I've never been a benchstone kind of sharpener. I suck at freehand sharpening, which is why I've gone through virtually every kind of consumer-grade sharpening system. Lansky, Sharpmaker, Gatco, DMT, and EdgePro. (The EdgePro is the best, btw.)
When I finished breaking down a bunch of boxes (probably about 50-75 li. ft. of 2 and 4 ply heavy-duty cardboard -- by the end, I was chopping instead of cutting), my Becker 7 had completely no edge left to speak of. It wouldn't even tear paper.
My EdgePro wasn't with me, so I figured, hell, I might as well try freehanding on the kitchen stone... I couldn't ruin the edge any more, all I could do was drop the profile down, right?
After about 20 minutes with a Sharpie with slow, deliberate strokes, I got a nice, working edge again. Sure won't shave, but it glided through cardboard with little problem.
The factory edge angle was mighty steep -- maybe something like 30 degrees per side, increasing to 45 degrees near the tip. Guess I'll keep it like that, as I use it for chopping wood too, and the last thing I need is chipping or rolling.
That carbon steel in the Beckers is definitely easy to resharpen, unlike all the new modern super stainless steels, which are a pain to grind down and a pain to get sharp.
The coating took a pretty hard beating too, but it just smoothed out near the sweet spot. We'll see with more extended use whether it actually wears off or just gets compacted down.
-j
When I finished breaking down a bunch of boxes (probably about 50-75 li. ft. of 2 and 4 ply heavy-duty cardboard -- by the end, I was chopping instead of cutting), my Becker 7 had completely no edge left to speak of. It wouldn't even tear paper.
My EdgePro wasn't with me, so I figured, hell, I might as well try freehanding on the kitchen stone... I couldn't ruin the edge any more, all I could do was drop the profile down, right?
After about 20 minutes with a Sharpie with slow, deliberate strokes, I got a nice, working edge again. Sure won't shave, but it glided through cardboard with little problem.
The factory edge angle was mighty steep -- maybe something like 30 degrees per side, increasing to 45 degrees near the tip. Guess I'll keep it like that, as I use it for chopping wood too, and the last thing I need is chipping or rolling.
That carbon steel in the Beckers is definitely easy to resharpen, unlike all the new modern super stainless steels, which are a pain to grind down and a pain to get sharp.
The coating took a pretty hard beating too, but it just smoothed out near the sweet spot. We'll see with more extended use whether it actually wears off or just gets compacted down.
-j
