Spyderco delica 4 wont get SHARP

[Thelarry]

ive had my delica 4 saber ground version for over 2 years now and its my favorite knife, the problem is over the last 8 months i havent been able to get it SHARP i can get it to slice paper decently well not great, and ive tried everything from 3 hours of sharpening to recreating a bevel and yes even some time on a strop, i can get my ffg to shoot precise lazers from its edge and all my other non vg-10 blades SHARP but not my favorite knife not my SG delica, why? is there something wrong with the knife or the goof holding it? Keep in mind i use a sharmaker and all other blades including 2 other vg-10 delicas get sharp on it without issue

[donutsrule]

Have you used a sharpie along the full length of the sharpened edge to verify you are consistently sharpening the edge and not higher up on the bevel?

[APS]

Have you tried marking the edge with a black sharpie and then doing a few strokes on the Sharpmaker? Check the edge to see if the sharpie is removed evenly. It might help to show you if you are hitting the edge properly. You might be hitting the shoulder on the slightly thicker saber ground model. That was a problem for me too.

[Comeuppance]

Given that it was fine for 14 months, I can only assume something is going wrong with the sharpening process. It's less about time spent sharpening and more about finesse - I learned that the hard way when teaching myself to hand-sharpen. You can rub a knife against a stone all day without making it sharp if you have the wrong angle.

[chuck_roxas45]

Given that it was fine for 14 months, I can only assume something is going wrong with the sharpening process. It's less about time spent sharpening and more about finesse - I learned that the hard way when teaching myself to hand-sharpen. You can rub a knife against a stone all day without making it sharp if you have the wrong angle.

There's a chance that the edge has thickened from all that sharpening. This happened to me with my black millie. I used it a lot at the farm I used to own and I sharpened a lot too. After almost a year, I found that I really couldn't get it as sharp as I used to be able to. When I finally got an edge pro, I found out that the edge was at almost 60° inclusive by that time.

[Cliff Stamp]

ive tried everything from 3 hours of sharpening to recreating a bevel and yes even some time on a strop

What were you doing for 3 hours? What did you mean "recreating a bevel"? And what exactly did you do when stropping (compound, media, etc.).

There is a 99% chance that the edge has just thickened from previous sharpening and the solution is to grind a relief bevel.

[Thelarry]

I have not tried the sharpie trick, the stopping media is a scalpmaster stop the compound is woodstock fine green, by recreating the bevel i did this long annoying process i found off blade hq i dont think it did much of anything, i should mention my bevel and edge is so reflective it could be used as a mirror it dosent look like any knife edge ive ever seen it dosent look bad just strange. But i dont think im missing the edge as i use oil and wipe down a few times during sharpenings and im getting steel to come off (not an excessive amount) it could be that the edge has thickened honestly i wouldnt know how to tell that for sure. I would like to point out i am a avid knife collector with about 20 spydercos and this is the only knife ive ever had issues sharpening and of course its my favorite knife so im not going to give up on it, These delica 4s should last forever as precise lazers

[Thelarry]

Also i would like to thank you all for the quick and helpful responses

[Spyderjo]

Send it back to Spyderco and let them sharpen or re-profile it for you.

[ABX2011]

The Sharpmaker is a good tool but it's not a great stand-alone sharpening system. It does best restoring a slightly dull edge. I use a diamond DMT diasharp to create the bevels. Coarse or X Coarse or even XX Coarse. I always put on fresh bevels at an angle lower than the factory bevels. If I use the Sharpmaker I do so at the end of sharpening to refine with edge with the higher grit ceramics that the Sharpmaker comes with.
When I got my saber ground Delica in the mail, the first thing I did was get out my XX Coarse Dia Sharp and rest the Delica on the stone with the primary grind flat to the stone. I then scrubbed away until I had removed the entire factory edge, thereby giving the knife a zero or scandi grind.
You don't need to go to that extreme but you often need to lower the edge angle to make sharpening easier. And improve cutting. A scandi grind like I did could result in too weak of an edge depening on how you use the knife.

[chuck_roxas45]

I have not tried the sharpie trick, the stopping media is a scalpmaster stop the compound is woodstock fine green, by recreating the bevel i did this long annoying process i found off blade hq i dont think it did much of anything, i should mention my bevel and edge is so reflective it could be used as a mirror it dosent look like any knife edge ive ever seen it dosent look bad just strange. But i dont think im missing the edge as i use oil and wipe down a few times during sharpenings and im getting steel to come off (not an excessive amount) it could be that the edge has thickened honestly i wouldnt know how to tell that for sure. I would like to point out i am a avid knife collector with about 20 spydercos and this is the only knife ive ever had issues sharpening and of course its my favorite knife so im not going to give up on it, These delica 4s should last forever as precise lazers

So what do you think is the problem if it's not your technique?

[Cliff Stamp]

i should mention my bevel and edge is so reflective it could be used as a mirror it dosent look like any knife edge ive ever seen it dosent look bad just strange.

Take the knife and make a very light cut into the side of the fine sharpmaker stones as if you were trying to saw the stone in half, the edge should now strongly reflect light and be fairly dull. Now using the medium medium stones and the 20 degree bevel make just three light passes per side. What happens to the edge?

[araneae]

Bust out a sharpie and see where you are removing material from the edge.

[THE PUNISHER]

you got to get the line line edge.

sometimes a loup to see the edge helps and where you are hitting in on a rock.

[Thelarry]

Thank you for all of your help guys i tried everyting you said and came up with jack squat, i sharpened 4 knives in one day and 3 came out like a keen razor...then theres the delica which came out simply sad, im going to have to send it in i sharpened my friends delica wave and it came out fine so something is clearly wrong, im going to have to bite the bullet and send it in because i miss my favorite little edc

[Evil D]

My hunch is that you're not hitting the very edge, and so aren't actually sharpening the knife at all, just grinding on the shoulder of the bevel. Your FFG knife is thinner behind the edge and less prone to this kind of issue. As mentioned, the knife wouldn't have held an edge for 14 months if there was a problem with the steel.

[chuck_roxas45]

Thank you for all of your help guys i tried everyting you said and came up with jack squat, i sharpened 4 knives in one day and 3 came out like a keen razor...then theres the delica which came out simply sad, im going to have to send it in i sharpened my friends delica wave and it came out fine so something is clearly wrong, im going to have to bite the bullet and send it in because i miss my favorite little edc

Yep, something's wrong but not with the knife. If, as has been mentioned, the knife took and held an edge for 14 months, the steel is not going to suddenly develop problems. Unless you threw it in a fire or something that will ruin the HT.

[Blerv]

Once Spyderco is done the bevel will be reset and sharp. It's a coin toss to if you will have problems with it again. I'm guessing with your track record with other knives it will work out nicely.

[Cliff Stamp]

Thank you for all of your help guys i tried everyting you said and came up with jack squat

Did you try what I suggested? If so what happened?

[anagarika]

There's a chance that the edge has thickened from all that sharpening. This happened to me with my black millie. I used it a lot at the farm I used to own and I sharpened a lot too. After almost a year, I found that I really couldn't get it as sharp as I used to be able to. When I finally got an edge pro, I found out that the edge was at almost 60° inclusive by that time.

Chuck,

You got me wondering here. What happened? If maintained at same angle, how it could turn into 60 inclusive? :confused: