Only Sharp Knives Are Interesting- the Sharpening Thread

amunderdog said:
Well.
I get a new blade set up in the TSProf
It has high and low spots all along the edge.
The high spots are not much issue. The low spots are kicking my a@#.
Keep grinding for perfection, Or, Get near acceptable, and let future sharpening's eventually, hopefully, wear it to even?
Also.
The cutting edge flair at heel.
Have an opinion about dealing with it?
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Is this a CPK knife?
 
Grinding it out or adding a sharpening coil is the best answer, once ground out that's sometimes referred to as the smiley because it curves up the blade bevel. As for the other uneven edge sections, I would just grind through them, with a manual system that's a lot of work because as you cut away more edge your contact surface gets larger and removing material is slower.
 
Here's one I just re-profiled and sharpened, 600 grit 15 dps with a 20 dps micro-edge finished on white ceramic rods. You can see I needed to cut deeper at the heel of the blade and the subsequent smiley. When I do this I usually come back and manually clean up the edges of the sharpening coil with a DMT diamond needle file.

Vehement.jpg
 
amunderdog said:
Rods and files are missing from my sharpening kit.
One day i hope to find and remember to order some.
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Order a Spyderco Sharpmaker, then set your edges below 20 degrees with the TS PROF, I like 15 but up to 18 is fine. Once you set the edge with your TS PROF you'll never need to go back to it unless you really bugger up your edge. Touch-ups are fast and easy with the Sharpmaker. For mall nicks you can get the diamond rods later.

You'll find out with guided systems that sharpening a knife on them the second time has its own learning curve. Unless you position the knife in the exact same spot in the clamp and have your angle set exactly the same, you need to re-true the edge each time. I consider guided systems (even my own) a one time sharpening solution unless necessary, touch ups should be done by other means.

All of this is just my opinion based on 20+ years of using guided sharpening systems.
 
Lorien said:
This thread is for sharing tips and tricks relating to keeping your CPK operating at its best.

Someone had recently asked about keeping a CPM 3V blade, with the Delta heat treatment protocol, maintained while out and about.

In the attached vid, I tried to show how a damaged edge bevel can be brought back to service in ten minutes using one simple and easy to get tool. While the results are generally better with more sharpening implements and more time, the video shows how little it takes to get your Delta 3V edge back to at least 80%, (I made that figure up) when you're out in the boonies and away from your tools.

CPM 3V, with Delta heat treatment, is a rewarding steel for those who like sharpening. It'll support a very keen edge, and isn't so hard as to be frustrating to deal with. To me, it's not dissimilar from relatively simple carbon steels like 1095 or W2.


Share your sharpening tips, tricks and hacks, and ask your questions about sharpening your CPKs here!
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What tool are you using in the video?
Thank you great video and great thread.
 
NUTRAMAC said:
What tool are you using in the video?
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DMT Diafolds. They come in various grit combinations.


portable_diafold_double_sided_banner.jpg
 
Blues said:
DMT Diafolds. They come in various grit combinations.


portable_diafold_double_sided_banner.jpg
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Yep.

My favorite portable touch-up/sharpening tool. Folds up to about 5"x1.25"x0.3" and only weighs ~2oz.

While I have all the grits shown above, I found that the Blue/Coarse and Red/Fine double sided is generally all I need. The Red/Fine side will get an edge shaving sharp (and produces a microscopically toothy edge, which for me, works better on a wider variety of tasks than a micropolished edge).

The Blue/Coarse side allows me to either reprofile an edge, or sharpen really dull blades a lot faster than just using the Red/Fine side (my original single sided Red/Fine Diafold is almost 3 decades old, and still works fine, but when the double sided version came out, I immediately got the Blue-Red).
 
Blues said:
I'm in the "sharp enough" camp. I have an Edge Pro for "just in case"...otherwise I use either freehand or my Sharpmaker (or jig set up to replicate the Sharpmaker angles for larger stones).

Once the edge cleanly slices phone book paper in both directions, I generally say "good enough".

My personality is such that if I spend too much time trying to get a perfect edge, I'd not want to use it and ruin it. So "good enough" is easy to maintain without feeling like I've destroyed a work of art. (Same reason I don't wash and wax my 4Runner. 🤣 )
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I feel the same way.

Blues said:
Those of you with healthier mindsets can employ other methods to better effect.
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You spelled persnickety wrong. ;) 🤣
 
bluemax_1 said:
I found that the Blue/Coarse and Red/Fine double sided is generally all I need.
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I guessed and grabbed that one. Looks like it was the right choice. Though sometimes I kind of wish I had a coarser one, but really, that would only be for extreme jobs that I can ultimately wait and do at the shop.
 
carnifex knifeworks said:
I have a dmt diafold that I keep around for a field sharpener. For the life of me, I can't seem to get the hang of it.
Lorien Lorien makes it look like there's nothing to it. Not as easy as it looks, at least for me!
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one thing to concentrate on is the amount of pressure you're applying. There has to be a fair amount, especially at lower grits. As i progress into higher grits, I use less pressure. Learning how to sharpen isn't easy, it requires sensitivity. Just keep at it and eventually it'll click.
NUTRAMAC said:
What tool are you using in the video?
Thank you great video and great thread.
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it's a Diafold by DMT, fine on one side, coarse on the other. Fine grit I find is the most useful, and I usually follow it up with fine ceramic
 
David Mary said:
I guessed and grabbed that one. Looks like it was the right choice. Though sometimes I kind of wish I had a coarser one, but really, that would only be for extreme jobs that I can ultimately wait and do at the shop.
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Yeah. I have the Black/X-Coarse DMT 10" bench stone. I figure if I need something that aggressive, it's more than I'd want to deal with, with a 4" handheld sharpener.

Been able to use the Blue/Red to reprofile and sharpen dull, rusted machetes and axes (literally so dull, the edge wouldn't cut you even sawing at body parts. It would rub skin raw instead of actually cutting. No idea how people let their edged tools get like that).
 
Lorien said:
one thing to concentrate on is the amount of pressure you're applying. There has to be a fair amount, especially at lower grits. As i progress into higher grits, I use less pressure. Learning how to sharpen isn't easy, it requires sensitivity. Just keep at it and eventually it'll click.

it's a Diafold by DMT, medium on one side, coarse on the other. Medium grit I find is the most useful, and I usually follow it up with fine ceramic
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DMT actually calls the Red, their 'Fine' grit. Green is X-Fine, and the Tan (Gold?) is XX-Fine. Blue is Coarse, Black is X-Coarse.

*** They don't actually have anything listed as Medium.
 
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