Hi All,
I just bought my first 'real' knife, a BM 940-1. First of all, let me say I'm VERY happy with the knife I got! It's centered perfectly, bevel grind is relatively even (slightly higher in the middle) and the tip is straight as it could be.
Unfortunately, I'm not real happy with the factory edge... It cuts paper, but it certainly doesn't pop a hair. I think it's best to sharpen it (or have it sharpened) prior to first use, and then touch up regularly. However, I'm not really sure on what to buy. I've read tons of different opinions on what works, and what doesn't work, diamonds or no diamonds, and stopping at a relatively coarse grit as well as polishing until shiny.
Then there's also another thing, I've got some straight razors and kitchen knives, which I'd also like to sharpen with the same gear if at all possible.
I'm looking to learn freehand, using some other knives lying around. At this point not really opposed to a guided system, but have a feeling that stones will be more versatile in the long run.
The knife will be used for all sorts of small household tasks, cutting rope and tape, opening letters and bags, occasionally cutting some food or stuff in the garden. I'm ok with a somewhat toothy edge, that'll remain sharp for a long time, as opposed to a super fine shiny edge that will wear quicker. Thinking about stopping at 600/800 grit.
Now for some concrete questions!
1. I've read diamond is way easier to use, I understand this. But I've also read that using a waterstone is possible, it just takes ages. Would it be feasible to get Chosera/Professional stones for example, and sharpen this knife on them? Reason I'm leaning to something like the Chosera stones is that this is my only knife in such a hard steel, I don't really care if it takes an hour to sharpen it, while it could take 3 mins, as I think this will be a once in x months chore.
2. Which stones would you recommend? If water stones I'm thinking about the Chosera 400 and 800, and later on getting the higher grit options to sharpen razors/kitchen knives on. If diamond stones, I'm thinking about the DMT, and getting coarse and fine. After both, I'd strop with diamond paste, and keep doing that on a regular basis for maintenance.
3. When touching up the edge, is it ok to just run it across the Chosera 800 or DMT F stone a few times? Or will this take a very long time on the Chosera as well?
4. Am I overlooking something here, is there anything else you would get besides the stones, a holder and a flattening stone themselves?
Perhaps you can tell right away, I don't know much about this.. I know it's easy to just order the Chosera's for softer steels, as I've been planning to do for some time for my straights now, but this is a different game..
Any advice/comments welcome!
I just bought my first 'real' knife, a BM 940-1. First of all, let me say I'm VERY happy with the knife I got! It's centered perfectly, bevel grind is relatively even (slightly higher in the middle) and the tip is straight as it could be.
Unfortunately, I'm not real happy with the factory edge... It cuts paper, but it certainly doesn't pop a hair. I think it's best to sharpen it (or have it sharpened) prior to first use, and then touch up regularly. However, I'm not really sure on what to buy. I've read tons of different opinions on what works, and what doesn't work, diamonds or no diamonds, and stopping at a relatively coarse grit as well as polishing until shiny.
Then there's also another thing, I've got some straight razors and kitchen knives, which I'd also like to sharpen with the same gear if at all possible.
I'm looking to learn freehand, using some other knives lying around. At this point not really opposed to a guided system, but have a feeling that stones will be more versatile in the long run.
The knife will be used for all sorts of small household tasks, cutting rope and tape, opening letters and bags, occasionally cutting some food or stuff in the garden. I'm ok with a somewhat toothy edge, that'll remain sharp for a long time, as opposed to a super fine shiny edge that will wear quicker. Thinking about stopping at 600/800 grit.
Now for some concrete questions!
1. I've read diamond is way easier to use, I understand this. But I've also read that using a waterstone is possible, it just takes ages. Would it be feasible to get Chosera/Professional stones for example, and sharpen this knife on them? Reason I'm leaning to something like the Chosera stones is that this is my only knife in such a hard steel, I don't really care if it takes an hour to sharpen it, while it could take 3 mins, as I think this will be a once in x months chore.
2. Which stones would you recommend? If water stones I'm thinking about the Chosera 400 and 800, and later on getting the higher grit options to sharpen razors/kitchen knives on. If diamond stones, I'm thinking about the DMT, and getting coarse and fine. After both, I'd strop with diamond paste, and keep doing that on a regular basis for maintenance.
3. When touching up the edge, is it ok to just run it across the Chosera 800 or DMT F stone a few times? Or will this take a very long time on the Chosera as well?
4. Am I overlooking something here, is there anything else you would get besides the stones, a holder and a flattening stone themselves?
Perhaps you can tell right away, I don't know much about this.. I know it's easy to just order the Chosera's for softer steels, as I've been planning to do for some time for my straights now, but this is a different game..
Any advice/comments welcome!
