Cold Steel K4 and a new hair whittling pic.

A

Any Cal.

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Well, after a long, lazy day, I ended up with some decent hair whittling pics. I kept trying to think of a blade I had that had a fine edge to start with, so I could concentrate on refining it rather than rebeveling.

The K4 has an extremely fine edge, so I figured it would be easy. As it turns out, it was so hard I thought my stones weren't working. I ended up going up to the XC and spending a while on it, then each stone on the way down.

Anyway, it was VG-1, but extremely tough stuff. It seemed to work considerably harder than my S30V, 154CM, or D2 stuff. On to the pic, as I was able to cut this hair down much like the video unit posted earlier, though probably only 1/2" or so from the last point of support. FWIW, it measures just over .001" on a caliper, so I am thinking it is pretty fine.

I was going to say that maybe now I can quit obsessing over this stuff, except that I am just wondering if Dia Paste will let me get there faster so I can just keep an edge that way...

k4sharp800x532.jpg
 
The K4 is quite an under rated knife. The recent special projects catalog has them on sale now, and I believe they're being discontinued. Not a rough use knife by any stretch, but if cutting is the goal, they're hard to beat.
 
They are quite thin to start, and flat ground, so they end up having a very thin edge. If you get the neck knife version, it comes with a pretty nice sheath, which is handy if you want to throw the knife in a drawer or take it with you somewhere for some reason.
 
?????? I am not sure what the term refers to unless the last step? The last step was plain veg tanned leather strop.

DMT XC, C, F, EF, Spyderco UF rod, white compound, green compound, plain leather.

The UF rod gets it very sharp, but I can't seem to get hair whittling with it, so I keep messing with the strops to get there.
 
Use a feather light touch and you will get there. Your using the UF for a micrbevel correct? Contact in such a small area creates high amounts of pressure so the lighter pressure you use the better.
 
Yes, the UF for the microbevel. I have seen you mention that, so I have been trying, but obviously I still have a ways to go. I am only doing maybe 20-30 strokes per side with it...should I be doing significantly more, esp. if with very light pressure?
 
Less, The first pass on each side should be with some pressure but the 4 or 5 strokes per side after should be done with almost no pressure. That's all it should take.
 
Sorry, but that brings up another question. Could the fact that my stones are still pretty new have something to do with the UF rod being less effective after the EF stone? Does the EF stone require a significant amount of break in?

ETA, I found another S30V knife:D a bit ago, I am going to give it a go with the EF stone and see how much it takes for the UF rod to smooth it down tomorrow.
 
Yeah, that could be a issue. Just remember though that microbevels are micro, you don't need to see them for them to be effective.
 
I really need to get a few of these K4's. Just leave them in the kitchen drawer.

Looks nice and sharp!
 
knifenut1013 said:
Less, The first pass on each side should be with some pressure but the 4 or 5 strokes per side after should be done with almost no pressure. That's all it should take.
Click to expand...

Any Cal. said:
ETA, I found another S30V knife:D a bit ago, I am going to give it a go with the EF stone and see how much it takes for the UF rod to smooth it down tomorrow.
Click to expand...

Well, I used the Magna guide to be sure I was actually working at the edge, and worked down my Buck in S30V down to the EF DMT paddle.

Anyway, I don't know why, but a few strokes with the UF rod didn't seem to do anything for it.

I went to the EEF paddle on the magna guide, but a few strokes didn't seem to do much after that either...

I am betting that my benchstone and paddles have similiar amounts of wear on them, so figured using a guide would remove some of the human element. I don't know what's up, but it looks like I will still be using the strops for a while. I have a loupe that I can look at the edge with, but it isn't that powerful. It says 10x, but it is probably not that high. Here is the Buck I was working with after the EEF paddle.

dsc1422.jpg


Well, I guess I am just not getting the edge fine enough from what little I can see of the picture, so the UF rod is skipping across the high spots. ???? I am guessing, because I can only see so much, but the edge is obviously not perfect. I am going to start spending a bit longer on the finer grits, and see if it makes the UF rod more responsive.
 
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How much pressure you use with the aligner can cause slight angle changes because of the flex in the arms. Its not something you will notice until you look at the edge. To heavy you grind the shoulder, to light and you grind just the edge. I don't think this is your problem though it might be.

As long as your using the same technique, changing stones shouldn't make it be that far off.

Aligner with diafolds correct?


Best I can tell from the pic is that you did not grind enough at the start, if your not shaving sharp after C then you didn't get down far enough.
 
Thank you. I know that pic isn't much to work with.

I just realized I didn't mention that the medium gray band above the edge is from a different setting. It was an oops.

I will start making sure I am sharp enough right from the beginning. Since you can still see the deep scratches in the edge, I am wondering if it isn't a lack of time on the C or F that is giving me the problem, since the EF and finer isn't taking them out.
 
The trouble point seems to be between the C and F, the fine stone needs to be used more than you think. As you start getting into higher grits any and all mistakes will show up.

Send me a email when you get time.
 
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