ESEE Izula easy to sharpen?

J

joepa150

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Mar 15, 2010
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I am looking to buy either a Izula or a Bark River knife. The only problem is that I like to keep my knives really sharp. I can accomplish this by using my Edge pro and not by free handing. They look to have a bit of a recurve so I am hesitant.

I have problems sharpening my Kershaw Whirlwind on the edge pro. The blade is has a significant recurve and the edge/side of knife isn't perfectly flat. I think this is why I have problems.

IMG_4134re_zpse75e3065.jpg



This blade on my Delica is much much much easier. This is why I want a blade that is easier to sharpen.

IMG_4132re_zpsc927c904.jpg
 
The Izula does not have a recurve and is flat like your Delica.
 
kreole said:
The Izula does not have a recurve and is flat like your Delica.
Click to expand...

I am not the most knowledgeable knife guy so I guess I don't know exactly what I recurve is. I figured that if a blade is not straight and has a large curve such as the kershaw above, then it is a recurve. From the photos online, it looks like the Izula does have a curve but maybe not as much as the kershaw above.
 
There is a lot more steel behind the edge compared to a traditional folder in 1095. Besides that, 1095 is a pretty forgiving steel and one of the best to practice sharpening skills on.
 
The Izula will have the tiniest bit of recurve right at the choil for about 2mm. That is not intentional but rather gets there when the person doing the edge lightens up in order to avoid hitting the ricasso and marring the finish.

Yes, the Izula is easy to sharpen and the first time you do so, give the area right there at the choil a few extra strokes and it will knock off that bit that recurves. Both of mine have nice straight edges. And yes, the coating there does get marred a little bit but that is going to happen on all coated blades.

Izula is a great choice in either model.
 
joepa150 said:
I am not the most knowledgeable knife guy so I guess I don't know exactly what I recurve is. I figured that if a blade is not straight and has a large curve such as the kershaw above, then it is a recurve. From the photos online, it looks like the Izula does have a curve but maybe not as much as the kershaw above.
Click to expand...

Ah, gotcha, but no, that's not what it means. A recurve is a curve near the handle, where it goes from down to up then down. A picture probably illustrates it best:

3uYAk.jpg


That's a Phillip Patton knife (http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/516959-Recurve-camp-knife ) that I've edited to show what part makes it a recurve.

Anyway, the Izula does indeed curve up towards the tip quite a bit, probably a little bit more than the Kershaw you posted. If you have trouble with that one, the Izula won't be any better I don't think.
 
The Izula is very easy to sharpen, and it seems to hold it's edge well.

However, since you mentioned the Edge Pro Apex, I will say that I've found it's not that easy to sharpen the Izula on the Edge Pro Apex, and I just use bench stones. IMO, the reason it doesn't work very well is that the Izula is a relatively short blade with almost a straight-back blade, and only a very slight drop-point. With the EPA, I've found that this means the angles just don't quite work; I end up with a different profile on the tip of the blade compared to the flat section. Compensating for this means having to hold the spine of the knife away from the back-plate on the EPA (not sure what it's really called), which (IMO) negates the best part of the EPA: having a stable and consistent platform to rest the knife on.

Of course, it could be that I'm just not very good with the Edge Pro Apex :)
 
kreole said:
Ah, gotcha, but no, that's not what it means. A recurve is a curve near the handle, where it goes from down to up then down. A picture probably illustrates it best:

3uYAk.jpg


That's a Phillip Patton knife (http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/516959-Recurve-camp-knife ) that I've edited to show what part makes it a recurve.

Anyway, the Izula does indeed curve up towards the tip quite a bit, probably a little bit more than the Kershaw you posted. If you have trouble with that one, the Izula won't be any better I don't think.
Click to expand...

That's the real deal there...that's real for sure re-curve.
 
I used my Gatco kit on my Izula II and it worked just fine. I use a worksharp now. It's better (faster).
 
The Izula is a piece of cake. I am not a sharpening guru, so my strategy is to touch up frequently without letting a blade get truly dull.

Bark Rivers have a convex edge, which requires a different technique. Not too hard, just different.
 
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