Getting an even egde with a Lansky?

[glocker199]

I can never get an even edge using a Lanksy on anything with a blade longer than about 2.5 inches. I can get great edges on short blades and the first 3/4 of longer edges. The tip end always gets screwed up on longer edges. Any suggestions?

 

[bob124]

the lansky 4 rod ceramic ? i use it for knives like my DOUK DOUK or a Buck 119 and it's very good.

 

[kniferbro]

I think its kind of inherent in the system, I always had this problem as well

 

[herisson]

I understand you're talking about the clamp and stones on wire rod system. The fact is : you must have a flat and consistent part of the blade to clamp onto (distal tapered spines, hollow grinds = problem). Second : the further you work from the clamp, the flatter the angle gets (good for up to 4" blades, if you can clamp the blade around the middle, not so good if you must clamp near the tang and for 5", 6" and more). At the tip, you will sharpen at a flatter angle, and you will need a hell of a lot of patience especially if you work with classic stones instead of ceramics... And if it's a D2 blade...Help !) Check your work constantly with a magnifying glass to keep consistency over the length and side to side. The end result is definitely worth the hassle because this system can give you a consistent, centered and equal secondary bevel... What most knives lack out of the box ! You can sharpen, strop, refine a correct bevel with minimal work but you will never get nowhere if you haven't a correct bevel to start with. And for this, the Lansky clamp with the five classic stones has done wonders for me.

 

[stretchskeletor]

On blades with no flat area to clamp on to I use blue painters tape to build an area to clamp on to and instead of holding on to the clamp I hold onto the knife that way the clamp does not change positions due to any pressure.

 

[drichardson67]

I understand you're talking about the clamp and stones on wire rod system. The fact is : you must have a flat and consistent part of the blade to clamp onto (distal tapered spines, hollow grinds = problem). Second : the further you work from the clamp, the flatter the angle gets (good for up to 4" blades, if you can clamp the blade around the middle, not so good if you must clamp near the tang and for 5", 6" and more). At the tip, you will sharpen at a flatter angle, and you will need a hell of a lot of patience especially if you work with classic stones instead of ceramics... And if it's a D2 blade...Help !) Check your work constantly with a magnifying glass to keep consistency over the length and side to side. The end result is definitely worth the hassle because this system can give you a consistent, centered and equal secondary bevel... What most knives lack out of the box ! You can sharpen, strop, refine a correct bevel with minimal work but you will never get nowhere if you haven't a correct bevel to start with. And for this, the Lansky clamp with the five classic stones has done wonders for me.

Good advice here. I have a lansky with the diamond, and really fine ceramics. Adequate for me. Longer blades are an issue for most sharpening systems. The closer you 'cheat' toward the tip with the clamp, the blunter the bevel will become. What I had to figure out was keeping the plane of the honing action flat. I would end up with a slightly convex edge because the wire rod would bend more at the end of the long stroke then it did as I pushed the stone towards the clamp. I eventually remedied this by gripping the stone with one hand at each end (using both hands, then) so I could get a consistent pressure for the full stroke without bending the rod.

This wasn't such a big deal earlier in my knife 'adventures' when I had cheap steels, but now that I use only powder steels like s110v and cts 20cp, I found I needed more pressure on the steel to get the hone to remove anything.

Convex edges are pretty cool, if you can get a way to do them right, but I'm definitely getting a better edge once I figured out how to keep from bending the rod at the long end of the stroke...and deciding which edge of the guide hole to orient it to. Took some practice, but worth the while.

Also, because the rods do bend, I make sure they are all on an even plane with the bottom edge of the stone. That keeps everything as consistent as possible.

I know this isn't really addressing your question, but hopefully it will help you get a better edge...if I've explained it adequately.

 

[Obsessed with Edges]

I can never get an even edge using a Lanksy on anything with a blade longer than about 2.5 inches. I can get great edges on short blades and the first 3/4 of longer edges. The tip end always gets screwed up on longer edges. Any suggestions?

Assuming the Lansky guided/clamped system, the location selected for the clamp on the blade will make the most difference. On blades longer than maybe 4" or so, it's good to locate the clamp closer to mid-blade, as opposed to back at/near the tang or heel of the blade. Individual blade grinds will also bring some variation in bevel widths, depending on blade width, curvature and thickness. Blades that are both sharply swept (big belly) and very thick near the tip can sometimes wind up with some very wide bevels near the tip.


David

 

[bgentry]

I can never get an even edge using a Lanksy on anything with a blade longer than about 2.5 inches. I can get great edges on short blades and the first 3/4 of longer edges. The tip end always gets screwed up on longer edges. Any suggestions?

What about the last part of the point of the blade gets screwed up? I can think of several possibilities. Not sharp is one. A wider bevel approaching the tip is another. What problems are you experiencing?

Brian.

 

[Squashfan]

I too have struggled with this and my solution is probably the worst. I hold the stone, abrasive side up, in one hand and the knife in the other. I use it like a guided free hand system by moving the knife instead of the stone. Best way I have found to do tips on the Lansky. That helped my technique when I went free hand, also.