Made My Own Sharpening Setup--Basic, But It Works!

MostMenAreRuthless

MostMenAreRuthless

Joined
Sep 27, 2011
Messages
1,864
CRK Brothers and Sisters,

I have waffled back and forth on buying a Sharpmaker, EdgePro, Wicked Edge, Naniwa Stones, and on and on and on and could never come to the conclusion of which setup I wanted to sink money into. So, I got the bug in me to make my own and did it based on forum threads and YT videos. It is not glamorous. It is not the latest and greatest. It is simple. It is effective.

Here is the run down on materials:

IPhone Box--Free
Mouse Pad--Free (from a vendor)
Super Glue--Free (already had some)
600 Grit sandpaper--$0.79
1500 Grit sandpaper--$0.99

I simply folded the sandpaper around the box:


Here is the result from my first stab at freehanding with sandpaper:


Here are some "action" shots of shaved arm hair and slices through phone book paper:

 
iPhone boxes are actually pretty sturdy. Another bonus is you've got a calendar. You should grab some 2000 grit paper. Good idea on the box setup :)
 
Ponsau said:
iPhone boxes are actually pretty sturdy. Another bonus is you've got a calendar. You should grab some 2000 grit paper. Good idea on the box setup :)
Click to expand...

The highest grit they had was 1500. There are still some grind marks from when I had it sharpened by a so-called "pro" a few months back, so I really need to get some lower grits and work through those and definitely get some 2000 grit to make it shine!
 
SuzukiGS750EZ said:
Is this your first time freehand sharpening? How hard was it to get a good edge?
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This was my first time free handing with sandpaper, but I have limited experience free handing with a duofold. However, I have been stropping with a leather strop and compound for quite some time now so this method was a natural flow from that.
The edge was decent to begin with--it would slice copy paper, but not phone book paper or shave arm hair. The end result I got today took about 15 minutes and I would classify it as a "Better than decent edge." But, it could still use some work.
 
Autozone and other similar automotive parts stores usually carry 2000 grit and even higher, almost near to strops. They use them got automotive paint work. That's where I get mine. I've cleaned out the stock of 1000 grit and 2000 grit at my nearby auto store. The other day they asked me what I'm using this stuff for. I replied knife sharpening and they looked at me like I was that crazy knife guy. Which I guess wouldn't be wrong. :)
 
Haha creative.

I could never touch a sebenza to some sand paper thougg, thats brave.

king stones cost roughly $20 for 1000-2000 grit.
 
Sandpaper (wet/dry, the black stuff) is usually silicone carbide. The same stuff in most sharpening stones. It's a great substitute for a stone. I like to use it with USP mineral oil, but I used wd40 the other day and that worked well too.

Used on a hard surface, wet/dry will even "sing" like a stone does. ;)
 
I like the iphone box idea! I recently tried just using sandpaper on a mousepad on a table and I think I did a pretty bad job. I'll have to try it again using this method...

You should take a short video of your technique on your iphone and put it on photobucket, then post it here. Please.
 
Yeah wet/dry sandpaper sharpens convex edge to mirror polish. It's also great to take scratches out of your wife's stainless steel sink :)
 
Ponsau said:
Autozone and other similar automotive parts stores usually carry 2000 grit and even higher, almost near to strops. They use them got automotive paint work. That's where I get mine. I've cleaned out the stock of 1000 grit and 2000 grit at my nearby auto store. The other day they asked me what I'm using this stuff for. I replied knife sharpening and they looked at me like I was that crazy knife guy. Which I guess wouldn't be wrong. :)
Click to expand...

Thanks for the referral--I will stop at the auto parts store and see what they have. Question: how long does one piece of sandpaper last you? It felt like I wore out the 1500 grit with just one sharpening--it is already fairly smooth to begin with, but it is hard to tell.

HwangJino said:
Haha creative.

I could never touch a sebenza to some sand paper thougg, thats brave.

king stones cost roughly $20 for 1000-2000 grit.
Click to expand...

It is a user Seb and so the blade has scratches already. However, if you are careful it doesn't do anything to damage the edge or blade at all. In fact, at the higher grits it would be difficult to really do any damage.

Strigamort said:
Sandpaper (wet/dry, the black stuff) is usually silicone carbide. The same stuff in most sharpening stones. It's a great substitute for a stone. I like to use it with USP mineral oil, but I used wd40 the other day and that worked well too.

Used on a hard surface, wet/dry will even "sing" like a stone does. ;)
Click to expand...

Good information. I will try it with mineral oil--does that make it easier? What function does it serve?

arskrg said:
I like the iphone box idea! I recently tried just using sandpaper on a mousepad on a table and I think I did a pretty bad job. I'll have to try it again using this method...

You should take a short video of your technique on your iphone and put it on photobucket, then post it here. Please.
Click to expand...

I have never posted an iPhone video before. It would be very amateur and may not be of much help, but I am game! I will see if I can find time this weekend.
 
I'm pretty frustrated. Tried the sandpaper and mousepad technique again this evening and the S.O.B. small Insingo just won't get sharp. 800 and 2000 grit, 20 degrees (hopefully), magic marker sanded off, stropped, feels like I'm trying to shave my arm with the back of a butter knife. I'll get the hang of this (or I won't have any blade left).
:mad:
 
Ask--I feel your pain. Will it at least slice copy paper or maybe even phone book paper? I can't get mine razor sharp just yet, but will keep trying. Maybe try another grit in between the 800 and 2000. Or, start with 600, 800, 1500, then 2000 to polish.
 
Forget the mouse pad.

You could try hard leather, but your going to get a slight convex (like factory) just from freehand sharpening. I'd be willing to bet that between the pad and strop you are having the abrasive round your apex. I do a lot of stropping, but I only use very (very) thin leather on hardwood.

Try again, edge trailing, with your paper lubed on a hard surface. Once you feel a burr start on the other side. You can keep doing this as you go up in grits. Just make sure that you hit the apex (the entire length of the blade) on both sides before you move to the next grit. You'll find that the vast majority of the work is done at the lower grit. Everything after is edge refinement.

Oil, wd, spit, water... It's all done in order to create a slurry. The slurry floats swarf (metal shavings) and keeps your paper from loading up right away. The slurry also contains some of the abrasive from the paper. This is good, you want the slurry. Don't wipe it off, but continue to use as it aids in your goal.
 
Oh, I would start at a lower grit than you are using too, but that mostly depends on what the edge looks like to start with.

As for grit progression, try to keep your number around double as you move up. In other words, if you started with 200, the next (double) would be 400 then 800, 1600 etc... Being off a little isn't a big deal, but may take more effort and paper.

Edit- other things that help...

Strong overhead/directed light

A loupe (20x is plenty) or even a magnifying glass. And SLR lens will work in a pinch too. Anything that will get you up close and personal with what's going on. It's sometimes amazing (and depressing!) how much info as loupe will reveal.

Rest. Seriously. If you start getting frustrated, stop for a while. When you come back refreshed you'll do far better work. I promise.
 
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Strig--thanks for the input. I am going to get the additional grits and a loupe and keep giving it a go.

Arskrg--lets keep trying and report back.
 
Sorry to have hijacked the thread. Thanks for the advice and encouragement Strig and MMAR.
Will order a 20x loupe and some more grits of wet/dry sandpaper off Amazon and give her another go in a few days...
 
Another tip, when using a soft material like a mouse pad is to go a little lower on the angle and use really and I mean really light pressure,I think that one of the biggest mistakes when learning this technic I finish off on a piece of copy paper with compound wrapped around an ultrafine stone using a slightly highier angle to remove any leftover material and not only it produces a really sharp edge but it's also very durable, plus you don't round off the edge as much.
 
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