paper sharpening wheels - when your time is important to you

driwash,

did you get a hold of razor sharp? I would be interested as well to know if they are still open for business.
 
studio398 said:
driwash,

did you get a hold of razor sharp? I would be interested as well to know if they are still open for business.
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studio398,, no I have not been able to get a hold of them, hopefully one of the members here will be able to tell us what has happened to them.
 
Found this for Razor Sharp Wheels if you're still looking...

Temporary phone number - until mid December 2015

1-707-459-2780
 
I have been using the paper wheels for a couple of years. I have been pleased with the results. The drawer with the stones, systems, etc. does not get opened.

So, this morning I decided to free hand sharpen kitchen knives. Worked on 6 knives for about a half hour. They were (or so I though) OK. But, I was not quite satisfied. I decided to continue with the stones. Then I suddenly realized that I would rather not spend additional time with the stones - I just do not have the patience anymore. Being retired, I have more important things to do - rest, walk, read, shoot, etc.

I got the paper wheel set up out, and within 10 minutes had the kitchen knives and two others hair poping sharp.

Thus, a general realization, "paper sharpening wheels - when your time is important to you."

I really respect those that like the challange of sharpening by other methods, and who can shave hairs, etc. I think that sharpening is a great hobby for those that find satisfaction from it.

Then I came to my second realization of the morning - my knives are much sharper since I switched to the paper wheels. I really think I never had the desire, time, or skills, to get my knives so sharp by hand. I use my knives a lot, and I like them usable sharp, which I can exceed quickly using the paper wheels.

My kudo's to Richard. His time and effort in this thread are suburb.

Ed
 
The Manix 2 lightweight in S110V is a superb knife, and it exemplifies Spyderco's motto "simplify and add lightness".
The model only seems to have two possible disadvantages: it takes up quite a bit of real estate in your pocket, and some people can't seem to get over the fact that it has an ultra lightweight plastic handle, which to them makes the knife feel cheap and not worth the asking price.
But after providing them with some links to real life tests with this knife some of them change their minds :-)

I do hope however that the factory edges get some more attention in the future, as i already had to resharpen 5 pcs of this model that couldn't even slice copy paper.
Upon inspection all these edges had visible burr remains and edge angles measured around 35 degrees inclusive.

This is one of them with it's new bling & bite edge, as i call them: reprofiled to +/- 30 degrees inclusive with 230 grit diamond powder on a Rubber Wheel, refined with 15 micron diamond compound on a Paper Wheel, and deburred with 0,25 micron diamond compound on a second Paper Wheel.
To me the shiny bevels are actually a side effect, as it's the clean cutting of the large amount of vanadium carbides that i'm after.








 
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kwackster said:
A Belgian member of the Dutch forum who's also into sharpening sent me a USB-camera as a gift, and although i still have lots to learn about what it can do i managed to take a couple of pics of the current edge on the PM2 in S110V steel:

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Wow. Great shot. Nice polish.
 
Did these chisel ground edges a a few years ago with a Paper Wheel coated with 15 micron diamond compound, and then stropped the burr on the other side off on hard leather with some 1 micron diamond compound.
Both knives were quite blunt, one even more than the other.
The knives are owned by two Dutch Special Forces guys who used & sharpened them while on tour in Afghanistan, and they wanted the new edges to have a little bling.






 
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Below you see 3 different viewing angles of the edge i recently put on a brand new Sebenza 25 (which had a subpar factory edge)
The owner of the knife took the pictures with a very expensive Leica camera to capture the different looks this edge type can have when seen from different angles.
For obvious reasons i named this a bling & bite finish, and it performs very well on especially high (vanadium) carbide steels.

I first reprofiled the factory edge from 35 degrees inclusive to 30 degrees inclusive with a Rubber Wheel coated with 230 grit diamond powder, then refined it with a Paper Wheel coated with 15 micron diamond compound, and lastly removed the tiny burr with a second Paper Wheel coated with 0.25 micron diamond compound.
The new and ever so slightly convex edge could treetop the hair on the back of my hand (even whittle it a bit) and easily slice single ply toilet paper.
And this was after i tested the edge with a few firm cuts into the edge of a piece of laminated desktop.



 
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Hello Kwakster! I have been using paper wheels with good results but I run into trouble with the gritted one wearing out fast and I really don't wish to get involved in re-gritting(yes, saw your instructions on the Multitool forum). In a different forum I saw your comments on rubber wheels and strangely, it seems to be the sole reference in the Internet for their use in knife sharpening.
They are available here in the US for around $80.- so could I ask you to please expound on the subject?. Thank you, and certainly additional thank yous for all your contributions on all related subjects
 
nolden7 said:
...but I run into trouble with the gritted one wearing out fast...
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They really don't wear all that fast, is it possible you've got too much wax on it? I found that out when I first started. If the wheel looks black and smooth, that might be it. You might try a stiff wire brush and see if some comes off.



Still gotta love the quick results of the paper wheels... Couple a days ago my neighbor brought me a Leatherman with a knife on it he borrowed from a coworker, who claimed he dulled the knife, and now wanted a new one. (Knife was in crappy shape, so I doubt this to begin with). Two passes on the grit wheel, and three on the polish wheel left an edge that would shave.

Asked him yesterday what the coworker thought... he said the guy spent the entire morning running around cutting stuff, and showing everyone how sharp his knife was.

Not bad for less than two minutes work! :thumbup:
 
cbwx34 said:
They really don't wear all that fast, is it possible you've got too much wax on it? I found that out when I first started. If the wheel looks black and smooth, that might be it. You might try a stiff wire brush and see if some comes off.



Still gotta love the quick results of the paper wheels... Couple a days ago my neighbor brought me a Leatherman with a knife on it he borrowed from a coworker, who claimed he dulled the knife, and now wanted a new one. (Knife was in crappy shape, so I doubt this to begin with). Two passes on the grit wheel, and three on the polish wheel left an edge that would shave.

Asked him yesterday what the coworker thought... he said the guy spent the entire morning running around cutting stuff, and showing everyone how sharp his knife was.

Not bad for less than two minutes work! :thumbup:
Click to expand...

Thanks for your good advice. That was exactly the problem and a brief passing with a steel brush did the trick, followed by a light dub of wax (unfortunately I'm a great fan of the western principle that if something is good, then a lot of is is better...).
And because eventually I'll have to re-grit (it's my heavy hand), I would appreciate any info regarding rubber wheels. The little info available make them look more or less eternal and maintenance free, which are my two cups of tea..
Thank you again
 
I would also like info. on the rubber wheels. I am tired of regritting the paper wheels and no longer use them.
 
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