Is a spyderco sharpmaker right for me?

[Sbaker34]

All my knives will cut paper and a couple can poorly shave my biggest knife is the bk-9, and I don't care about having a edge much sharper then a factory kershaw or spyderco maybe somewhat sharper would be nice but I don't need my knives to shave toilet paper would a sharpmaker take care of me? Mostly I need something that will maintain my knives with a good edge but I am not near good enough for freehand.

[Gunslinger]

I just bought a spyderco sharpmaker about a week ago and with what little sharpening skills I have I was able to make my knives scary sharp, it works great.

[g_core18]

It's a simple tool but produces some pretty good results. I'd say get it.

[ChrisR]

I'm definitely not an expert sharpener - far from it - I have tried quite a few of the alternatives and I have to say that the Sharpmaker isn't completely fool-proof but it is definitely the best system out there for a novice.

The only problem is in keeping the knife perfectly vertical as you move between the right and left rods but I have found that by looking down using one eye helps greatly until you get the hang of it. Also, take it slowly - don't be tempted to do everything fast fast fast ... nice and slow, not too much pressure on the rods and repeat and repeat until you get a really good edge. If you're not getting a good edge then you're either not holding the blade perfectly vertical or you haven't done enough repetitions :)

Also, I prefer to touch-up a knife well before it goes dull - as soon as you notice that it isn't cutting paper easily just get out the fine rods and put-in 5 minutes of soft repetitions to bring that edge back. It takes much less effort to touch-up an edge than it does to put one back on completely ... but of course if you have rolled an edge or chipped it then you'll really need those medium rods (or even get the diamond rods) to cut through more steel.

[gull wing]

I am not a good sharpener either also I like to get sharpening over fast. The Sharpmaker IS the tool to have for this. I use mine often because it's so easy, it's always set up and ready. I just go by and hit it a few passes, done.

[ChapmanPreferred]

I think the Sharpmaker would serve you very well for maintaining your edges at the levels you described. Let us know if you get one and keep asking questions if you come up with any new ones. :)

[docwatson]

get the sharpmaker, I have been using one for over 20 years, I have given one to my two oldest sons, and the youngest who still lives at home gets his sharpened by the old man :D The simplest and best tool for sharpening.

[dbcad]

Welcome SBaker34, this is a good place to be :)

The Sharpmaker is a good tool. For me there was a learning curve, but most that was getting rid of my own laziness. The sharpmaker seems to have finer grits than a tool like the DMT aligner.

Some tips, learned here and tested. Use it standing up, pay attention to what you're trying to do, go slowly and deliberately, and mark the edge with a sharpie before you start so you can see if you're hitting the edge or not.

I've reprofiled a couple of blades with the Sharpmaker. It took a while, but got it done. I geuss I'm just stubborn..lolol My grandfathers old knife now cuts like the Bushcraft, for how long I don't know, but I got it there with the Sharpmaker.

I'm plotting to seriously reprofile one of the FFG Delicas to the limits of the DMT Aligner system. The microbevel will be made with the Sharpmaker. It works :)

Charlie

[chuck_roxas45]

Welcome SBaker34, this is a good place to be :)

I'm plotting to seriously reprofile one of the FFG Delicas to the limits of the DMT Aligner system. The microbevel will be made with the Sharpmaker. It works :)

Charlie

Keep us posted on this. I'm really interested in the limits of the DMT Aligner system.

[kawr]

I can confidentally say the Sharpmaker is worth every penny for a novice sharpener like me and yourself. I can get all my knives hair popping/whittling sharp after they get dull. The only exception is my zdp-189 Stretch. Take my word for it and dont let something like zdp or s90v get dull and just maintain the edge regularily or you will need to purchase a set of diamond rods and it's a pain in the butt.

[araneae]

If you own a knife, the sharpmaker is a great tool to own. The easiest to use sharpener on the market IMO.

[The Mentaculous]

As has been said, if you are into knives but don't have tons of time or money to devote to sharpening, the sharpmaker is a perfect all-in-one solution to keeping your blades sharp. If your knives are already pretty sharp as you stated, I can practically guarentee the Sharpmaker will get them much sharper. At least that's been my experience! I've had it for maybe a month and in ease of use/setup, plus the results I get, it blows away freehand sharpening and my old lansky system

[Penge]

The last year I bought a Sharpmaker kit and since then I am able to sharp an razor edge on my all knives. My wife often used to cut her fingers in the kitchen...

It's a great and perfect tool to use at home!

[Chris_Himself]

It's crazy easy. The lighter and slower you can make the strokes, the sharper your end product will be.

You can literally get a stupid sharp edge on nearly anything within 5-10 minutes on this thing.

It takes me a couple minutes to assemble and I literally take 4-5 swipes on each side to touch up a knife every other week these days.

Don't fall for "diamond" stuff. The sharpmaker uses some incredible materials and S30V produces a silky smooth edge on this stuff if you take your time.

If you're in a rush you get some really awesome microserrations that are awesome for slicing

[marcone]

The Sharpmaker is a very very good tool to sharp ...
I buy it last week and i sharp my blunt Kitchnknifes,
i have perfect results !!! (i have knifes with 40 degrees and 30 degrees)

The sharpmaker is perfect !!

[CanisMajor]

Like others have said, it is easy to use. One of the best purchases I have ever made.

Canis

[Wanelad]

Hi I am new here, the spyerco does tend to bring a blade up sharp but I would say if there were chips in the blade it would take some time to get them out.

The DVD shows you are meant to be able to sharpen serrated knives however due to the congregation in the knife I do not see how this is possible

Drawing the knife against the corner of the white stone or any of the stones for that matter does not reach the inner corrugation and only the outer. Am I missing something or is this a farce?

[defenestrate]

Wanelad,
First, welcome to the forums.

Yes, chips will take more time, and if they are large, a set of the diamond stones will save some time for certain.

Re: serrations against the stone, the trick is that when you are bringing the knife down against the rod, use light pressure and try to keep the serrations straight up and down vs. the rod. For a lousy visual, see this:

|
| <---rod viewed from side of SM (should appear quite vertical)
|
|M/\M/\M/\M/\M/\
| ^---Serrations (keep the blade aligned so the points and the edges of the scalloped serration cuts all point straight down from the body of the blade)

now you drag the blade, keeping it straight vertically (or perpendicular to the base), very lightly so the serrations stay aligned (as these are done by hand on special wheels shaped against the blade contours the direction may vary a little per blade but all serrations should point more or less in the same direction even on a curvy blade like a hawkbill), down the rod. slowly drawing the blade so the butt of the handle is in toward you. Rinse, lather, repeat.

The instructions in the booklet and on the video/dvd should be sufficiently detailed, but I think I noticed the proper way to draw the blade across myself. Don't remember it being in the video clearly, though I could certainly be wrong.

hope that helps.


Sbaker34,
Welcome to you as well. The sharpmaker is one of the easiest sharpeners to learn and use and is effective for pretty much every :spyder: knife ever as well as most other items that require sharp edges or points to function properly.

[bh49]

I strongly believe that Sharpmaker is right for everyone who cannot sharpen. If I was able to learn how to use it, everybody can. I use this tool for all my needs:sharpening, reprofiling, repair and like it a lot. Certainly will help to read about sharpening to understand what are you doing. It is not rocket sience, easy to understand. Than learn technique as it go. Basic set will take care of everyday sharpening. Once in a while you will need to reprofile and repair, I strongly recommend to get coarse stones. diamond rods is one of the options, there are few others as well.
Good luck.

[Wanelad]

Thanks for your warm welcome Sbaker34,

That reads like what I attempted with the serrated knife, but as you drag it back towards you I can feel it bounce even though slowly as it goes over the lumpy bits of the serration. Now those lumpy bits do not have an edge but surely if I kept going this too would gain an edge would it not?

I tried a new knife that had no previous sharpening (not serrated) 20 + 20 + 20 + 20 through the grades and did very little. I am assuming this works more like a steel than a sharpener is this correct, or do I just need more patience and with new or damaged knives run them over the machine first? Wayne