So sharpening

[bearfacedkiller]

I have jumped from the diamonds straight to the fine and ultra fine rods with good success and have also jumped from the browns straight to the UF with good results. I have no science behind it but it usually cuts very well. That is not what I usually do but I have experimented with it and it does seem to produce a good edge. Just food for thought. I think that is kind of what D is talkin about.

[.357 mag]

I sharpen convex with sandpaper over a mousepad. I stop at 600 grit.

[adancingmonkey]

I've been trying to rebevel the edge of my g10 dragonfly on the sharp maker with the CBN Rods at 15 degrees per side and I can't seem to get the edge to apex. I've tried the sharpie trick and I'm at like 300 passes and I still haven't finished bringing the shoulders down enough to hit the final bit of edge.

[farnorthdan]

I've been trying to rebevel the edge of my g10 dragonfly on the sharp maker with the CBN Rods at 15 degrees per side and I can't seem to get the edge to apex. I've tried the sharpie trick and I'm at like 300 passes and I still haven't finished bringing the shoulders down enough to hit the final bit of edge.

The sharpmaker is a fantastic tool for touching up and maintaining an edge but even with the diamond rods it can take a very long time to reset/reprofile. I prefer using my edge pro for major edge work.

[HarleyXJGuy]

I have jumped from the diamonds straight to the fine and ultra fine rods with good success and have also jumped from the browns straight to the UF with good results. I have no science behind it but it usually cuts very well. That is not what I usually do but I have experimented with it and it does seem to produce a good edge. Just food for thought. I think that is kind of what D is talkin about.

I watched a video from one of the Youtube gurus. He took a dull knife that couldn't cut phonebook paper and hit it with a 400 stone then a 10k stone to polish the edge. Cut toilet paper with it when he was done.

Not sure what I am trying to say here except I agree with what you and Evil D say about polished lower grit edges being something worthwhile.

[Trout Hound]

A related question: I really don't have the budget for a Wicked Edge, Edge Pro, or Work Sharp. Are there any less expensive options that allow you to quickly reprofile a blade at a precise, set angle, or is freehand my only option? Thanks!

[bearfacedkiller]

Lansky

[bearfacedkiller]

I've been trying to rebevel the edge of my g10 dragonfly on the sharp maker with the CBN Rods at 15 degrees per side and I can't seem to get the edge to apex. I've tried the sharpie trick and I'm at like 300 passes and I still haven't finished bringing the shoulders down enough to hit the final bit of edge.

Just keep at it. The sharpmaker is not the best tool for reprofiles but I use mine for it. Practice and patience got me where I needed to be.

[Trout Hound]

Lansky

I actually have a Lansky kit, but I have found reprofiling to be rather slow, even with an extra course stone. Plus, the angles are quite obtuse. 34 deg. inclusive is the lowest you can go, and the clamp knob often gets in the way of the guide rod on that angle unless you have a pretty wide blade.

[Gerard Breuker]

Extra coarse stone or low grit sandpaper against or around the sharpmaker rods could save some time.

[HarleyXJGuy]

A related question: I really don't have the budget for a Wicked Edge, Edge Pro, or Work Sharp. Are there any less expensive options that allow you to quickly reprofile a blade at a precise, set angle, or is freehand my only option? Thanks!

Only you know what your budget but you can score a Edge Pro basic kit for around $160. The basic kit comes with 220 and 400 stones so you would be set for to reprofile. Score a 10K Chosera down the road and you could do up a very nice polished toothy edge.

[Evil D]

I ran into a really good example of how different edge finishes are better or worse for EDC use. Lasty night the family and I went to the county fair, where I got myself a huge roasted turkey leg (awesome). When you roast a turkey leg, the skin usually becomes extremely tough, almost like a very strong plastic that you just about can't chew through, so I got out my Manix and tried to cut it off. The edge literally slipped along it and wouldn't cut. It took quite a bit of effort to finally get it cut. The edge on this knife started out as my usual 600 grit edge but has been maintained by a 1k Shapton Glass stone and my Edge Pro 2k and 3k tapes, and has gotten to the point that the very edge is quite polished. If this were a lower grit edge, it would've bit into the skin much more aggressively and cut much easier. This same edge will split hair, pop it off your arm, push cut any kind of paper you can find, etc but when faced with a hard material, it just didn't have the bite needed to cut through it. It's really frustrating knowing you have an extremely sharp knife but not being able to cut something with it.

[bearfacedkiller]

So true. Many times in real world applications I find that finishing on the flats of the browns produces a much more useful edge. I will often carry my s30V para 2 finished on the browns along with my Super Blue Delica finished on the Fine or UF stones. Gives me options.

[HarleyXJGuy]

So true. Many times in real world applications I find that finishing on the flats of the browns produces a much more useful edge. I will often carry my s30V para 2 finished on the browns along with my Super Blue Delica finished on the Fine or UF stones. Gives me options.

BFK = Copycat.

I had the same plan with my Millie and SB Dragonfly 2. Rough edge for the Millie and super polish sharp edge for the Dragonfly. One of those cases of great minds and such.

[FDE]

General Use:

Edge Pro with Atoma 600, then Edge Pro 3k tape very lightly on the edge in a "stropping" fashion just to refine the teeth. This will whittle hair very easily.

When you say "in a stropping fashion" do you mean your pulling toward you on the EP or are you still pushing into the edge, just lightly?

[spyderg]

A related question: I really don't have the budget for a Wicked Edge, Edge Pro, or Work Sharp. Are there any less expensive options that allow you to quickly reprofile a blade at a precise, set angle, or is freehand my only option? Thanks!

I justified the cost of my work sharp by counting up the knives I had that needed sharpening, kitchen, work and edc. Then I looked at the cost of getting them professionally sharpened or replacing them. By this "logic", buying the sharpener saved me $$$! Remember xmas is just around the corner...

[HarleyXJGuy]

General Use:

Edge Pro with Atoma 600, then Edge Pro 3k tape very lightly on the edge in a "stropping" fashion just to refine the teeth. This will whittle hair very easily.

When you say "in a stropping fashion" do you mean your pulling toward you on the EP or are you still pushing into the edge, just lightly?

I am sure Evil D will come along and give you the correct answer soon enough.

Usually though when someone says stropping they mean extra angle and/or light pressure.

[mule skinner]

paper wheels

[dbcad]

I know there is no blanket method that works for every knife.

But I am willing to bet a number of us do all of our knives pretty much the same way.

My question being what is your method?

Which stones you work through and angles you like?

Polished or not?

Hello Harley :) It all depends on your use and to lesser extent, the blade steel. If any blade of mine will see fairly hard use it'll get a 40° with a SM brown rod finish. Treated this way way the edge will be sharper for longer :)

It's also quite fun to get a lower angle with other tools. I like to set my backbevels with a DMT aligner working through 5 stones, x coarse thru xx fine to as low an angle I can get with that system :eek: Any larger angles I decide to put on later are a piece of cake with the SM :D

Cliff Stamp has done quite a few very enlightening studies on the subject of polish. It's all a matter of how you use/enjoy your edges :) Enjoy and keep 'em sharp :D

Charlie

[Evil D]

General Use:

Edge Pro with Atoma 600, then Edge Pro 3k tape very lightly on the edge in a "stropping" fashion just to refine the teeth. This will whittle hair very easily.

When you say "in a stropping fashion" do you mean your pulling toward you on the EP or are you still pushing into the edge, just lightly?

I just meant very very light pressure, and that the jump to a much higher grit stone is essentially to achieve a result similar to but better and more accurate than what a strop can do.