No LUCK with LANSKY !

B

beakman

Joined
Dec 21, 2005
Messages
29
Greetings,

After following instructions gathered on a post on using the Lansky system I still am having a hard time getting a decent edge!
Holding the clamp does not work for me so I made a pedestal mount.
To get to the point I would like to ask how do you remove a burr with this system. It seems no matter what I try I still end up with a burr on one side or the other. I'm stumped. Also I would like some advice on how to clean the stones. I have noticed on some of the threads that a few of you guys don't like the Lansky diamond stones. Can I get a really sharp edge with this system?

Thanks to all who reply,
Eric
beakman3@aol.com
 
beakman said:
Also I would like some advice on how to clean the stones.
Click to expand...

If your stones are loaded it will be extremely difficult to form the edge clean. If they are diamond/ceramic then you can clean them with a mild abrasive, diamond doesn't tend to load much at all, I rarely use anything but a scotchbrite pad. I often use oven cleaner on ceramics. If they are oil/waterstones then they should not load, if they do you grind them flat on a piece of concrete. To remove the burr there is a list of things you can do, reduce pressure, elevate the angle, and use short passes.

-Cliff
 
did you happen to search for my post on how to use the lansky? Were you referring to my post?

I use the lansky by holding the guide and it has always worked really well for me.
 
It also worked always for me fine. After sharpening with the Lansky all my knives are "hair popping sharp" . . .
 
I don,t know much about that particular system . If you are getting a different result from others could it be due to the fact that you are creating a bias ? Either by tilting the knife or pressing too hard .

I know I had that issue for a while . I paid strict attention to the angle of the blade and I got better results .
 
some knives will not clamp up very well in the lansky (cant be helped really), and any pressure you put on the blade will make the blade slip back and forth in the jig making you lose your angles.

Clamp the knife as tight as you can using a screwdriver, and check often to see if the blade hasnt slipped more to one side than the other.
 
I'm a big fan of the Lansky kit. In fact, discovering the joy of a sharp knife was probably what got me into reading about, buying, then making knives. Thanks Lansky!

Anyhow, in my experience, burr removal with the Lansky kit is mostly a matter of gentleness. If you've got a good burr, then you've got no problem there. At that point, you switch to the fine stone (or x fine I suppose- I don't have one) and starting doing the same motion as you have been doing all along, but with less pressure. Then flip, and use less pressure. Then flip, and use less pressure. Then flip, and use less pressure. I've never needed to increase the sharpening angle (ie microbevel) to make a burr go away. Just less and less pressure.

That should grab hairs above the skin. Strop carefully (plenty of threads on how to do that) and you should be able to pop single hairs off.

Which reminds me of another important consideration! I only ever use the lowest angle. If you've read around on BF, you'll notice that 34 degrees is considered a fairly obtuse edge. That stuff in the little manual about "only suitable for xacto knives" is a crock of crap. If you're going to sharpen a knife, sharpen it sharp, that's what I say.

That's worked on AUS6, AUS8, 1095, O1, S30V, 440A and 440C, some cable damascus... which is to say, it's never not worked for me. And I've only got the 3-stone kit!

Forumites make a big hullabaloo about the Sharpmaker, and I'm sure it's good, but the Lansky kit works just fine too. Just keep at it, before you know it your knives will super sharp and you'll be glad you stuck to it.

Mike
 
I hold the stone facing up in my left hand, and the knife handle in my right and use it like a bench stone with guide rods. I love the Lansky, I think that when the knife fits the system, I get a sharper edge with the Deluxe Lansky (non-diamond) than I do with the Sharpmaker, although nothing else beats the Sharpmaker for tricky blade like recurves or serrations.
 
Psycho78,

Yes I was referring to your post on the Lansky. Can't do it by holding the clamp in my hand. By the way the knife is made by Schrade, It's an X timer. I think you have probably seen them. Blade is almost 4" long and seems to clamp alright. Burr just seems to keep flipping from side to side.

Eric,
beakman3@aol.com
 
If you're getting a pretty large visible burr on your knife, try stropping your blade on a wide piece of leather like in the post I made. That should take the burr off.
 
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