I've been on an on again, off again, obsession to get face-shaving sharp knives out of my own hands...or at least paper cutting sharp. I must have watched hundreds of youtube videos, some great, some...not so much. I do know a bit about metals, materials, etc. I was a chef for years and I own awn extensive culinary knife collection, as well as folders, fixed blades etc. I understand a good deal about edge geometry, grind, bevels, etc. But I still at time struggle to get a screaming sharp edge on my knives.
I have a cheapy GATCO clamp system, a cheapy chinese made whetstone coarse and fine, no idea of grit, I inherited a weird looking (for me, you may know exactly what it is) what I'm fairly sure is a diamond/metal "stone", it has an almost elongated honeycomb pattern in the top, and mounted to solid metal plate w/grey/silver tones to the pattern, it's old and has some pitting and rust where it looks like some corrosion kicked in, but the rest is good. And then.... a King 1000/6000 grit stone I bought when I picked up some Global knives years ago along with a real Sushi knife, as well as some (excuse the spelling here, I forget...) Messemeister Elites ?, German made European chef's knives, one of the best kept secrets in knives, 15 degree convex edge bevel and a joy to use, I simply love them. I have other gadgets I would never use anymore, and I do of course have sandpaper, not a belt or machine, but wet/dry which I never use for knives but I would, (maybe should?) and may try just yet...I'm getting the urge for a scandi convex knife, we'll see....
I understand the concept of burrs, and have seen some people say they are not "good" that the Japanese sharpest wood planes, which take off microns of wood, literally cellular levels of material, are never sharpened with burrs, but that's out of my league for the moment....
My main focus lately has been on my collection of folders and fixed tactical and outdoors knives. I've looked at gadgets, and own some, but I really want to be able to use my stones and use them well. I'm SURE my technique is good, I've been practicing for years, and I can get, once in awhile a great edge. I'm aware of the concept of oversharpening, and I may be doing that, but I'm not getting that staggering 6000 grit, or surgical sharp edge at all. Even paper doesn't seem to get cut that well, I can shave the hair off my arm easily enough but it could be, and should be a lot better.
I've seen the Japanese method, and the Western one, tried both...here's the dilema.
I can get a arm hair shaving sharp polished edge w/ the use of my Gatco kit with the clamp, but if I switch to my King stone...it just seems to dull it. I did get from my late Father's tool collection, that old weird sharpening plate I've never seen before anywhere. It's got one rust spot, bad on the end on one side, but the rest is ok, it looks like grey honeycomb, almost elongated, on a steel backer, machined flat, and only on one side. It sharpens the best out of everything, my French knives, get sharp fast on that thing, as do my folders, but...the edge doesn't seem to last even with a lot of stropping on leather, (I use FLITZ polish because it's what I have around...) Keep in mind I never got one of those stones that makes the slurry when I bought the king stone years ago, it just seemed to work up a slurry after using the stone...I am seeing metal coming off, but the blades seem to get more dull, not that crazy sharp I see so many people getting using the same stone. I mean, I've seen the videos of people using cinder blocks, bricks, and leather belts and getting a shaving sharp edge, I can't understand why I can't get good results from the King stone..... I know sushi chefs that can take a putty knife and make it sharp on them... It does have some minor knicks in it, and on the sides, but nothing killer, and it's still flat, you can see the serial number on the 6000 side still. I will spend a LONG time, just doing the alternating sides, to make sure I'm not doing too much to one side or the other, or I'll try the Japanese method, focusing on one side only....and go back and forth on say the flat near the ricasso, it's where I beat up my knives the most, oddly the round close to the tip usually is the sharpest part of my knives....except on my chef's knives where that part does the most work. Seems like for most people that's the hardest part to get sharp, for me it's the easiest, which would seem to suggest my technique is good, and I really think it is...it FEELS like it's right, it sounds like it is too.
My Dad was a cabinet maker, and his tools, chisels, etc. were so sharp he could literally split the hair from his head, he used strictly water stones, leather, and then OLD glass plate to hone.....no lie I saw him do it many a time-it drives me nuts I can't repeat that performance.
Right now I'm working with an old R.E.K.A.T. (round eye knife and tool) @3-3.5" folder ATS-34 steel hollow grind, and a SOG Trident 4" folder. NO serrations, plain drop/clip points. I've re-beveled the knives, they were beat up a bit, I'd used pocket V-sharpeners in the past, etc. I had one of those Chef-mate I think? they were called? The one for kitchen knives, only one angle, and spinning wheels, that must be all gummed up with metal now, it works like poop now. Never was that great, but it would cut a tomato well enough...so I didn't complain, but I'm done with gismos and gadgets that make up for not knowing how to use a good stone. I can/and I will get this down, but there's something I'm missing.
Again, when I use that weird almost diamond stone, w/no oil or water just dry like you would/could a DMT it works, seems my technique and ability to hold a bevel steady are good? No? But, when I try to get the same from the King, no luck. I'll put the knife on it, move to the 6000, pick up the bevel until it's just about slicing the stone off, which it will do if you slip a little, and to no avail.
I'm thinking of ditching it and just going to DMT stones, and I'm guessing that weird metal sharpening stone I got from my Dad's old tools was some kind of woodworking sharpening synthetic diamond device, that and a strop w/flitz give me a sharp knife, still nowhere near as sharp as I WANT it to be, i.e. sailing through paper, face shaving sharp, etc. But there's got to be a way. I'm going for what the Gatco says is 19 degrees with the rod system(similar to the Lansky but I don't think it's diamond stones), and I know those are way off, so I'd guess it's closer to 15 degrees, for an EDC knife I want to be razor sharp to peel fruit, cut it up for my Son, daily tasks etc. It's what I want. For say a 1/4" Ontario TAK 1 fixed blade...of course not that thin of an angle. Sorry if I babble, I haven't been on here in a donkey's years...I didn't want to give you a rolling rant, but I wanted to give you an idea of what I do know, and do not....hope this helps, and I thank you for your patience and time. My goal is to take some old axe and make it Gransofors Brooks sharp...I'll get there.
Thanks.
I have a cheapy GATCO clamp system, a cheapy chinese made whetstone coarse and fine, no idea of grit, I inherited a weird looking (for me, you may know exactly what it is) what I'm fairly sure is a diamond/metal "stone", it has an almost elongated honeycomb pattern in the top, and mounted to solid metal plate w/grey/silver tones to the pattern, it's old and has some pitting and rust where it looks like some corrosion kicked in, but the rest is good. And then.... a King 1000/6000 grit stone I bought when I picked up some Global knives years ago along with a real Sushi knife, as well as some (excuse the spelling here, I forget...) Messemeister Elites ?, German made European chef's knives, one of the best kept secrets in knives, 15 degree convex edge bevel and a joy to use, I simply love them. I have other gadgets I would never use anymore, and I do of course have sandpaper, not a belt or machine, but wet/dry which I never use for knives but I would, (maybe should?) and may try just yet...I'm getting the urge for a scandi convex knife, we'll see....
I understand the concept of burrs, and have seen some people say they are not "good" that the Japanese sharpest wood planes, which take off microns of wood, literally cellular levels of material, are never sharpened with burrs, but that's out of my league for the moment....
My main focus lately has been on my collection of folders and fixed tactical and outdoors knives. I've looked at gadgets, and own some, but I really want to be able to use my stones and use them well. I'm SURE my technique is good, I've been practicing for years, and I can get, once in awhile a great edge. I'm aware of the concept of oversharpening, and I may be doing that, but I'm not getting that staggering 6000 grit, or surgical sharp edge at all. Even paper doesn't seem to get cut that well, I can shave the hair off my arm easily enough but it could be, and should be a lot better.
I've seen the Japanese method, and the Western one, tried both...here's the dilema.
I can get a arm hair shaving sharp polished edge w/ the use of my Gatco kit with the clamp, but if I switch to my King stone...it just seems to dull it. I did get from my late Father's tool collection, that old weird sharpening plate I've never seen before anywhere. It's got one rust spot, bad on the end on one side, but the rest is ok, it looks like grey honeycomb, almost elongated, on a steel backer, machined flat, and only on one side. It sharpens the best out of everything, my French knives, get sharp fast on that thing, as do my folders, but...the edge doesn't seem to last even with a lot of stropping on leather, (I use FLITZ polish because it's what I have around...) Keep in mind I never got one of those stones that makes the slurry when I bought the king stone years ago, it just seemed to work up a slurry after using the stone...I am seeing metal coming off, but the blades seem to get more dull, not that crazy sharp I see so many people getting using the same stone. I mean, I've seen the videos of people using cinder blocks, bricks, and leather belts and getting a shaving sharp edge, I can't understand why I can't get good results from the King stone..... I know sushi chefs that can take a putty knife and make it sharp on them... It does have some minor knicks in it, and on the sides, but nothing killer, and it's still flat, you can see the serial number on the 6000 side still. I will spend a LONG time, just doing the alternating sides, to make sure I'm not doing too much to one side or the other, or I'll try the Japanese method, focusing on one side only....and go back and forth on say the flat near the ricasso, it's where I beat up my knives the most, oddly the round close to the tip usually is the sharpest part of my knives....except on my chef's knives where that part does the most work. Seems like for most people that's the hardest part to get sharp, for me it's the easiest, which would seem to suggest my technique is good, and I really think it is...it FEELS like it's right, it sounds like it is too.
My Dad was a cabinet maker, and his tools, chisels, etc. were so sharp he could literally split the hair from his head, he used strictly water stones, leather, and then OLD glass plate to hone.....no lie I saw him do it many a time-it drives me nuts I can't repeat that performance.
Right now I'm working with an old R.E.K.A.T. (round eye knife and tool) @3-3.5" folder ATS-34 steel hollow grind, and a SOG Trident 4" folder. NO serrations, plain drop/clip points. I've re-beveled the knives, they were beat up a bit, I'd used pocket V-sharpeners in the past, etc. I had one of those Chef-mate I think? they were called? The one for kitchen knives, only one angle, and spinning wheels, that must be all gummed up with metal now, it works like poop now. Never was that great, but it would cut a tomato well enough...so I didn't complain, but I'm done with gismos and gadgets that make up for not knowing how to use a good stone. I can/and I will get this down, but there's something I'm missing.
Again, when I use that weird almost diamond stone, w/no oil or water just dry like you would/could a DMT it works, seems my technique and ability to hold a bevel steady are good? No? But, when I try to get the same from the King, no luck. I'll put the knife on it, move to the 6000, pick up the bevel until it's just about slicing the stone off, which it will do if you slip a little, and to no avail.
I'm thinking of ditching it and just going to DMT stones, and I'm guessing that weird metal sharpening stone I got from my Dad's old tools was some kind of woodworking sharpening synthetic diamond device, that and a strop w/flitz give me a sharp knife, still nowhere near as sharp as I WANT it to be, i.e. sailing through paper, face shaving sharp, etc. But there's got to be a way. I'm going for what the Gatco says is 19 degrees with the rod system(similar to the Lansky but I don't think it's diamond stones), and I know those are way off, so I'd guess it's closer to 15 degrees, for an EDC knife I want to be razor sharp to peel fruit, cut it up for my Son, daily tasks etc. It's what I want. For say a 1/4" Ontario TAK 1 fixed blade...of course not that thin of an angle. Sorry if I babble, I haven't been on here in a donkey's years...I didn't want to give you a rolling rant, but I wanted to give you an idea of what I do know, and do not....hope this helps, and I thank you for your patience and time. My goal is to take some old axe and make it Gransofors Brooks sharp...I'll get there.
Thanks.
