Deadly Sharp

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MercuryHayze

Joined
Nov 27, 2002
Messages
270
I was wondering what the best sharpening system is? Is there only one? or are there certain systems for large knives and others for folders and tonto's and whatnot...
Someone posted a while back that "a truely sharp knife must be handled with the same respect as a loaded gun". That's how sharp I'm lookin for :D

thanks in advance.

PS. Does Anyone Know A Good Knife Place In Or Around Downtown Chicago???? I'm going there this weekend and thought it might be a good opp to pick up a "system" :D :D
 
I have been very pleased with the sharpmaker. I have little or no experience with other systems, so take my opinion with a grain of salt. I have been able to get very sharp edges easily and consistently.
 
I used to use a diamon sharpening system DMT. It was good but the Sharpmaker from Spyderco is awesome, I have basically no sharpening experience. The sharpmaker teaches you how to sharpen everything and anything and how to care for the stones. Sharpmaker is the best all around sharpener out. Some of the experts around here may say they have great results with sharpener X but for me with only basic skill and knowledge the sharpmaker will put an edge on any knife that could cut you by just looking at it funny.
 
Depends on what you mean by the "best" sharpening system. Is portability a concern for you? What level of skill? Cost?

I imagine that the absolute best thing out there, the end-all-be-all of sharpeners, would be a belt sander.

Since that's not practical for most folks, I'd probably suggest the sharpmaker. I think there's one guy running around who says he's sharpened a claymore or similar on one, and I've sharpened my Spyderco Ladybug II, so obviously it can handle a decent range.

I'm no Joe Talmadge, but I can get a hair popping edge on a handful of knives, and a good shaving edge on pretty much anything (except for AUS-10, blast it). Could do so maybe a week after buying it, too.

Now, though, a year or so laster, I don't really use the sharpmaker anymore -- I just use the rods freehand. Works much better for me, especially on serrated blades. It's really all a matter of getting to know the knives and the stones -- the sharpmaker's a pretty good way to teach you how to do that, though.
 
IMHO, the BEST sharpening system out there is the Spyderco Sharpmaker 204. This system even comes with a video to show the step by step process on how to achieve that hair poppin' sharpness on your blades. ;) :eek:
 
I'd say Sharpmaker is best overall, esp. if you're not that skilled with stones. Freehand use of the rods as mentoined though can be even better, esp. if you finish it with strop or buffer or something similar. But I'll put in my vote for Sharmpaker overall.
 
have a full set of stones(might pick up a DMT bench, and a Spyderco UltraFine still) and my 204... I have been sharpening freehand for 13yrs... the 204 is only about 1.5yrs...

I can get shaving sharp when I put on a 800grit edge, and finish with the 303MF (doublestuff) medium. Freehand all the way.

I use the 204 once in a while, either to check angle or on my millie(ain't gonna take chances loosing the 30bevel... be a bit&#99h to put back).

I just sharpened my Calypso Jr lt PE on the benchstones
 
Do a search for reviews.....If you get one, you will not be dissappointed


Cerberus
 
I use my Sharpmaker for the most part, but I've been steadily learning how to use my waterstones more and more. But it's much less of a pain to just take out the Sharpmaker and give my knives a couple of swipes than to haul out all of my stones and soak them and make a mess and then dry them and put them away. Still--I love using my waterstones, just not when I'm in a hurry (or lazy).
 
They can’t break, or be stolen, or rust, or wear out, or anything else. Once obtained they will be with you forever, with regular refreshing of curse.

Though not the best SPYDERCO Sharpmaker could be considered as one of the most cost efficient and easy to use sharpening devices, especially valuable for starters. Practical advice – get also additional diamond rods if you can afford. Without them Sharpmaker could be somewhat slow if you need to remove a bit more metal. This could occur if your current sharpening angle is more obtuse than Sarpmaker’s preset one. In this case edge reprofiling could last close to forever.
 
I'd say the sharpmaker takes it.

I've used alot of diamond stones, but they were mostly used for chisels, so they were not very effective on my spydie. I've seen the clamp systems used before, and this seem's a pretty foolproof method.

thanks for info.
 
I'm a big fan of the sharpmaker for all of the above mentioned reasons but also because the stones are great free hand. The EdgePro has a very solid following so it must be worth checking out.
Matt
 
The 204 is GREAT for touch up jobs. But without the diamond hones re-profiling is one hek of a task.
 
MercuryHayze:
There seems to be a progression from Sharpmaker to the EdgePro system. That is, many of the EdgePro users appear to have switched from the Sharpmaker system.

I know I could never match the EdgePro quality of edge using my old Sharpmaker. Furthermore, I can get a sharper, more consistent, cleaner looking edge from my EdgePro in a fraction of the time it took just to get a decent edge on my Sharpmaker.

Of paramount importance to me, is to remove the least amount of blade material when sharpening my knives. The EdgePro is quicker and removes less material than either my free-hand wetstones or Sharpmaker. Plus I like the freedom of setting the grind angle pretty much wherever I want with the EdgePro. My Sharpmaker has preset stone angles, so you have to eyeball it and guess at any other angle.

It takes me less than a minute each to sharpen my
kitchen knives with the EdgePro. In fact, since it takes about one or two minutes just to set up the gizmo, I'll usually sharpen at least half a dozen knives at a time - - to make the most of having it set up. This is because the knives are easy to maintain once you've started using the EdgePro sharpener.

Once you use an EdgePro you'll never go back to the Sharpmaker.

TT2Toes
 
Interesting, I will have to look into purchasing an EdgePro system.

I bet the reason that it can make a more consistent edge is that everything is stabilized, unlike the Sharpmaker where you have to eyeball the verticality of the blade. Unless you have robot arms, there's bound to be some inaccuracy to this approach.

EdgePro owners, how is the knife made to rest flat on that surface? Is there a problem with scratching and blades with funny (=not flat) grind lines/areas?
 
On the EdgePro, the blade will rest flat on the EdgePro's "blade table" (see Pic). It takes little pressure to keep the blade flat on this table. Rather, most of the pressure from the honing action is against the "blade guide". In fact, it takes little downward pressure on the stone to sharpen your blade, since there is no wasted effort. This assumes you have already done any necessary shaping/profiling on the blade beforehand.

The wet slurry from the sharpening process could put some very fine scratches on the flat side of your blade. However, I cover my special knives with a some painters tape before sharpening. This way you can protect a bead-blasted finish or high polish finish from gettin dulled by slurry scratches. On my kitchen knives, I don't care if there is a little scratching. Anyway, this only happens when you are removing a lot of metal, to get a blade back in shape or remove knicks. Once a blade is in shape (good profile and bevelled), you don't generate a lot of slurry, so there's little potential for scratching the blade.

Hope this helps.

TT2Toes
 
AlphalphaPB:
Forgot the Pic. See attached.

TT2Toes
 

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Thanks for the clarification. I have one more question though.

Would a blade generally have to have a flat area for it to rest evenly on the table? If the sides of the blade were somewhat rounded or maybe didn't have much of a flat area (like a conventional sabre grind), would this present difficulties in maintaining the exact same position across sharpening sessions?
 
AlphalphaPB:
On a saber grind blade, there's no problem. You just lay the blade flat on the "blade table" and adjust the pivot angle to compensate for the angle of the saber grind. That's one beauty of the EdgePro, you can set it to pretty much any angle.

If your blade has a narrow flat spine area (like the 3/8" spine on my Becker BK-7) you may have to get creative to keep that flat narrow area against the "blade table". I got around this by using a couple of small Pony Clips from the hardware store. This are stiff spring clips, very strong, with rubber protective caps on ends. I clip the blade flat to the table with these. As one section is sharpened I move the blade and clip a new area to be sharpened. (Man, it is a lot harder to describe than to do. It goes quick.)

To ensure you keep the same honing angle between sessions, you mark the blade bevel with dark felt-pen before sharpening. Then, use one of the fine stones and make a few test strokes, adjusting the pivot angle until the hone removes all the felt-pen marking on a bevel section in one stroke. There you go! You've set the pivot angle at exactly the knife manufacturer's bevel angle - - or the exact angle you profiled the blade to. With the EdgePro there are an infinite number of honing angles you can set.

Good luck.

TT2Toes
 
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