A question for you freehanders

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jc57 said:
Any time you buy from the dealers (green names) or craftsmen/craftswomen (orange names) you are supporting the businesses who pay for those subscriptions, and their continued success in turn supports the forum through their continued subscriptions.

My advice to a novice sharpener from another learner - spend your time, not your money. You can learn the basic principles off of any flat abrasive medium that is harder than the steel of your knives.

I would honestly suggest a Norton combination oil stone of some variety and some honing oil, along with a handful or two of beater knives that you can learn on. Personally I used old kitchen knives that weren't bad quality per se but had been subject to years of neglect. In addition to a stone, an inexpensive magnifier and a Sharpie- type marker are key for the observation steps.

Once you have the basics down you can start to spend money on the fancier toys.
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Thanks for that explanation, john. I'd noticed the differing colors with the names but i didn't know what they designated.

As far as buying the norton stones and so on, Amazon owes me $30, so for what will amount to an $18 investment for me i can get this. What do you think of it?

http://www.amazon.com/Smiths-50448-...3077&sr=8-1&keywords=smith's+diamond+tri+hone
 
I think you should forget the Smith's set and but a DMT Coarse if you want a diamond plate. Add a strop and you have enough to create the sharpest of edges.
 
James w said:
Not trying to start an argument here but since the designer and maker is a paying member (unlike you) he is supporting this forum so by supporting him your supporting his membership that's the most supporting I can fit in lol
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I see your name is "James" and i noticed you spent a whole $10 to become a Basic Member. I bet you "borrowed" the sawbuck from your mater.:D Of course, that was a long time ago. You should pay back that loan.:rolleyes:

But at least i figured out who you are! YOU'RE DIAMOND JIM BRADY!!!! $10 for a Basic Membership. You really throw it around, boyo.

And i want to be just like you so i bought a basic membership too. The only difference is i didn't have to borrow the money. i had my own $10. :)

Man alive! Am i excited. I can't wait until Spark or RevDevil or someone else sees this and adds "Basic Member" under my name. This is livin,' i tell ya.


Paid: Basic Member Subscription
$10.00
Item #f06e0c0dd22ea00ada57ec1c5100ced5
 
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r8shell said:
Sigh..........

http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/payments.php"After you've paid for your subscription remember to CHANGE YOUR USERGROUP in the control panel by clicking on the Group Memberships link."

Maybe more reading and less insulting.
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Sighing here too, r8.

I do thank you for being nice. And i promise you, i'm not being sarcastic. I appreciate you posting the info. But i won't be changing anything. Unlike Diamond Jim Brady there, what's under my name here doesn't matter much to me.

I happily spent that $10 to give him a little BS back.
James w said:
Not trying to start an argument here but since the designer and maker is a paying member (unlike you) he is supporting this forum so ... .
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See what i mean?
 
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Just curious on the Norton stone recommendation and I am assuming it doesn't matter whether it is the India or the Crystolon one.

So my question is that I noticed the fine side on both stones seem to be rated at 280 or 320 grit depending on which stone so is that grit enough to complete a sharpening on a knife?

It seems like DMT's, Lansky, etc. all seem to have "fine" stones that are around 600-1000 depending on the company! Then I understand that the Sharpmaker fine stones are considered even higher.
 
sir_mike said:
Just curious on the Norton stone recommendation and I am assuming it doesn't matter whether it is the India or the Crystolon one.

So my question is that I noticed the fine side on both stones seem to be rated around 300-320 grit so is that grit enough to complete a sharpening on a knife?

It seems like DMT's, Lansky, etc. all seem to have "fine" stones that are around 600-1000 depending on the company! Then I understand that the Sharpmaker fine stones are considered even higher.
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Depends on your needs and standards for sharpness. Just today I sharpened an old Chicago Cutlery knife that had a flat area from cutting meat on a plate (yeah, my fault there). All I used was a Norton IB8 fine/coarse combo India stone, even to the point of stropping on the fine side. Sharpened it right up and was slicing phone book paper effortlessly. I use that knife as a general purpose utility knife so a polished edge isn't needed.

Just for the heck of it I gave it a little more polish on a soft Arkansas stone and stropped on a leather belt with some compound on it. But I wouldn't say it was sharper, just a bit more refined. Bought that knife on my honeymoon 27 years ago. Still have the same wife, too. Though unlike my wife, the old knife doesn't care that I picked up some pretty Japanese models recently. ;)

If it were one of my nicer kitchen knives I probably would have used water stones. Which reminds me, the wife messed the tip on one of my SG-2 kitchen knives so I guess I have more sharpening to do.
 
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jc57 said:
Depends on your needs and standards for sharpness. Just today I sharpened an old Chicago Cutlery knife that had a flat area from cutting meat on a plate (yeah, my fault there). All I used was a Norton IB8 fine/coarse combo India stone, even to the point of stropping on the fine side. Sharpened it right up and was slicing phone book paper effortlessly. I use that knife as a general purpose utility knife so a polished edge isn't needed.

Just for the heck of it I gave it a little more polish on a soft Akransas stone and stopped on a leather belt with some compound on it. But I wouldn't say it was sharper, just a bit more refined. Bought that knife on my honeymoon 27 years ago. Got the same wife, too. Though unlike my wife, the old knife doesn't care that I picked up some pretty Japanese models recently. ;)

If it were one of my nicer kitchen knives I probably would have used water stones. Which reminds me, the wife messed the tip on one of my SG-2 kitchen knives so I guess I have more sharpening to do.
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That is good to read that the knife can get sharp enough. I too only look for a working edge I call it, never a need for a polished one.

Also good to see that you have the same wife as well. LOL I too have the same wife, which will be 30 years next month but I don't have the same blade as after close to 30 years with a Vic small Tinker, it no longer was safe to use cause of the play or bad springs! Thank goodness I have spares though! :)

Question: Would the grit rating be the same for the Norton Economy stone found at Home Depot for like $7 as it is for the India and Crystolon ones? I think I still have that stone too!
 
sir_mike said:
That is good to read that the knife can get sharp enough. I too only look for a working edge I call it, never a need for a polished one.

Also good to see that you have the same wife as well. LOL I too have the same wife, which will be 30 years next month but I don't have the same blade as after close to 30 years with a Vic small Tinker, it no longer was safe to use cause of the play or bad springs! Thank goodness I have spares though! :)

Question: Would the grit rating be the same for the Norton Economy stone found at Home Depot for like $7 as it is for the India and Crystolon ones? I think I still have that stone too!
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The newer Econo stone is virtually the same as the Crystalon. The older Brazil made ones were not as fine on either side. The India stone fine side is a touch finer than the Crystalon fine, especially after it breaks in.
 
bucketstove said:
NORTON ECONOMY 6" inch sharpening stone coarse side 120 grit or 125 micron and fine side is 320 grit or 45 micron ... also that review has a fantastic video on fine tuning your edge
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Thanks! I figured it was the same as the other ones!

HeavyHanded said:
The newer Econo stone is virtually the same as the Crystalon. The older Brazil made ones were not as fine on either side. The India stone fine side is a touch finer than the Crystalon fine, especially after it breaks in.
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The one I have was made in Mexico. :)
 
1. Technique is more important than equipment by a country mile. I think you know this. Basic equipment will help you get good results faster and make you a better sharpener.

2. I'm going to make a few people irritated with me on this one but this is MY OPINION: Ignore the following recommendations:
A. $1 stones. Useless. Please buy something a little better; it will help you in the long run to start with decent stuff, as opposed to the worst stuff you can buy that an expert can use effectively.
B. Waterstones: Too hard for beginners due to all the maintenance, gouging issues, and preparation.
C. Arkansas stones of any type: Will not grind modern "super steels" AT ALL. Will generally be MUCH slower than a man made stone. They aren't bad stones. They are simply outdated and now a specialty item in today's world.
D. This list now extends to any "set" that includes any of the above, including "Smiths Tri Hone, which uses Arkansas as one of it's steps.

3. Buy stones of a reasonable size. Anything under 2 inches wide is not reasonable. 6x2 inches should be a minimum. 8x3 or 8x2 gives you a lot more real estate to work with and will make sharpening easier, faster, and better.

So what *do* I recommend that you buy? Something with a very coarse stone and a relatively fine stone. Examples:

1. DMT Coarse in at least 6x2, but 8x3 is better. Follow with a DMT EF. Jason B says a strop with 1 micron diamond compound rocks after the DMT C. So that must be true, as Jason is a master sharpener. I've never tried it myself, but I can get some incredible edges from the DMT C.
2. Coarse Norton Crystolon and Spyderco Medium. I got my first "Wow, I did this????!???" edges from this combo. Coarse Crystolon allowed me to grind away some metal, while the Medium Spyderco refined the hell out of the edge.
3. Heavy Handed WashBoard System. I haven't used this system, but I want to buy one at some point, sooner than later. As far as I can tell this system is very complete and covers all the way from "coarse" or "extra coarse" to very fine. My only "complaint" about this system is that you have to mostly do edge trailing strokes so you don't cut the sand paper (or regular printer paper with compound on it). That being said, I've seen a lot of "scrubbing" strokes on the WashBoard and I didn't see the paper get cut.

Once you have some freehanding skills, you might get something out of my Seven Secrets of Sharpening.

Good luck!

Brian.
 
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