Any negative reviews on wicked edge??

Heiheit said:
Well the 800/1k and both strops got here. So far I'm really having trouble getting a sharp edge. Probably a combination of the stones being so new and the burr not getting stropped off. Not even close to a mirror either lol.
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If you are hitting the edge properly, you should be seeing an extremely sharp edge with just the 600 grit stones.

Use some sharpy and a loupe to see what's going on there. Finding the sweet spot is also important. That's how far forward or backward to mount the knife to hit the edge as even as possible heel to tip.

As to the mirror finish, it won't happen while the diamond paste is still smearing around. Once the paste impregnates and no longer leaves a mess on the blade, the polishing will happen. It still takes time to buff out the 1000 grit diamond scratches so try very fine sand paper if you want to go faster. If you are stropping a lot, use very light pressure and maybe back off a degree or two. It's just like hand stropping, too much angle or pressure combined will actually dull your edge.

Practice makes perfect. Once you get a feel for it, you will be very happy with the sticky sharp hair splitting edges you can achieve.
 
Tip. To determine if you have a burr or not on the edge prior to changing grits. I take a Q-tip and twirl it between my fingers to fluff it up a bit. Then I take the Q-tip and lightly bring it up from mid-blade to the edge. I do this to both sides and the entire length of the edge in small increments. If a burr however so slight will collect a few stands of the cotton Q-tip on the edge when a burr exists. Continue to sharpen with the WE until no strands exist on either side. Then continue with a finer grit using the process explained above until you receive the type of edge you are striving to obtain. I have discovered that finishing with a 400-600 grit obtains an excellent edge for hunting and skinning purposes. However, a hunting buddy in Alaska has used one I made for him (CPM154CM). I spoke with him last year about the performance and he relayed he completed 6 moose with thus far with no sharping. He knows how to use and not abuse a blade helped a lot. Also, I took the blade through all the WE edge diamond stones offered and finished with diamond paste on the leather strops offered by WE. Dave my friend does not know how to abuse a blade. One humorus point, I asked him what his friends thought about the edge and he relayed, " they are afraid of it and won't use it". Anyway think of the the Q-tip trick next time and it will save time and prevent over sharpening. A photo of the knife may be seen under my post of "Moose Knife", posted on 6-20-2009. I think the WE system is top notch and great for setting the initial edge and maintaing the edge when needed. Another tip when profiling or reprofiling an edge, do yourself a favor and record the angle you set it with. This prevents heart aches in the future and speeds up the process.
 
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I've been pretty much following all of those tips, good advice. The sandpaper really helps with the polish, but it still isn't a good mirror. Obviously I'm not expecting to get on mirror on my first try though. I've noticed the edges really don't feel sharp at all (part of the experience of 'sharp' no?) and I think it's because of the scratch pattern I'm making. I'm doing the up and away strokes and occasionally doing a sweeping stroke and then switching back to up and away. No matter how light the pressure I use, I still have a burr when using the stones. This is gonna be more difficult then I thought unfortunately. That's not to say that the edges aren't shaving sharp, that's the easy part.. I'll keep reporting back!
 
any comments on the balsa strops
the system I just ordered has the balsa strops included....
 
Honestly, I can't tell much difference. I have only used leather on the WEPS, but I have used both balsa and leather on my EP. With the correct technique, they will both produce ABSURDLY sharp edges.
 
I'm also close to pulling the trigger on a Pro Pak and the information in this thread is invaluable. Thanks for all the great tips and suggestions and to the OP for starting the thread.

I have very little experience with knife sharpening (usually pay to have them sharpened) and like the idea of a system that appears to be simple to use (though apparently difficult to master). I look forward to giving it a try.
 
It's one of those things that works well right out of the box and will give you a quite workable edge more or less immediately. Then as you spend more time with it and pick up more experience, it just keeps getting BETTER. Clay can do ABSURD things without any aftermarket gear at all, just the stock stuff and a lot of experience.

I'm nowhere NEAR that good, but I've only done a few dozen knives with it, and hair-popping sharp is very easy to achieve now. Don't get discouraged if the first few don't turn out super sharp, there's a bit of a feel to pick up. But after that first few as the tool breaks in and you get the feel for the super-light pressure on the fine stones? Wow.
 
Oh yeah, imperfections aside it's going to jump your sharpening abilities light years ahead.

When I think about how I used to struggle to reprofile knives with bad grinds on my Sharpmaker I shudder. Now it's just as simple as clamping it in and within a TV show you have a completely new bevel. And then during the next show its shiny like a mirror...
 
Drathen said:
I'm also close to pulling the trigger on a Pro Pak and the information in this thread is invaluable. Thanks for all the great tips and suggestions and to the OP for starting the thread.

I have very little experience with knife sharpening (usually pay to have them sharpened) and like the idea of a system that appears to be simple to use (though apparently difficult to master). I look forward to giving it a try.
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no problem dude
I started the thread myself to get some feedback.
 
I'm just a fan of getting in and out on my wicked edge. I just want the knife razor sharp, and could care less about a mirror polished edge. I've had good results going up to the 600 grit with a strop. I'm now doing up to 1000. Is this sufficient?
 
For a quick edge, I've actually had good luck working the main bevel with the 100/200 pair until it's apexed fully, then stepping the angle out a couple degrees, and only competing the progression and stropping on the extreme edge. Because you are removing so little metal, you can refine the microbevel VERY quickly. You lose a bit in cut quality because of the rough primary bevels and ensuing friction, but it will get you a great working edge in a tremendous hurry.
 
duro said:
I'm just a fan of getting in and out on my wicked edge. I just want the knife razor sharp, and could care less about a mirror polished edge. I've had good results going up to the 600 grit with a strop. I'm now doing up to 1000. Is this sufficient?
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I think you would get a nice toothy slicing edge doing this. Just make sure you are doing some nice light alternating passes and bit of stropping at the end to remove any burr. I have heard that it works good to do a polished bevel then do a rougher microbevel to get the best of both worlds.
 
I sharpened my gryphon m10 tonight with the wicked edge. For whatever reason it left me with a wide bevel at the top of the knife, just like a few other knives that I own. I try not to let it get to me, but for whatever reason; I hate fat bevels. I'm not sure why the wicked edge does this.

Any ideas? I know clay has talked about the grind, etc...But it's pretty lame to have a wider bevel at the tip of the knife.
 
duro said:
I sharpened my gryphon m10 tonight with the wicked edge. For whatever reason it left me with a wide bevel at the top of the knife, just like a few other knives that I own. I try not to let it get to me, but for whatever reason; I hate fat bevels. I'm not sure why the wicked edge does this.

Any ideas? I know clay has talked about the grind, etc...But it's pretty lame to have a wider bevel at the tip of the knife.
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Wider bevel because the blade is thicker (behind the edge) toward to tip even thought the bevel angle is the same for the entire edge (heel to tip).
 
Thanks for the link. The only problem is because of the swedge on the spine of the knife it has to be clamped at about; A 1/2. It just won't hold where the swedge is. I've tried using that double sided 3m foam tape, but then the knife isn't straight. I guess it comes down to then needing an angle cube, etc...

Perhaps it's the drawback of a clamp type system?
 
That's definitely your problem, you're WAY off the sweet spot for that knife. It will still be absurdly sharp, but as you noticed, it will leave a changing bevel as you go.

I'd actually just email Clay directly, with as much information as you can, including pictures of the knife, and how it fits in the clamp. He'll be MORE than happy to help you out, he's a great guy to talk with and really knows his stuff.
 
I've talked to Clay about it. The conversation eventually ended with me telling him that I guess I can live with it. The girlfriend thinks it's just my OCD. I'm chalking it up to one of the disadvantages of the clamp system. There is absolutely no way I can get the tip any closer than where it's at. Even if I could, my paddles would scrape the clamp if I tried sharpening the heel of the knife. And this is a 4 inch blade sharpening at a 20 degree angle.
 
It actually kinda looks like you should spend a bit more time on the straight portion (but maybe it's just the picture). Couple more tips... you can mark the bevel with a Sharpie, then set the angle based on how the stone contacts near the tip, and see how it comes out. (Not on this knife, since it's already wider). :) Also, I've found a thin piece of leather (some use a chamois, but I cut a piece from an old glove) holds the knife really well... better than tape or anything else I tried. It might allow you to move the blade back a bit more... even partial contact on the flat portion should hold.
 
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