How low can you go?!

[egally08]

So whats the lowest you have went with any success, and with what steel?

The lowest I have went was 18 degrees inclusive with zdp-189. Held it pretty well, haven't had a chip yet

Also, what steel do you think you can go the lowest without having major problems

 

[sintro]

I go maybe 15 per side on 8cr13mov and don't get chips ever.

 

[knarfeng]

I've never felt the need to go lower than 15° per side.

BTW, how do you measure your edge angles?

 

[whetrock]

Past 20 degrees per side I like to opt for a 30 degree micro bevel, on each side, as an added security.

 

[Bill1170]

I have a ZDP Delica that I manually converted from saber grind to mirrored hamaguri grind. The apex is around 20 degrees inclusive and very stable. Most of my knives are 30 inclusive.

 

[Grease]

Most straight razors work just fine at a 15 degree (or less) inclusive edge. I think scalpels are around 10.

 

[seelow123]

I've gone 12 per side with vg10 (ffg Delica) and m390 (Blue Para 2) The Para belongs to my friend Steel130 here on the forums so I didn't use it after sharpening but the vg10 held up quite nicely. I did add a 30 degree inclusive microbevel to the Delica after awhile just in case.

 

[Gator97]

Most of my Japanese kitchen knives are around 10-12 per side on average, i.e. 20-24 total. Although, dedicated protein and veggie knives have closer to 7 per side, and chisel edged knives have about 10 total and they all do just fine.
For EDC folders, most of which are about 64HRC or more, I never felt the need to have edge thicker than 15 per side, nothing to be gained by thick edge aside from loss of cutting ability. With softer steel that becomes necessity though.
As for the ZDP-189, if or when around 66HRC, edges below 12 per side tend to chip.

 

[marthinus]

About 10 degrees per side, but was not overly pleased with the performance.

More can be read here

http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/971340-Going-low-on-the-P2-angle-wise-with-pictures

The lowest I have gone is 5 degrees per side on an Opinel, but experienced to much edge damage with my uses.

Here is how I measure angles (at 1 minute 7 seconds)

[video=youtube;pJkyhMSGgIk]http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=pJkyhMSGgIk#t=67s[/video]

 

[Free2game]

Probably around 13 degrees per side on a benchmade 710. Way too delicate of an edge at that angle.

 

[Razorsharp-Travis]

I went about 2-3 DPS on a traditional knife but the edge practically rolls on a toothpick and there was too much surface area to get a good edge. I put a 7-8dps edge on it and havent cut anything but hair with it, its basically a shaver- practically passes HHT5...

[video=youtube;FmjllFdVArA]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FmjllFdVArA[/video]

Lowest usable edge ive done is 9-10 DPS on my reground M390 para at 0.007 behind the edge reground by me.

same edge before the regrind

I EDC a reground Superblue Caly 3.5 at 13 per side with a 9ish per side back bevel

 

[djjonny]

I'm experimenting with 25 per side with a 30 micro bevel with Aus8 and 154cm. So far so good

 

[BladeChick777]

I used to try for 17 or 20 each side so my knives would still slice like the dickens.
However I've been doing 23 degrees on each side(s30v, s35vn, 8cr13mov, M4, CTS-XHP, etc.) and have realized the edge seems to hold longer at this angle, slice well, shave, and be able to handle bigger tasks without rolling.
It's a tough edge that can handle any use and still slice. It's just worked well for me.

 

[Razorsharp-Travis]

I used to try for 17 or 20 each side so my knives would still slice like the dickens.
However I've been doing 23 degrees on each side(s30v, s35vn, 8cr13mov, M4, CTS-XHP, etc.) and have realized the edge seems to hold longer at this angle, slice well, shave, and be able to handle bigger tasks without rolling.
It's a tough edge that can handle any use and still slice. It's just worked well for me.

I seem to find the more obtuse i go, the less it holds an edge, then if I go to steep, the less it holds an edge, the balance is probably 15dps if you include all knife steels. Its my opinion that geometry comes before steel.

 

[HoosierQ]

Most straight razors work just fine at a 15 degree (or less) inclusive edge. I think scalpels are around 10.

Scalpels are designed to last for just a few minutes of work and then disposed of. Straight razors are designed for continuous careful edge maintenance. 25 inclusive is about a low as you really dare go without having to expect to do a lot of maintenance. My EDCs are 25 inclusive with a 40 microbevel and they slice like crazy and stand up over time.

 

[oic0]

About 15 degrees inclusive for a chisel ground veggie chopper. No edge damage yet but the hardest thing it comes in contact with is the plastic cutting board. I did not overly polish it, I only went down to 2500 grit, which is a bit of a waste for such a fine edge, but it cuts good enough for what I use it for (vegetables) and playing ninja with receipts before I throw them away (hold them up free standing and try to cleanly slice them up without crinkling them).

 

[Ernie1980]

I have gone to 15 deg per side, don't really feel the need to go lower than that. In my experience, the difference between cutting with a blade less than about 17 deg is not worth the risk of damage or the need to sharpen overly frequently.

 

[gentry738]

I wish i knew what you guys were talking about? I have a sharpmaker and go 30 degress on all my knives. Not sure what a back bevel or inclusive means either?? Looks like i need to research more and stop wasting my time looking for knives to buy

 

[Ernie1980]

I wish i knew what you guys were talking about? I have a sharpmaker and go 30 degress on all my knives. Not sure what a back bevel or inclusive means either?? Looks like i need to research more and stop wasting my time looking for knives to buy

Inclusive means both sides together, eg 30 inclusive means 15 per side. A back bevel is a wider angle at the cutting edge, this is done for more durability. If you have a knife sharpened at 15 deg on your sharp maker that you quickly touch up on the 20 deg side (super easy and quick!) you just created a back bevel of 20 deg so the edge is more durable but your knife will still cut much like it did at 15 deg

 

[CWL]

About 10 degrees per side on a Mora #1. I did his to try & shave with it. It worked and I successfully shaved one time using lather, just so I can say that I've done it. I've since let the edge go back to the ~30-35 degree edge that I use for utility. Just cut up enough cartons to fill a recycler with it.