I love the sharpmaker, tales of a newbie.

D

Dr sharp

Joined
Oct 20, 2003
Messages
299
Last week when i got the sharpmaker, i wasnt very good. But there are reasons why, and i will share them to help other newbies. First it takes patients, second you need to go slow and not rush ; or press to hard. Third dont let the tip slide off the edge this seemed to promote rounded tips. Last is start with a quality knife to sharpen, i started with a junk 3 inch flexiable kitchen knife and got very frustrated. One other thing sal recomends and it is true, you might need to rub the sticks on each other to break the " glaze" , they cut better this way. But over all, hang in there and keep trying. I spent an hour today on one knife , got the hang of it, and shaved the hairs on my arm, and walked away proud. So to all newbies hang in there, and spend the time going slow and getting the feel, it will come.
 
It's true, going slow is the secret of this device, it's too easy to get in the habit of going fast and smacking the edge aginst the stones as opposed to pulling them. Good post!
 
Sharpening knives is an excellent way to practice patience and gain confidence in oneself, which can translate into other fields. It's kinda like Yoga, except that it freaks out most women when you tell them that it makes you relax when you do it to classical music...:D
 
lol..that make me chuckle...lol...imagin being on a date and the girl asks you, so what do you do to relax....and you tell her that you pull out the old sharpmaker and put on some soft music....
 
Me too, I just got mine last week. Works great, as with many things in life you need to have some patience and it helps to do a little research on the subject (even though the Sharpmaker is pretty much idiot proof). I read the manual, watched the DVD, read the sharpening FAQ by Joe Talmadge (thank you Joe, you rock :thumbup: ) and another excellent sharpening tutorial by Chad Ward (on the eGullet forum).

With that info and the sharpmaker I can now shave with any knife in the house :D
 
Dr. Sharp - "Atta Boy!" Way to go! Three cheers for you!

I think you will find that the subsequent sharpenings will go much faster now that the angles are set.

I lacked the patience when I first started and had to learn not to go to the next step until the knife was very sharp at the step I was on. Like you said, you can't rush it.

The tip problem is just something I have had to live with and be careful of. I like sharpening sheepsfoot or wharncliff blades because of their straight edges.
 
I just got mine and have been sorta struggling too...

I also started with a cheap flexible kitchen knife that was very dull. A rigid gerber folder was much easier to do, but it still took a long time.. the dvd say 20 strokes?!

So for those cheap very dull kitchen knifes do i need the diamond stones??

Their "medium" stones seem way too smooth to do much.

Am I just impatient.. any tips?
 
I also started with a cheap flexible kitchen knife that was very dull. A rigid gerber folder was much easier to do, but it still took a long time.. the dvd say 20 strokes?!

So for those cheap very dull kitchen knifes do i need the diamond stones??

Their "medium" stones seem way too smooth to do much.

Am I just impatient.. any tips?
Click to expand...

I use either a Silicon Carbide or a DMT DiaSharp coarse benchstone to thin the blade for the back bevel. If I have time, I'll refine that back bevel with a Soft and Hard Arkansas stone. The refinement step is not necessary, but I do it because I want the edge to look good also. The S/M diamond rods at $70 are simply too overpriced. An 8x2 DMT DiaSharps are $40, and a Silicon Carbide stone is only $20.

Once I get the back bevel set, THEN I go the the S/M, and I only use the 30 degree setting. My back bevel is 20-25 degrees, so putting a primary micro-bevel on at 30 degrees with the S/M takes no time at all. Subsequent touch-ups on the S/M will take at most 5-10 strokes on the flats if you don't allow the edge to get too dull. The more you use the S/M on an edge, the better it gets, because the primary bevel comes more in line each time with the angle of the S/M.

Then, to finish it off, I polish the edge with good strop loaded up with CrO.
 
Kimper said:
So for those cheap very dull kitchen knifes do i need the diamond stones??

Their "medium" stones seem way too smooth to do much.

Am I just impatient.. any tips?
Click to expand...

I just lean a course stone up against the rod, and then switch it and lean it against the other rod to do the other side of the blade. Those diamond stones for the sharpmaker are like $65 and a DMT 6" course benchstone can be had for about half that.

I alreay had a course stone that I use now, but I think I am going to get one of the DMT's
 
ginshun said:
I just lean a course stone up against the rod, and then switch it and lean it against the other rod to do the other side of the blade.
Click to expand...

That sounds like a good idea! And would basically maintain my angle without alot of thought. Maybe it won't take an hour to sharpen one knife :)
 
I did that last night - leaned a DMT diamond stone against the Spyderco rods to get it at the right angle.

The DMT stone came with 4 little rubber stick-on feet - I positioned them so that they are just barely far enough apart for the flat side of a Spyderco rod. They keep the DMT from moving much.

At the bottom, I found that a penny positioned between the bottom of the DMT stone, and the Sharpmaker rod that the DMT is NOT leaning against, helps keep the DMT stone from slipping toward that other rod.
 
ginshun said:
I just lean a course stone up against the rod, and then switch it and lean it against the other rod to do the other side of the blade. Those diamond stones for the sharpmaker are like $65 and a DMT 6" course benchstone can be had for about half that.

I alreay had a course stone that I use now, but I think I am going to get one of the DMT's
Click to expand...

Something like this? http://www.g3l33m.com/knives/theTable.htm

That's what I do too but now I'm starting to use my 2 x 48 grinder and what it would take me an hour to do with the stones takes about 5 minutes with the grinder.:thumbup:

oil

ps. When I use the DMT/Sharpmaker I take the safetly guides off and just hold it with my fingers.
 
Great pics Oilman! Is that a Ranger blade in the pics? I just ordered one from Justin :)

Ok, now don't forget I am a newb... (but I did read the great faq at http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=26036 )

What is a DMT stone and where is a good place to get one?
What is the 2 x 48 grinder?

I am assuming that these are very course stones that will save me some time for those very dulled knives.

Links to where you guys like to buy this stuff would be great too!
Thanks!
 
Kimper said:
Great pics Oilman! Is that a Ranger blade in the pics? I just ordered one from Justin :)

Ok, now don't forget I am a newb... (but I did read the great faq at http://forums.egullet.org/index.php?showtopic=26036 )

What is a DMT stone and where is a good place to get one?
What is the 2 x 48 grinder?

I am assuming that these are very course stones that will save me some time for those very dulled knives.

Links to where you guys like to buy this stuff would be great too!
Thanks!
Click to expand...

The two blades in the pictures are a SwampRat Battle Rat and a Busse Basic 9.
Shop around on the stones but if you can get the 8" stones I'd think they'd be better than my 6" ones, especially for big knives.

This is a 2" x 48" cheaper than dirt one speed grinder: (less than $100 at F&F IIRC)
IMG_5294.gif


And yes, this stuff should make profiling a knife faster than the Sharpmaker alone.(especially the grinder)

oil
 
rocketmann said:
oilman, what is F&F IIRC?
Click to expand...
Doh, Farm and Fleet If I Remember Correctly. Sorry, netspeak. I'm not sure if Farm and Fleet is a national company but in Illinois it's a store like Kmart but with more stuff for farm animals.

oil
 
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