Learning to Sharpen

Z

zenon

Joined
Aug 17, 2005
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Is the best way to get a Spyderco SharpMaker and just learn to use that, or learn to sharpen a knife another way?

What should I get, and how should I learn!? :)
 
The most dreaded answer in the world: "It depends"

It depends on whether you want to learn to "do it by hand the old school way", whether you want "quick and easy but very good" or whether you want "the best there is" and (oh by the way) how much you want to spend.

Do it by hand the old school way: Get some diamond, Arkansas, or Japanese water stones and practice, practice, practice.

Quick and easy, but very good: Sharpmaker

The best there is: Possibly EdgePro

If all you want is a sharp edge, with relative ease and not too much expense, SharpMaker is your choice. If you want to submerse yourself in the intricacies and nuances of what sharpening is truly all about, stones.
 
I started with a Lansky, and still have it and use it. But I do get the urge occassionaly to get some stones and do it the old school way. One of these days.
 
About the "intricacies and nuances of what sharpening is all about." Take a deep breath, you're standing on the edge of the abyss. :)
 
I use the sharpmaker to touch-up and keep my knives sharp, a lansky to reprofile them(to fit the sharpmaker) and a regular whetstone to sharpen or form the tip point. And a strop to go for the razor edge!
 
How about...the best there is, yet doesn't cost a ton of money? That EdgePro looks expensive! :D
 
I had a real hard time learning to sharpen. I sprung for the Edge-Pro and in very little time I was a sharpenning maniac. It wasn't cheap but with a little practice and patience, I've been able to get some real killer results. I figure I spend a lot of money on knives, I might as well be able to keep them sharp. ;)
 
zenon said:
How about...the best there is, yet doesn't cost a ton of money? That EdgePro looks expensive! :D
Click to expand...

I agree that it "looks" expensive but not when you consider its versatility; that it will give you consistently excellent and repeatable results; is state of the art technology; simple to use and is all that you'll ever need with the possible exception of an inexpensive strop.

From experience, I will tell you that over the years I could have purchased 3 or 4 Edge Pro Apex's on what I spent on a number of stones, wheels, lanskys, chef choice machines, gizmos and gadgets.

After purchasing the Edge Pro Apex about 6 months ago there is nothing else to buy. Everything prior went to Goodwill.

My advice to you would be to SAVE, SAVE, SAVE and when you have enough, buy the Edge Pro in the Apex version.

www.bronksknifeworks.com has a package deal that has 4 stones an extra blank and 3000 grit polishing tapes.
 
I'd say it depends on how much sharpening you're going to do... If you're going to sharpen all your knives often, plus all the neighborhood knives, then the Edgepro is probably a good bet.

However, for normal use, the sharpmaker is just fine. It's a bit slow for really dull knives. In fact, for excessively dull knives, it can take forever to get them sharp (literally hundreds of strokes). However, if you wrap the rods with sandpaper, you can speed up the process considerably.

I use the sharpmaker for almost everything, but have a diamond bench stone for serious reprofiling, or fixing broken tips, major chips, etc.

Guy
 
Is the EdgePro foolproof? Will it sharpen recurves without issue? Just wondering, as a hundred bucks more than a sharpmaker isn't too much money considering the time saved and end results.
 
The Edge Pro will sharpen recurves with a little extra effort and care. Due to the design, some blades are easier to sharpen than others, but I've used mine on nearly everything, including an 18" sawback machete. It isn't cheap, but it isn't overpriced either. You will get many many years of sharpening from it and great customer service to boot. Ben Dale is a good guy to do business with. You sound a lot like I did six years ago before I bought my Edge Pro. You want the best but aren't sure if you want to spend the money. I spent at least $200 getting other sharpening systems that weren't good enough before I sprung for an Apex. If I'd gotten one of those to begin with I'd still have that $200 (or a couple more knives :p ). Get the Edge Pro, you won't regret it.
 
When looking at the picture in another link, I got the impression that the EdgePro was a lot larger than it actually is. I thought it cost a lot more too! I'll agree that it's not as bad as I thought, and probably worth the expense. :)
 
Sharpmakers, Edge Pro's etc are all very effective sharpening and touch up tools, but I do believe that the ability to sharpen freehand on a stone is a valuable skill to learn. It does take time and practice to become proficient and there are a few rules to observe whilst freehand sharpening.
Once you have achieved a degree of proficiency, you will never be stuck with having to use a blunt knife.
On many occassions it is not practical to carry a sharpening system like the Sharpmaker or Edge Pro, but a small arkansas stone or diamond stone can always fit into your backpack, toolbox, tacklebox, vehicle etc.
 
If learning to sharpen freehand, what specific tools would one buy for the best results?

Also, any information on learning to do it properly? :)
 
G'day Zenon,
Just hit the search button and type "freehand sharpening". It brings up tons of really good info from some real experts in this field. I have personaly learnt many useful tips on this subject from this site.

I have never before replied on a thread by stating "do a search", but on this subject, it will be of great benefit for you to do so, as it was for myself.
 
Yeah... I say just get a good benchstone and learn how to sharpen freehand. It's inexpensive and really not that difficult. It may take some time, but eventually you'll be able sharpen everything that's thrown your way (including convex edges and points).

For most sharpening jobs, I use a combination coarse/fine Norton India stone. It was only $20 or so and it's really all I need.
 
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