I just got my first Spyderco today, a Yojimbo 2 S30V and man am I absolutely in love with this beast! Well it came razor sharp from the tip halfway down, then it just gets ehhh not really as sharp..well I'm kinda bummed as I'm new to this whole hobby I love and I am not yet sharpening my own knIves, I really want to start with a DMT diamond credit card sized set I'm just damn nervous I'm going to screw up my nice blades! Should I just send the Yojimbo into Spyderco and have them sharpen it, and in the meantime just buy the DMT set and start practicing on my beater knife that won't bother me if I screw it up?
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DMT Freehand
- Thread starter JJaggar
- Start date
Go to YouTube and watch sharpening videos. Then bite the bullet, buy the stones and strop and then get started. Don't be afraid. Just keep a steady hand and perfect your skills. It's totally worth it and full on rewarding when you get good. It is also quicker and more fun than using systems. Just do it!
The Yojimbo 2 is very easy to sharpen because the blade is completely straight. It also takes a very very sharp edge pretty easily. Not a super fine edge, but it gets really sharp. I've found that S30V on that blade doesn't hold an edge very well for harder use. A lower grit edge lasts longer. Anyway...
I would NOT recommend a credit card set as an introduction to sharpening. It's almost everything wrong: Too small, has to be hand held, and flexes. About the only thing right about that set is that it's diamond, so it will cut anything. Can you get super sharp edges with it? Sure, but you have to have a lot more skill to do so than with a normal sized bench stone.
If you're going the freehand route, I'd recommend at *least* 6" stones. 8" would be better, but 6" will work fine for blades up to around 6 to 8". The 6" DMT diasharps are a bargain especially if you get the two sided ones.
For your immediate need to sharpen the Yojimbo, I'd either have someone skilled do it, or wait until you've done some "beater knives" as you suggested. The YJ2 isn't a $500 knife, but it's certainly a very, very nice knife and I wouldn't want to mess up the edge by learning on it.
Brian.
I would NOT recommend a credit card set as an introduction to sharpening. It's almost everything wrong: Too small, has to be hand held, and flexes. About the only thing right about that set is that it's diamond, so it will cut anything. Can you get super sharp edges with it? Sure, but you have to have a lot more skill to do so than with a normal sized bench stone.
If you're going the freehand route, I'd recommend at *least* 6" stones. 8" would be better, but 6" will work fine for blades up to around 6 to 8". The 6" DMT diasharps are a bargain especially if you get the two sided ones.
For your immediate need to sharpen the Yojimbo, I'd either have someone skilled do it, or wait until you've done some "beater knives" as you suggested. The YJ2 isn't a $500 knife, but it's certainly a very, very nice knife and I wouldn't want to mess up the edge by learning on it.
Brian.
- Joined
- Apr 12, 2009
- Messages
- 13,443
The DMT credit card hones DO NOT FLEX, at all. One would need to have the strength of King Kong to bend them, and if handled & used as such, they're being used with WAY TOO MUCH PRESSURE; nothing more than a light touch is ever needed with a diamond hone. The credit card hones are made with hardened steel plate, 0.05" thick. This is as thick as the hardened steel liners on many modern/tactical knives; imagine trying to bend those by hand. It's heavy for it's relative thinness, and very rigid and strong.
Having said that, the credit card hones can be useful for maintenance/touch-up sharpening at least, and even for re-bevelling smaller blades as found on medium-sized folders and traditional pocketknives. If wanting to learn how to use them, I'd recommend spending some practice time on simpler (cheaper) knives first, to develop the touch for them. For more generic sharpening practice, a 6" or larger bench stone (recommend diamond for the steel mentioned) would start you off easier, and will always be useful in the future.
I have two of the DMT credit cards, in Fine & EF, and use them regularly (hand-held; blade in one hand, hone in the other). It's a different type of sharpening than many 'experienced' sharpeners prefer (many will have a built-in bias for bench stones), but it's not anymore difficult if you practice with it, as you'd practice with any other hone. If you psych yourself into believing it's difficult, or won't work, it'll probably pan out that way. But keep an open mind, and observe as much as possible while handling and practicing with them. A lot can be learned with careful observation and practice, as opposed to dismissing them outright before you've had a chance to develop the touch for them. I built almost all of my habits around using smaller & pocket-sized hones, so I do probably 90% or more of my sharpening on them, including re-bevels on many folding & traditional pocketknives. Lately, a DMT 'Mini-Sharp' keychain hone has been getting the most use from me, and it rides in my pocket every day. Bottom line, it all comes down to what you train your hands to do, and the choice of hone beyond that is basically incidental, once your hands are tuned to sharpening.
David
Having said that, the credit card hones can be useful for maintenance/touch-up sharpening at least, and even for re-bevelling smaller blades as found on medium-sized folders and traditional pocketknives. If wanting to learn how to use them, I'd recommend spending some practice time on simpler (cheaper) knives first, to develop the touch for them. For more generic sharpening practice, a 6" or larger bench stone (recommend diamond for the steel mentioned) would start you off easier, and will always be useful in the future.
I have two of the DMT credit cards, in Fine & EF, and use them regularly (hand-held; blade in one hand, hone in the other). It's a different type of sharpening than many 'experienced' sharpeners prefer (many will have a built-in bias for bench stones), but it's not anymore difficult if you practice with it, as you'd practice with any other hone. If you psych yourself into believing it's difficult, or won't work, it'll probably pan out that way. But keep an open mind, and observe as much as possible while handling and practicing with them. A lot can be learned with careful observation and practice, as opposed to dismissing them outright before you've had a chance to develop the touch for them. I built almost all of my habits around using smaller & pocket-sized hones, so I do probably 90% or more of my sharpening on them, including re-bevels on many folding & traditional pocketknives. Lately, a DMT 'Mini-Sharp' keychain hone has been getting the most use from me, and it rides in my pocket every day. Bottom line, it all comes down to what you train your hands to do, and the choice of hone beyond that is basically incidental, once your hands are tuned to sharpening.
David
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My mistake. I was thinking of the flexi-sharp sheets in terms of the bendability.
I kinda figured you'd give your opinion on this, as I know you love your DMT CC stones! Like I said, it's not that it can't be done and done well. It's just much harder for most people to use small stones, handheld. Especially since they have almost no thickness, so you can't wrap your fingers around the outside without putting your digits in the way of the blade.
Not trying to argue. Just pointing out the reasons I think they are harder to use.
Brian.
- Joined
- Apr 12, 2009
- Messages
- 13,443
That's the 'different type of sharpening' I was hinting at earlier. The first time I used one of the CC hones (the Fine), I was testing it out on a D2 Queen folder, to re-bevel the thick edge grind on it. I was trying to use a more conventional sweeping stroke, diagonally across the small hone, and managed to slice my thumb sweeping off the end of the hone. This just happened to occur as I was apexing the edge, and it was impressively sharp & toothy; my thumb bled like a stuck pig.
Since then, I've taken to using a back/forth scrubbing stroke, or a circular or elliptical scrubbing motion to thin or re-bevel blades. An additional upside to a scrubbing stroke, for me, is that I find it easier to control the angle that way, and the bevels are crisper (I've adapted to using the same motion on larger hones as a result of this). The more conventional sweeping stroke across the hone obviously doesn't 'fit' well for such a small surface area. Touch-ups, on the other hand, are a breeze with slow, short, light & controlled passes; one stroke at a time. That's where the diamond really shines, as it doesn't take much pressure or a lot of passes to quickly put bite back into the edge. I'm even seeing this in using my 'Mini-Sharp' keychain hone, and it's surface area is maybe ~1/2 or less that of the credit card hone.
David
Here's a tip- put masking tape on the sides of the blade to prevent scratches if you have a mishap or get the angle wrong while sharpening. I've been sharpening freehand for over thirty years and I still do this when sharpening someone else's knife to prevent any accidental scuffs or scratches. I will also use it on some of my "treasure" knives to preserve their pristine appearance.
And practicing on beaters is always a good idea.
And practicing on beaters is always a good idea.