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Lansky Guided deluxe 4 diamond hone

jobu1911

jobu1911

Joined
Jan 29, 2015
Messages
150
Just got it and am not getting a burr. I'm actually doing better by hand but not getting hair-popping sharp. Anyone have similar results?

Not getting enough pressure I guess?

Was thinking of getting a KME but if it's not light years ahead of this it's not worth the extra money to me.

Help?!
 
I would guess/assume you are not apexing the edge.

If you are not already, run a sharpie along the edge, then stroke a couple times and inspect to see if you are grinding to the apex of the edge (apex = where left & right bevels should meet).

You need to get to the apex along the entire edge (ricasso to tip) on both sides of the blade. You may need to increase the angle (to match an existing bevel), drop down in coarseness of your stones, etc. to get to the apex.

You may want to consider also using a magnifying lens of some sort, to get up close to better see what's going on at the edge.

If you use too much pressure on diamond stones, you can dislodge the diamonds and prematurely wear out the stones.

Hope, some help here for you.
 
Been doing the sharpie on the edge and it's taking it off.

What type of magnifying devices do you recommend?
 
Hello jobu1911. I recently bought a Lee Valley lighted loupe. I love this thing. You should not have a hard time googling Lee Valley.
 
Need to keep at it until the burr is made.
May take more time than you are allowing depending on the existing angle of the knife edge and the angle you are using on the Lansky.
I have the diamond hones and have no trouble creating a burr once the angle I'm using is complete.
 
Here is my two cents... I only have the original lansky but I had the same problem with some knives until I learned to tighten the clamp right. Tighten the front one down with a screwdriver until very tight with the rear backed all the way off, and then crank the rear. Makes for a much sharper edge in my case.
 
The Sharpie is helpful in approximating when you're close to the apex; the burr is the PROOF that you're there. Keep working until you see an obvious burr, and don't worry as much about whether the ink is still there or not.

I used a Sharpie with my Lansky, when I was still in the habit of using that system. I noticed early on, the Sharpie can mislead one into believing they've apexed, because the ink comes off prematurely at times; especially on high-polish stainless blades, and also if sharpening with water or oil.


David
 
jobu1911 said:
Still researching some loupes.

Also ordered the base for it which should help.
Click to expand...

The bases should come with the Lansky, they are pretty much essential and make sharpening a lot easier but you're left to buy your own.
I have the metal one, not the clamp one, the cheaper one plus a plastic one. Either of them will do a good job of making it easier on the arms.
 
jobu1911 said:
Been doing the sharpie on the edge and it's taking it off.

What type of magnifying devices do you recommend?
Click to expand...
Re: Sharpie Thing
Good on you for already using. As others have mentioned, using the sharpie is just one tool (getting to the apex, being consistent along the entire bevel on both sides, getting to a consistent bur, etc).

Re: sharpie possibly "removed" (maybe "rubbed off", etc.) and still edge not apexed. Once you start looking through magnification I think you may notice residual sharpie remaining embedded in the scratch pattern very near the apex (even when by the naked eye it looks to be gone), meaning you are not to the apex quite yet. Magnification will also help you to see the beginning of the formation of a bur, before you can feel it as it develops. Formation of a bur indicates you have reached the edge, goal is consistency along entire edge (from (ricasso to tip).

For some people I have worked with (struggling to find a consistent apex), being able to see the edge under magnification was enlightening (all of a sudden they could now feel and see what we had been discussing), comments like "now I understand what you were saying", etc. For others they get to feeling a bur in one section of a blade, then feeling a consistent burr along the entire edge, and they pick it up real quick. Sometimes these same folk loose that "feel" for what they are doing after a month or so of no sharpening. I truly believe that feeling what's going on (feeling the edge with finger, as well as feeling what's going in with the blade in the stone) is well complimented with being able to "see" what's happening. It's like a visual confirmation of what going on ... ;-)

Re: Magnifiers For Sale
I like a folding loupe for portability and keeping the lens clean $ smudge free. I also like having the option for self contained illumination.

Search eBay for these two $3-$5 examples:
http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.view&id=111174351497&alt=web
http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.view&id=280741816626&alt=web

Regardless of the magnification claims by manufacturer or seller (30x - 60x on these types of loupes are actually around 10x maybe approaching 15x). Anyone who says different is ... hmmm, uninformed, overly optimistic and/or simply ignorant or lying. Very much false claims. But, a "true" 6x - 10x is significant help when inspecting bevels. Better quality lens (example glass vs. plastic, etc.) is of more worth than higher magnification i.m.h.o.

I found the dual lens one (above) some time back for $3 inc. shipping out of CA. I hardly ever use the smaller lens, BUT I do like having the second LED than can provide illumination from a different angle & also less light as it is further away from the larger lens (something many may not consider ...). Previous to that I used an old non-illuminated jewelers loupe that I had gotten when inspecting loose diamonds prior to making wedding ring, and or my King Brinell Tester Scope (which I still use).

Also check out LumiLoupe LL-10 and LL-20 (both superior quality optical quality than the cheapo jewelers loupes). Focal distance is preset, so no moving back and forth with a knife close to your face :-/. Customs & Visa inspectors use the LL-10 and it has a great lens quality for the price $7 - $10 typically. They also make a focusable version, and a few different sizes & magnifications (again I prefer true 10x for most sharpening duties). The main difference between these two model is the LL-20 includes an insertable measuring reticule (much like my Brinell Scope which has an engraved scale on these lens) to provide a scale to what you are looking at (nice for measuring edge bevel width consistency when sharpening, etc.).

I believe you will find any of the four examples referenced here perfectly acceptable for checking sharpening progression ($3 - $9 shipped for any of them all available at that pricing within US - no 3-week wait from HongKongo).

Regards,
Christopher
 
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Wow... Awesome! Thank you so much for taking the time to put all this together, very much appreciated!
 
Lol nice uncle Jesse... Unfortunately .223 is as big as my rifle rounds go and I don't think that would work.
 
@UncleJesse,

+1 on the up-cycling there.

Way to keep it simple. Makes me want to go buy a Lansky clamp just to do it ha-ha-ha.

i use all different caliber of brass as various hole punches (leather, etc.) by simply spinning a conical bur inside the bullet-end of the brass to sharpen (throw them away after they fill with plug cuts). Spent brass is good for so many things :-)

Thanks again for those pic's
 
To the OP, I think you are in the right track, but you just have not gone far enough yet to get a good burr. With the diamond stones, you need to use light pressure, but with some of the harder steels, it just takes longer to achieve the burr. While I would prefer the KME over the lansky, you would still have the same problem if you just did not go far enough. Sometimes we run out of patience and want to "just get there now!" and feel that we are going in circles. Anything worth doing is worth the extra time involved in producing the desired effect. Good luck!

Omar
 
Finally got it right last night. Got a kitchen paring knife to shave after multiple paper cuts. Got my strop to work right too instead of just knocking the wire off and immediately dulling the blade. Going to pick up some cheap knives to practice more on before moving to my better EDC ones.

Thanks so much!
 
Definitely! Wasn't giving it enough passes and wasn't getting the burr on each grit as I moved finer... What a difference! :D
 
Good to hear, I also free hand some of my knives. Here's what I've experienced, with free hand, sometimes it creates more of a convex edge. Then putting it on the Lansky, I have to use the medium stone to reprofile the edge a bit. It also depends on the steel on how much time I spend on getting a burr. My CRK's with S35VN can be done in no time and I hardly ever use the medium stone on those. Typically it's the fine, followed by the ultra fine and sapphire. For steels like ZDP189, S110V and M390, it takes a lot longer to get the burr. Too much pressure can cause chipping with the diamonds and with those steels I always use the medium stone first. I've also experienced that applying too much pressure can cause the blade to have movement in the clamp. I started using masking tape to help secure the blade in the clamp.
 
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