After all these years as a knife collector and user I finally put your treasured advice into action and got a Sharp Maker. Lay the links to videos on me and all your insight, please. I need all the instruction I can get on this.
I have several plain edged and serrated including a vintage G2 Endura serrated that need sharpening.
Re: Finally got a Sharp Maker
Posted: Mon Mar 02, 2026 10:37 am
by Wartstein
Hey SEF, yes, finally is the right term , congrats!
...Your SM will come with a great instructional vid anyway, still the first link below leads you to just that.
...The second link is to a vid by Lance ("Surfin Gringo" on the forum) which I found also helpful when I was a beginner
... There are TONS of Sharpmaker threads here already, easily to be found with the forum advanced search (key word "sharpmaker", "topic title only", "show results as topics")
...two quick tips:
- Use a pretty light touch
- Keep your rods clean, especially the corners (used mainly for SE) can clog up pretty fast with steel residue which makes them less effective.
...Have fun with your new SM!
...
Re: Finally got a Sharp Maker
Posted: Mon Mar 02, 2026 10:59 am
by Actinolite
Well worth learning. I still have a lot to learn, but I've done pretty well sharpening SEs, and that pleases me.
Re: Finally got a Sharp Maker
Posted: Mon Mar 02, 2026 11:05 am
by Evil D
I've been using one for about a decade now, and just recently came to the realization that I'm far more consistent when standing up and sort of leaning over the top of the Sharpmaker so I'm looking down on the spine of the blade. I've always sharpened while sitting at a desk but I guess I just hold more steady while standing.
I've been using one for about a decade now, and just recently came to the realization that I'm far more consistent when standing up and sort of leaning over the top of the Sharpmaker so I'm looking down on the spine of the blade. I've always sharpened while sitting at a desk but I guess I just hold more steady while standing.
Sharpie markers and loupes are your best friends.
Yes, much like you, after years of using the Sharpmaker, I finally figured out that the best way for me to keep the blade perpendicular was to look down at the spine while sharpening.
Re: Finally got a Sharp Maker
Posted: Mon Mar 02, 2026 12:05 pm
by Wartstein
@Evil D@dsvirsky
Someone (can't recall who) gave me that exact advice (looking down from above on the spine) years ago and it works better for me too.
For whatever reason it makes things also more natural for me when it comes to keeping full contact of the edge with the rod in the right angle in the curved belly area towards the tip.
Re: Finally got a Sharp Maker
Posted: Mon Mar 02, 2026 12:11 pm
by TkoK83Spy
Hold the phone, you've been around here 14 years and have never sharpened or even touched up a knife before?? Call me bamboozled.
Hold the phone, you've been around here 14 years and have never sharpened or even touched up a knife before?? Call me bamboozled.
Apparently this is why he wants to talk about light sabers because he wasn't able to sharpen reality based blades.
Re: Finally got a Sharp Maker
Posted: Mon Mar 02, 2026 1:40 pm
by BeggarSo
Use your 20 degree settings for SE blades.
Use a super light touch if you can make the sharpmaker move without holding it your pressing too hard.
You can try to sharpen a blade using the same stones same angle and get bad results by pushing too hard lighten up it will surprise you how little effort it takes.
Get the CBN and Ultra Fine rods they have there uses.
Add some mineral oil to the rods they work differently.
Keep Bar Keepers friend cleanser on hand clean rods cut better.
Use a Sharpie marker until you get good at using the tool and if your not getting results use the sharpie it will show where you are hitting the blade.
You should also get the Gauntlet it is not a substitute but another great tool.
Hold the phone, you've been around here 14 years and have never sharpened or even touched up a knife before?? Call me bamboozled.
Basically, yes.
I have used pull through carbide and ceramic sharpeners which leave scratches or do not help much, and, I have tried free hand sharpening with stones and a butcher steel.
I have a Tri Fold Diamond Plate Sharpener and a Work Sharp which I have not used.
I took some fine grit sand paper to a Spyderedged Endura. It seemed to sharpen a bit but I put scratches on the blade.
I have not tried leather stropping. I want to try.
So far aside from that I relied on factory edges.
I am eager for true blades that self sharpen and focused electromagnetics but those are currently science fiction.
After all these years of reading posts by you and sal and David and Lance and Wartstein, what finally convinced me was:
1 sal directly advising me to get the Sharp Maker and
2 My desire to learn and somewhat master sharpening of serrated and plain edges.
I have a vintage Spyderco Endura with G2 stainless blade. It is serrated and scary dull. I want to sharpen it.
The magnifier let's us watch the progress?
One of my biggest reasons for not having gotten the Sharp Maker before is fear of failure. I had bad experiences with Arkansas and cheapo sharpening stones and pull throughs. I was not able to know for sure if I was just scratching up the blade vs actual sharpening or even worse: damaging the edges.
One example:
In the 1980s a friend gifted me one of those Taiwan made "Rambo Survival Knives" that had the vinyl sheath and that cheap mini sharpening stones in the sheath pouch.
The person said "Boy this is the best knife ever made".
The funny thing is those were not the good quality Jimmy Lile made ones that Stallone used. I sm sure you remember those.
Now I am watching these videos you made and that others made and reading up on instructions.
If I do this correctly I want to post a picture of that G2 Endura I have. The serrated edge is so dull that I tried to cut a sheet of paper and it tore instead of cut it.
I also bought a Buck 420HC stainless knife from someone and when I received it, I opened it and the edge was unbelievingly dull. I got it used.
Our forum friend Vivi said the Sharp Maker can make that shaving sharp.
Thank you sir for all you do.
Re: Finally got a Sharp Maker
Posted: Mon Mar 02, 2026 7:11 pm
by SpyderEdgeForever
Beggar and sal, yes one other thing is that I want to be extremely careful and not slip while sharpening and end up cutting myself. I know that's what the metal safety rods are for. But I saw guys online that say they use the SharpMaker for years without metal rods and are fine.
Re: Finally got a Sharp Maker
Posted: Mon Mar 02, 2026 9:53 pm
by Wowbagger
I LOVE THE TRIANGLE RODS !
some how I never use the holder , except to store some of the rods in .
I can't agree more about the Jeweler's Visor / magnification . I have a pile of them with various magnification strengths .
And a digital microscope (top of the pile) that I very rarely use ; it's fun though , and inexpensive !
This is one of the lighted visors and a seperate light on a goose neck . Yes it is clamped to a mock up for a power rack bar hook; makes a good heavy base for the light . I made some custom power rack bar hooks for the local YMCA about a hun'ert years ago .
Goose neck light in use in the first image ; see above where I am using a triangle rod.
Re: Finally got a Sharp Maker
Posted: Mon Mar 02, 2026 10:16 pm
by Doc Dan
The serrated technique is available on this forum somewhere. Was it @vivi who made that video?
Use a super light touch if you can make the sharpmaker move without holding it your pressing too hard.
You can try to sharpen a blade using the same stones same angle and get bad results by pushing too hard lighten up it will surprise you how little effort it takes.
Get the CBN and Ultra Fine rods they have there uses.
Add some mineral oil to the rods they work differently.
Keep Bar Keepers friend cleanser on hand clean rods cut better.
Use a Sharpie marker until you get good at using the tool and if your not getting results use the sharpie it will show where you are hitting the blade.
You should also get the Gauntlet it is not a substitute but another great tool.
Good advice!
- I´ll second again the "light touch" and "using a sharpie" approach!
- Also getting the CBN (or diamond) rods (can´t talk about the UF, never tried those)
- A great alternative to Bar Keepers friend (which I also never tried) are cleaners for ceramic/glass cooking tops. Worth trying, those remove steel residue with extreme ease from the rods.
Re: Finally got a Sharp Maker
Posted: Tue Mar 03, 2026 5:46 am
by BeggarSo
Hey that's a great idea I might have some of that ceramic stove top cleaner, from the old stove gotta look. Thanks.
SEF, I started a thread once asking for advice concerning which loupe to get (I have two now, you really don't have to spend a ton of money)
Perhaps it helps viewtopic.php?p=1298821#p1298821
Re: Finally got a Sharp Maker
Posted: Tue Mar 03, 2026 8:25 am
by BeggarSo
What is it you are looking for specifically with a loupe?
, congrats! 
