I really suck..... at sharpening

D

deerhunterp

Joined
Dec 27, 2008
Messages
125
I can't sharpen my knives to save my life. I have the Spyderco Sharpmaker and when I sharpen I keep the spine level like you are supposed to do, and I just make my knives duller... I do everything that is shown in the video correctly. any ideas? I think that I might move to an Arkansas stone instead. It supposed to be harder... but I’m desperate.
PS... I’m trying to get away from draw through sharpeners.
 
Is your blade either 40 degrees inclusive or 30 degrees inclusive? If not then until they are reprofiled the sharpmaker won't work its magic. Mark the edge with a sharpie and see where exactly your stone is contacting the edge, if it is working then it should take all the ink off the blade. I like the sharpmaker but I usually use it in combination with a lansky sharpening system. First the lansky then the sharpmaker, then a strop or a newspaper to polish. I can get my knives to push cut newsprint.
 
Get yourself a DMT aligner kit man! I had a sharpmaker and didn't do well but the dmt holds the angle for you.
 
You sound like an edge pro kind of guy :). Personally, I use the snadpaper and mousepad method. Works great for me. I couldnt get my knives like razors with the stones I had
 
I always just use stones and finish with a strop. I think useing a leather strop can make all the difference in the world. There are lots of videos on youtube on different sharping methods.
 
vurtuovice has a video up on youtube that's really informative. he puts sandpaper around his ceramic rods to reprofile his edge. otherwise you might want to get the diamond coated rods. if the stones arent hitting your cutting edge, youre just removing metal from the shoulder and your knife will never get sharp.

personally Im a big fan of the sharpie method and I use that with the sharpmaker. I dont like arkansas stones, I managed to dish mine out really fast. if my sharpmaker broke I would probably buy an edgepro though, its just a lot of dough.
 
redisburning said:
vurtuovice has a video up on youtube that's really informative. he puts sandpaper around his ceramic rods to reprofile his edge. otherwise you might want to get the diamond coated rods. if the stones arent hitting your cutting edge, youre just removing metal from the shoulder and your knife will never get sharp.

personally Im a big fan of the sharpie method and I use that with the sharpmaker. I dont like arkansas stones, I managed to dish mine out really fast. if my sharpmaker broke I would probably buy an edgepro though, its just a lot of dough.
Click to expand...

Yeah i saw that... good idea. What do you mean by dishing out the stone?
 
General advice:

Don't give up on freehand sharpening -ever! You will get it down.

It is easy to try and sharpen a knife without paying attention, and then not learn anything. Kind of like blindly reading a book; sometimes I space out and realize I didn't pay attention to anything I read. The trick is to be critical and pay attention, then analyze what works and what does not. Practice as much as you can.

Marking the edge (with a marker) was the best advice that I ever received. It allows you to see where you are actually grinding.

Also switch sides often, use light pressure, and maintain an angle throughout the entire edge. See how the angle of your edge changes and how you can keep it consistent as you approach the curves of the blade.

I primarily use DMT products and a dry leather strop (which is a cheap belt from a thrift shop). I also have a very hard stone that I use to hone my knives. With all of that I can get my edges to pop hairs clean off.


Good luck:thumbup::)
 
Make sure to start with a very abrasive (rough) sharpener. I've found that a $10 coarse grit utility stone does very well when setting your angles for the first time.
(It also helps to practice on crap kitchen knives so you don't muck up your nice stuff.)

Sharpening in three easy steps.

1. Sharpie trick, use it.

2. Make sure you grind all the way to the edge.

3. Repeat using higher grit sharpening tools.

If you want to know more I'd read Joe's sharpening FAQ.
http://www.sff.net/people/pff/sharp.txt
 
I use an Arkansas stone and a strop after trying every gadget under the sun. It's easy for me, I can get any of my knives shaving sharp in a few minutes with no problems.
 
I just had the same problem with the sharpmaker, spent a whole night just making everything I touched duller. I then came back the next day and put a bit more time into each blade and now every one is shaving sharp. The only problem I have now it slicing computer paper. I re profiled all of my blades to 40. The sharpmaker does take some time but if you keep with it and some help from the great members at BF, you'll have some sharp blades...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top