• The BladeForums.com 2024 Traditional Knife is ready to order! See this thread for details: https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/bladeforums-2024-traditional-knife.2003187/
    Price is $300 $250 ea (shipped within CONUS). If you live outside the US, I will contact you after your order for extra shipping charges.
    Order here: https://www.bladeforums.com/help/2024-traditional/ - Order as many as you like, we have plenty.

  • Today marks the 24th anniversary of 9/11. I pray that this nation does not forget the loss of lives from this horrible event. Yesterday conservative commentator Charlie Kirk was murdered, and I worry about what is to come. Please love one another and your family in these trying times - Spark

First knife sharpener?

H

hhkang63

Joined
Apr 19, 2009
Messages
51
I am looking to buy a knife sharpening system, and it looks like I have several choices...
So far, some of the products I've heard about are Spyderco Sharpmaker, DMT Aligner, and EdgePro Apex.

I like the Sharpmaker for simplicity, but I'll be sharpening all the knives in my house with it...and my kitchen knives need MAJOR sharpening, and I'm just not sure the Sharpmaker is for this task. It'll prolly do just fine for my Kershaw Blur, but I may need something more heavy duty...

Also, I like the guided systems of the DMT and the EdgePro, since I've never sharpened a knife before. It seems like the EdgePro's price is waaaaay up there, whiile the DMT is still reasonable.

So my question is, is the DMT Aligner the best choice for me? Or do you recommend other ones, even not mentioned by me?
 
A sharpmaker will be a great choice for touching up blades, you can do reprofiles with it, but it takes a very long time, you should consider getting the sharpmaker with the diamond rods.
 
many people struggle with the sharpmakers at first but they either practice and get it or get a different system. Either way the sharpmaker is a good system. I however do not care for it. I have a lanskey pro kit. I just prefer its type of system. Its great and lasts more then a life time! Plus they are a bit cheaper!
 
Just looked through the Lansky product line...I like it! What is the difference in the natural vs Diamond and Arkansas stone sets?

-Hunter
 
Again, the Sharpmaker is good for touch-ups. You can maintain a good sharp knife once you get the angles on the knife to match the angles on the unit and assuming you don't want to change the angles on the edge, don't need to reprofile or thin the blade on a knife (which you have to do periodically, sometimes even when they are new) and don't do to much damage to a knife. For more then that other systems go much faster, in differences of hours.

None of the systems you mentioned come close to the Edgepro for speed, quality & versatility, or build and design quality of the unit IMO . The Edgepro's are truly professional units. Some folks even use these to sharpen for hire. I don't think you will find anyone doing that with any of the others mentioned. Of course the EP is not as fast as a belt grinder. You can bear down with coarse grits for very fast roughing, reprofiling, etc. with the unit anchored to a table and then get down to very light controlled strokes for sharpening and polishing. Of course you get what you pay for and the Edgepro is a little bigger if you want to use it in the field (pack it). The Apex packs into a smaller space then the Pro model. If you are a knife nut and become addicted to sharpening you will probably end up with and EdgePro at some point anyway so just do it now. Get the best before you try the rest.

I would look to the DMT Aligner, Gatco, or Lanksy because of price and size (being more convenient to pack and use in the field). I haven't' tried the DMT but I like the looks of it and it seems like diamond stones are the way you would want to go on any of these little units (any of those three) to help pick up the speed. I assume you are talking about the DMT Aligner as it is roughly the same size and price as the others you mentioned. You can also use the clamp from the Aligner as a guide for a bench stone. The Gatco and Lansky seem a little tedious to me as your are holding both the knife and stones in your hands (as opposed to mounting the EP on a table or counter). I tired them both and took them back (I gave the Sharpmaker away). They will do the job and have more capability then the Sharpmaker because of the range of grits available and stones for sharpening serrations. I think the Gatco has longer guide rods and maybe stones then the Lansky. I thought the guide rods were too short on the Lansky. The Edgpro has a ramp to keep you from hitting the edge of the stone when you go off the end and allows you to use the whole stone reducing dishing (uneven wear on the stones).

Generally diamond stones cut faster and leave bigger scratch patterns then water stones for the same grit. The edge pro is using water stones (and film tapes if you choose to go all the way to a polished edge).
 
Last edited:
The EP is durable. Mine ( I bought it used) is marked 1998 and it looks darn near new.

I don't think I have a dull knife anywhere in the house now!! Even the daughter living on her own has almost scary sharp knives. And I'm just learning.

As they say....."it will be the last sharpener you'll ever buy", is right!! Now just what to do with the drawer full of the other knife sharpeners that I have????

My vote goes to the Edge Pro Apex........

Paul B12
 
The Spyderco is the most versatile imo. You can't beat it for sharpening hawkbills, recurves, serrated knives, and other odds and ends.

The EdgePro is expensive, but excellent if you're doing a large amount of reprofiling straight edge knives.

The Lansky I wouldn't recommend. I could get an edge, but for me it was finicky to work with.
 
True about the Sharpmaker's ability to sharpen unusual blade styles. I have modified my EP with stones to do all those things, but normally that is true. Otherwise I probably would have kept my Sharpmaker for special occasions and touch ups. I use the ceramic steel from the EP or a loaded leather strop for touch ups depending on the knife and where I am.

Let me qualify the EP being more versatile. For most blades, the EP is more versatile because of its design allowing any angle and stone choices making it able to remove more metal in a reasonable amount of time, while doing it accurately. It can sharpen blades from dull to sharp, removing a lot of material if necessary. That is required to reprofile blades by thinning, adding back or compound bevels, changing the edge angle, or even if you just want to keep the existing edge angle from the factory or previous sharpening (you may not want the Sharpmaker's 15°or 20°), etc. The EP can use film on glass plates, water stones, diamond stones available from EP. If you want to make you own you can buy the stone blanks (metal backing plates) and mount you own stones like diamond V rods or dowls with file paper abrasives for sharpening serrations, your own preference in water stones, any abrasive paste on glass or film sheets, etc.

Of course you could attach sandpaper to the V rods on a Sharpmaker to get any grit you want. Just a bit more tedious, temporary, and wont cut as fast.
 
Last edited:
gary jp4 said:
True about the Sharpmaker's ability to sharpen unusual blade styles. I have modified my EP with stones to do all those things, but normally that is true. Otherwise I probably would have kept my Sharpmaker for special occasions and touch ups. I use the ceramic steel from the EP or a loaded leather strop for touch ups depending on the knife and where I am.

Let me qualify the EP being more versatile. For most blades, the EP is more versatile because of its design allowing any angle and stone choices making it able to remove more metal in a reasonable amount of time, while doing it accurately. It can sharpen blades from dull to sharp, removing a lot of material if necessary. That is required to reprofile blades by thinning, adding back or compound bevels, changing the edge angle, or even if you just want to keep the existing edge angle from the factory or previous sharpening (you may not want the Sharpmaker's 15°or 20°), etc. The EP can use film on glass plates, water stones, diamond stones available from EP. If you want to make you own you can buy the stone blanks (metal backing plates) and mount you own stones like diamond V rods or dowls with file paper abrasives for sharpening serrations, your own preference in water stones, any abrasive paste on glass or film sheets, etc.

Of course you could attach sandpaper to the V rods on a Sharpmaker to get any grit you want too. Just a bit more tedious, temporary, and wont cut as fast.
Click to expand...

Agreed about the variety of angles and mediums able to be used on the EdgePro. Lord knows I wish the Sharpmaker had 10-15-20-25 degree slots. :D
 
Where can I purchase the EdgePro other than the factory site, and how much do they go for?
I think the price will be the major decision maker here...I'm probably leaning towards the DMT Aligner for my first sharpener, but the EdgePro is definitely in the near future.

-Hunter

edit - and how do the dmt/lansky system fair on curved blades?
 
Last edited:
I prefer to hone freehand on benchstones (DMT diamond hones). An angle guide can be useful -- I use an old Buck one -- as it helps to create a consistent edge angle. There is no magic to sharpening and there are lots of books on the topic.
 
Roger999 said:
A sharpmaker will be a great choice for touching up blades, you can do reprofiles with it, but it takes a very long time, you should consider getting the sharpmaker with the diamond rods.
Click to expand...

Let me make it clear that it takes a VERY LONG TIME to reprofile even with diamond rods. Comments about how the diamond rods were needed turned out to be misleading for me. I got them, and while they are quicker than the coarse stones (which IMO would take an eternity to reprofile a blade), I am getting ready to abandon the SharpMaker for reprofiling and buy a DMT aligner and benchstones.

The SM is a great system but not for reprofiling.
 
hhkang63 said:
Where can I purchase the EdgePro other than the factory site, and how much do they go for?
I think the price will be the major decision maker here...I'm probably leaning towards the DMT Aligner for my first sharpener, but the EdgePro is definitely in the near future.

-Hunter

edit - and how do the dmt/lansky system fair on curved blades?
Click to expand...

Get the EP from the factory. I have seen other folks selling them but the price was the same or higher and they had a limited number of options and selection. http://edgeproinc.com/productsapex.html

I have not used the DMT Aligner but the clamping is the same as the Lansky and Getco, both of which I have owned, so it should work just as well. They work fine on curved blades (not so great on hawk bill blades which are curved the other way). If the curve is such that the radius of the stone on the arm is going to change the edge angle (big blades like a big hunting knife or kitchen knife like a Chef) then you need to re-clamp one or more times to cover the whole blade.

Reprofiling on any of those small units is tedious. It is hard to apply much pressure. With the EdgePro you have a lot more leverage and automatically apply more force. You have to work to not apply force when finishing, trying to keep a light touch like when removing burrs.

Since it is easy to apply a little more pressure, diamond stones are not needed on the EdgePro. The water stones work fine on most types of steel hard or soft. The only time diamonds are recommended is for ceramic knives and EdgePro carries diamond stones for that purpose only. Ben Dale doesn't like them or recommend them for use on steel or for lapping his stones. He says when you bare down on soft steel blades with a diamond stone the stones grab into the metal and stick, tearing the diamonds off the stone.
You can also exert a lot of force on whetstone when free hand sharpening. Usually this is not a good idea but higher pressures can be used on coarse stones when removing a lot of material (reprofiling).

The EP also works great on curved blades. Have you watched the video . http://edgeproinc.com/sharpeningtips.html
 
Alberta Ed said:
I prefer to hone freehand on benchstones (DMT diamond hones). An angle guide can be useful -- I use an old Buck one -- as it helps to create a consistent edge angle. There is no magic to sharpening and there are lots of books on the topic.
Click to expand...

I sharpen free hand too. In addition to an EP Pro I also have a set of Norton (and various other) stones, various lapping compounds & plates, a bench strop with loaded leather strops, a 1x42" belt sander with belts in logical increments from 80 grit down to 9 micron and leather belts loaded down to .5 micron + and unloaded hard belt for power stropping. I have a set of Shapton Glass stones and a DMT X Coarse plate on the way. I also have 5 bench grinders and polishers and a 6x48" belt sander but don't use them for sharpening.

I agree there is no magic to sharpening. I like the freedom of using bench stones too. However, in most cases the more accurate the edge angle is held the better the result. I guess I am a knife nut and like to have more then just a working sharp blade. In many cases I like to show off a bit, and feed my ego. I like to get knives as sharp as possible and looking good (polished). I see you like using a guide for an accurate edge as well.

I am not good enough yet to get the same results from free hand as with the EP. Still, freehand I get very sharp blades that work well and most folks would be happy with, some cut themselves on because they have never had a knife that sharp, etc, but I want more. The EP is easier to get those kind of results on and it is done very fast. It is the fastest system I have used other then a belt grinder. It takes lots of concentration for me to get even close freehand to what the EP can do even when operated by a novice. On the EP I can keep a very precise angle and repeat it again when changing from coarser to finer and finer stones until polished. One minor slip, freehand, to a more obtuse edge angle and I feel I have ruined what I have been working on and need to back up. If it is not too big an angle change it probably doesn't matter much, still cuts well, and just becomes more of a convex edge. But, I don't like it and many can't hold an accurate angle, or pick one for that matter, as well as I can. Much of a slip and the edge really is ruined.

I have read that the Buck Guide is one of the best of all the little gadgets and guides. Better then the Lansky and Gatco and you get to use full size bench stones and direct the pressure on the knife to the stone. Unfortunately, I understand they don't make the Buck guide anymore. The DMT looks like it might come the closest to the Buck of all the currently available guides when used with Bench Stones instead of the little DMT plates.

Do you have and pictures of the Buck guide? How old is it?

I like the EdgePro for its precision, and speed. It is also easier to get a good job then with bench stones (freehand) IMO. I sharpen freehand and prefer it for some blades. I also can't always pack an Edgepro. It is easy to carry a few bench stones. IMO, with an EP a beginner with some mechanical aptitude and a vision of what a sharp knife is (a plan) can get results equal to a professional with only a few hours of experience. It might take years to get to that level freehand. A guide might speed up the process though.

I enjoy sharpening so I compete with my Edgepro and try to be that good freehand and with a belt sander (which is easier by the way).
 
Last edited:
Here is a vote for the DMT Aligner jig
I added an Extra course stone

I use it for rebeveling D2 with ease
The final extra Fine make the knife very sharp

It is very easy to use.

A good jig to start and will not grow out of it.
 
I love the DMT Aligner for getting exact, clean angles. I use the clamp with the 6x2 benchstones with great results.

The thing about the Aligner is that you have to find a "sweet spot" on all of your knives so that it's in the same position all the time. Usually I get one of the... "sides" of the clamp to go into the first jimping groove, and that's it. Also, you've gotta make sure the clamp is straight when you tighten it. Other than that, it's a simple and accurate system.
 
I just got the DMT Magna Guide kit this morning. I decided to try it on a cheap old folder I had laying around. It took a little while with the red side (fine) to re-profile, and about half that time with the green side (extra fine) to bring it to arm shaving sharp. Okay, so I look funny with bald patches on my arm -- but I now have a sharp knife, with very little effort. I would imagine that, after a few passes on the strop, it'll be hair popping sharp.

Wish I had of bought this thing years ago!
 
Don't have any pix of the Buck angle guide, sorry:(; I think I bought it around 25 years ago. Maybe someone else can come up with a pic. It is basically two thick metal plates with a threaded tightener on top -- you can clamp it down very tightly. The edges are a bit worn after much use but it still works well. Wish Buck still made them.
 
I just ordered the DMT Aligner Deluxe kit...thanks for the help guys!

What is a strop, and should I be looking into one? Any specific ones you guys suggest?

-Hunter
 
hhkang63 said:
I just ordered the DMT Aligner Deluxe kit...thanks for the help guys!

What is a strop, and should I be looking into one? Any specific ones you guys suggest?

-Hunter
Click to expand...

Usually a piece of leather loaded with a polishing compound.

Stropping is usually a process of dragging the edge (trailing edge) over something to finish the edge.

Hand American makes some really nice bench strops with magnetic metal tops where you can quick change the media. But, it could be as simple as a piece of post-it note one a piece of glass or a scrap piece of leather loaded with compound on a piece of wood or glass. Specialty leather like scrubbed Bulls Butt, etc. are common. A common loading media is Chromium oxide, or diamond spray. Even just stropping on a piece of paper (or better a phone book or magazine cover) greatly refines the edge after coming off of stones. It aligns the little strands of metal making up the edge. Steeling with a smooth steel or ceramic steel has a similar effect.

The result is quite impressive.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top