Leatherman Wave instantly dulling on poly rope

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veryquietdude

Joined
Nov 2, 2005
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I carry a Leatherman Wave as my EDC. I recently sharpened the plain edge blade on my old Spyderco Sharpmaker using the white and brown rods. The edge shaved hair off my arm, although with a little drag. The edge seemed good enough for rough, knockaround use. Today, I had to make 4 cuts in 3/8 inch poly rope. The plain edge blade instantly dulled and would not cut the rope even once. The serrated blade cut the rope with zero problem.

I am curious as to why the plain blade instantly dulled. Maybe my sharpening was faulty? I do not own a strop yet.

Would the diamond Sharpmaker rods leave a toothier edge that would work better on abrasive stuff like cardboard and poly rope.

Thanks in advance for any advice.
 
if you have a good loupe, check the edge after sharpening for a burr. if you don't have a strop, you can still remove the burr on things like cardboard, wood, leather, jeans..
 
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I have a Leatherman Wave. Long ago, I'd noticed the blade's stainless steel seems to be pretty soft and likely very prone to forming stubborn, flimsy burrs. I'd bet this is a case of the burr folding over.

I'd suggest sharpening to a coarser grit finish to give the edge a more toothy bite. Trying to finish these soft stainless steels to a finer finish always seems to leave the apex too thin & flimsy to be durable, in my experience.
 
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Serrated blades for whatever reason seem to cut rope and similar fibrous materials quite well, compared to plain edge. I have an original Leatherman and a Leatherman Super, probably bought more than 30 years ago, and neither plain edge blade will hold an edge. Maybe the steel is 420J. I see some of the newer (and pricier) Leathermans offer better steel.
 
Another thing I remember about my Wave, the edge grind on the plain-edged blade was pretty thick as well. So, the combination of a soft steel, stubborn burrs and a thick grind behind the edge all make for a poor cutter. Seems counterintuitive, but my usual fix for thick-edged blades in soft steel is to thin them out behind the edge. Narrower geometry makes a big difference, even with soft steels.

And as mentioned earlier, I've also heavily favored using my Wave's serrated blade for tougher materials. Even used it to cut carpet years ago and it held up pretty well.
 
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I would bet that you didn't remove the burr and had a wire edge to start with. I have found that the edge holds better after sharpening a couple times. I think it is due to the factory edge getting too hot when first ground at the factory. This happens with a lot of manufacturers, most knives start holding an edge better after you get past the factory edge.
 
I dont think it really matters how you sharpen it, their standard steel is soft and low quality. The few ive had have been the same, annoying to sharpen and will dull if you look at it wrong.

Best bet, sharpen it on the diamon rods and dont worry about the burr or if it will shave.
 
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