is this bevel on my bravo-1 to thick?

[basb]

After years i tried sharpening my Bravo-1. It has been neglected severely and I was horrible in sharpening it back then. Somehow I am able to do it now. However when I was working it, I discovered the bevel is quite short.
It's sharp but it looks too fat. Any ideas?

 

[Obsessed with Edges]

If by 'too fat', you mean the bevel looks wider from edge to shoulder than it originally was (assuming this is what 'too short' meant), I wouldn't worry about that. It just indicates you've resharpened it at a somewhat lower (more acute) edge angle, and that will also account for the extra sharpness you're seeing now. With fixed-blade knives especially, it's very common for the factory edge grinds to leave very narrow bevels on the thickly-ground blade, indicating a more obtuse edge angle which doesn't cut as well. Assuming one wants to thin the edge grind, by going more acute in angle, the bevels produced will always become wider as a result. Bevel width is only cosmetic, and the thinner edge angle that comes with the wider bevels is what will greatly improve cutting performance. That's the important thing. Make it sharp, and don't worry about the rest.


David

 

[basb]

I was typing the post after my nightshift, reading back it's not as clearly explained as i thought.... :yawn:

What i meant was that it's a thick knife and with this (not thinned) bevel it seems the angle is very wide it may not cut well. It also is not as sharp as i thought it was.... I must have been very hazy when i got back from work.....

 

[Obsessed with Edges]

I was typing the post after my nightshift, reading back it's not as clearly explained as i thought.... :yawn:

What i meant was that it's a thick knife and with this (not thinned) bevel it seems the angle is very wide it may not cut well. It also is not as sharp as i thought it was.... I must have been very hazy when i got back from work.....

OK, that makes sense. A lot of fixed blades will start out that way from the factory, and thinning the grind of the edge (and maybe even the primary grind behind the edge bevels) will definitely help improve it. Takes some time to do that, and doing it gradually over several sharpening sessions is how I've eventually improved mine.


David

 

[basb]

OK, that makes sense. A lot of fixed blades will start out that way from the factory, and thinning the grind of the edge (and maybe even the primary grind behind the edge bevels) will definitely help improve it. Takes some time to do that, and doing it gradually over several sharpening sessions is how I've eventually improved mine.


David

So you don't think this might be an issues as it is now? I can't remember what it was from the factory.

 

[Obsessed with Edges]

So you don't think this might be an issues as it is now? I can't remember what it was from the factory.

That's up to you. If you find it's not taking as sharp an edge as you'd like, thinning the grind behind the edge will improve it. I've given that treatment to most of my fixed-blade knives, as they all start out with thicker grinds than I'd prefer; sometimes much, much thicker.


David

 

[Father & Son Traditional Sharpening]

Wondering if perhaps the primary grind is in need of a regrind? This could account for the edge bevel being thicker I would imagine, you said you've sharpened it plenty in the past no? It's pretty hard to tell from looking at a photo, do you have any calipers by chance?

 

[pjwoolw]

Bark River knives like the Bravo are really meant to sharpened keeping the convex grind in mind. Thinning up toward the spine, or from the spine down, with each major sharpening. Tough to do on stones. Fairly easy on a belt grinder with the right media.

 

[REK Knives]

So you don't think this might be an issues as it is now? I can't remember what it was from the factory.

You basically have two options to make it cut better... what you are describing in the OP is that it is sharp, however the cutting ability is extremely low. So option 1 is to simply reprofile the edge to a lower angle, which will result in a wide looking bevel from a side view - but it will help with the cutting ability and be relatively cheap. Your second and most expensive option, yet well worth it, is to have a custom regrind to your needs. You can read up on the latter point here. The guys above are spot on.

For example (a picture speaks a thousand words), here is a Busse that was THICK w/ a convex grind. I thinned it down significantly (to about .020", which you can go thinner on a convex regrind) and also at the same time lowered the edge angle, now it will slice yet still chop and have much better penetration. I also customized it in that I widened it up at the tip for prying strength - can't have a weak Busse! It should be noted that even though the edge doesn't look thick in the original picture it was, it just had a very steep angle. If you reprofiled the edge to 15 dps it would probably be 1/4" wide! Trust me... I've done it hehe

 

[Father & Son Traditional Sharpening]

Bingo, well said Josh!

 

[HeavyHanded]

Bark River knives like the Bravo are really meant to sharpened keeping the convex grind in mind. Thinning up toward the spine, or from the spine down, with each major sharpening. Tough to do on stones. Fairly easy on a belt grinder with the right media.

^ This. You'll see a big jump in performance back toward how it came from the factory if you thin it out and restore the convex. Anytime you mod a convex into a V bevel you'll need to thin out the primary to keep the cutting bevel as thin as the original convex, otherwise it has no where to go but to become more broad.

You can do this on a stone and it will take a few minutes but you'll be able to control the shape of the convex. Looking at your pic, pay special attention to removing steel from the area you have marked with a Sharpie, right behind the final approach. You'll still want to grind well back up the primary, but thinning hte marked region will pay large returns.

You can keep track of progress by making radial lines with the sharpie from spine to edge to see where you're grinding, or even making a grid pattern across the entire blade face.

It can be challenging to make it look good cosmetically, but functionally is not very difficult.

 

[basb]

That busse looks sweet!

The bravo-1 has been sharpened a few times and i think it more bad than good back then, it is still convex though. If i have the time i will probably grab some low grit sandpaper and thin the edge.
Thanks for the replies guys, really helpful.