paper sharpening wheels - when your time is important to you

richard j said:
infi-del, that arbor will work just fine. i think the grit is 320. i think a 280 grit would work better when it comes to coating the wheels. it would also cut faster on harder steels.
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According to Mike who makes the paper wheels, the grit supplied on (and with) the grit wheel is 180 grit silicon carbide, the same stuff used in most wet or dry abrasive paper/cloth for metal work. The 180 acts finer than it is because of the wax and the high velocity of the wheel rim.

Bill
 
the grit i have is finer than 180. when i bought the cheaper set of wheels it came with a decent size container of grit which i never thought to check out.
 
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The paper wheel system can be used to great effect. That said.. There is no substitute for learning how to use hand stones.
 
hand stones are ok if you're out away from home or have a lot of time to spend sharpening. i sharpened by hand for about 16 years with sandpaper on glass and then an ez sharp from the early 80's on. when i was in my late 20's i started to hate hand sharpening when my hands started bothering me. i was so glad when my buddy art turned me onto the paper wheels. i can still sharpen by hand if i need to but consider it a waste of time when i can be done in a few minutes.
 
I'm really looking forward to SOMEDAY having paper wheels.

I'm getting pretty good with a Sheffield Pocket Steel my buddy gave me, but have a few blades that I just can't get to slice paper worth spit!
 
I have to say, I used to be slightly annoyed at seeing all the posts for paper wheels (SORRY :o richardj... But I was)
But thanks to your posts... I figured why not. (that & the hours with my strops were catching up. It was starting to cut into my afterhours r&r)

But I have to say after a little more than a week with my set, it is BY FAR my best sharpening purchase. The learning curve was MUCH, MUCH less than I expected. I went straight to all my ti framelocks on my second sitting.

At first I tried using the wheels with the rotation going away. It was a bit frustrating. I initially didn't want to try the method richardJ suggested (@ 1o'clock rotating straight into my face. Can I get a give a big thank you to clear face guards?) but that's what I went to & it all just instantly clicked.

A big THANKS TO RJ!
-Scooby

Here's a pic of my "letter opener" which I just spruced up.
casesbstp60446.jpg
 
if more guys would listen they would find out what a sharp knife really is. if you already have a buffer, $40 isnt that much to spend for a set of wheels that can last for many years (my first set is 18 years old and still going strong) i probably sharpened enough knives to fill the bed of a 4'x8' pickup truck bed in my life and i would say almost half were done on the wheels. the 241 folders i sharpened earlier this year couldnt have been done in the 17 hours it took me to do them any other way. most of the knives had 2 or 3 blades each. remember you can even sharpen scissors on the abrasive wheel. they have to be sharpened using the method i use so you can match the angle easier. you dont buff the scissors when done. a few repeated openings and closings will remove any burrs.
 
I have a few blades that just won't respond to my Sheffield Pocket Steel or Ceramic stick.

I can detect NO rolled edge, but they still won't slice paper with impunity.

THOSE are the ones I want paper wheels for! Seems like a little profiling is in order.
 
As per my prior post...

Here's one of the ti framelocks I did in my second sitting with the paper wheels.

Probably a bit ballsy of me to try at the time given that I only had 1/2 dozen knives under my belt with the wheels.

strostp60454.jpg


But my custom STR damascus Ouparator told me to stop being a wuss & that it didn't have hours to wait for refreshed edge on a hand strop :p

(Note: the slightly so-so edge near the tip & choil area are remnants of it's prior owner's sharpening :rolleyes: Not wanting to remove too much stock from the hand forged damascus O1 blade, I can live with slowly taking them out with each sharpening.)
 
the edge looks good to me scooby. practicing with a hack saw blade is still a good idea to help get the hang of it a lot better. i wasnt sharpening too long when my buddy art summers brought by a knife he made worth $1.250 for me to sharpen. he said i was much better at sharpening than he was. i sharpened the knife even though i was nervous and did just fine.
 
scoobyaz said:
I have to say, I used to be slightly annoyed at seeing all the posts for paper wheels (SORRY :o richardj... But I was)
But thanks to your posts... I figured why not. (that & the hours with my strops were catching up. It was starting to cut into my afterhours r&r)

But I have to say after a little more than a week with my set, it is BY FAR my best sharpening purchase. The learning curve was MUCH, MUCH less than I expected. I went straight to all my ti framelocks on my second sitting.

At first I tried using the wheels with the rotation going away. It was a bit frustrating. I initially didn't want to try the method richardJ suggested (@ 1o'clock rotating straight into my face. Can I get a give a big thank you to clear face guards?) but that's what I went to & it all just instantly clicked.

A big THANKS TO RJ!
-Scooby

Here's a pic of my "letter opener" which I just spruced up.
casesbstp60446.jpg
Click to expand...


Scoobs,
I felt the same way.... your thoughts were so parallel to mine, I had to chime in. (Like I need an excuse. :p)Who was this Richard J with his fancy dancy thingamabopper paper tiger. Yadayadayada. I wanted to learn my Lansky, and that was it. I will ignore this "Is your time" thread that does not go away. Well, I learned my Lansky, and it was fine. I got over my pride and realized, even efficient Lansky takes a lot of time. I was also faced with my OCD of changing slipjoints daily, how could I find time to keep them all scary sharp? I finally came to reason and listened to Richard. We have had a couple of conversations on the phone, he is a great guy. I am a Razor Sharp Paper Wheel Fan Boy! It is nice to buy American, and for a product to deliver what is promised. It is an easy learning curve. I enjoy sharpening on the wheels. I also enjoy my time to do otherthings as well.
 
the non gritted paper wheel makes a semi sharp edge hair popping sharp. I learned how to use that wheel with ease. The only problem I am still having is the gritted wheel. No matter how level I keep the blade, I tend to mess up the tip. I'll try to take a picture or do a video of what i'm doing. Has anyone had problems sharpening the tip?
 
jesse2205 said:
the non gritted paper wheel makes a semi sharp edge hair popping sharp. I learned how to use that wheel with ease. The only problem I am still having is the gritted wheel. No matter how level I keep the blade, I tend to mess up the tip. I'll try to take a picture or do a video of what i'm doing. Has anyone had problems sharpening the tip?
Click to expand...

I think if you are able to take a video of yourself, it will show you any flaws(if any) on your final movement. When I used to seriously play billiards, a pro coach told me to try that to see any flaws in my stroke. For me the results were definitely revealing of subtle flaws in my mechanics.

Hopefully RJ will chime in but, with my limited experience with the wheels... I originally found the tip being an issue on longer knives. It was hard for me to complete the pass in one good stroke because I had arc my whole arm towards the grinder (whilst sharpening @ 1 o clock as per richard)

I corrected this by sitting closer to the grinder so that my arm could full extend behind the wheel. In my motion, my shoulder is very close to the front of the wheel (& even above the wheel) at the end of the pass. On a larger knife such as a machete, I could see how I might have to situate my dominant hand onto the spine of the knife (as opposed to all the way back on the handle) to be able to make the pass on one stroke.

But I'm sure that Richard will shed some light...

my $0.02
-Scooby
 
dont let the tip drop off the wheels edge. with longer knives you're control is different but with practice you'll improve. wait till you do a 4" machete.
 
richard j said:
i have a boker ceramic knife that was sent to me without any kind of an edge. after about 10 minutes with a small diamond wheel i now have a working edge on the blade. i'll try putting it on the abrasive wheel and see what happens. if it works i'll make a post here.
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Thanks, keep us posted if it works.

Anybody know what kind of tools they use if You send knives back to the factory (Kyocera etc.) for sharpening? Paper wheels? :rolleyes:
 
i tried a few passes on the abrasive wheel and i seen a sign of something being removed. i already have a working edge on the blade but it was hard to tell if its any sharper. to put the working edge on the knife i used a diamond disc with a medium diamond coating. i havent tried a fine diamond disc yet.
 
if the abrasive wheel seems to cut slow you need to check on the condition of the wheel. using an old toothbrush or wire brush, clean a small area of the wax so you can see the glue/grit.
 
I talked to Richard today. He's under the weather and hasn't been online very much. He is still sharpening and the best way to reach him is through email.
 
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