and my goal when sharpening is to not round it. The only tanto like blade I even use these days is my Battlestation and so far I've been able to keep that transition point sharp. For me the key is taking it nice and slow in this area and treating each edge individually.

[Z2KCT]

[quote="Evil D"][/quote]


Didn't know that, have to keep that in mind