Sharpmaker Question
Sharpmaker Question
I have had my Sharpmaker for a while now. Just recently really learned how to use it well. I have sharpened all the knives in the house to the point they will easily push cut the thinnest wrapping paper the wife has. I screwed up the "edges" of the medium stones working on some fillet knives when I first got it, so I ordered new stones, which i received today.
The wife already managed to drastically dull a wusthof paring knife so I decided to take action.....here in lies the rub. Sharpening that knife, and subsequent wusthof steak knives I noticed the new stones leaving small chips in the edges. This absolutely did not happen to these knives the first time around. I decided at that point to try some harder steel. I went and "dulled" a D2 griptilian on a piece of stainless cable, then proceeded to work. In about 5 min I have it as sharp as I ever did without any of those DAM chips in the blade.
For you guys who know more than me....which I am sure is most of you...why did new stones bring about those little chips and what can I do about them?
I kept the old stones because the "flats" are still good, only the edges got demolished by the fillet knives.
Second: I ordered the ultrafine stones as well. If I use those on the 30 degree back bevel side is it possible to get the "mirror" I see some folks on here have on their blades? I have no other equipment but the sharpmaker and all the stones that go with. Up until a couple weeks ago I was totally useless at sharpening a knife.
Oh and I also have a new EDC a Spyderco Chaparral...my first Spyderco
The wife already managed to drastically dull a wusthof paring knife so I decided to take action.....here in lies the rub. Sharpening that knife, and subsequent wusthof steak knives I noticed the new stones leaving small chips in the edges. This absolutely did not happen to these knives the first time around. I decided at that point to try some harder steel. I went and "dulled" a D2 griptilian on a piece of stainless cable, then proceeded to work. In about 5 min I have it as sharp as I ever did without any of those DAM chips in the blade.
For you guys who know more than me....which I am sure is most of you...why did new stones bring about those little chips and what can I do about them?
I kept the old stones because the "flats" are still good, only the edges got demolished by the fillet knives.
Second: I ordered the ultrafine stones as well. If I use those on the 30 degree back bevel side is it possible to get the "mirror" I see some folks on here have on their blades? I have no other equipment but the sharpmaker and all the stones that go with. Up until a couple weeks ago I was totally useless at sharpening a knife.
Oh and I also have a new EDC a Spyderco Chaparral...my first Spyderco
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What do you mean when you say you screwed up the edges of the medium stones, what exactly happened to them, how are they damaged?
It is possible the edges on the new stones are a bit uneven, can you feel it with your finger pad/nail?
Yes, you can mirror polish with the UF stones, just go very light and use a little water for the finest polish.
It is possible the edges on the new stones are a bit uneven, can you feel it with your finger pad/nail?
Yes, you can mirror polish with the UF stones, just go very light and use a little water for the finest polish.
My original set of medium stones...the edges seem as if i took an axe and chopped them and scraped the crap out of them. I feel this is from a stupid amount of pressure used to try to sharpen the fillet knives...hence the purchase of the new medium stones.
On the new stones I was not using the edges at all. I was sharpening on the flats only. I even took them and scrubbed them with a pad and comet to remove any "grit" that may have been present. Did not help. FWIW the chips (5-7 of them) are scattered all along the edge, not just one part.
On the new stones I was not using the edges at all. I was sharpening on the flats only. I even took them and scrubbed them with a pad and comet to remove any "grit" that may have been present. Did not help. FWIW the chips (5-7 of them) are scattered all along the edge, not just one part.
Mine have become that way, and I haven't ever pressed hard. One corner in particular is really bad for some reason, and like you, I almost exclusively use the flats.PharmD921 wrote:My original set of medium stones...the edges seem as if i took an axe and chopped them and scraped the crap out of them. I feel this is from a stupid amount of pressure used to try to sharpen the fillet knives...hence the purchase of the new medium stones.
On the new stones I was not using the edges at all. I was sharpening on the flats only. I even took them and scrubbed them with a pad and comet to remove any "grit" that may have been present. Did not help. FWIW the chips (5-7 of them) are scattered all along the edge, not just one part.
I use the corners a bunch, but that kitchen knife was still pretty sharp, just needed touched up. I initially only planned on doing 3 passes on the meduim stones and then moving on to the flats of the white stonesphaust wrote:Mine have become that way, and I haven't ever pressed hard. One corner in particular is really bad for some reason, and like you, I almost exclusively use the flats.
I think this comes down to pressure.
It doesn't take much for the stones to do their job especially on the corners, and from what I understand even less pressure should be applied as you progress through the grits.
When I get down to the Ultra Fine I'm pretty much letting the blade float across the face of the stones.
It doesn't take much for the stones to do their job especially on the corners, and from what I understand even less pressure should be applied as you progress through the grits.
When I get down to the Ultra Fine I'm pretty much letting the blade float across the face of the stones.
-Jodi
It's not just in my head, it's in my heart.
It's not just in my head, it's in my heart.
I think my original post is getting lost in the replies and discussion of how i mutilated the first set of med stones. I am really wanting to know why that paring knife chipped while using the flats of new stones when it did not using the older stones.1623 wrote:I think this comes down to pressure.
It doesn't take much for the stones to do their job especially on the corners, and from what I understand even less pressure should be applied as you progress through the grits.
When I get down to the Ultra Fine I'm pretty much letting the blade float across the face of the stones.
Possibly the edge, which may have seemed sharp was only a bur, this would explain how it became dull so quickly and then potentially the second sharpening "broke" chips of stressed steel out of the edge.
I use the sharpmaker exclusively as well but am by no means close to an expert. Someone else with more knowledge may chime in.
Welcome to the forum by the way.
I use the sharpmaker exclusively as well but am by no means close to an expert. Someone else with more knowledge may chime in.
Welcome to the forum by the way.
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To my hand they feel the same. When sharpening the D2 grip they seemed to feel more aggressive/coarse than the older stones. I attributed that to the flays of the older stones seeing many blades. The chips are tiny maybe 1/64 ish long...slightly less deep than 1/64.Cliff Stamp wrote:Do the flats of the new stone feel the same (flat/smooth) as the flats on the other stones?
How big are the chips?
The dulling was my wife...she cuts green peppers like she is going after solid steel and bashes the knife into the cutting board...which is usually the glass one we have sitting out and not the nice ones we actually have for cutting things.akaAK wrote:Possibly the edge, which may have seemed sharp was only a bur, this would explain how it became dull so quickly and then potentially the second sharpening "broke" chips of stressed steel out of the edge.
I use the sharpmaker exclusively as well but am by no means close to an expert. Someone else with more knowledge may chime in.
Welcome to the forum by the way.
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Why would anyone use a glass cutting board? Why is even there glass cutting boards, they kill edges really quick.PharmD921 wrote:The dulling was my wife...she cuts green peppers like she is going after solid steel and bashes the knife into the cutting board...which is usually the glass one we have sitting out and not the nice ones we actually have for cutting things.
Speed has always been slow, old stones and new. Force was as much as I could use previously, now not so much. With the kitchen knife and the new stones I wasn't pushing hard at all. The same amount of force I used when I got them scary sharp, and chipless, using the old stones.Cliff Stamp wrote:How much speed/force due to you use?
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With the new stones on the kitchen knife I was using minimal force. I killed the old stones pushing like a mofo. To lap the stones can I just rub them together or what would you suggest I use to lap them?Cliff Stamp wrote:With heavy force then even small irregularities in the surface of the stones are likely to damage the edge. Decrease the force until the surface of the stones evens out, or lap them to even them out.
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I rubbed them together some and sharpened a large knife of unknown steel that we keep in the drawer. Got it nice and sharp and no chips in the blade. I think I will dull and sharpen this knife a few times to get some use on the stones.Cliff Stamp wrote:I would just use them and let them wear in, but you can rub them together, lightly to speed up the process.
Thanks for the help.