Can someone tell me how to get my Lil' T Spearpoint "SCARY SHARP"

L

Lil' Temperance

Banned
Joined
Apr 23, 2002
Messages
45
On the Spyderco sharpmaker. I use the 30degree angle and can barely get it to shave hair on my arm. Should I order the Ultra fine rods for the 204 or can I get it scalpel sharp with the medium and fine rods that are included.
 
I think that they key here will be patience. While I haven't sharpened CPM-440V myself, I understand that it takes much longer (more strokes) to get it sharp due to its high wear-resistance. It will hold an edge for a long time, and will take more elbow grease to get sharp. You might want to consider the rough diamond rods before getting the ultrafine ones, which may not help with CPM-440V since it resists polishing.
 
Carlos

I'd like to know how to get what Sal once referred to as "crispy sharp" - apparently, it's a step beyond "scary" which is a step beyond "hair popping" which is a step beyond "shaving" ;) All these highly technical terms are really confusing me :confused:
 
Try the 40Deg angle. Spyderco's are sharpened at about 20 degrees on each side, IIRC. The 30 degree angle is used after you have sharpened the knife for a while.
 
Mark the edge of your knife with a Marks a Lot. Color the whole bevel and then sharpen it. A few swipes will tell you if you're even sharpening the edge or just back-beveling it.
 
I suggest sharpening through the four steps using the 30 degree, about 20 times on each side would be sufficient. (Unless you have let the blade get too dull.) If the blade is too dull, you can achieve results with the ceramics but it will take time and work to resolve the problem. In times like this, I would recommend a diamond stone, in order to reprofile the edge.

Next, sharpen at the 40 degree with about 20 strokes on each side throughout the four steps as instructed by the video and book. When using the flat sides of the white fine stones, patience is a requirement because only very light strokes are needed.

Spyderco knives come from the factory with a 30 degree edge, as stated in the instruction video, so sharpening at the 40 degree angle is accomplished with less work. The 30 degree edge is very sharp, but as Sal comments, it is a weaker edge that won't hold for long. The 40 is preferred for a more resilient sharp edge. :D

It took me a while to get the hang of it, but now I can shave hair with no problem.;)
 
Working at 30-degree angle greatly probably you are grinding back bevel of your edge and do not touch very edge at all. Try to check this using marker. In this situation U-fine rods can’t help you anyway.
More, I have noticed that CPM 440V doesn’t display the best performance in highly polished edge. I would suggest to stop edge polishing on fine rod edges using flat surfaces for burr removing only.
If you want to regrind your edge to the angle sharper than factory sharpening diamond rods would be much more useful, especially working with modern wear resistant steels.

However I would not advise you to rebevel CPM 440V to 30-degree very edge. Razor sharpness, knife sharpness and axe sharpness are not the same things. In my experience 40-degree angle at very edge backed with 30-degree back bevel (about 50% of sharpening area width) would provide good ratio between edge sharpness and strength in working knife.

What means “scary” or “hair-popping” sharp? Hmm...
What means “shaving” sharp is pretty clear – the edge is able to shave, say, hair on the forearm.
For me next gradation is when the edge can shave with zero pressure against the skin or even can grab the forearm hair without touching skin at all. This gradation can be obtained with 40-degree very edge with no problems. Another thing is how important and useful it is for you...
 
Sharp - Edge is able to cut through most everyday materials without undue force or sawing back and forth needed.

Shaving Sharp - Edge is able to shave hair without also scraping skin flakes off.

Hair-popping Sharp - Edge is able to grab hairs and cut them without the knife touching the skin. It feels like the hairs are popping out of the skin when the edge grabs and pulls them.

Scary Sharp - Edge will cut into human skin under just the pressure of its own weight. This is, in most cases, too sharp, as a knife this sharp is dangerous. One mistake or slip could easily send the knife to the bone.

Crispy Sharp - Knife has been sharpened at a 20 degree inclusive bevel, starting with the medium, then going to the fine, then the ultra-fine, all without rolling the edge. The edge is then stropped to finely polish it. This edge will go through skin like a hot knife through butter, but give it cardboard or wood, and it'll choke.
 
And as far as getting the Lil T scary sharp, CPM-440V is a hard steel to put even a shaving edge on. Most 440V knives are lower in hardness to increase their toughness and their incredible wear resistance. The tradeoff is that the steel's edge seems to try to "pull under" when sharpening. Maybe an example will be more clear. Imagine stretching a strip of cloth between your hands, then running it down a piece of rough sandpaper. The front edge of the cloth will catch on the sandpaper and tuck under. This seems to happen with this steel, but on a much smaller scale (obviously, the steel is more rigid than cloth). Since the steel's hardness is sacrificed for toughness and wear resistance, the edge seems to fold under instead of forming a burr on the opposite side of the stone. Steels that burr, then allow you to remove the burr with strokes on the other side, are the best steels to put a fine razor edge on. VG-10 and AUS-8 are good steels to put scary-sharp edges on. Seems to me that AUS-8 takes a keener edge, but VG-10 holds a very sharp edge longer.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top