How do you sharpen CPM154?

Dangerously

Dangerously

Joined
Jan 8, 2013
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I got a couple of customs in CPM154 and just got around to reprofiling them. I don’t know what sort of edge CPM154 likes to have, so please feel free to describe what works for you.

Here’s what I’ve tried so far:

1. DMT stones up to EF, then polished on Spyderco ceramics (M, F, UF). Slick, polished edge with no agression, didn’t push cut as well as expected, and didn’t last very long. When I use this same progression on, say, 52100, I can get a really good edge for push cutting wood, but the 154 disappointed.

2. DMT stones to coarse, then a couple elevated-angle, light deburring passes on an EF, then a few passes on a 1 micron basswood strop. This is my high vanadium steel progression, and I didn’t think I’d need it on CPM154. But this actually produced a good aggressive edge that seems to be lasting.

I thought CPM154 had a reputation for being good when polished. So either I’m polishing it wrong, or my impression of what CPM154 likes was wrong.

Any ideas?
 
I have sharpened that steel on several knives but never to polish level. I will bevel it on a Norton JUM-3 SiC coarse then fine. Taking care to remove the burrs at each stone. The fine stone is 280 grit. I try to get all the burrs removed on this final stone. If I have a stubborn one I'll take it to my fine diamond, 600 grit and this usually cleans it up. This edge is a real aggressive cutter and long lasting. Equal to S30V and a little more. DM
 
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I do coarse up to 600, then strop most of the time on the only cpm-154 blade I have. . You shouldn't have any issues with a more polished edge though, id guess something is wrong. I don't use any ceramic when I polish. Just diamond stone progression then to diamond strops. Don't think diamond is necessary for the steel, but I ended up using it. Never really tried anything else on it.
 
Thanks. It looks like a lower grit finish is popular. It’s likely I’m doing the polishing wrong, but I’m glad that everyone seems to like the lower grit finish that I do, too.
 
I use a fairly high level finish on my ProTech in 154CM - but I mostly use it to open mail and clamshell packaging (mainly push cuts) so a polished edge works well for that. I usually finish on a Shapton 5k and hit it afterward with some deburring strokes on a CrOx strop. Stainless is a little bit more of a pain sometimes with burr formation and hanging onto the burr - that might be what you're running into.
 
I like CPM-154, my BassPro 110 takes a very fine, aggressive edge on DMTs with little effort (regular/fine). The excellent geometry of the blade adds to the quality of the steel when it comes to cutting efficiency.
 
I've not liked doing much high-level polishing on ceramics, especially on more burr-prone steels. I'd looked at the OP a while ago, and had the thought that skipping the F/UF ceramic for polishing more likely has something to do with the improvement in edge 'bite' and retention. The burr-prone nature of some stainless steels, and the burr-inducing tendency of ceramics in general, make what I view as sort of a double-whammy in terms of degrading what otherwise should be a strong, durable edge at higher finish. I like ceramics for some uses, but only prefer to finish up through something like a medium (brown/grey) Spyderco, with minimal-as-possible passes and a featherlight touch, to reduce the chances of weakening the apex by flipping a burr back/forth too many times without fully removing it, and possibly even creating more burr than what was originally there. If wanting any more polish beyond that, I'd generally prefer to do it with something that very easily cleans up the edge with minimal 'flipping' of burrs, such as with diamond compound on a very firm substrate (wood).

If seeking the same level of polish as might've been done with the ceramics, try it by following the EF DMT with stropping on wood using something like 3-micron diamond compound (then finer, if you want to). I'd not be surprised if both the cutting aggression and edge retention would improve, finished that way, instead of with the F/UF ceramics.
 
Obsessed with Edges said:
If seeking the same level of polish as might've been done with the ceramics, try it by following the EF DMT with stropping on wood using something like 3-micron diamond compound (then finer, if you want to). I'd not be surprised if both the cutting aggression and edge retention would improve, finished that way, instead of with the F/UF ceramics.
Click to expand...

I have a 1 micron diamond basswood strop, and thought, surely I can get away with that. But maybe I need the set of DMT’s 6, 3, and 1 micron pastes. I’m using the ceramics for less and less these days.

Is all this just Titanic deck chairs, while waiting for someone to make an affordable full set of bonded diamond waterstones?
 
For my one example of CPM154, a Mini Grip, I use Shapton Glass starting with 220 or 500 then 1000 then 4000.
In the Edge Pro Apex of course ;)
To the older (less discerning) eye it reflects light like a mirror. Cuts very well. I am very happy with how it holds the edge as a work knife.
No strop.
I wouldn't change a thing :thumbsup:
 
I am like above in that I start at 400 grit first with my edge pro apex on my protech then go 600,1000 then coarse strop then fine strop and end up with a beautiful polished edge that cuts great and holds an edge real well.
 
Wowbagger said:
For my one example of CPM154, a Mini Grip, I use Shapton Glass starting with 220 or 500 then 1000 then 4000.
In the Edge Pro Apex of course ;)
To the older (less discerning) eye it reflects light like a mirror. Cuts very well. I am very happy with how it holds the edge as a work knife.
No strop.
I wouldn't change a thing :thumbsup:
Click to expand...
The grip should be cm 154 not cpm.
 
With my Mini Grip w/CM154 I changed the angle to 15 degrees on my WE. I started with 100 grit and went to 1500 diamond then 1200/1600 ceramic and then a Balsa 5/3.5 micron paste and finished with a Kangaroo 1/.5 micron paste. I find it went really easy. I ended up with a scary sharp edge and it had a mirror edge..
 
Dangerously said:
I freehand, no angle cube so I don’t know. It’s generally around the 15° range per side.
Click to expand...
Hi,
are you also doing elevated angle deburring inside this progression 1. DMT stones up to EF, then polished on Spyderco ceramics (M, F, UF). S

Are the spyderco ceramics clean? wet? using triangle corners?
How many passes per wide do you do on M/F/UF?
How many times have you tried this grit progression?

What happens if you follow up the spyderco UF with 5-10 passes per side on 1micron diamond?
And what happens if you follow up that with 1 pass per side on spyderco UF ultra light (around or less than 1oz)?

Or
what happens if you finish with a 20 degree per side microbevel on spyderco ceramics,
about 5 ultra light passes per side on medium/fine?
 
bucketstove said:
Hi,
are you also doing elevated angle deburring inside this progression 1. DMT stones up to EF, then polished on Spyderco ceramics (M, F, UF). S

Are the spyderco ceramics clean? wet? using triangle corners?
How many passes per wide do you do on M/F/UF?
How many times have you tried this grit progression?

What happens if you follow up the spyderco UF with 5-10 passes per side on 1micron diamond?
And what happens if you follow up that with 1 pass per side on spyderco UF ultra light (around or less than 1oz)?

Or
what happens if you finish with a 20 degree per side microbevel on spyderco ceramics,
about 5 ultra light passes per side on medium/fine?
Click to expand...

I used elevated angle deburring passes only on the last ceramic, UF. Very light, probably about double the angle.

The ceramics are clean, but used dry. 8”x2” benchstones. I clean them after each use and put them away. They’re not perfectly clean, but not loaded, and they managed to put a decent polish on the bevel itself. And on this CPM154 knife, I only tried it once so far. I’ve used the progression on various carbon steel blades before.

I can try the different finishing, for sure. Looks like you suspect I have just not deburred it completely. That’s likely it. Should I be deburring at every stone? I hesitate to do that, as I don’t want to inadvertently add a microbevel with each stone that I have to grind away with the next. Maybe that’s a misconception on my part.

I’ll try more finishing next time and see. Thanks for the suggestions.
 
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Last edge I did on CPM154 was as follows.

400, 600, 800, 1200 then a compound belt. All of these on my grinder. Then polish using the UF of Spyderco.

Polished edge with an agressive bite.

What might be happening with your nr 1 approach is a small burr. Increase the angle slightly for a few very light passes and then back sharpen IE go back to the original angle.

Hope this helps.
 
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