Exploring different sharpening systems (video series) which is the best?

cbwx34 said:
...or WorkSharp also has a Field Sharpener... that nicely complements the main unit. ;)
Click to expand...

I have one that stays in my backpack. Haven't had the need to try it yet though!

@DeadboxHero - sorry for what looks like me hijacking your thread. I hope to see some more video's from you regarding other sharpening gear! :)
 
sir_mike said:
I have one that stays in my backpack. Haven't had the need to try it yet though!

@DeadboxHero - sorry for what looks like me hijacking your thread. I hope to see some more video's from you regarding other sharpening gear! :)
Click to expand...

Nah brotha, no worries :)

Here's some more vids,

Worksharp Field Sharpnener
[Youtube]qCb-Ruh6Iqc[/YouTube]




Knivesshipfree paddle strop
[Youtube]6BM8brTBA-4[/YouTube]

More videos soon
 
Here's how I like to Sharpen with the Ken Onion Worksharp

This has to be the fastest way to sharpen knives

[Youtube]Rbq45vta3q0[/YouTube]
 
I have the Work Sharp Guided Sharpening System with upgrade kit, too. I really appreciate the videos you did on it! I still don't know much about sharpening, so I have a few questions. I hope you don't mind.

When you were working on the knife with the nick in it, how hard were you pressing? I'm not sure how hard to press when using the rough diamond. I seem to have some trouble getting a burr, so I don't think I'm pressing hard enough. However, I don't want to press too hard either.

When you were sharpening the knife, I was surprised to see you just use the extra course plate and ceramic rod. It sure seemed to do the trick, though. I'm just wondering, how come you didn't use the other plates and strop to sharpen that knife?

I haven't sharpened too many knives with my GSS, so I haven't used the ceramic rod much. The instructions say to use it for a recurve blade. I have a Buck Spitfire with a slight recurve on it. I haven't used it enough to need to sharpen it yet. If you have any recurve blades, how well of a job do you think the ceramic rod does? Is it possible to sharpen a recurve with the plates?
 
DeadboxHero said:
Nah brotha, no worries :)

Here's some more vids,

Worksharp Field Sharpnener
[Youtube]qCb-Ruh6Iqc[/YouTube]




Knivesshipfree paddle strop
[Youtube]6BM8brTBA-4[/YouTube]

More videos soon
Click to expand...

Just watched these earlier. I also just caught the waterstone's one. I will keep my eye on this thread for others and glad I didn't hijack this thread.

Thx. for posting them and keep up the good work! :)

Still waiting for my Worksharp Guided system to show up. I don't really want to mess with waterstones as I don't want to soak them or have to flatten them constantly so just gonna try the Worksharp system and maybe the Shapton Pro's in like a 500 grit and 2000 grit sometime if I decide they are worth it money wise or if I don't like the Worksharp for some reason! I don't need nor want anything over say a 2k finish at best on my blades! Now if I end up getting back into straight razors, then that is a problem for sure as they seem to require a big progression in stone grits. :)
 
JayC783 said:
I have the Work Sharp Guided Sharpening System with upgrade kit, too. I really appreciate the videos you did on it! I still don't know much about sharpening, so I have a few questions. I hope you don't mind.

When you were working on the knife with the nick in it, how hard were you pressing? I'm not sure how hard to press when using the rough diamond. I seem to have some trouble getting a burr, so I don't think I'm pressing hard enough. However, I don't want to press too hard either.

When you were sharpening the knife, I was surprised to see you just use the extra course plate and ceramic rod. It sure seemed to do the trick, though. I'm just wondering, how come you didn't use the other plates and strop to sharpen that knife?

I haven't sharpened too many knives with my GSS, so I haven't used the ceramic rod much. The instructions say to use it for a recurve blade. I have a Buck Spitfire with a slight recurve on it. I haven't used it enough to need to sharpen it yet. If you have any recurve blades, how well of a job do you think the ceramic rod does? Is it possible to sharpen a recurve with the plates?
Click to expand...
Thanks man

Of course, I'd love to help spread the addiction to Help make another addict :)

I'm pressing maybe 3lbs to 5lbs of pressure. Just enough not to lose control of my angle yet enough to remove some steel

Too much pressure can make you bevels Uneven.

Haha, it good to see your working to get a burr

Now your really sharpening!

It just takes time and lots of passes. It's more about the passes then insane amounts of pressure.
Scrubbing passes like in the video helps immensely

Very laborious haha.

Why don't I use the other grits?

No need.

Sharpeness comes from the shape of the apex not the finish.

Also the ceramic works so good I haven't had the need to use fine grit diamonds unless I want a shinny bevel

How well the ceramic works depends on how dull your knife is

It's really only for honing.

If you need to set a new bevel and apex,

You can use the corners of the diamond stones to sharpen the recurve.

I make a video for recurves in the future.


cbwx34 said:
Good stuff... gotten tips out of each one. Keep it up!
Click to expand...

Right on brother.

Thank ya kindly
:)
sir_mike said:
Just watched these earlier. I also just caught the waterstone's one. I will keep my eye on this thread for others and glad I didn't hijack this thread.

Thx. for posting them and keep up the good work! :)

Still waiting for my Worksharp Guided system to show up. I don't really want to mess with waterstones as I don't want to soak them or have to flatten them constantly so just gonna try the Worksharp system and maybe the Shapton Pro's in like a 500 grit and 2000 grit sometime if I decide they are worth it money wise or if I don't like the Worksharp for some reason! I don't need nor want anything over say a 2k finish at best on my blades! Now if I end up getting back into straight razors, then that is a problem for sure as they seem to require a big progression in stone grits. :)
Click to expand...

Nice, Thank you, your welcome.

The GSS is a great system, it's not as nice a full set of stones but what a great price for the ability to do reprofliing , repair work freehand.
 
Here's a video for getting into freehand sharpening.

[Youtube]W1eEHnMJ64E[/YouTube]

In the video, I use an aluminum oxide combo stone I got from my grandfather

Cheap ones can be bought for ($8-15)

You can also get a SiC stone or waterstone for cheap under ($30)
The knife used is a stainless kiwi knife from Thailand ($10)

They're actually decent knives and great for practice since they are so thin and soft.

A paper towel for the base at the egde of a counter top keeps the stone from moving and gives you enough wrist clearance to do work.


For flatting use a clean flat piece of concrete sidewalk outside

After your stone has been soaked of course.




You don't need the fanciest stones to make a knife razor sharp.

But it certainly does make the process more enjoyable.
 
DeadboxHero said:
Thanks man

Of course, I'd love to help spread the addiction to Help make another addict :)

I'm pressing maybe 3lbs to 5lbs of pressure. Just enough not to lose control of my angle yet enough to remove some steel

Too much pressure can make you bevels Uneven.

Haha, it good to see your working to get a burr

Now your really sharpening!

It just takes time and lots of passes. It's more about the passes then insane amounts of pressure.
Scrubbing passes like in the video helps immensely

Very laborious haha.

Why don't I use the other grits?

No need.

Sharpeness comes from the shape of the apex not the finish.

Also the ceramic works so good I haven't had the need to use fine grit diamonds unless I want a shinny bevel

How well the ceramic works depends on how dull your knife is

It's really only for honing.

If you need to set a new bevel and apex,

You can use the corners of the diamond stones to sharpen the recurve.

I make a video for recurves in the future.
Click to expand...

Maybe I wasn't pressing hard enough then. I think another issue I was having is I don't go back and forth like you do. I would make about 20 passes on one side then switch to the other. Or I would just keep going on one side and get frustrated after making like 30 passes with no noticeable burr. I always thought you had to do the same number of passes on each side. I think I'm going practice your method on one of my other knives.

That's interesting about the apex. I thought the finer grits give a finer edge so it's sharper. Is that not right?

I thought the ceramic would only be good for honing, too. It's just so fine. If you have a dull recurve blade, it seems like it would take forever to sharpen using the ceramic.

I'm almost thinking I could have saved the money on the upgrade kit now. :p Nah, I'm glad I have it even though I may not use it as much after reading this.

I'm definitely looking forward to the video on recurves.
 
JayC783 said:
Maybe I wasn't pressing hard enough then. I think another issue I was having is I don't go back and forth like you do. I would make about 20 passes on one side then switch to the other. Or I would just keep going on one side and get frustrated after making like 30 passes with no noticeable burr. I always thought you had to do the same number of passes on each side. I think I'm going practice your method on one of my other knives.

That's interesting about the apex. I thought the finer grits give a finer edge so it's sharper. Is that not right?

I thought the ceramic would only be good for honing, too. It's just so fine. If you have a dull recurve blade, it seems like it would take forever to sharpen using the ceramic.

I'm almost thinking I could have saved the money on the upgrade kit now. :p Nah, I'm glad I have it even though I may not use it as much after reading this.

I'm definitely looking forward to the video on recurves.
Click to expand...

Let me be more specific about the other grits.

The finer finish can be sharper but it depends on how its executed.

It's very very easy to "round" the apex moving up the grit

The mirco convexing is due to slight angle inconsistencies that add up and Evently "blunt" the apex

You'll be confused because the finish looks great but it will cut horrible.

These edges are working at a level beyond what the human eye can see.

But the paper never lies

If that edge doest bite when starting a push cut that's a rounded apex.
It takes great skill to prevent rounding the apex with a mirror finish
And lots of time.

Now you see a mirror finish doesn't always equal more performance.
And even when well executed, the performance can be marginal unless it meets a specific cutting job I.e shaving or cool factor ;) "sport edges"

What do you do if you round it?

Go back to the last grit, increase pressure, finish with lighter pressure and continue with focus to hold the same angle





I don't use the other fine diamond plates unless my objective is a mirror finish.

Otherwise , jumping up the ceramic does an amazing job refining the apex (removing any remaining burrs and debris on the apex)

Stropping really takes the edge to more refined state.

But too much pressure on the strop and your back to rounding the apex.

You didn't waste your money on the upgrade kit.

You got the most important diamond plate for reprofiling and the strop for making some killer edges

You also have the option to make a mirrior polished bevel.

It's nice to have options.

Hope that's not confusing

Thanks for your interest.

Shawn
 
How to sharpen tips and recurves


[Youtube]xP9amk2IOm4[/YouTube]
 
What is the longest blade length that you have sharpened on the both the Worksharp GSS and the Field Sharpener?

Just curious as I see that as the only possibly drawback as the stone sizes seem small.

Thx.
 
sir_mike said:
What is the longest blade length that you have sharpened on the both the Worksharp GSS and the Field Sharpener?

Just curious as I see that as the only possibly drawback as the stone sizes seem small.

Thx.
Click to expand...

A 10" fillet knife.

For a really big knife I'd just remove the base and sharpen in my hands
 
DeadboxHero said:
Let me be more specific about the other grits.

The finer finish can be sharper but it depends on how its executed.

It's very very easy to "round" the apex moving up the grit

The mirco convexing is due to slight angle inconsistencies that add up and Evently "blunt" the apex

You'll be confused because the finish looks great but it will cut horrible.

These edges are working at a level beyond what the human eye can see.

But the paper never lies

If that edge doest bite when starting a push cut that's a rounded apex.
It takes great skill to prevent rounding the apex with a mirror finish
And lots of time.

Now you see a mirror finish doesn't always equal more performance.
And even when well executed, the performance can be marginal unless it meets a specific cutting job I.e shaving or cool factor ;) "sport edges"

What do you do if you round it?

Go back to the last grit, increase pressure, finish with lighter pressure and continue with focus to hold the same angle





I don't use the other fine diamond plates unless my objective is a mirror finish.

Otherwise , jumping up the ceramic does an amazing job refining the apex (removing any remaining burrs and debris on the apex)

Stropping really takes the edge to more refined state.

But too much pressure on the strop and your back to rounding the apex.

You didn't waste your money on the upgrade kit.

You got the most important diamond plate for reprofiling and the strop for making some killer edges

You also have the option to make a mirrior polished bevel.

It's nice to have options.

Hope that's not confusing

Thanks for your interest.

Shawn
Click to expand...

Thanks for taking the time to help with my questions. I really appreciate it and you've really helped. What you said makes sense. Your recurve video was also a big help. Now I don't have to worry about sharpening my Buck Spitfire. After watching your videos, I think I may start trying to sharpen my knives with the GSS locked with no guides. That was my eventual goal with the thing anyway.
 
sir_mike said:
What is the longest blade length that you have sharpened on the both the Worksharp GSS and the Field Sharpener?

Just curious as I see that as the only possibly drawback as the stone sizes seem small.

Thx.
Click to expand...

If a picture is worth a thousand words then a video must be billions

[Youtube]WoPT_rQH-p8[/YouTube]
 
JayC783 said:
Thanks for taking the time to help with my questions. I really appreciate it and you've really helped. What you said makes sense. Your recurve video was also a big help. Now I don't have to worry about sharpening my Buck Spitfire. After watching your videos, I think I may start trying to sharpen my knives with the GSS locked with no guides. That was my eventual goal with the thing anyway.
Click to expand...

Yeah man no problem, enjoy :)
 
I'd like to thank you for taking the time to do all this...lots of good info!!! I guess like many on here I'm still looking for the best way to get a great edge on my knives. Keeping the angle consistent doing free hand work seems to the hardest thing, and I've always been a little leery of going to a powered machine thinking I'm going to grind away way more metal than I should.

I've had good luck with my lansky and a leather strop for small blades, but it doesn't seem to work as well on longer blades.

Dumb question...wouldn't using auto wet/dry sand paper be the same as stones for a lot less money? I've used it before and it seems to work, I go down to 2500 grit. I'm sure I must be missing something.

I keep looking at the WSKTS-KO, just not sure if I should pull the trigger or not.
 
kane22 said:
I'd like to thank you for taking the time to do all this...lots of good info!!! I guess like many on here I'm still looking for the best way to get a great edge on my knives. Keeping the angle consistent doing free hand work seems to the hardest thing, and I've always been a little leery of going to a powered machine thinking I'm going to grind away way more metal than I should.

I've had good luck with my lansky and a leather strop for small blades, but it doesn't seem to work as well on longer blades.

Dumb question...wouldn't using auto wet/dry sand paper be the same as stones for a lot less money? I've used it before and it seems to work, I go down to 2500 grit. I'm sure I must be missing something.

I keep looking at the WSKTS-KO, just not sure if I should pull the trigger or not.
Click to expand...

I remember being a po'boy and buying sand paper to reprofile knives.

It works but stones in the end are my prefence.


The wskts ko is sweet.

Here a video of me using it freehand.

I'm half awake and I need to purchase a new coarse belt but

Yea works great.
[Youtube]oPrehsafM4s[/YouTube]
 
kane22 said:
I'd like to thank you for taking the time to do all this...lots of good info!!! I guess like many on here I'm still looking for the best way to get a great edge on my knives. Keeping the angle consistent doing free hand work seems to the hardest thing, and I've always been a little leery of going to a powered machine thinking I'm going to grind away way more metal than I should.

I've had good luck with my lansky and a leather strop for small blades, but it doesn't seem to work as well on longer blades.

Dumb question...wouldn't using auto wet/dry sand paper be the same as stones for a lot less money? I've used it before and it seems to work, I go down to 2500 grit. I'm sure I must be missing something.

I keep looking at the WSKTS-KO, just not sure if I should pull the trigger or not.
Click to expand...

It works great, but the give of the wet/dry makes it not the best choice for thin ground V bevels. No doubt though, it is convenient and very effective IMHO. It never dishes and never plugs or glazes, at least not that cannot be quickly remedied with a fresh sheet. I like it because it doesn't need oil or water and is a good match to a messy environment like my workshop, or when rapid touchups are needed in the kitchen.

Drawbacks are you cannot apply a lot of force to speed grinding, you have to switch to a rougher grit or the life of the paper will suffer. You must keep it clean as you work or the paper will load up and life will suffer - an artist eraser or synthetic wine cork work very well. And of course it wears out and so you have to have enough familiarity to know when to move it or change it out, but that's the same for all abrasive surfaces.

I make a textured sharpening block (Washboard) linked through my signature below that effectively addresses the give issues associated with wet/dry and lapping films, and by extension many conventional strop surfaces. It also provides better tactile feedback for freehand sharpening, especially at the finer end of the spectrum where most hard abrasives tend to fall off in feedback.

Martin
 
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