Beginner: Best way to sharpen a knife without ruining it

[Bill DeShivs]

No problem.

 

[Magnaminous_G]

Bushcraft you say? You'll want to go up the grit progression. For typical wood-processing chores, a polished edge is a blessing. Plus moving up a grit progression teaches you a lot about sharpening, so there's a double benefit for you, OP.

 

[HeavyHanded]

Bill,

While crappy steel can be sharpened by experts like yourself, Heavy Handed, or Jason, or anyone who has practiced some, it's more difficult to get there (including burr formation and removal) than a good steel. For a beginner, less problem is better. I always recommend Victorinox paring knife (3-4$ only) that has adequate quality while not costing a lot. If OP likes pocket knives, a Cara Cara or Meadowlark will be a good start.

I still have the pile of older Goodwilll knives I bought a couple years back - a more motley crew is seldom assembled in one place. Among them are two that have mystery stainless extremely challenging to sharpen. It not that they're are made from soft gummy stainless, rather they are hard as rock and take an edge about as well. These are the ones I grab when testing a new stone out. I can see where they would give a newbie fits, thankfully this sort is not common, especially among contemporary stainless.

 

[singularity35]

Bill,

While crappy steel can be sharpened by experts like yourself, Heavy Handed, or Jason, or anyone who has practiced some, it's more difficult to get there (including burr formation and removal) than a good steel. For a beginner, less problem is better. I always recommend Victorinox paring knife (3-4$ only) that has adequate quality while not costing a lot. If OP likes pocket knives, a Cara Cara or Meadowlark will be a good start.

I agree Chris. A friend once had me sharpen a fake microtech. The edge would literally crumble when approaching anything sharp at bevel angles of anything less than 25 dps.

 

[jpm2]

The edge would literally crumble when approaching anything sharp at bevel angles of anything less than 25 dps.

I've run across these, and the mentioned gummy ones a few times that other people have challenged me to sharpen.

 

[Chris "Anagarika"]

It means Martin's find from the Goodwill shop was truly a rare good luck! :thumbup:

 

[bodog]

I'd suggest a guided system to set bevels and a decent stone for everything else. If both sides aren't the same angle then an inexperienced guy would have a hard time adjusting for it. Guys forget that the feel and sound of hitting the bevel correctly is only gained from experience.