Newbie Sharpening Question

[conwict]

Hey guys and gals,

I got a cheapie little Gerber rod sharpener, about the size of a matchbook, for Christmas. I actually like the ease of use for touching up my Junkyard Dog 2.

I don't have any fancy equipment, my usual "total package" is:

Mark blade with a sharpie
Pass it over a rough-to-med stone, with oil on stone, until sharpie rubs off...repeat as necessary
Pass it over a fine stone, with oil, until sharpie rubs off again
Strop on leather and/or corrugated cardboard about 50 times
A few drops of oil on the blade
Rub down with silicon cloth

If it cuts a post-it note vertically with ease, it's good to go.

From my understanding, I've been going for a fairly acute blade angle (15deg?) as I appreciate the cutting performance and don't mind touching up every day or two.

Okay, to cut to the chase, the little keychain rod sharpener seems to put a more obtuse angle on the blade, giving the edge a kind of funny look. Cuts fine...but what would you purists do? I really love the convenience of the Gerber, I'm just wondering how I can get rid of that double-decker blade edge look.

 

[TekSec]

Use a sharpening system from Spyderco or other suppliers that provides an actual guide system. I use a little kit that I picked up from Lowe's from Smith's. It comes with a guide (with two angles, around 20 degrees and around 25) that clamps onto the blade and two diamond stones, one course and one fine plus lubricant. Works well to set the proper angle and clean up imperfect beveling caused by freehanding. Not the way I sharpen a newly made blade (I use Micron belts on my grinder for that) but works well for what you're describing.