AFAustin
Gold Member
- Joined
- Jun 8, 2004
- Messages
- 2,489
Those of us who spend a lot of time on this sub-forum are probably more consumed with sharpening than anything else, and for good reason since it's an essential topic with tons of available information and no shortage of opinions on methods, systems, technique, etc. I recently have found myself paying more attention to an aspect of that which I had neglected a bit as I tried to learn the fundamentals of sharpening, namely: points.
We talk all the time about the sorry state of most factory edges, but what about "factory points"? I buy and sell a lot of knives as part of this hobby, mainly small traditional folders, and my experience has been that getting a decent point from the factory is even rarer than getting a good factory edge. So, it's become part of my initial sharpening of any knife to finish by addressing the point. I just don't feel like the job is done till the point is acute and symmetrical.
One fortunate thing is that shaping a good point is a lot easier than creating a superior edge (thank goodness). There have been some excellent threads here in MT&E which have lots of helpful advice on the subject, for example: http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/1167547-Good-Tips-On-Good-Tips and http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/1168504-Getting-back-that-needle-point
My practice is to address the point last, after the initial edge sharpening, because the sharpening itself---as you reach the tip area of the edge---will usually shape up a proper point to some extent. But, since I use a Work Sharp KO (with or without the Blade Grinding Attachment) for my initial sharpening, I don't focus on getting a perfect point during that process, as using a powered sharpener on something as delicate as a point can yield very unhappy results.
So, once my edge is set with the WSKO, I turn to a different set of tools to address the tip: DMT credit card diamond hones, an oversized hard leather paddle strop, a full grit progression of wet/dry sandpaper (up to 3000), and a full set of Micro Mesh pads, along with the indispensable loupe (mine is a lighted 15x).
Often the DMT Extra-Fine alone is competent to handle the job; sometimes the Fine is needed if the point is really misshapen or dulled; and I don't think I've needed the Coarse yet (since I mainly deal with small thin bladed trads). I use the sandpaper progression on the hard leather strop when I want to slightly round or smooth out the sides of the point---making for a convex point, so to speak. I usually use the "top down" approach as explained by David (OWE) in the second linked thread above, although on occasion I've had some luck with the "edge up" method espoused by Brian (bgentry) in the same thread. Most of the time the "top down" method is simply easier for me to perform correctly.
I usually begin the point work with the diamonds, since they can quickly form the basic shape, and then often finish with a sandpaper and/or Micro Mesh progression to smooth out the diamond scratches. (The Micro Mesh pads, being soft with a lot of "give", can be used on the spine leading up to the point, but not on the very point itself as they will round it.)
When dealing with such a small and delicate area as the tip, dramatic results can happen very quickly, especially when using the diamonds, so frequently inspecting your work with a good loupe is key. When I'm almost "there", I might be checking after a single pass.
Yesterday I had a couple of new (to me) knives to put through the whole routine: a pair of pretty little A.G. Russell lockbacks, one with a fairly tapered blade leading to the point and the other with a blade which tapers less and remains thicker at the point. The second knife also had a little more belly at the point. After sharpening both, I proceeded to get the points in shape. I started with the DMT fine and then continued with a wet & dry progression, this time on a hard table surface (no rounding desired). I stopped there with the first knife and was happy with the result. But the second knife had an additional small challenge: a highly polished mirror finish, which I needed to try to restore on the spine leading up to the tip. So, after finishing with the paper at 3000 grit, I continued on (carefully) with the Micro Mesh pads, which go up to 12,000. I was pleased that I pretty much restored the original mirror in the tip area.
I put the second knife in my pocket, wondering how effective my finished tip would be given the relatively thick geometry. I got my answer a short time later when, in too much of a hurry slicing the lime for a Sat. night beer, it gave me a good bite! Ahh.....the painful joys of sharp (and pointy) knives.....
Thank for reading and looking. I'd enjoy hearing about anyone else's approach to this pointy subject.
Andrew
We talk all the time about the sorry state of most factory edges, but what about "factory points"? I buy and sell a lot of knives as part of this hobby, mainly small traditional folders, and my experience has been that getting a decent point from the factory is even rarer than getting a good factory edge. So, it's become part of my initial sharpening of any knife to finish by addressing the point. I just don't feel like the job is done till the point is acute and symmetrical.
One fortunate thing is that shaping a good point is a lot easier than creating a superior edge (thank goodness). There have been some excellent threads here in MT&E which have lots of helpful advice on the subject, for example: http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/1167547-Good-Tips-On-Good-Tips and http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/1168504-Getting-back-that-needle-point
My practice is to address the point last, after the initial edge sharpening, because the sharpening itself---as you reach the tip area of the edge---will usually shape up a proper point to some extent. But, since I use a Work Sharp KO (with or without the Blade Grinding Attachment) for my initial sharpening, I don't focus on getting a perfect point during that process, as using a powered sharpener on something as delicate as a point can yield very unhappy results.
So, once my edge is set with the WSKO, I turn to a different set of tools to address the tip: DMT credit card diamond hones, an oversized hard leather paddle strop, a full grit progression of wet/dry sandpaper (up to 3000), and a full set of Micro Mesh pads, along with the indispensable loupe (mine is a lighted 15x).
Often the DMT Extra-Fine alone is competent to handle the job; sometimes the Fine is needed if the point is really misshapen or dulled; and I don't think I've needed the Coarse yet (since I mainly deal with small thin bladed trads). I use the sandpaper progression on the hard leather strop when I want to slightly round or smooth out the sides of the point---making for a convex point, so to speak. I usually use the "top down" approach as explained by David (OWE) in the second linked thread above, although on occasion I've had some luck with the "edge up" method espoused by Brian (bgentry) in the same thread. Most of the time the "top down" method is simply easier for me to perform correctly.
I usually begin the point work with the diamonds, since they can quickly form the basic shape, and then often finish with a sandpaper and/or Micro Mesh progression to smooth out the diamond scratches. (The Micro Mesh pads, being soft with a lot of "give", can be used on the spine leading up to the point, but not on the very point itself as they will round it.)
When dealing with such a small and delicate area as the tip, dramatic results can happen very quickly, especially when using the diamonds, so frequently inspecting your work with a good loupe is key. When I'm almost "there", I might be checking after a single pass.
Yesterday I had a couple of new (to me) knives to put through the whole routine: a pair of pretty little A.G. Russell lockbacks, one with a fairly tapered blade leading to the point and the other with a blade which tapers less and remains thicker at the point. The second knife also had a little more belly at the point. After sharpening both, I proceeded to get the points in shape. I started with the DMT fine and then continued with a wet & dry progression, this time on a hard table surface (no rounding desired). I stopped there with the first knife and was happy with the result. But the second knife had an additional small challenge: a highly polished mirror finish, which I needed to try to restore on the spine leading up to the tip. So, after finishing with the paper at 3000 grit, I continued on (carefully) with the Micro Mesh pads, which go up to 12,000. I was pleased that I pretty much restored the original mirror in the tip area.
I put the second knife in my pocket, wondering how effective my finished tip would be given the relatively thick geometry. I got my answer a short time later when, in too much of a hurry slicing the lime for a Sat. night beer, it gave me a good bite! Ahh.....the painful joys of sharp (and pointy) knives.....
Thank for reading and looking. I'd enjoy hearing about anyone else's approach to this pointy subject.
Andrew
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