Ceramic

[Hissatsu5]

Can I sharpen my ceramic knife on the sharp maker ?

[.357 mag]

I'm assuming no. I would think you would need silicone carbide stones or something of that level.

[razorsharp]

Iirc, ceramic knives are made softer than ceramic sharpening stones, so I would try 1 stroke to see if it scratches the bevel, then sharpen

[Stuart Ackerman]

NO...

Diamond plates and rods are the only thing to use...

[Hissatsu5]

Thank you

[EricTheRed]

You are going to get a lot of different answers back and forth. Unless someone here has actually tried it first hand or can cite their source, I'd recommend emailing or calling Spyderco HQ. (preferably email so they can track down someone else their in the know rather than being put on the spot on the phone).

---I mean no offense to anyone who has weighed in on this.

[The Deacon]

Never tried it myself, so I won't flat out say it's impossible. On the other hand almost all, if not all, makers of ceramic knives recommend returning them to the factory for sharpening. That makes me inclined to believe they cannot be easily sharpened at home.

[DCDesigns]

what sort of ceramic knife? its not the "benchmark" knife I see on ebay, that supposedly never needs to be sharpened is it? (what a load)

[Jules]

Once I sharpened a ceramic knife on a very fine diamond sharpener. It was painfully slow but not impossible.

[JD Spydo]

Keep in mind that not all ceramic is created equal either. Some ceramics are no where nearly as hard as the stuff Spyderco uses on their fine and ultra fine stones.

I've heard that the ceramic that Boker uses in many of their ceramic knives is quite hard on the "Moh's Scale of Hardness". The only materials harder than that type of ceramic that I'm aware of are Boron Carbide and Diamond. But I could be unaware of other materials that might be harder. But there aren't many materials or abrasive that are harder than Spyderco's or Boker's ceramics I can tell you that for sure.

If I were to sharpen any ceramic blades I would use high quality monocrystalline diamond sharpening tools like DMT, Norton, 3M and other reputable companies.

This thread truly does have my curiosity going. I'm wondering if there are any blog spots out there that address this problem. JD :spyder: O

[ChapmanPreferred]

As much as I enjoy sharpening, I would just send it back for a sharpening. If the company does not offer it, then I would try DMT products.

[Hissatsu5]

what sort of ceramic knife? its not the "benchmark" knife I see on ebay, that supposedly never needs to be sharpened is it? (what a load)

Lol yes its a bunchmark folder

[Stuart Ackerman]

I have made ceramic knives, and they were harder than the ceramic compound used in any of Spyderco ceramic rods, as I used aluminium oxide and zircon powder in a pure porcelain slip...they damaged a grey rod significantly...I knew that they they might, but I had to know for sure...

Boker white ceramic blades slide on Spyderco grey rods, so I am estimating a similar hardness...

Diamond plates and rods are not that expensive...

[phillipsted]

I read on another forum that the issue is not hardness - it is the brittleness of the ceramic blades. If you hit the edge wrong with a hard stone while you are sharpening the blade, you could easily chip it. That's why most companies recommend sending it back to the factory for a spa treatment...

TedP