first sharpening system ......

J

Jeff1961

Joined
Jan 22, 2016
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sooo .... brand new to this . just got a crkt halfachance for a big knife and just ordered a schrade schf42 for everything else . thinking the lansky crock sticks (LCD5D) is a good choice and simple for a total newb . just keep the blade vertical and should make the recurve on the 42 a breeze to sharpen ..... i 'm thinking the 14 inch blade on the CRKT can be done in 3 sections? i'm open to suggestions but i am on a budget .
thanks , jeff
 
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Jeff1961 said:
sooo .... brand new to this . just got a crkt halfachance for a big knife and just ordered a schrade schf42 for everything else . thinking the lansky crock sticks (LCD5D) is a good choice and simple for a total newb . just keep the blade vertical and should make the recurve on the 42 a breeze to sharpen ..... i 'm thinking the 14 inch blade on the CRKT can be done in 3 sections? i'm open to suggestions but i am on a budget .
thanks , jeff
Click to expand...

I would avoid the 'crock stick' style sharpeners... more of a PITA then most would have you believe. They're slow, angles usually don't match what's on the knife, etc. More of a 'touch-up' device then an actual sharpener (and no fun at all on a 14" knife).

If you're wanting 'guided sharpening on a budget', I would look at one of the generic Edge Pro style machines, and get the better (genuine) EP stones. I personally don't think the quality of the generic devices is all that great, but others have gotten decent results with them, especially if you get better stones. Or look at the Lansky or DMT guided sharpeners (the ones with actual stones).

The recurve on the knife you mentioned doesn't look to be the deep, so you won't need 'sticks' to sharpen it... the stones in the sharpeners I mentioned should do just fine.
 
YUP .

I would add that the NARROW stones for the Edge Pro are useful for the recurve edges.

Yes don't expect factory grinds to be equal on both sides. Even on the guided systems you have to fight that and that usually means taking a very significant amount of metal off one of the bevels (the steeper one) to get the guide to work for you. Or the sticks to work for you. That means coarse stones and or lots of time. Some thing the crock sticks are laughably incapable of.
Then
When the blade begins to dull you might touch up on the sticks. For me even a touch up means starting with a fairly coarse stone, in the 300s then refine from there. The stuff I cut tends to take it's toll on the edge and I need to keep the bevel shallow/consistant while removing the microscopic dings besides just polishing the slightly less sharp (dulled) areas. I think that is true of most real EDC users.

If you only cut open plastic bags and cut strings off your clothes etc., then to start with before you use it much send the brand new knife to a professional sharpener. I would very strongly suggest sending it to one of the guys on Blade Forums and then you could consistently and easily touch up with the sticks. For the sticks get Spyderco Sharp Maker not the silly toy generic stuff.
 
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I would also recommend the Edge Pro but if your budget doesn't allow it, the Spyderco Sharpmaker would be a good system to maintain your knife. Just don't let it get really dull or it will take a lot of time on the sharp maker to bring it back where you want it. Good luck and welcome to Bladeforums!
 
thanks folks . i'm not interested in a electric sharpener . just noticed the Buck Knives 97082 EdgeTek Tri-Grit , it's $40 including tax at walmart . according to bucks website it has ...... "Tri-Grit: 325 Coarse, 750 Medium and 1200 Fine. Size: 10" x 1/2", overall length: 15 3/4", weight: 6.9 oz. The EdgeTek Ultra Steel 10" sharpener offers an easy carry sharpener with a 100% diamond coated three-sided surface and oval contour for sharpening a wide variety of blade edges. It is lightweight and perfect for storage in a kitchen drawer or toolbox. It is designed to handle a variety of blade geometries and provides the right grit for any task. Made in the USA" ...... . enough grit variety i think for most anything i'm likely to encounter and long enough for the 14 inch blade on my halfachance and the oval contour will let it play nice with a recurved or kukri blade . i know it's not DMT , but does Buck make decent diamond sharpeners ?
thanks , jeff

http://www.buckknives.com/product/edgetek-ultra-steel-10/97082-B/
 
Stay away from the diamond rod, they are just not that good for sharpening. Slightly rounding the edge of a stone will be all you need to sharpen recurve blades.

If you have an ACE hardware near you then go a pick up one of their combo stones. They are rather nice Aluminum Oxide stones that can produce exceptional results when combined with a strop. For about $10 it will get you started and allow you to get a better feel for the tools you might want to purchase for sharpening.

Once you get a basic understand for sharpening and want to get some better tools I would probably recommend DMT diamond products or Shapton Japanese waterstones. Both are exceptional sharpening tools but carry a higher price tag too so it can be a bit of an investment.
 
not diamond . but how about the Lansky Deluxe 5-Stone Sharpening System ? it's only $32 @ wally world . guided sharpening with a metal guide and 5 grits ....
http://www.walmart.com/ip/Lansky-Deluxe-Sharpening-System-Knife/4242367

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Check out the KME system. I started with a sharpmaker and wasn't happy with it. Took way too long to get blades sharp. Good for someone who doesn't use their blades much. I then moved up to a set of DMT diamonds. Got way better results a lot quicker, but still takes some skill to get the right angles and to get it hair poping sharp. I just got the KME and my only complaint is that I didn't get it sooner.
Trust me, I researched all sharpening systems including Edge pro, wicked edge, Gatco, Lansky etc. For the price and functionality, the choice was clear to me.
If you just want to touch up blades the Lansky will work. But this gets addicting and when you really feel a scary sharp blade, you will want that result every time and you will upgrade to a better system, wether its free handing or a guided system.
 
+1 on Djrichone Recommendation, although for my purposes the KME guided system is part of a training workflow for the kids. Excellent tool. Break in the diamond stones and learn to use it with old kitchen knives or that pocket knife that sits in the bottom of the toolbox. Watch some YouTube's before and after you order one.
 
my pay grade won't allow for a $100+ sharpener . the most i've considered is $50ish for the DMT Deluxe Aligner Kit , but i'm suspect of the durability of it's plastic clamp .... and would rather not spend $50 .....
 
Before I got my Wicked Edge system I was using the Lansky system shown above. To get as close as possible to the original edge I would push the rod with my index finger against one side of the given degreed openings. This would give me two slightly different available angles to choose from. Instead of just letting the rod flap around inside the hole. I found more accuracy doing it this way. I like the system. And still use it when dealing with serrations. I've re-profiled a few knives with it and am happy with the results.

I kind of wish I would have stopped off at the KME system before going right to the WE. Probably would have saved 500 or more dollars and got the same results. Although I do like sharpening both sides of the knife at the same time.
 
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I've sharpened a lot of knives with the lansky set up. The biggest thing you have to watch for is that you get all the rods in straight and level. They bend pretty easy so if one is off from the others you will not be hitting at the same angle. I'm not crazy about for blades larger than six inches either. So if you're on a budget I don't think it's bad. All the systems have a little bit of a learning curve. I've made a few tweaks to mine to try and keep it a little more consistent.

The KME system is one that I keep looking at too, but again a good bit more money.

Lots of youtube videos out there on all of them.
 
Jeff1961 said:
my pay grade won't allow for a $100+ sharpener . the most i've considered is $50ish for the DMT Deluxe Aligner Kit , but i'm suspect of the durability of it's plastic clamp .... and would rather not spend $50 .....
Click to expand...

Just was this post. In that case i'd go with the lansky. I think you'll find with a little practice you can get nice results with it.
 
Yep, Lansky is all you REALLY need, and like I said, I used it for a long time, finishing up with some hand stropping afterwards to get the mirrored finish. White to green to red.
 
Hopefully not chiming in to late,but you should go to Doziers home site(just Dozier knives on Google will get you there) and watch the video of Dan Crotts using the clamp from a DMT aligner on a bench stone. Although he's using a DMT stone any kind at the proper height would work. Really really check it out, it's worth the time.
Neal
 
Might be too late but I'd add my vote for the Lansky, in that price range it does a darn good job, and for many years that's all I used. I actually prefer the edge of the non-diamond stones except for the extra coarse diamond is really nice for profiling or removing damage. So if it were me I'd get the Standard 3-stone kit that you can get for under $25, then add the diamond coarse stone for $15. I like to use the guided systems to set the initial edge but use a sharpmaker for daily touch up, but you wouldn't need to spend the $50 on a sharpmaker you could get a much cheaper set of V ceramic rods. Lansky has a 4 rod kit you can get for under $15. So that would put you at $55 with a system that will cut fast with the diamond coarse stone, put a nice polished edge with the other non-diamond stones, and the V rod setup will make it easy to touch up and maintain.
 
I'll throw in a plug for the stropman strops when you decide you want to add that to your system. I used a piece of an old leather sling and made one that cost me nothing when I got started. Not the best but it did help clean up the edge.
 
Lansky is good and inexpensive. A couple of things to watch out. It is extremely important to make sure all rods are straight and level as kane pointed out above. Also, be patient and do not apply too much force (which can bend the rod easily). For sharpening recurves, the force needs to be even less and I found it helpful to tilt the stone a bit so that only one edge is hitting the blade. Round the edge of the stone in advance for that purpose. In fact, I think an improvement to the Lansky system is to round edges of all stones (well, that will not help the company make money on selling those stones specifically manufactured for sharpening recurves). Lastly, do not waste money on the Lansky leather strop.
 
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