anyone find sharpening relaxing?

Only when it turns out well in the end.

When the knife is playing well with the stones, it relaxes me, but when they're just not going well, I get frustrated.
 
Yep, thats why I sometimes volunteer to sharpen other's knives.

Though, I have learned to never volunteer to sharpen really cheap steel'd knives. That's where that frustration annoyance raises its ugly head. (Example: a knife that can only reach a degree of sharpness as attained with 300 grit crocus cloth. My skill, my technique ... whatever the reason.No, no, no.)
 
Yeah, I find it relaxing kind of in the same way I find whittling relaxing. I can concentrate on what I'm doing and leave the rest of the world out.

I'm with orthagonal1 on the cheap knife issue. It's a mistake to offer to sharpen someone else's knives without inspecting them first.
 
I find knife sharpening and razor honing very relaxing but not near as relaxing as cleaning and lubing my Glock.
 
I find it some what relaxing and as I feel fairly comfortable with my bench stones (not so with my sharpmaker that my DW bought for me). I am also one that is wary of volenteering to sharpen someone elses knife. Over the summer I was at a family reunion and a kid was having trouble cutting wood with a new pocket knife. His dad asked if I knew how to fix it, so I hauled out the portable kit and went to work. What a piece of junk, the metal just would not stay sharp, not to mention the blade wobbled at least 10 degrees. Poor kid never had a chance, made me wish I had a doner knive to give him. Steven
 
Most of the time - yes - it's relaxing. Sometimes though, it's a pain in the ass. One thing that is always true for me is that I never notice the time flying by while sharpening. It makes for a quick day at work. :)


--Dave--
 
It doesn't take enough time to relax with it. Now fishing, trail walking, a day at the range or carving a wood spoon are relaxing. You have time to sink into it and enjoy the time away from everyday life. But sharpening, like some ladies say about their X, twenty seconds and it was over, no fun at all.
 
I love to sharpen good steels. When you can feel and hear the stones glide over the edge you know the end result will well worth the time. But working with junk steel, where is the electric grinder when you need it.
 
Sharpening and stropping always relaxes me. Then again, there are times that the edge just wont take but usually it's me doing something wrong. Dont own any knives cheap enough that arent worth sharpening. Guess thats a good thing.
 
I really dont find it relaxing, I do feel its very rewardingand can be challanging. I love seeing the reaction on peoples faces when they get thier knife back with a scary sharp edge on it. :)
 
I find it very relaxing- but unlike some of you I do like sharpening crap steels. There is something rewarding about taking a POS folding piece of metal and turning it into a knife!! The secret is to realize that the owner will not be as educated on the different types of sharp. I use a very coarse diamond stone and give it a very toothy edge. I have yet to find a knife that I could not make shave hair (although they might need sharpening again after cutting the hair!).
 
I do. I alternate between: sharpening something, cleaning (guns), or reading a book, usually while relaxing and watching a movie!
 
woodysone said:
where is the electric grinder when you need it.
Click to expand...

I use a electric sanding disk with a 500 paper. Unless the blade is really dull, then maybe I will put a course paper on the disk. There is a belt sander on it to, but that is a lot more expensive then those disks. They are the ones the body shop uses to sand the paint or primer on cars.
 
I find sharpening relaxing as well. I usually get so focused on what I'm doing, that I become oblivious to everything else. There's always a feeling of satisfaction after I turn a dull knife into a sharp, efficient one.
 
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