Gatco Sharpening system

Hard H2O said:
I have not found the need to reclamp on the larges knife I have sharpened ( a 10" chef). I think any change in angle is negligible and doesn't affect the use of the blade. I have not percieved any difference in slicing and cutting between the 10" blade with no reclamp and the other kitchen cutlery I have sharpened on the GATCO.
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I doubt that many of us could 'feel' a difference of one degree in cutting angle when cutting things, which is about what we'd probably wind up with if one didn't move the clamp on a 10" knife. But we'd all be able to 'see' a difference in bevel width between the area where the clamp was fastened and the extreme other ends. Personally, I don't shiv a git about seeing that in my kitchen knives, so when I was using only a GATCO and sharpening longer kitchen knives, I didn't move the clamp either. But... I did NOT want to see that in longer fixed bladed camping/hunting/combat knives so I did have to move the clamp. Not for edge angle, but for visual aesthetics.

With the Sharpmaker you are limited to I believe 15° per side and 20° per side.
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... unless you make up a couple of wooden wedges to go under the base. Not too difficult to change the angles on a Sharpmaker. :D

I make two wedges for each desired angle, and set them on the table in front of me, staggered about two inches front to back. First the Sharpmaker is sitting on the left forward wedge and I stroke a few times on the left rod. Then I just push the Sharpmaker back two inches so it sits on the back read wedge and take a few strokes on the right side rod. It took me almost an entire 20 minutes to make a set of four pair using a 2x4 and a table saw. Easy and cheap. :thumbup:

I'll admit that I don't do this very often. I'd use a different system if I really want different edges. But I do use it to touch up my EDC if I've been cutting a lot of cardboard and it needs more than just a strop. I can match the angle that I've set with the EdgePro, and give it a few swipes with the fine stone on the Sharpmaker.

Stitchawl
 
anewrnn said:
Looks very similar in design to the edge pro?
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Like a hybrid between the EdgePro and a GATCO. It would be nice if we had a 'user' here to tell us how it performs. I'm out of the buying game these days until someone builds a better mousetrap. :yawn:

Stitchawl
 
There are a few systems that are rod guided like the Edge Pro.

I have KME that I got form the manufacturer based on some earlier threads. They seem like an honest company and offered it based on my telling what the GATCO was like so that I would have first hand knowledge of what their system can do.

The KME works. The all work. Scrape steel on stone and make the bevels meet and your blade will be sharp.

The KME has a spherical bushing to take away play in the rod. I think that the slop in the guide of the GATCO helps keep the stone on the bevel. When you push down on the stone it will meet the bevel. No need to hold the rod as accurately as that in my experience. The spherical bushing seems like another part that would add cost without adding value.

The KME has an infinitely adjustable guide from 17° to 30° depending on the clamping and blade width and geometry. With the 6 angles on the GATCO I think I am covered. The KME's screw adjustment seems again to be added cost. The stamped guide on the GATCO is simple and it works. The 11° and the 15°setting on the GATCO produce nice fine edges for the kitchen cutlery.

The KME can use any 4" x1" stone. The problem is that 4" stones are not readily available. GATCO sells a variety of accessory stones.

The KME in standard stones is $80 and $100 for the diamond kit plus $20 for the base. The GATCO can be had for from $30 on up to $90 from Cabelas which includes the base.

The only disadvantage I have seen in the GATCO is that it can not handle really narrow blades like the smaller SAK. Other than that it has sharpened everything I have tried.

If you bought a KME I am sure that it would work for you. Better than the GATCO? Not in my experience.
 
stitchawl said:
But... I did NOT want to see that in longer fixed bladed camping/hunting/combat knives so I did have to move the clamp. Not for edge angle, but for visual aesthetics.


Stitchawl
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That is why these threads often seem to not help a lot. There are so many systems. They all work. We all have our reasons.

I have seen so many of these that seem to start out with someone who has already made up their mind and just need validation.

I wish the original poster good luck in finding a system that will work for them. I hope they report back with what they bought and how it works out.

Stay away from the carbide scrapers and you will be fine.
 
Why would you get the KME kit when you could just get the DMT aligner? It uses DMT stones just the wrong ones. Looks like a good system but I just don't see the advantage to it.
 
Frankly, I think the DMT Aligner is more versatile than the KME.

I can use the Aligner with or without the stones and still get adjustable angles using sandpaper, running the guide loops along side the abrasives so as not to wear them out. Not the same angles that I get with the rod-guided stones, but there are times when that's not so important to me. I don't think I'd want to carry the KME with me on a backpacking trip.

That being said, the KME looks to be well made, with steel parts. The DMT looks and feels like cheap plastic. For some people, that's an important consideration. Personally, since the DMT Aligner costs $12 and the KME costs $99, ....... :)

Stitchawl
 
stitchawl said:
Frankly, I think the DMT Aligner is more versatile than the KME.

I can use the Aligner with or without the stones and still get adjustable angles using sandpaper, running the guide loops along side the abrasives so as not to wear them out. Not the same angles that I get with the rod-guided stones, but there are times when that's not so important to me. I don't think I'd want to carry the KME with me on a backpacking trip.

That being said, the KME looks to be well made, with steel parts. The DMT looks and feels like cheap plastic. For some people, that's an important consideration. Personally, since the DMT Aligner costs $12 and the KME costs $99, ....... :)

Stitchawl
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Where did you find an aligner for $12 :O
 
bench hones, natural or top shelf synthetic, ascending grits.

doodlebugs don't make sharpening a knife one darn bit easier or faster to learn, first, and second they're suboptimal at actually installing and maintaining a proper convexed edge.

They not only do a crappy job, they prevent you from learning what a good job IS. I hate 'em, like a Dryland Baptist Preacher hates a bootleggin' shurff.
 
chococrazy said:
Where did you find an aligner for $12 :O
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Damn! You're right! It's only $9.95!

Just do a web search using as your parameters DMT aligner guide and you'll find several places selling it for between $10-$12. Remember, this is just for the clamp. There are no stones with it. But if you look at the photo displayed at "The Knife Center" you can see it being used with a large bench stone. I do it this same way but using wet/dry sandpaper. Just be sure to keep the guides OFF the abrasive or you'll grind them down too!

Works great. Actually, doing it this way gives you even more accurate angles than when using the stones in the guide rods. No free-play in the plastic guides when they are sliding along the table top!

Stitchawl
 
stitchawl said:
That being said, the KME looks to be well made, with steel parts. The DMT looks and feels like cheap plastic.
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The KME that I evaluated was a well made kit. Everything fit nicely and worked. The spherical bushing did indeed remove play from the rod. I just question the need for it.
 
I think something important to consider is the physical geometry of the blade you are going to sharpen. I have a brother to the GATCO system, the Lansky. They both work the same as many other systems; clamp the blade firmly, pick the angle and get going.

But without a flat spot on the spine to hold the blade securely, it is easy to get the angles off because the clamps don't hold the knife straight. So you can get a really flat angle on one side of the knife, and a much more shallow angle on the other side. This happens on knifes where the spine is completely beveled into the blade profile (as in all full flat ground blades) or where the blade has different chamfers or bevels ground along the spine. For the novice sharpener, this can be a real problem. There are other posts concerning sharpening with these clamp/angle/rod systems that discuss this.

My solution was a couple of tiny small wooden wedges on a complimentary angle to the blade grind, but I doubt if many would want to mess with this.

OTOH, the Sharpmaker, Crock sticks, or other "V" rod configurations don't have that problem. But my personal experience with reprofiling a new knife or resetting an edge on a long abused blade is a complete nightmare with the V rods no matter what they have as an abrasive. It gets there, but it just takes too long. (I was trying just now to think of reprofiling my S110V and D2 knives with a Sharpmaker... no thanks!)

But to me they are the best at touch ups and light sharpening since they are fast and easy to use.

So in my opinion, you may need both systems depending on your needs. I have a bad tendency to reprofile just about any knife I get, so I use the Lansky to reset the bevel and for first sharpening. After that, I use a 12" diamond chef's rod in 600 grit for edge maintenance, and strop if desired. After that initial edge set, the knives don't see the Lansky for a long time.

Robert
 
Getting back to the OP request for the pro's and con's of each system, I have both and use the Sharpmaker 90% of the time. Why? For my purposes, time outweighs the need for multiple angles. I can set up, touch up a blade, and pack away the Sharpmaker in 5 minutes or less. The GATCO takes longer to setup and stow. Also, for all of my current knives, including those in the kitchen, the 30°. and 40° angles on the Sharpmaker keep things easy, fast and consistent. I don't need to remember which knives are at 11° or 19° or 25°. The pocketknives and kitchen knives are 15°. The camp knives and hatchets are 20°. How sharp can I get them? My wife gets mad at me because our knives are too sharp and might hurt someone :rolleyes:.

Reprofiling is a toss-up. If you are taking a 20° knife to 15°, either system will take awhile. I haven't used the diamond rods, but hear they speed up this process alot for both systems.

Also, I'm not wild about the clamping system on the GATCO. Unless the knife has a perfectly flat plane to clamp onto, you may get some "wobble" in the blade when you are repeatedly passing the stones over the edge. That screws up the angle and you have to reset. Happens often to me.

My recommendation would be to start with the Sharpmaker and see how that works for you. If you want to start setting different angles and such, save up and get an APEX pro. That would be a significant upgrade to the GATCO.

Wanna buy a lightly used GATCO Pro, btw ;)
 
If you have the Sharpmaker and want angles other than 15 and 20 degrees, couldn't you just hold the knife off from perpendicular by the additional or fewer degrees? Really, the SM is just a benchstone at a set vertical angle instead of horizontal.
 
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