How did you learn to sharpen?

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rob5

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Jul 10, 2006
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I am a relatively new knife collector and have yet to learn how to sharpen. As someone who cooks as a hobby I have a large collection of kitchen knives, but I have always sent those out to be professionaly sharpened, although I would love to learn to do it myself and I certainly want to sharpen my hunting and tactical knives myself. Unfortunately the place that sharpens my kitchen knives does not teach lessons.

I would think that a hands on lesson would be ideal, because reading about various angles, etc. does not really translate well unless you see it. Unfortunately I live in Manhattan, which, while I love this City, seems like a virtual wasteland for knife owners.

Any suggestions of how to learn? Are there quality instructional DVDs out there, or should I simply seek out an instructor. I don't suppose anyone knows of any in the New York City area?

Thanks for any suggestions.
 
Sharpmaker was the tip of the iceberg for me.

I've since learned to convex freehanded with sand paper and a mouse pad.

Next, I'm considering getting some benchstones and attempting to do it the old fashioned way.
 
I learned sharpening my first knife, a SAK, on some trottoir-stone. But that really isn’t the best way;)

Read the basics of sharpening and just take a old knife you never use and start on a wet stone. The hardest part is to keep the same angle. Later on it will be useful to chance angels and take up other sharpening methods.

It isn’t that hard so after some time you will know the trick.
 
I couldn't sharpen anything at all. I'd make a dull knife duller when I tried to sharpen it. I thought I'd never figure out how to do it. I started reading everything I could find about sharpening, that helped a little. I got a lansky system and that helped too. Mostly sitting down and just doing it was the most help and finally that is really how to learn, just do it. I do credit the systems for teaching me the basics. I free hand sharpen everything now and I get everything as sharp as I want. My best advise is pick a system, any of them, and read everything then sharpen away until you get a sharp edge. Once you get your edges sharp then work on getting them pretty, or useing another method to sharpen. It really is pretty easy after you learn to get an edge one way to learn other ways.
 
I learned (and still learning) in a sequence like this:

Read -> Try -> Fail
Read More -> Try again -> Fail not as much as the previous time
Read even more -> Try another time -> Random success

And today is still like that for me, still reading, still trying and getting better day by day, slowly, but day by day.
 
My Grandpa taught me , the old fashioned way with hard and soft Arkansas stones and spit , lol
Now I use oil but still use stones.
I have a couple of ceramic stick (toucher uppers) that I use to bring 'em back if they aren't too dull but otherwise I use a stone.
 
.....if at first you don't succeed, try, try, try, try, try, try....try, try, try again....

that is pretty much how I learned. I found the Sharpton sharpening DVD and the Murray Carter sharpening DVD very helpful though.
 
rob5 said:
I would think that a hands on lesson would be ideal...
Click to expand...

It would also take all of about one minute. Sharpening is very simple fundamentally. It consists of two stages; first bringing the bevels to meet, and second, removing the debris and weakened metal for the edge. The choice of which abrasive, grit and angle to use depends on the steel and how the knife is being used, but there are a few simple rules which cover the basics of that as well. But first you learn how to sharpen before you go into the details of the specifics of the implementation.

-Cliff
 
db said:
I couldn't sharpen anything at all. I'd make a dull knife duller when I tried to sharpen it. I thought I'd never figure out how to do it. I started reading everything I could find about sharpening, that helped a little. I got a lansky system and that helped too. Mostly sitting down and just doing it was the most help and finally that is really how to learn, just do it. I do credit the systems for teaching me the basics. I free hand sharpen everything now and I get everything as sharp as I want. My best advise is pick a system, any of them, and read everything then sharpen away until you get a sharp edge. Once you get your edges sharp then work on getting them pretty, or useing another method to sharpen. It really is pretty easy after you learn to get an edge one way to learn other ways.
Click to expand...

This is very wise advice.:thumbup:
 
I would really like to add more sharpening DVDs to our rental catalog. We currentlyhave the "Advanced Knife Sharpening" Murray DVD and the DVD on the Sharpmaker. I will look into getting Murray's "Introduction to Knife Sharpening" if it is significantly different from the "advanced" title. I couldn't find anything about the "Sharpton Video" that didn't have something to do with accusing cops of rape! ;)

What titles are out there and where can I find them?

Thanks

-- FLIX
 
Here's what I did. I too thought I'd never be able to sharpen a knife, now I can make them push cut paper with the weight of the knife.

1. Read about sharpening here for a few hours.

2. Buy a simple medium grit benchstone from a store and try it.

3. After a while, stop and look at the edge. Compare your technique to what you've read. Figure out anything you're doing wrong and work to correct it.

4. Practice, practice, practice.


After a while you'll refine your technique. Getting additional equipment can help, but to get the technique down all you need is something abrasive. You don't need to buy a bunch of strops, jigs and stones in varying grits just to learn what you're doing.

Really, the biggest part about learning how to sharpen is just go out and try it. No excuses, just pick up a knife you'd be ok with ruining a little, find some sandpaper or a benchstone and just work at it. Try different amounts of pressure and experiment with angles until you can look at the edge and see that you're grinding it evenly. Learn how to handle burrs, that's another important step. Really though, you just have to try. I never thought I'd be able to do it. I had a small stone I tried sharpening a SAK on and it didn't happen. I gave up after a minute or two. I went back and tried again. Put more pressure on it and looked at the edge more often to pay attention to what I was doing. It's just practice and observation, you'll get it.
 
It's just a reiteration of what others have said, but I'd say pick one system, like the Spyderco Sharpmaker for instance, and practice until you become proficient. One mistake I made was to switch around trying to find one way that was easier or simpler than the rest. No matter what, you have to develop a feel and muscle memory, so it's best to stick to one method, whatever it might be, and just practice practice practice.
 
The most valuable piece of gear I've purchased as a sharpening aid was a Belomo 10x loupe for about $15. It lets me see what's really going on down where it matters. It's quite educational to see what different grits do to the finish of the edge.

-- Sam
 
I started sharpening when I was 6 using the sidewalk as a stone. I then spent the next 20 years doing a so so job on different sharpening mediums until I found this wonderful forum and learned how to really sharpen from the Gurus here. Thanks
 
...Corny as it may sound...I learned how to sharpen knives through the Boy Scouts more years ago than I care to remember. There were no Spyderco's or Lanskys or EdgePros back then. All we had was the good ol' wetstone or a bench grinder. I burned up a lot of blades doing it the fast sloppy way through using my dad's bench grinder. The edges looked terrible as well. Out came the stones. You either learned and got a relatively sharp knife with a decent looking edge or you didn't get a "Patch"...I learned and it's been useful to this day. Just hard to beat the "old-fashioned" way...:)
 
Practice and more practice. I started out using smooth bricks left over from house construction when I was about 7 years old. From there dad showed me his sharpening stone and gave me a couple of lessons. After that I just learned by doing and trying new sharpening systems.

Today I simply go down to the belt grinder and use a good 320 grit and or 400 and then finish up on the V sticks. Between sharpenings I use a butchers steel.
 
Lots of trial and error . No-one was sharpening that I knew so there was no-one to ask how to . I heard a couple of things here and there . A good pair of sharpening stones doesn,t hurt .

Buford give me an E-mail please .
 
I spent many, many hours trying UNSUCCESSFULLY to learn freehand sharpning with a stone. Then I bought a Spyderco Sharpmaker, and IMMEDIATELY started getting better edges than many professional sharpening services.

I now have an EZE Sharp for really big knives, but 95 percent of my sharpening is still done on the Sharpmaker, and finished off with leather strops. And all of my knves will push cut newsprint at one inch.

The exception is convex blades. I use wet/dry sandpaper wrapped around a piece of leather for convex edges.
 
I learned to sharpen watching my Dad, Granddad, Uncles and neighbours. They all had knives and everyone sharpened, some decidedly better than others but everyone could get a knife sharp enough to skin and butcher with.

When I got my first knife, at about 5, I was given a small 2 x 6 double sided wet stone. That was my first real introduction. Of course I borrowed my fathers stones as often as I could, oil and wet stones. He had great stones most he still has or replacements for them.

As I got older (9 – 13) of course I went looking for the easier, quicker, fancier, new, improved, guarantee sharp or your money back thing. Trust me such a gadget does NOT exist. Knowing this even from that age I still succumb to “gadgets” just some reason I have to try them. They all wind up in the same box or a new one as the old one becomes full

I got serious about sharpening when I started sharpening straight razors and microtome knives in my teens. Doing these by hand is truly taking sharpening to an entirely new level. Serious sharpening requires good stones, abrasives, strops, and polishing mediums. You don’t need the same level for knives that you do for a razor or a microtome knife.

If you want SHARP knives look no further than Edge Pro, the Apex or the Pro, these are the ultimate in “sharpening systems”. Their only purpose is sharp edges and you will get that. The Apex is available from various dealers. The Pro is only available from Edge Pro Inc. Buying either the Apex or the Pro I’d deal with Edge Pro directly. Their service is absolutely the best. You might find the Apex a few bucks cheaper elsewhere but you will never beat the service of Edge Pro. Ben Dale knows sharpening inside and out. Want to know how good your knife can be contact Ben and ask about his demonstration service, you send in a knife he’ll sharpen it and send it back to you for the cost of postage. You will be amazed I guarantee that.

If you want to sharpen with bench stones I suggest you do some reading first. Three books I strongly recommend. The Complete Guide To Sharpening by Leonard Lee, The Razor Edge Book of Sharpening by John Juranitch, Sharpening Made Easy by Steve Bottorff. Steve’s book condenses a lot of knowledge into an easy to use reference and covers a lot that is in the other two. If I had to buy one it would be Steve’s (check out Steve’s web site lots of information there). John Juranitch’s book in some ways is a plug for his Razor Edge System but it does have a lot of good advice in it. Leonard Lee’s book is just great to have and has more information than I’ve yet been able to digest fully. I read and re-read parts of it frequently.

If you want hands on training Steve's sharpening school might be the answer. I looked into it but the distance for me to get there was just a tad too far. Other hands on training can be had from Culinary Schools you may be able to audit just the sharpening portion of the class at a school for very little cost. Or check out woodworking classes. While sharpening wood working tools aren't knives the basics are the same.

If you want to start with bench stones, I suggest a basic Razor Edge System that will set you back about fifty bucks. The guide will help you learn angle control and you won’t wreck too many blades in learning. Tip one. Learn on knives you don’t mind scuffing up and scratching. Go to a second hand store and buy a half a dozen knives. Fair size chefs knives with wide flat blades and fairly straight edges are easiest to learn on. (Major curves or re-curves in learning to sharpen are best avoided in the beginning. The frustration alone can throw you off.)

Once you get to holding angles consistently you will be able to do without the guide and then you can begin getting into collecting stones from around the globe, the esoteric water stones, polishing media and the witch craft of sharpening. (sure sharpening under a full moon at midnight with a black cat and the chin whiskers of a goat will give you sharper edges but having to buy night vision goggles to do it kind of takes the fun away don’t you think?)

Sharpening isn’t difficult. It isn’t rocket science. Sharpening is removing metal from the edge till it is thin, if you sharpen on both sides (double bevel) then when the edges meet and join it will be thin. Thin cuts. Paper will cut because it’s thin it just doesn’t hold up well craving a turkey for some reason. Though it takes wonderful whacks out of my fingers very frequently.
 
There is a lot of excellent sharpening advice on this forum and other knife forums but I couldn't pull out the fundamentals from all the information given until I read The Razor Edge Book Of Sharpening by John Juranitch. He makes the theory and skill of sharpening easy to understand, with a lot of great drawings and photos. An excellent online resource is this one, by Joe Talmadge: http://www.knifeart.com/sharfaqbyjoe.html
 
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