Knife owner who can't sharpen a knife

F

foxxtrot

Joined
Aug 21, 2006
Messages
91
I don't know what I am doing even after researching it to death on the internet. I have a coarse stone, medium stone, and a fine arkansas stone. I understand it is about a 20 - 25 degree angle, but I do not have a jig to hold it in place and when I free hand it, dull as a butter knife. I feel empty inside.
 
Ditch the stones and get a Spyderco Sharpmaker! I was in exactly the same spot you are now, but only less than 4 months ago I did what I'm telling you.
Man O Man am I glad I did! Now that I understand the fundamentals, hair shaving sharp isn't enough for me. I'm trying to get to the "next level" of sharpness. The Sharpmaker makes it sooooo easy! Like you, I couldn't get a knife sharp to save my life....heck I guess its true about the nut not falling far from the tree cuz my dad would just "push harder"! I mean, it'll go through eventually right? Well, I had enough of that and I'm glad that frustration built up to get me to where I was "forced" to FINALLY learn!

Just whip out the Visa and do it. A Sharpmaker can be bought for around $50 and it will be the single best investment you can make in your knife sharpening journey! Don't yet worry about the diamond stones you can get as an option with the Sharpmaker, just get the plain old version and it will serve you well!
 
don't ditch the stones......go old school and learn how to do it right before spending more money on machines. Grab a protractor.....lay the knife on your finger and use the protractor to figure out which fingers provide what angles. when you are sharpening...just stick your finger under the knife ever once in a while to check your angle. raise a burr....flip the knife.....repeat...then switch to a less course stone until you get the edge you want. master this and you can thrown a small stone in your bag and sharpen anywhere.
 
Ben Dover said:
Get a Spyderco Sharpmaker. All your problems will go away.:D
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Alright, let's take a second and breathe here before we do anything we might regret ;)

I have the Spyderco SM and I think it's great, but it definitely has its limits. It takes too much effort to reprofile with it, and you're limited to the specified angles.

Foxxtrot, since you already have the stones you need, take morrowj's advice and just keep practicing. I really wish I knew how to sharpen freehand. Eventually, I'll get some stones, but for now, the SM is enough.

Just remember, the grass is always greener on the other side :p
 
Don't forget that when you sharpen your knife you will create a burr on the edge. Draw the blade backwards (ie side of the blade touching the leather, and angle it up ever so slightly) across some leather (or cardboard, but you didn't hear that from me...) and see if it comes up sharper.

Cheers AColyte

PS SHarpmaker rules though!!!
 
don't get me wrong...the Sharpmaker is great and easy for maintaining an edge.

I own and use a Lansky to reprofile and will soon replace it with an Edge Pro.

The point I'm making is I learned to sharpen freehand first.....this helped me more than I can express when using any "devices." I also know I can keep my knives sharp anywhere with the minimal amount of equipment. If you want to carry around a Sharpmaker, Lansky etc...in your pack.....have at it. I'll take a small stone and save the extra weight for a six pack. :D
 
morrowj_98 said:
don't ditch the stones......go old school and learn how to do it right before spending more money on machines. /QUOTE]

There are a great many people, myself included, who lack either the manual dexterity or the hand/eye coordination to freehand. No matter how much we practice, it simply doesn't do any good. The talent isn't there.:(

But just because a man can't play a violin doesn't mean that he can't enjoy beautiful violin music on a CD.:D

We can use a Sharpmaker, Crock Sticks, belt sanders, cardboard wheels, Eze-laps, Lansky's etc and get a true razor edge on a blade.:thumbup:

If you were born without the manual dexterity to freehand, it doesn't mean that you're not "doing it right" when you hone a blade to a razor edge with a SM.:cool:
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Is the SM a better tool than the carboard wheels? I nearly bought a set of the loaded cardboard wheels at the last gunshow. Who sells the carboard wheels?

Oddly, single sided edged tools, like wood carving gouges, chisels, and knives, are no problem here - it's the basic pocket knife I fall flat in sharpening.

Stainz
 
morrowj_98 said:
don't get me wrong...the Sharpmaker is great and easy for maintaining an edge.

I own and use a Lansky to reprofile and will soon replace it with an Edge Pro.

The point I'm making is I learned to sharpen freehand first.....this helped me more than I can express when using any "devices." I also know I can keep my knives sharp anywhere with the minimal amount of equipment. If you want to carry around a Sharpmaker, Lansky etc...in your pack.....have at it. I'll take a small stone and save the extra weight for a six pack. :D
Click to expand...

I couldn't have said it better. I love my lansky and don't think it gets enough support here. It's leaps and bounds beyond the SM imo. Especially if you're reprofiling a blade, I bought the extra course diamond for mine and it takes litterally minutes to knock that steel off.

Oh and get a dog and a dog pack. they can haul 40% of thier own weight. My shepherd is 100lbs, how many beers is 40lbs?
 
Ben Dover said:
morrowj_98 said:
don't ditch the stones......go old school and learn how to do it right before spending more money on machines. /QUOTE]

There are a great many people, myself included, who lack either the manual dexterity or the hand/eye coordination to freehand. No matter how much we practice, it simply doesn't do any good. The talent isn't there.:(

But just because a man can't play a violin doesn't mean that he can't enjoy beautiful violin music on a CD.:D

We can use a Sharpmaker, Crock Sticks, belt sanders, cardboard wheels, Eze-laps, Lansky's etc and get a true razor edge on a blade.:thumbup:

If you were born without the manual dexterity to freehand, it doesn't mean that you're not "doing it right" when you hone a blade to a razor edge with a SM.:cool:
Click to expand...
I'm kinda like you, I have a hard time doing it freehand. While I CAN do it, I'm not that good at it. One way that works is to use sand paper. I can lay the blade flat, use either my finger or thumb as an angle guide and swirl the blade. You're not gunna get hair splitting sharp but you can get shaving sharp in a hurry.
Click to expand...
 
When sharpening freehand, pay attention to the angle of the knife in relation to the stone. Keep that angle even, work from the tang to the tip in one nice fluid motion, but keep the angle even. Avoid pressure, let the stone do the work. Turn the knife over and repeat. Do this in two steps once on the coarse stone and then onto the fine stone. At that point the knife should be sharp. Use a butcher's steel to finish up the edge, and use the same rule, keep the angle even, and use light pressure. Alternatively, instead of the butcher steel, use one of the sharpening systems out there to finish the edge up after working on the stone for a trully scary sharp edge.
 
One of the most common problems with people who think they can’t free hand sharpen is time. You need to spend 90 percent of your time on the coarse hone, don’t move to a finer hone until your sharp at the coarse hone. Second problem is slowly raising the angle trying to sharpen the edge quicker, don’t do it. Keep that blade spine down and keep grinding. The first time is always the longest. The truth is it is much easier than you think it is. If you can get a knife sharp with the Sharpmaker you can do it free hand. I think systems are great and a good way to learn what and how to get a sharp edge with out worrying about angle control. However, strict angle control really isn’t very important for getting a sharp edge.
 
db,

I've read hundreds of your posts, and I do truly respect your experiences and opinions, but I must disagree with you here. A heck of a lot of people just CAN'T freeehand with a stone.:(

Again, I'll use the violin analogy. Some folks will never learn to play a violin even if they practice 8 hours per day.:grumpy:

Certain activities require that you be born with a particular talent for them, or you will never learn them. IMHO, freehanding with a stone is one of those activities.
 
Argh.

Taking the middle-of-the-road position. I have absolutely awful hand-eye coordination, yet I can still manage to put a decent edge on my blades freehand, and with a Diamond brand carbide stone at that. So I really do think anyone can do it. On the other hand there's absolutely no way I could keep a roughly constant angle freehand all the way through reprofiling, which in my experience just about every new knife needs. So leaving the academic debate aside, I think the practical answer is to get either a Sharpmaker or Lansky-type gadget or a guide.

I've never used a guide myself (I have a Lansky) but I can see where it might help you learn how to hold an angle as well. So maybe that's the best solution.
 
Get the Sharpmaker. You will be able to sharpen and maintain almost any knife you have. The DVD and pamphlet included with it will assure you of proper technique.

More important, once you get the idea of using the v setup, you will also develop a better understanding of what is actually happening at the edge when you sharpen.

THEN you can find yourself slapping the blade down on a benchstone and getting proper results from freehanding it. The Sharpmaker is an excellent learning tool as well as a sharpener.

I don't know what you've read. Here are a few really helpful resources (besides this forum :) )

EDC Knives Sharpening FAQ
http://www.edcknives.com/pdf-files/Sharpen_v2.pdf

Knife Maintenance and Sharpening
http://forums.egullet.com/index.php?showtopic=26036

Sharpening Made Easy
http://users.ameritech.net/knives/knives1c.htm

Convex Grind FAQ
http://home.nycap.rr.com/sosak/convex.htm

Sharpening the Ontario - Jerry Hossom
http://hossom.com/sharp/
 
Although the Sharpmaker is my go-to sharpener, I've tried several systems, and finally got good enough with a fine diamond benchstone to appreciate what it could do, also.

But I recently developed a technique of my own that works for reprofiling as well as light maintenance. It's just very different from anything anyone has recommended to me.

I got a DMT Double Sided Diafold Sharpener (Fine and Coarse).

I hold the knife with the blade approximately horizontal. I hold the sharpener at a right angle to it, and visually determine a good angle to sharpen at. Then I rapidly rub the sharpener against the edge of the blade, almost as if I'm filing fingernails. As I'm doing this, I can see and easily adjust the width of the secondary bevel I'm putting on it. I slowly move the sharpener, still filing away, up the length of the blade.

Once I'm done, I turn the blade over and repeat this on the other side. I find it doesn't matter if I switch hands or sharpen the edge near or away from the sharpening hand.

I generally begin with the coarse side and then do it all again with the fine, but if the edge is in good shape already, I just use the fine. When I'm done, the edge looks like a lot of factory edges, with the sharpening marks at a right angle to the edge. Sometimes I find a bit of a burr, which I remove by light buffing at a slightly higher angle than I sharpened at.

I also like to polish the edge with a hard stone when I'm done, but this folding sharpener is good for field use, including repairing damage, and I may have to wait to get home for the polishing.
 
Ben the goal is getting an edge sharp and it makes no difference how you or anyone gets it. Free hand, a belt sander, a jig, a system, or all of them it doesn’t really matter. I say use what is quickest and easiest for you. I was one of those who thought I couldn’t and wouldn’t ever learn how to free hand sharpen. I was wrong and amazed how easy it really was once I just spent a little time doing it. Try just touching up an already sharp edge free hand just a stroke or two. That was my first step into free handing then after a long time of just touchup I tried regrinding an edge bevel free hand and from there I was on my way to free hand sharpening. It really isn’t that hard once you start doing it. I was system dependent for a long time and the truth is the system is what really taught me how to get a sharp edge; they are a great way to learn to sharpen.
edited to ad belt sander to the list because I saw my pal Jerry Hossom reading the thread. :)
 
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