Endura 4 Sharpening Problem

T

tempfile

Joined
Apr 30, 2013
Messages
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I have an E4 with full spyderedge and I cant get it sharp. I have had a Sharpmaker for over 20 years and I have no problem sharpening plain edge knives but I cant do anything with this E4. Any suggestions?
 
maybe the angle is too big and the sharpmaker does not "reach" the actual edge of your knife. sorry if you already know this procedure but you could try to paint the edge with a sharpie and check if the sharpmaker really removes material from the edge.
 
Hello grauschatten

Thanks for your reply. I know I am hitting the edge but I can only get it to a certain level of sharpness, when I am done it is not really dull but it is not sharp either.
 
use a buffing wheel on a benchgrinder with green chrome. pilish the primary edge after its sharp to a mirror finish. maybe a four count per half inch. then polish the back sabre grind/edge (you dont want to roll the edge over by polishing at too steep of an angle) then to a quicker pass over the front and back. if done at the right angle and enough material removed you will wet your pants. at least i did
 
If your degree of Sharpness standard is how the Spyderco knives come from the factory I have not been able to duplicate it except with a buffing wheel. I can shave hair with a plain edge with just using the Sharpmaker but even with the ultra fine stones I have never been able to get it quite up to factory sharpness. As for serrations I have not been able to get close except with buffing after the Sharpmaker. One suggestion is to go a little slower with serrations to make sure you get in to ever groove and don't "jump" over some.

A buffer can be a big investment in money, space, and a little mess but I wish I had experimented with it earlier. Need a sewn wheel and not one of the floppy ones.
 
perhaps try a rougher grit (400-600) to finish and then use a higher grit on cardboard/leather/etc (1000-2000) to just strop the edge 2-3 passes per side after finishing. A thin buffing wheel would be a good, though expensive, investment if you want to get professional edges on your knives....

I prefer using sandpaper (of appropriate grits) wrapped around a thin dowel then I use a cardboard impregnated with a polishing paste to strop. That said, I still dislike doing serrated edges since they take, for me, much longer than plain edges.

Whatever you do, don't use ceramics/diamond-coated rods (including the sharpmaker) on softer steel serrated edges, they tend to cause damage t. A more flexible medium works best for me overall, but rods/triangle stones work great for the initial sharpening of the concave portion, but not the tips.

[video=youtube;FjAVUT1EOiQ]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FjAVUT1EOiQ[/video]

[video=youtube;BggYojTm9xw]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BggYojTm9xw[/video]
 
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If you want to get your knife factory sharp again you can send it to Spyderco.

( Blade Sharpening: Complimentary on PlainEdges, SpyderEdges and CombinationEdges provided. Please include $5.00USD for shipping and handling.)
 
Seems like my serrated Spydercos stay sharp for a very long time. I usually touch them up on the corners of the white stones with the sharpmaker, and if they get to less than my desired sharpness, I just send them back to Spyderco for a factory re-sharpen. They always come back like a razor!
 
Freehand it. Or at least angle the blade a bit more against the stone if you keep it mounted on the Sharpmaker. The serrations are chisel ground, so they'll need a higher angle. And then, once in a while, do a stroke on the opposite side at a very shallow angle.
 
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