Just got an F1, how do I go about sharpening it?

H

Herr_Noobien

Joined
May 20, 2009
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Hi all, I realise there's a huge amount of information on this forum about how to go about sharpening convex edges, but to be quite honest I find it to be quite overwhelming :o. As a bit of background info, I'm horrible with freehand sharpening and couldn't manage to sharpen anything until I got my sharpmaker. Currently I have an F and EF DMT credit card sharpening stone and sharpmaker with the addition of UF stones (I realise you can pop two stones in the base and use it as a bench stone). I don't mind spending a bit on a super foolproof sharpening system and I hear the JRE EMS sharpening system is really good. Should I be using stones to sharpen the knife at all or will a strop loaded with some green/black compound be enough?

Thanks!
 
A strop will be fine for touching up the edge before it gets to dull but once the edge gets really dull and/or has chips/dents/rolls then you will need something more aggressive. You can sharpen a convex edge using wet/dry sandpaper on top of a mouse pad and use edge trailing strokes just like you would with a strop. Sharpening a convex edge with this technique is quite a bit more forgiving then sharpening a V edge on stones so even if you are horrible at freehand sharpening you may get good results using the sandpaper/mousepad technique. 3m makes variety packs of wet/dry paper for around $5 that contain 4 or 5 different grits which are perfect for sharpening.
 
I would agree that as long as you don't let it get too dull, stropping may be all that's needed. It seems that based on some observations, it is not necessarily the abrasive but the medium that holds it that produces more or less of a burr/wired edge. So I would recommend some compound on paper over hard backing or a linen/denim strop also over hard backing for the initial "touch up". Then maybe a leather strop without compound for the final touch. Some here have had great success with hanging strops too.

If however too dull, chipped etc., you may need a stone rather than sandpaper on soft backing, at least that's what I would do. The natural movement of your hands holding the blade makes a convex anyway and if you start at the correct angle, the results are surprisingly good.
 
So it sounds like I'll be needing a strop and some sandpaper+backing (I already have some the sharpmaker and DMT stones so I should be all set on that front). In that case I'll probably end up picking up the JRE EMS system (http://www.jreindustries.com/EMS.htm) and some strop compounds. Any general tips on technique? Also, how likely am I to mess up my knife with stropping if my technique is off?
 
F1 have a 6 degree convex sphere and a edge angle about 20 degrees per side close to the handle and about 13,5 degree on its tip. That means that the edge angle is high where you use the most power, and that you have a lower angle where you use less power.

When you sharpen your F1 this is nice to know - if you like to keep this type of edge. It is a good functional edge for outdoor use.

Thomas
 
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