a little advice free handing?

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d.weglarz13

Joined
Jun 4, 2008
Messages
1,944
hey guys. it seems every time i go to sharpen a blade, the bevel gets significantly wider and more pronounced, as opposed to the base of the blade, where i have no trouble keeping the same bevel/angle. im sure its just a maatter of practice, but any advice would help. i am either lifting the blade too much, or not enough, when i get to the tip i think. thanks guys.
 
If the bevel at the tip of the blade is getting wider, that means you're not lifting the blade enough to cover the curve (hence grinding at the shoulder of the bevel).
 
it just seems to be problem for me to tell the angle of the bevel while moving across the stone. when i lay the flat part of the blade against the stone, i can tell easily with the shadow, but along the belly of the blade, there is only one tiny point of contact with the stone. this is where my problem really lays, are there any tips or tricks that you guys use when trying to keep the bevel the same throughout the belly? thanks
 
Are you sharpening away from yourself or towards? I find its easier to keep the bevel in contact with the stone when I pull towards myself. Then I can see if the edge is hitting the stone.
 
d.weglarz13 said:
...are there any tips or tricks that you guys use when trying to keep the bevel the same throughout the belly? thanks
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I don't worry about bevels, just concentrate on raising a burr. That eliminates pretty much all the sharpening problems I had before I learned this technique.
 
The problem you are having is nothing more than a common mistake. Following the angle of the curve is not done by curving the blade as you sharpen but simply by raising the handle of the knife. You still sometimes curve the blade but thats only when there is a lot of curve to the blade itself.
 
knifenut1013 said:
The problem you are having is nothing more than a common mistake. Following the angle of the curve is not done by curving the blade as you sharpen but simply by raising the handle of the knife. You still sometimes curve the blade but thats only when there is a lot of curve to the blade itself.
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Good advice. The way that I tell if I am raising the angle to the right height is by the sound and feel of the blade on stone. The "bench" that I use my stones on is ~ 30x12, 47" tall, and I can move around 3 sides. For me, this is the set up that works.
 
I just started free-handing this past weekend and found this same issue with my technique. keeping a sharpie close at hand helped me see when I was not getting to the edge. the curve still isn't as sharp as the rest, but practice makes perfect, I guess.
 
koli615 said:
I just started free-handing this past weekend and found this same issue with my technique. keeping a sharpie close at hand helped me see when I was not getting to the edge. the curve still isn't as sharp as the rest, but practice makes perfect, I guess.
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What condition was the belly in before you started sharpening?
 
Why do you think this represents a problem? Wide bevels are good. They are what you are trying to achieve. Your problem is with the rest of the blade.
 
donny bee said:
What condition was the belly in before you started sharpening?
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It was/is relatively sharp.

I just wanted slightly steeper edge geometry so I could get a bit more out of the high-quality steel of the knife. My goal was to take the edge down to a 15-degree angle per side (not sure what the angle was when it cam from the shop). I'm getting closer, I think, but it's taking awhile on the 10" DMT duosharp coarse/fine stone (it's a big knife).
 
thanks fellas, i think i got it now. i sharpen both away and towards me, as i am sitting on a stool usually, and have my set up in front of me on a table.
 
Try:
-Coloring the edge with a sharpie marker. If after a few swipes there's still ink on the edge, you need to raise the knife higher to get to the edge.
-Sharpening by pulling the edge toward you so you can keep an eye on the edge to ensure that you're getting to the edge.
-Sharpen until you create a burr on each side

Creating a wider angle toward the edge isn't a bad thing in itself. Many knives have thicker edge angles as you get closer to the tip. So for many knives, if you maintain a consistent angle you'll end up widening the edge towards the tip. The only time where that would be an issue is if you're not reaching the edge or if you want to maintain that wider angle towards the tip.
 
cool, and yes, generally i like to keep the bevel even from the base to the tip of the blade. thanks, i will do the sharpie marker thing.
 
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