Beginner sharpening device?

[PetaBread]

alright thanks guys looks like ill go with the spyderco sharpmaker

To me, the sharpmaker is weird . The stones while in the 40 or 30 degreee slots are angled in a certain way that makes sharping knive on the sharpmaker difficult.

I was given advice on bladeforums to to use the sharpmaker infront of a mirror. When i hold a knife str8 up & down on the flat side of the stone, then look in the mirror, the blade isnt fully on it.

Anyways, to make a long story short(sorta).... I had a dull cenofante III, i did 50 strokes on each corner of the brown stone, then 50 on the flat side of the brown stone, then repeated the same thing on the white stone.
The edge wasn't razor sharp after all that. It didnt even cut paper smoothly.

So, i used the freehand side of the sharmaker (which is on the bottom), and wowza! it works so much better once you find the (perfect) angle.

 

[flipit]

Don't start on any thing you like. sharpin it use it resharpen it.Then get the good one.

 

[ChapmanPreferred]

To me, the sharpmaker is weird . The stones while in the 40 or 30 degreee slots are angled in a certain way that makes sharping knive on the sharpmaker difficult.

I was given advice on bladeforums to to use the sharpmaker infront of a mirror. When i hold a knife str8 up & down on the flat side of the stone, then look in the mirror, the blade isnt fully on it.

Anyways, to make a long story short(sorta).... I had a dull cenofante III, i did 50 strokes on each corner of the brown stone, then 50 on the flat side of the brown stone, then repeated the same thing on the white stone.
The edge wasn't razor sharp after all that. It didnt even cut paper smoothly.

So, i used the freehand side of the sharmaker (which is on the bottom), and wowza! it works so much better once you find the (perfect) angle.

Hi Peta,

Did you reach the goal for each step of the instuctions prior to moving to the next step? It sounds like you never reached the goal of step one on the system. I am glad to hear you met your sharpening goal on the system in a different stone position. It really is a versital sharpener.

For the original poster,

I think the Sharpmaker by Spyderco is an excellent choice. If you follow the instructions you will get the results that are described. Usually for me, the first time you sharpen a knife of the Sharpmaker it takes longer than any subsuquent sharpening. This is because you are setting up all of your angles. Once they are established, it is easy to maintain your edge.

Best wishes,

Doug

 

[MLEShootingSports]

Lansky Quick Fix is about $6. The Lansky Deluxe Sharpening System is about $40. Their diamond rat tail sharpener works great on serrated blades. Also, very reasonably priced.

Good luck!

 

[Hornady]

Hi Guys,

Just lifting along on this topic.
As you might know, beginning knife enthousiast as well.

So my question is: to sharpen your knife, is a japanese wetstone also good?
Which grits should it have?

Thanks!

 

[Jeff Clark]

A Japanese waterstone works great except it will not work on serrated blades. They cut relatively quickly and smoothly so you might start with around a 1,000 grit. If your blade is not extremely dull this will both restore and maintain an edge. If you have blades that are extremely dull you might use a 220 grit and a 1,000 grit. They tend to get more expensive as the grit count gets higher above 1,000. If you are looking for a shaving edge you might want an additional hone in the 4,000 to 8,000 grit range.

 

[Hornady]

Hi,

Thanks, but if you had to choose for a beginner for let's say his birthday present, would you give him te Spyderco Sharpmaker or a Japanese wetstone with additional hone?

 

[UpChUcK]

:thumbup: :thumbup: This DMT Aligner is probably the most underrated sharpening device made today. Frankly, it deserves better PR. You can purchase it without stones for under $20 and use it with ordinary sandpaper. It can be set for several different angles, is robust enough to last for years (although it really doesn't feel like it! ) and when used with wet-dry sandpaper starting with 180 and working down to 2000, will produce fantastic edges. Just be sure that when using it in this fashion you are keeping the guides OFF THE PAPER!

Or... for another $20 get the Aligner clamp and the diamond stones. This makes an excellent system and keeps you inside your budget. It will sharpen large or small blades of any steel, do so quickly and properly, (and easily) and will leave you with an excellent edge! :thumbup:

Stitchawl

+1

I just got the DMT Deluxe Aligner Kit with coarse, fine, extra-fine 4" diamond hones (325, 600, 1200 grit) and a fine diamond rod for serrations and it works great. I sharpened all my knives after getting it and it is very easy to use. Puts a really nice edge on them all - S30V, VG-10, 154CM, 14C28N, AUS 8 and 420HC. Lots of angles to choose from too. Serration hone works well enough. ANyways, I'd recommend the DMT :thumbup: .

 

[stitchawl]

+1

I just got the DMT Deluxe Aligner Kit with coarse, fine, extra-fine 4" diamond hones (325, 600, 1200 grit) and a fine diamond rod for serrations and it works great. I sharpened all my knives after getting it and it is very easy to use. Puts a really nice edge on them all - S30V, VG-10, 154CM, 14C28N, AUS 8 and 420HC. Lots of angles to choose from too. Serration hone works well enough. ANyways, I'd recommend the DMT :thumbup: .

I hadn't sharpened my EDC for about 6 months (although it gets stropped each week,) so last night I decided to give it some attention. Only a little attention though as I was watching a good movie at the same time. I didn't want to set up my EdgePro so I used the DMT Alignerand the diamond stones. I can use them while sitting back on the couch. The EdgePro requires a table top, and I didn't want to miss the movie.

After four minutes with the medium stone, two minutes with the fine, and another two with the extra fine, I covered the stone with some plastic backed polishing film. It's thin enough not to change the edge angle. I didn't glue it down. Just wrapped it around and held it with my fingers. I used 2,000 then 4,000 then 8,000 grit and decided I needed popcorn so finished my sharpening there. Maybe spent all of 15 or 20 minutes to get a mirror polished 8,000 grit edge. This morning I stropped it on a Russian horsehide leather board mounted strop. I think the edge is sharp enough... (I didn't even cut myself once!) :thumbup:

Stitchawl

 

[nhobo]

DMT Aligner. Cheap, fast, easy and foolproof. Allows you to change angle easily, double bevel, etc. Comes with diamond rod for serrations.

 

[Jason B.]

I hadn't sharpened my EDC for about 6 months (although it gets stropped each week,) so last night I decided to give it some attention. Only a little attention though as I was watching a good movie at the same time. I didn't want to set up my EdgePro so I used the DMT Alignerand the diamond stones. I can use them while sitting back on the couch. The EdgePro requires a table top, and I didn't want to miss the movie.

After four minutes with the medium stone, two minutes with the fine, and another two with the extra fine, I covered the stone with some plastic backed polishing film. It's thin enough not to change the edge angle. I didn't glue it down. Just wrapped it around and held it with my fingers. I used 2,000 then 4,000 then 8,000 grit and decided I needed popcorn so finished my sharpening there. Maybe spent all of 15 or 20 minutes to get a mirror polished 8,000 grit edge. This morning I stropped it on a Russian horsehide leather board mounted strop. I think the edge is sharp enough... (I didn't even cut myself once!) :thumbup:

Stitchawl

Did ya know DMT makes the XX-fine stone for that now. They also got a dia-fold in the same mesh too.

 

[stitchawl]

Did ya know DMT makes the XX-fine stone for that now. They also got a dia-fold in the same mesh too.

I 'should' get one for myself. I don't need it but feel sort of obligated to have one.

I found that going from the extra fine right to a 2,000 grit polishing film worked well. It just took a few extra swipes on the film to remove the scratch marks left by the extra fine stone. Going to an XX-fine stone before it would have meant less strokes with the polishing film. Six of one, half a dozen of the other. Prolly will get the stone anyway.

I really like the way these tapes work though. When wrapped around the DMT stone they do a damn fine job. I found a shop in Kobe that sells 15,000 grit polishing film. Two A4 size sheets (8"x11 1/2") for about $8.00 USD I will get some more of that! :thumbup:

..... and I'll order the dame stone too. So what if my wife leaves me.. I'll tell her it was your fault.

Stitchawl

 

[Jason B.]

Haha, yeah my GF say's that she's going to leave me too if I buy any more knives. I don't know if that would be a bad thing though, I would have more money for knives.

The XX-fine is nice, takes a while to break in but it cuts so fast....

 

[stitchawl]

Haha, yeah my GF say's that she's going to leave me too if I buy any more knives. I don't know if that would be a bad thing though, I would have more money for knives.

I can visualize it.... Turning her closet into storage space for my knife collection... One side for folders. One side for fixed blades. Bottom drawers for sharpening supplies....

I've often thought of turning my wife's dressing table into a sharpening station. It's the perfect hight, has plenty of drawers, is very well lighted, has a comfortable seat.

The XX-fine is nice, takes a while to break in but it cuts so fast....

Some guitar maker supply catalogs sell very nice XX-fine large diamond stones for leveling and smoothing fret wires on the guitar necks. Prices look pretty good too. I've been thinking this is a good 'end run' around the 'no more knife sharpening tools' edict. "But sweetheart! It's not for sharpening knives. It's something I need for my guitars!"

Stitchawl

 

[Steel-Junky]

I posted this in the other thread but I'll stick it here as well for your information

I highly suggest the JRE Sharpening Block... here is a thread on it http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/sh...d.php?t=601020

I've been sharpening for years and this thing is awesome. Especially for a new guy... you don't really need any skill to form or maintain and already razor sharp edge... it will eventually convex all of your edges... but with this thing in your kit maintaining them won't be a problem. If you can strop a knife... this kit will be all you need. And you can get replacement paper at Auto Zone for not a lot of money... so it's easy to keep up. You can also buy more paper from JRE and it is of higher quality... but the AZ stuff works just fine and is easy to come by. Good luck... Sharpening is unfotunately a lost art these days and it's always good to see someone willing to pick it up. It will give you an edge over the rest of the people in this world... no pun intended.