Brand new to real knife sharpening. Need advise PLEASE

[ctf58]

Hello everyone,

I have sharpened knives on stones for years but was never serious about it. I would sharpen them to field dress deer and such. I can get them to cut paper but not smoothly.

Decided I want to see how sharp I can get a knife as a hobby. I like working with my hands and am going to have some down time due to health issues. I've read a ton and watch 100's of videos. I bought a set of diamond plates at G@nder Mt. before researching. Course to "Fine". Then after reading I think the "Fine" is about 800grit. I do not want to start off spending a ton of money because I do not have a lot of knives yet...

Anyway, looking at the King Two Sided Sharpening Stone with Base - #1000 & #6000 to complement what I have and was thinking about buying a clip on style ceramic Sharpening Guide to learn the angle before going free hand. I've tried the guides with the clams and rods that attach to the stones and did not care for them. I've read that the clip-on guides are for "Japanese" knives based on the angle of 15 degrees. That has me confused.

I'll be sharpening everything from my Schrade ‘Deerslayer’, USMC KA-BAR, kitchen knives down to cheaper Smith and Wesson pocket knives.

Also thinking about making a stopping board out of some leftover deer hide if it is worth it.

Thanks in advance on and advise for a complete newbie.

ctf58

 

[bucketstove]

To be able to shave arm hair and slice newspaper effortlessly, it doesn't take a lot of freehand skill or high grit stones, if you can press the edge with your finger into the stone and it balances, you can keep that angle

basic sharpening method (raise a tiny burr (or none), weaken it, cut it off with microbevel) , table, paper towel, brick, papertowel, sharpeningstone ... good info, sharpie trick ... how to sharpen a knife - Joe Calton

If you're thinking of buying that japanese kitchen knife angle guide, consider this one instead, its not limited to japanese knives Using the DMT Knife Guide

a simple wedge placed on the stone can work well as an angle guide

 

[ctf58]

Thanks for the reply bucketstove. Good information on the video. The DMT knife guide may not work well for me at this time. I will not be working/ sitting near a table or bench much during my up coming down time. about the biggest area I'll have is something like a tv dinner tray. Honestly I'll probably have the stone in my lap on a small board with a towel on it to catch the water run off. That was why I was looking at the guides that clip on the knife like the Naniwa QX-0010 Blade Angle Guide for Sharpening Stone. I understand that sharpening in my lap might not be a optimum but it is what it is until my recovery is complete.
Looking forward to starting to sharpen and refine my knife.

Thanks again for the links you gave me!
ctf58

 

[bucketstove]

Thanks for the reply bucketstove. Good information on the video. The DMT knife guide may not work well for me at this time. I will not be working/ sitting near a table or bench much during my up coming down time. about the biggest area I'll have is something like a tv dinner tray. Honestly I'll probably have the stone in my lap on a small board with a towel on it to catch the water run off. That was why I was looking at the guides that clip on the knife like the Naniwa QX-0010 Blade Angle Guide for Sharpening Stone. I understand that sharpening in my lap might not be a optimum but it is what it is until my recovery is complete.
Looking forward to starting to sharpen and refine my knife.

Thanks again for the links you gave me!
ctf58

You're welcome

tv dinner tray is about the same amount of bench space I use, but
I mostly hold stone in hand, sometimes I rest the stone on my leg

Regarding the DMT guide, I use a homemade version of this guide

basically its a little wedge out of paper, or mini clothes pin , I put it on the stone, lay flat of knife against it, and thats how I start at the right angle ... or thats how I microbevel

others report a mini binder clip does a similar job, you attach it like those clips

My recommendation is always try the cheap stuff before the expensive stuff, and whats cheaper than a piece of paper or a binder clip

 

[gadgetgeek]

King stones are very very soft, and so its easy to carve chunks out of them. I would go with ceramic stones as they will be more forgiving to mistakes, you can gain the edge back, not so much the stone. There are other stones that are worth looking at as well, nortons are good, not quite as soft, but still need care. I would say that strops are worth doing as well, a few compounds and some leather will let you experiment for cheap.

 

[ctf58]

Thanks guys,

The chip clip is a great idea! I have one here at my desk and the angle look pretty good. I'll check out the Norton stones. I was looking at the Kings based on price and reviews online. If the Nortons are not to expensive I give them a try.

 

[HeavyHanded]

Coming off the 800 grit fine diamond plate will give you a very good edge - I wouldn't spend another penny on stones till you are happy with the edges off your current plates. You could maybe add a sheet of 6 micron diamond lapping film for under $6 and use that for your strop, just lay the film on top of your diamond plate and strop on that.

I like to use a very thin smear of mineral oil on my diamond plates and films, but water works well enough. Light pressure, let the diamonds do the work.

The Kings are good stones, but do not play well with some stainless or high carbide steels. The diamonds you have will work well on everything, just go light.

 

[fsatsil]

Coming off the 800 grit fine diamond plate will give you a very good edge - I wouldn't spend another penny on stones till you are happy with the edges off your current plates. You could maybe add a sheet of 6 micron diamond lapping film for under $6 and use that for your strop, just lay the film on top of your diamond plate and strop on that.

I like to use a very thin smear of mineral oil on my diamond plates and films, but water works well enough. Light pressure, let the diamonds do the work.

The Kings are good stones, but do not play well with some stainless or high carbide steels. The diamonds you have will work well on everything, just go light.

^^^^^^ this!
There is no reason to spend money on more stones or angle guides if you already have a set of diamond plates and you can get a knife sharp enough to dress deer. The only thing I would recommend is a strop and lots of practice.

 

[r redden]

Knife sharpening like any other skill requires a lot of practice to become proficient at it because it sounds like you already have the tools you need. What you are trying to do is thin and shape the edge to a point of cutting ability without removing much metal. Most folks have trouble with angle and pressure. Using a Sharpie to match the angle is a great learning tool and the right amount of pressure comes from lots of practice or at least it did for me. I would suggest you go buy as many old used kitchen or really any kind of cheap old knives you can and practice, practice, practice paying attention to what you are doing each time and then analyze your results to determine what's working or not. Good luck and stay with it until you get the hang of it because it won't happen overnight. And last buy or make a leather strop and get some green compound to use on it. I use a piece of an old leather belt glued to a piece of wood and it works really well.

 

[Fred.Rowe]

Using angle wedges speeds the process considerably. Each stroke is like the previous one which is of course is the whole idea of sharpening. Every pass thats made where the contact area is not the intended one, is a wasted stroke. You will get better sound feedback when using the wedges as well to the point where you will know the sound, of the edge making correct contact which will put you on the path to free hand sharpening, if thats your goal.

 

[ctf58]

got a Annengjin TAIDEA 1000/3000 whetstone. Was suppose to come with a clip on guide but did not. Also got a smith's Tri-stone. My diamond plates are on the other end of the state (about 400 miles). I left them in a guys truck on a Elk hunt with my elderly father after field dressing an elk for him. I will pick them and my bigger knives in a couple of weeks when I go to pick up the elk meat from the processor. I did sharpen a Smith and Wesson pocket knife I had laying around. Took some time but it will shave a little hair off my arm. Also put a new edge on a steak knife that had nicks. it being such a thin blade it really will shave my arm easily. Angle on the little plastic wedge that came with the Tri-Stone seems a little steep but i used it to begin to feel a consistent angle. Hard to switch hands to push the blade away from me on both side of the blade. I'm used to using alternating strokes using one hand. I figure learning a new way will prevent old bad habits from interfering as much. Plus it is hard to get a burr alternating strokes.

Thanks for all the advise guys. I'm sure I'll have many more questions.
ctf58