Knife sharpening recommendation.

[Meast58]

Shaptons can sharpen whatever u want , but your going to pay for them , after more money than I care to talk about spent on Japanese water stones I always come back to my dmts and spyderco ceramic bench stones, IMO that is the best combo to have , to save money one could buy the DMT 2x6 double sided hones, however the extra extra fine is only available in 8x3 , in my expierence though one can go from DMT XF to ceramic, and still have a nice polish, I suggest worrying more about how your edge performs first while you get your technique down,(microbeveling) then trying to polish your bevel. I did this and before I knew it I was getting a mirror polished bevel everytime.

I was challenged to not use a strop on my edges and to see if I could get the same level of sharpness without strops, and I'll admit its a challenge but it makes you be a lot more careful on your finishing stone. After many trials and errors I no longer use strops , that's a whole other thread but I do encourage you to try freehanding without stropping and see what results you get.

Thank you, I really appreciate the information. So am I OK starting with the red F stone, and working my way up? I am looking forward to getting the Spyderco ceramic stones. They seem really cool.

 

[Meast58]

Hello,

This is my first post on Blade Forums, I wanted to start off by saying hello to everyone and thank you for any recommendations you give.
I am looking to improve my sharpening skills. I am getting more into sharpening and would like to look into other options. Currently, I am using red and tan DMT diamond stones, “burnishing” the edge with 5,000 grit 3M sandpaper, and then stropping with black and green compounds. Doing that I can get a pretty good edge. It will easily shave hair off my arm but I know it could be better. I have seen some videos on Youtube and the edges some of those guys can get are insane. I am considering an Edge Pro Apex as an option. I am also considering getting a set of nice wet stones and trying free hand sharpening. I don’t know which one would be the most effective. What do you guys think would be best? Please feel free to make any suggestions.

Thanks,

I wanted to ask, how do I figure out what edge angle I'm using? I hear a lot about the importance of DPS when It comes to sharpening and overall performance. If I'm sharpening by hand Is there a special trick to figure the angle?

 

[John Lagoda]

Fold a piece of paper until u get a 90 degree angle. Fold that angle in half to get a 45 degree. Fold that 45 to get a 22.5. Put that piece of paper under your blade while its on the stone and theres a good angle to start with; depending on the blade u want to sharpen ofcourse.

 

[duxbellorum]

I am annoyed that the guy is moving so fast, it makes it hard to see exactly what he is doing, and you definitely do not need to go very fast to sharpen properly. This video shows the sharpening technique that I use for non-cooking knives as well. It is the easiest way to get consistent polish on both sides of the bevel, though it takes a little practice to get good:
[video=youtube;Dz7RzOiTlM8]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dz7RzOiTlM8[/video]

 

[Meast58]

Fold a piece of paper until u get a 90 degree angle. Fold that angle in half to get a 45 degree. Fold that 45 to get a 22.5. Put that piece of paper under your blade while its on the stone and theres a good angle to start with; depending on the blade u want to sharpen ofcourse.

OK, thanks, that is a good idea.

 

[Meast58]

I am annoyed that the guy is moving so fast, it makes it hard to see exactly what he is doing, and you definitely do not need to go very fast to sharpen properly. This video shows the sharpening technique that I use for non-cooking knives as well. It is the easiest way to get consistent polish on both sides of the bevel, though it takes a little practice to get good:
[video=youtube;Dz7RzOiTlM8]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dz7RzOiTlM8[/video]

Thank you as well. I watched the video, those stones he is using are awesome. Thanks a bunch!

 

[HeavyHanded]

Thank you as well. I watched the video, those stones he is using are awesome. Thanks a bunch!

Very good video!
One reason to use higher speed, if one's technique is very clean, is to gain an increase in tactile feedback at lighter pressure - more feedback points per unit of time. It is a challenge, you have to get good technique first and then consciously make an effort to operate at higher rates.

Also, if you're doing a bunch of cutlery any increase per piece is a nice benefit. In my opinion, it becomes more and more difficult to go that rapidly when the tool in question has a more pronounced belly - fairly gentle overall curves really lend themselves to a faster grind/polish rate.

 

[Meast58]

Very good video!
One reason to use higher speed, if one's technique is very clean, is to gain an increase in tactile feedback at lighter pressure - more feedback points per unit of time. It is a challenge, you have to get good technique first and then consciously make an effort to operate at higher rates.

Also, if you're doing a bunch of cutlery any increase per piece is a nice benefit. In my opinion, it becomes more and more difficult to go that rapidly when the tool in question has a more pronounced belly - fairly gentle overall curves really lend themselves to a faster grind/polish rate.

Thanks for the info, That last sentence sounded so dirty!