Advice on sharpening S30V with a Lansky Deluxe

I

Indianbladenoob

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Feb 8, 2012
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Is it possible? The reason I ask is, I am planning to throw down for a Buck Mayo Kaala. Paul Bos HT'ed S30V! Rumour has it, he can HT Jello into a knife ;)

I need to know if I need a better sharpening system or will the Lansky Deluxe (Regular Carborundum compound stone and not diamond hones) suffice? I don't mind if it takes a little longer to achieve an edge but it would be dashed inconvenient if I had to buy a whole other system.

Advice?
 
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If you're going to use it simply for touch-ups and light maintenance of the existing edge bevel, it'll probably be OK. If, on the other hand, you think you might do some re-bevelling or other heavy grinding on S30V, you'll likely be frustrated. I managed to dish out two of my regular (carborundum) Lansky hones from my 'Deluxe' kit, when attempting to re-bevel a ZT-0350 in S30V. For that kind of duty, I'd recommend at least one diamond hone, in coarse/extra-coarse. You can buy the Lansky hones individually, so a supplementary diamond hone for your kit wouldn't cost you too much. I had supplemented my kit with a medium diamond hone, which was used to finish the job on my ZT. It worked well enough, but a coarse/xc would've been more ideal. I've since retired my Deluxe kit, and purchased a new Lansky diamond kit.

The standard carborundum hones, at least the ones in my (older) kit, seemed to clog up awful fast when used for heavy grinding. S30V is tough enough, and that would make these hones even slower.
 
Yeah I'll second the Diamond hones. They are a necessity IMO for reprofiling steels with higher wear resistance. I feel that my grey diamond hone has payed for itself several times over.
 
Indianbladenoob said:
So, Extra Coarse or Coarse or both?
Is that enough? Do I need more?
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Get a coarse, at least. If you're already considering both, go for it. A coarse can handle most tasks; an extra-coarse would be useful if grinding on a very large/thick blade, where a whole lot of metal has to be removed. The biggest downside to using an extra-coarse hone is cleaning up the very deep scratches left by it. If you can do what needs to be done with a coarse, that simplifies the work to be done with the following hones.

For what it's worth, I almost always start with the coarse on more wear-resistant steels, only falling back to the extra-coarse if the going gets too slow. For a lot of simpler steels, and for very small or thin-edged blades (hollow grinds), starting with a medium usually is good enough.
 
Get the coarse and fine diamond hones. You'll have a very good system.
I've used my Arkansas stones on s30v and it is one tough challenge to do more than touch up an edge but the diamond hones make it much easier and a much better edge.
I still use the Arkansas stones to start the polishing process after using the diamond hones to reprofile/sharpen initially.
 
Indianbladenoob said:
Since we are talking abt edges, I had a question about stropping.
Which side of the leather should I strop on and why?
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Actually, I'd encourage you to try both. Depending on the leather, the compound and the steel (type, hardness, finish, edge grind, etc.), you might find the smooth side to work better for some, and the 'rough' side for others. I still haven't firmly decided on which is 'best', and I see that as a good thing, because I'm also liking certain specific combinations for individual blades. :)

When starting out, it may be easier to get a feel for stropping by using the smooth side for a while. The rough side, depending on the individual piece of leather, may not provide the feedback or 'feel' to the hands that one might be hoping to get. But this is also the reason why I recommend experimenting with different variations for a while, because you might eventually find something that works better (or 'best') for you.
 
I have used a lansky on boss s30v. Did a complete re profile. Used only stones, no diamonds. Don't get me wrong, it took a long time and wasn't easy, but you can do it. If I had access to diamonds I would have used them. But if you keep your stones clean, it is possible.
 
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