paper sharpening wheels - when your time is important to you

Togorashi said:
First post from a long-time lurker. This thread has been really helpful and I love the razor sharp wheels. I have 8" wheels setup on a 6" PC variable speed grinder. One problem I'm having is doing really long blades. The other wheel gets in the way. Any tips for how to deal with this? Thanks.
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Take the other wheel off. :) I had the same problem and only run the grinder with one wheel on at a time.
 
it sucks to buff or sand your elbow and it hurts like hell :D. do what jason said. some wax on the inside of the wheel makes it go on and off the shaft a lot easier. togorashi, if you are in the states, send me an email with your number and i'll give you a ring and give you some more tips that i might not have on my tips page. rje196021@gmail.com
 
Finally tried mine last night. Played with a hacksaw blade for a bit then tried a couple really cheap knives. After 15 minutes or so I tried sharpening my Izula and spyderco centofante3. I got the spyderco sharper than any knife I've ever used. The Izula not quite as sharp, it'll shave my arm hair but won't cut paper cleanly. I guess it has a burr or something, I'll try and fix it tonight. I still need some practice though. You can see a couple small flat spots on the blade where I guess I wasn't very smooth and it looks like I'm tilting the tip a bit when I take the knife off the wheel.
 
rusty, keep practicing with old knives and if you have trouble with a certain blade shape, regrind a cheap knife to match the shape of the knife giving you problems and practice until you get it. send me your number and i'll give you a call. maybe i can give you some other tips to help you sharpen on the wheels.
 
Great thread with tons of information!

Thanks again Richard and it was great talking to you! The wheels sound great, I have to give them a shot.
 
Daniel Fairly Knives said:
Great thread with tons of information!

Thanks again Richard and it was great talking to you! The wheels sound great, I have to give them a shot.
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i wish all the registered users that have read my paper wheel thread and are using the wheels would show their support by ponying up for at least a $10. basic membership. i'm sure they can sharpen up a few knives for their neighbors to get enough money :D
 
i have posted this before but i thought i would post this again. a member asked me about convex edges yesterday and the paper wheels. the grit wheel is meant to sharpen a v edge but the slotted buffing wheel will remove the burr on either a v edge or a convex edge. it does the exact same thing as a strop but faster.
 
i was sent a bunch of woodcarving knives to sharpen with a very narrow blade and the handle is round which can make it difficult to hold the knife flat on either wheel. i came up with an idea to help me hold the knife flat, i have a small piece of magnet on a thin piece of paper micarta spacer. it makes the blade appear wider which makes it easier to hold the blade flat.

for sharpening a single blade that is narrow you can put a piece of masking tape on a piece of cardstock which will make the blade appear wider. narrow blades on slipjoints that are loose can sometimes make the hair stand up on the back of my neck. to make them a little safer to sharpen you can slip a piece of tubing around the handle and slide it up to the blade to keep the blade from closing on you.
 
yesterday i went out to my favorite fundraiser/party last night to sharpen some really dull knives for the guy who cust up the hog once its done cooking. i was not able to set up where i normally did so i had to set up on the back of a pickup truck with my motor setting on top of a box that was a little too high but i managed.

normally i would never have shrpened knives with the wheel being just about chin high but i managed. luckily there was not much coming off the grit wheel since the blades were really thin. i did stand off to the side when i buffed the edges.

if any of you plan on setting up anywhere other than at home, its a good idea to practice sharpening at different heights above your waist.
 
if anyone has the 3/4" wide wheels to sharpen long or large knives and you are having a hard time to keep the edge even, you might consider getting a 1" wide grit wheel which is more stable for sharpening longer blades. you can even get a 1 1/4" wide wheel for even longer blades and (beater) swords.

the 3/4" wide slotted wheel will work fine for removing the burr and stropping/polishing the edge.
 
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richard j said:
if anyone has the 3/4" wide wheels to sharpen long or large knives and you are having a hard time to keep the edge even, you might consider getting a 1" wide grit wheel which is more stable for sharpening longer blades. you can even get a 1 1/4" wide wheel for even longer blades and swords.

the 3/4" wide slotted wheel will work fine for removing the burr and stropping/polishing the edge.
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Eh, not so sure about swords. An ESEE Junglas would be fine, but any larger and the thing gets damn heavy real fast. Especially if you have to lift the blade in order to follow the curve to the tip:thumbup:.

I should also take this opportunity to note that a japanese katana or wakizashi can't be sharpened like a normal knife, and attempting to do so will leave you with an obtuse angle that couldn't cut warm butter. Ideally I believe one would want to sharpen it up along the entire grind, like a scandi. But most katanas should have a curve to it, like a giant convex. So I guess one might call that a zero edge convex?

Speaking from experience of course:D. Tried to sharpen up a katana on my paper wheels and only succeeded in destroying the previously sharp edge.
 
i would not sharpen a really nice sword on the grit wheel but i would use the slotted wheel to remove the burr or to even maintain an edge. i guess i should add that to my post :D. i have sharpened a 4' machete and it was not easy but it can be done. for a really nice sword that is a user, i suggest a convex edge done on a belt sander for edge durability and ease of maintainance with the slotted wheel.

i have been sharpening for 20 years with the wheels so my skills would be a little better than most with the wheels. i do have some knives give me a hard time but i just take break and go at it again later.

to do a long user knife on the grit wheel, you need to have a good touch to continue the edge if you do have to lift the blade and reposition your hold on the blade.

if your katana was slightly dull, you should have used the slotted wheel to bring the edge back and not used the grit wheel.
 
i was talking to a member yesterday who said they put too much wax on their grit wheel and he said it seemed to quit cutting. if this happens just take a small wire brush with fine bristles and clean off the wheel. it is a good idea to clean the wax off after sharpening a number of knives to clean out any small metal particles. its also a good way to tell if you need to regrit the wheel.
 
After conceding that mastery of sharpening stones will have to wait until I have more free time in my life, I finally broke down and bought a set of the wheels. My initial results have left me wondering why I didn't buy them a long time ago, and this is just on my first couple of knives. To the post above, I have a couple of questions about the wax. I applied using my finger, and found after sharpening that there are were uneven areas or spots where the wax was raised on the wheel. Should I try and smooth these out before sharpening, or not worry about it? About how often/after how many knives should I be reapplying the wax or what is the best way to tell that rewaxing is needed?

Also just want to add my own thanks to richard j for helping out so many folks here on the forum.
 
i used to sharpen by hand and with a guided system but once my buddy art summers showed me the wheels and i got a set of my own, i gave up on hand sharpening. to me the time wasted sharpening by hand is not worth the trouble.

with the wheel running you can apply the wax by making a pass across the wheel and back. once i get some wax on the wheel i rub it in with my thumb. any excess wax will come off on the blade and not hurt anything. after sharpening for some time the metal particles can mix with the wax and cause the wheel to not cut as well. a small wire brush about the size of a toothbrush works good to clean the wax off so more can be applied. it will also let you see if the wheel needs to be regritted.
 
I use the slotted wheel to touch up the edge of the user katanas that I have, no problems there and it works really well. As someone said earlier, just take off the other wheel so it doesnt get in the way. It's also great for straight razors,and those take a pretty long time to sharpen otherwise.
 
you can also use the slotted wheel to buff folder blades around the pivot hole so they open smoothly. make sure to tape up the blade really well so you dont end up with stitches. i have even used it to buff the sear on my pistol to make it really smooth.
 
Rich I have some questions. Since Christmas is coming up soon enough, and i'm just starting to get into knife collecting. I want to be able to keep my knives sharp and good for use. For this christmas i'm going to be asking for a sharpening system, and your post about paper wheel sharpening have me intrigued. I have questions would this system will be good for pocket folding EDC's? Would this Ryobi BGH6110 6 in. Bench Grinder ? or too many rpm's? And where do you suggest buying the 8" Deluxe on the internet.

Thanks a bunch.
 
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