EP Apex adequate w/o upgrades for m390 etc?

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death_to_yancey81

Joined
Apr 12, 2016
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138
Hey folks,
I'm looking at sharpening systems, and of course the Edge Pro is on the shortlist. My question is if the stones that come with the system will be up to the task for my knives without having to basically start over after spending the money on the system and having to replace all the stones. From my searching I haven't came across any option to just buy the sharpener and handpick stones. I know there's the kits with shapton and other stones but that bumps the price up by quite a bit and my budget is stretched thin at around the $250 mark. I'm also looking at the kme because it comes with diamond stones and looks to be a nice system, but after owning a lansky, I'm leery of another clamp style system (I have spyderco ffg knives and the clamp can be a little wonky). So, will the ep stones be sufficient for the time being? I can see possibly picking up a course and maybe fine diamond to add, but I'd hate to buy the system and the stones it comes with be useless for my knives. Thanks for any input/recommendations!


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miso2 said:
What are the steels you are sharpening besides M390?

Miso
Click to expand...

M4, hap40, cv (case), s30v, 154cm, and 12c28n. I plan on adding zdp and s110v soon as well. I've been getting by on a course and fine diamond stones freehand, but I'm not it's not something I'm trying to continue doing with these wear resistant steels lol


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That's kind of what I was afraid of. If I can get a polished edge that's cool, but that's not a goal I'm specifically shooting for. Especially for the m390, I want to keep a toothy edge on it for work (I work in a warehouse so a lot of cardboard, tape, plastic banding etc) so a high polish isn't necessary. It sounds like I would need to at least add some diamonds to the system to use with the stock stones, which will put me too far over budget I'm willing to spend. Thanks a lot for the info!


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I reiterate that the stock EP stones would be fine with M390 for a coarse finish. I sharpened my ZT0770CF M390 with just the EP stones and got a great result.

Miso
 
Shapton glass (white stones) at a minimum; from the vendor on the internet that sells Chef's Knives.

And better yet add some diamond plates for the Edge Pro.

I LOVE M390
I LOVE my Edge Pro.

but reprofiling or taking any significant amount of steel off a M390 blade is slow going. A quick touch up of an undamaged blade is good to go with the Shapton Glass.



M390 knives.

 
miso2 said:
I reiterate that the stock EP stones would be fine with M390 for a coarse finish. I sharpened my ZT0770CF M390 with just the EP stones and got a great result.

Miso
Click to expand...

Ah gotcha, sorry I must've misunderstood. I thought you might've been including m390 with the comment about s110v. Thank you. I could always add more stones later on if I like the system, but I'd like to be able to use it first without investing in a ton of after market accessories from the jump. I mainly just want to make sure I could get positive results out of the bare bones of the system. Thank you again.


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Wowbagger said:
Shapton glass (white stones) at a minimum; from the vendor on the internet that sells Chef's Knives.

And better yet add some diamond plates for the Edge Pro.

I LOVE M390
I LOVE my Edge Pro.

but reprofiling or taking any significant amount of steel off a M390 blade is slow going. A quick touch up of an undamaged blade is good to go with the Shapton Glass.



M390 knives.

Click to expand...

I'm sure it would be better if I could afford to buy the system and immediately replace all the stones with a set that alone costs more than the system itself lol but alas I'm a lowly warehouse worker so that's not gonna happen. But if the ep stones are up to the task with a little help I can see adding a course and fine diamond to get the edge started. But hey if I can avoid doing even that I'm all about saving a few bucks. And I'm with you, so far I'm really liking m390 too!
fd0e24513032049f615ca972087d70f7.jpg



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death_to_yancey81 said:
Ah gotcha, sorry I must've misunderstood. I thought you might've been including m390 with the comment about s110v. Thank you. I could always add more stones later on if I like the system, but I'd like to be able to use it first without investing in a ton of after market accessories from the jump. I mainly just want to make sure I could get positive results out of the bare bones of the system. Thank you again.


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Click to expand...


My pleasure. I think EP stones and tapes are fine with M390, M4, and ZDP-189, even for a polished edge.


Miso
 
Nice! That's what I was hoping to hear. Looks like I'll be picking up an edge pro. The only thing I can see having a problem with using it will be trying to get my left hand to be as proficient as my right hand without beating myself to death in the process lol I'm not the most coordinated person with my left hand.


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Yeah, I had issues with holding the knife with my left consistently at the beginning.

A few tips for Edge Pro sharpening.

(1) The position of the knife affects the actual angle it is sharpened to. You need to place the knife identically each time you flip the knife for consistent results.
(2) Stone thickness might differ. This also changes the angle. Thinner stones would grind deeper than thicker stones. You can use an angle cube or the Sharpie technique to compensate for it.
(3) Raising-burr-removing-burr principle applies to Edge Pro.

Good luck!


Miso
 
death_to_yancey81 said:
Nice! That's what I was hoping to hear. Looks like I'll be picking up an edge pro. The only thing I can see having a problem with using it will be trying to get my left hand to be as proficient as my right hand without beating myself to death in the process lol I'm not the most coordinated person with my left hand.


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Click to expand...

That's why I sold mine and went for the w/e
 
miso2 said:
Yeah, I had issues with holding the knife with my left consistently at the beginning.

A few tips for Edge Pro sharpening.

(1) The position of the knife affects the actual angle it is sharpened to. You need to place the knife identically each time you flip the knife for consistent results.
(2) Stone thickness might differ. This also changes the angle. Thinner stones would grind deeper than thicker stones. You can use an angle cube or the Sharpie technique to compensate for it.
(3) Raising-burr-removing-burr principle applies to Edge Pro.

Good luck!


Miso
Click to expand...

Hey Miso, quick question if you see this.

Between the EP set with Shapton's and the set with Chosera's, would you recommend one over the other? I can get a near mirror polish edge consistently with my lansky diamond set, but the quirks/limitations of the Lansky are starting to become a problem as my collection and use of said collection is increasing. That chef site has sets that come with either stone set and I have a suspicion that if I'm chasing a high polish+efficient as possible, one of these sets would be better in the long run than the basic set?
 
bonzodog said:
That's why I sold mine and went for the w/e
Click to expand...

From what all I've heard, and what little I've looked into it, the w/e looks like an awesome setup. But the price has always kept me from looking too hard at it. I wish I could spend that kind of cash on a knife sharpener cause I would lol


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JenWrath said:
Hey Miso, quick question if you see this.

Between the EP set with Shapton's and the set with Chosera's, would you recommend one over the other? I can get a near mirror polish edge consistently with my lansky diamond set, but the quirks/limitations of the Lansky are starting to become a problem as my collection and use of said collection is increasing. That chef site has sets that come with either stone set and I have a suspicion that if I'm chasing a high polish+efficient as possible, one of these sets would be better in the long run than the basic set?
Click to expand...


JenWrath,

I do not own any of those and therefore ask others for comments. Though, I have read good reviews for Shapton.
I use a coarse diamond stone from Gritomatic (#150) and coarse silicon carbide Moldmaster stones from Congress Tools (#240~600) with higher grit EP stones and tapes (>#600), as well as diamond suspensions from Precision Surface International.


Miso
 
I just had the same decision to make about what new system to buy. I ended up with the kme and bought a more inexpensive knock off ep set. Have been using the kme way more than the ep and only use the ep for the little tiny knives


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OP, If you're going to work on M390, or any high carbide steel, i'd toss in a medium and a finer grit diamond plate into the mix. I find that i get better results on the EP after adding diamonds to my progression. I will still use 1K EP and 3K EP tape to finish the edge and give it some polish. After the diamond, it is important to apply as little pressure possible when refining/polishing the edge.

don't chase the polish, just gradually progress to it, and you will get better results. Same for the stropping process, light passes till the burr is gone.

I don't know how to post pics on here, but i've got most of my work on this album.

https://www.facebook.com/loh.yiren/media_set?set=a.10155139063049140.1073741833.678064139&type=3
 
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