Edge Pro Apex question

Taonari

Taonari

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Jun 25, 2011
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On the Edge Pro Apex can you sharpen a knife to paper cutting sharp by only going up to the 320 grit stone (starting with 220)? If you aren't going for the mirrored edge would you need to go to 600 and beyond for a good edge or are the higher grits more so for a more refined/polished edge?

My sharpener arrives tomorrow and I was wondering about this. I haven't had a chance to use the Edge Pro before.
 
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It's all going to depend on what your final intent for the knife is. For a kitchen knife or a general working edge, I typically stop with the 600 on the EP. The 320 and the 600 are the two nicest-feeling stones in the stock set, so it'd be a shame not to use the 600 as well. :) If it's going to be on one of my pocket knives that I'll be carrying around and showing off to my buddies, it keeps on going up through the EP 1K and beyond.

Congrats on getting the Apex, too, you're really going to enjoy it.
 
Komitadjie said:
It's all going to depend on what your final intent for the knife is. For a kitchen knife or a general working edge, I typically stop with the 600 on the EP. The 320 and the 600 are the two nicest-feeling stones in the stock set, so it'd be a shame not to use the 600 as well. :) If it's going to be on one of my pocket knives that I'll be carrying around and showing off to my buddies, it keeps on going up through the EP 1K and beyond.

Congrats on getting the Apex, too, you're really going to enjoy it.
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Thanks! I am pretty excited about using it. I'll be using the EP to sharpen my knife collection. I rotate my knives regularly for my EDC, but they get dulled with all the cutting at work I use them for. I receive packages every day, cut cardboard, cut zip ties and cat5 cable. My knives dull quickly. For those knives I might as well go all the way. The sharpener I ordered only comes with the 220 and 320 grit stones. I went ahead and ordered the upgrade kit after the fact and it provides the 120, 600, and 1000 grit stones.
 
You will find yourself using the 320 and 600 a LOT, they're the best of the kit, I think. You'll be absolutely amazed at the edge on them once they come off of the EP 1K, that is sharper than perhaps 95% of people have EVER held, and it's just the tip of the iceberg for EP stuff. :)

Something else that would be very much worth your time to get would be a DMT Extra-coarse plate fitted with the EP mounting. It does a superb job of setting bevels and working on really abused knives to get that first bit of material removal done (far better than the stock 120 at it) and it serves double-duty as a flattening plate to keep your stones lapped flat.
 
Komitadjie said:
You will find yourself using the 320 and 600 a LOT, they're the best of the kit, I think. You'll be absolutely amazed at the edge on them once they come off of the EP 1K, that is sharper than perhaps 95% of people have EVER held, and it's just the tip of the iceberg for EP stuff. :)

Something else that would be very much worth your time to get would be a DMT Extra-coarse plate fitted with the EP mounting. It does a superb job of setting bevels and working on really abused knives to get that first bit of material removal done (far better than the stock 120 at it) and it serves double-duty as a flattening plate to keep your stones lapped flat.
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Wow, thanks for the tip on the DMT extra-course plate. Is this something Ben Dale sells or would I just check DMT's site?

I'm pretty excited about getting started with it. I tried a Sharpmaker and got the diamond stones, but have been unable to sharpen anything on it. Even holding the knife straight up and down I can't touch the edge on my right hand side. It may be me and I am doing something unconsciously wrong. At any rate, I have had success with my Lansky 5 stone set and am looking forward to the expanded possibilities with the EP.
 
Ben Dale is not a big believer in diamonds for sharpening, and the diamond plate he offers for the EP is only rather so-so, honestly. The best place I have found for the DMTs is Jende, the owner is a fellow named Tom, and he's a real great guy to work with. You can easily get the plate by itself and make your own EP blank for it, or order it straight from Tom with the blank already installed and ready to go. I actually took mine and added a couple little rubber feet to the back of it so I can use it as a bench stone without it slipping around as well, works just as well freehand as it does on the EP, especially for things like touching up a slightly rounded tip.

Don't throw away that Sharpmaker, by the way! I still use mine a fair bit, even though I have an EP, a WEPS, and a belt grinder as well. It works awesomely well with the fine stones for touching up your knives between sharpening. When you set up your knife on the EP (if you want to maintain it later with the Sharpmaker) just select an angle that's just a TAD smaller than the one you want to use for touch ups. I commonly use 28 or 38 degrees. That way, when you find that your edge is just starting to show a little wear, two or three swipes on the Sharpmaker fine or ultrafine rods will put it right back into use.
 
I also stop at 600 on my EP for all kitchen knives and folders that I'm actually going to use. For reprofiling, setting the main bevel, you could also try an Atoma #140 diamond plate for the EP from Jende Industries. It's expensive but well worth it. They have it mounted on a EP blank already. They also have mounted Chosera and Shapton stones for the EP worth looking into. Another place to look for EP stones from other manufactures is Chef Knives To Go.
 
I stopped at 320 grit on my D2 Mini Grip because I like D2 toothy. It works really well. You definitely can get sharp edges with the 320 and 600 grit stones as others have said.
 
The Atoma IS a better plate than the DMT, but I suggested the DMT because it's half the price. Personal taste. :)
 
If one is satisfied with slicing hard typing paper at an angle, 320 should be adequate. IME, 2,000 is the minimum for push-cutting newsprint at 90 degrees.
 
My sharpener arrived today. I put a nice edge on both my Paramilitary 2 digicam and my Manix 2. I started with the 120 grit stones and went all the way to 1000 grit. It has a nice polished edge now. The very back of the knife edge closest to the choil or ricasso was hard to touch with the stone and isn't as polished as the rest of the edge. It is only the back 1/16" or so. There must be a technique or trick to touching that up with the EP that I'll learn.

Overall I'm impressed. I have the stones soaking right now and when I get back home in a couple hours I plan to hit a few of our kitchen knives and my old CRKT M16-01kz and SOG Flash I. There hasn't been much of a learning curve to it so far and I am pretty happy. Using a Sharpie you can tell pretty quick if your angle is too high or low and quickly adjust the arm. I love the system!!

Now to just get a polish tape blank plate and some 2000 and 3000 tapes.
 
Well done!

But I would strongly recommend the 2K and 6K tapes.

Mother's Mag & Aluminum polish will clean the swarf as the tapes "load up." It will give quite a nice finish as well. The only "secret" to using the tapes is to maintain a LIGHT touch.

You will cut several tapes in the learning peocess. Do not allow yourself to be concerned. That is part of the learning process.

P.S. I would recommend two glass blanks for the tapes. They have given me edges superior to the alunimum blanks.
 
Ben Dover said:
Well done!

But I would strongly recommend the 2K and 6K tapes.

Mother's Mag & Aluminum polish will clean the swarf as the tapes "load up." It will give quite a nice finish as well. The only "secret" to using the tapes is to maintain a LIGHT touch.

You will cut several tapes in the learning peocess. Do not allow yourself to be concerned. That is part of the learning process.

P.S. I would recommend two glass blanks for the tapes. They have given me edges superior to the alunimum blanks.
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I will get the 2000 and 6000 tapes and order two of the glass blanks. I'll also get the polish too.

At first when I would start with the higher grit stones I was noticing that there were irregularities to the polish on the bevel. Some of it was looked polish and other parts looked duller. I watched what I was doing and I found I was using a sawing motion and too much pressure, which was wrong. I watched Ben Dale's and Jim Ankerson's videos again and saw that they were using more of a sweeping motion. I backed up and changed my strokes and the amount of pressure and now it is consistent. :D
 
Awesome fun, isn't it? The learning curve for basic use is nice and short, and the results are incredible.

Now you start down the rabbit hole, chasing perfection. It's easy to get a spectacular edge on it... now you start perfecting your technique and the slippery slope of equipment upgrades. Before long you'll find yourself with a bunch of Shapton and Chosera stones, Atoma plates, and really REALLY sharp knives. :D
 
Komitadjie said:
Awesome fun, isn't it? The learning curve for basic use is nice and short, and the results are incredible.

Now you start down the rabbit hole, chasing perfection. It's easy to get a spectacular edge on it... now you start perfecting your technique and the slippery slope of equipment upgrades. Before long you'll find yourself with a bunch of Shapton and Chosera stones, Atoma plates, and really REALLY sharp knives. :D
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It is a blast! I could sharpen knives for hours with it. It is so satisfying to see amazing results from the basic stones. I fear I will be buying stones every pay period for a while now. ;)

I am ordering the tapes and glass blanks tomorrow. Other than light pressure, are there any tricks to getting the mirrored edge? I imagine keeping the tape clean is super important for the finish.

Thanks to everyone for all the advice and excellent suggestions. :D This community is outstanding.
 
It seems to me that you possess the necessary interest and focus to become one of the very knowledgeable "gurus" on this forum in a few short years. Congratulations. :thumbup:

The only "secret" to using the tapes is to use 5-10 edge trailing strokes initially, and then very light "back and forth" strokes afterward. Do this every time you "flip" the blade.

This is where you are going to cut up some tapes in learning. :( But you will get the feel for it.:p Just accept beforehand that you are going to ruin 25-30 tapes in the learning process, and it will be somewhat less frustrating. (Ask me how I know this :D )

Keep at it, and never be afraid to come here and ask questions, no matter how basic they may seem. Remember that we all started out as "noobies." :eek:
 
Oh, and you WILL sharpen for hours with it, once you really get your propeller-head wings. :D

Once you start using 10X magnification or so to inspect your edges for scratches and start obsessing over getting every last mark from that coarse stone out to have a true mirror finish... It's a fun rabbit hole, honest! :D I personally don't use the tapes, I use the stock 1K stone (which will produce a reasonable mirror if you are patient, use very light strokes, and keep it clean) for my finisher. Going higher than that, I use a 5K Chosera, then an 8K Snow White. The tapes DO work, they're just more effort to use.

Honestly, I'd do some work with that 1K stone and get very comfortable up at that polish level before you spend the cash for tapes and glass blanks, I think you'll find the 1K surprising you as your technique and 'feel' for the system improves. :)
 
Ben Dover said:
It seems to me that you possess the necessary interest and focus to become one of the very knowledgeable "gurus" on this forum in a few short years. Congratulations. :thumbup:

The only "secret" to using the tapes is to use 5-10 edge trailing strokes initially, and then very light "back and forth" strokes afterward. Do this every time you "flip" the blade.

This is where you are going to cut up some tapes in learning. :( But you will get the feel for it.:p Just accept beforehand that you are going to ruin 25-30 tapes in the learning process, and it will be somewhat less frustrating. (Ask me how I know this :D )

Keep at it, and never be afraid to come here and ask questions, no matter how basic they may seem. Remember that we all started out as "noobies." :eek:
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Thank you for the compliment. :)
Since the tapes come in packs of 15 quantity, should I order two of each since I would possibly burn through a lot in the beginning?
Thanks again for continuing to answer my questions. :D
 
Komitadjie said:
Oh, and you WILL sharpen for hours with it, once you really get your propeller-head wings. :D

Once you start using 10X magnification or so to inspect your edges for scratches and start obsessing over getting every last mark from that coarse stone out to have a true mirror finish... It's a fun rabbit hole, honest! :D I personally don't use the tapes, I use the stock 1K stone (which will produce a reasonable mirror if you are patient, use very light strokes, and keep it clean) for my finisher. Going higher than that, I use a 5K Chosera, then an 8K Snow White. The tapes DO work, they're just more effort to use.

Honestly, I'd do some work with that 1K stone and get very comfortable up at that polish level before you spend the cash for tapes and glass blanks, I think you'll find the 1K surprising you as your technique and 'feel' for the system improves. :)
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Ah ok. I can see how this can get involved, but that's a good thing. :thumbup:

I noticed that the 220 grit stone really holds a lot of metal. I keep it clean the best I can, but it seems way more stained than all the other stones combined. Is there any harm to taking some Ajax and a Scotch Brite pad to it? That is what I did to my Sharpmaker to keep the rods clean.
 
Don't worry too much about the looks, when you lap your stones to keep them flat (every knife or so, the coarse grits dish more than the fine ones) it will take it right off.
 
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