Spyderco Sharpmaker

[henhen14]

Hi,
Just got my first Spyderco, and I love it. People suggest I get a Sharpmaker. My question is, do I have to get the whole set, or just one or two individual files at $15 each? I can't afford a whole set for $50 or so :eek: . Thx everyone

[ChapmanPreferred]

I would strongly suggest saving up for the Sharpmaker plus the diamond rods as a good place to start.

[Nifty_Nives]

I would strongly suggest saving up for the Sharpmaker plus the diamond rods as a good place to start.

+1

You really can't use the rods alone, so just buying one or two sets of rods is effectively useless, unless you know how to freehand well. The whole sharpmaker set is what you're looking for. It has a "jig" so to say that is set up for the 30 degree and 40 degree angles (correct me if i'm wrong) to allow for exact sharpening. If you're thinking of getting one, get the whole set, and yes, diamond rods do help.

[henhen14]

is the byrd duckfoot sharpener just as effective?

[Javascript]

Hi,
Just got my first Spyderco, and I love it. People suggest I get a Sharpmaker. My question is, do I have to get the whole set, or just one or two individual files at $15 each? I can't afford a whole set for $50 or so :eek: . Thx everyone

As stated above, save up for the SM. Do not worry about the diamond rods, however. You won't need them for quite a while; if you have only one knife and can't afford a SM, you can afford the diamond rods even less.

If your knife is new, don't worry about needing to sharpen your knife anytime soon unless you plan on cutting things that knife steel shouldn't normally be used to cut.

You can find the SM anywhere from 48 to 65+ dollars US, just be patient and shop around.

[henhen14]

I've never sharpened a knife in my life, would it be easier to just send it to Spyderco and have them sharpen it?

[chuck_roxas45]

I've never sharpened a knife in my life, would it be easier to just send it to Spyderco and have them sharpen it?

Yes, but I look on sharpening as an integral part of knife maintenance.

[Joe Talmadge]

I've never sharpened a knife in my life, would it be easier to just send it to Spyderco and have them sharpen it?

Sending it to Spyderco means packaging it up, maybe a trip to the post office (always fun! I love when the lines are realllllllly long!) to send it off insured, hope it makes it to spyderco, they sharpen it and send it back ... and the whole time you're without your knife for a week or two? That's unless it disappears in the mail, then you get to file a claim and wait even longer. That's a crazy amount of time and effort every time your knife needs sharpening; let's face it, it's enough of a pain that you'll walk around with a dull knife most of the time instead.

IMO, the Sharpmaker makes it easy for even a novice to learn to develop the skills pretty quickly to sharpen pretty well. It's a no-brainer, save your pennies, get a sharpmaker.

[henhen14]

Ok, I'll probably get a Sharpmaker, how often should I sharpen my knife?

[chuck_roxas45]

Ok, I'll probably get a Sharpmaker, how often should I sharpen my knife?

Frequent touch ups make for lesser work.If you let it get dull, it's a lot of work to get it back sharp.

[JNewell]

Spyderco sells and prices the rods individually...you really need a pair to make things work, but the 204 Sharpmaker "kit" includes two each of the medium and fine rods, so you'd be good to go right from the box. There's also a good introductory DVD that will make you feel a lot more comfortable learning how to use it.

[Cobra4246]

I have a sharpmaker and with a little practice you can have a knife sharp.
Watch the video it is very helpful.

[Javascript]

The cost of the SharpMaker will be long forgotten once you start using it.

As for sharpening frequency: How often do you fill up your gas tank? When the needle bounces off the E peg a few times, or when it hovers around half? One way costs you an arm and a leg to fill every now and then, the other is more frequent but less painful.

[SQSAR]

Well put analogy

[Rev. Chuck]

Get the Sharpmaker, like they already said, it's a great easy way to sharpen your knives.

[MTguy]

I just bought a sharpmaker today and it's pretty nice, tested it out on some old beater knives and I've got them sharper than they came from the factory....Really easy to use and comes with a helpful dvd.

[henhen14]

I plan on getting spyderedge knifes and I hear that the 701 profile set works better. Would leaning them by using a protractor as a guide of angles like the sharpmaker work as well? Then I could learn to freehand with my crappy knife from Walmart.

[SQSAR]

I can't speak to the 701, but I can say that I sharpened my 1st spyderedge blade a couple weeks ago (for a buddy) on the sharpmaker and I was very pleasantly surprised at how well it did. I can't believe I'm writing this: But, , , I'm now looking to add a spyderdge knife to my stable. this would not have been the case had I not found such good results sharpening on with my sharpmaker.