Paper wheels VS Edge Pro?

Well this seems to almost have become a Paperwheel vs belt grinder thread. I'm another in the belt grinder camp. A leather belt is a must for one, I used one without for a few years bit the bullet and got one. I could kick myself for not getting one right away. Only learning I needed with the belt grinder was to not pull the tip across the belt. That will round the tip. I was a long time hand sharpener but really there is nothing to learn useing a belt grinder. I have used a few of the clamp and jig systems and they work great. Truthfully if you learn the basic steps of sharpening you can use just about anything to sharpen with. Now that I really know how to sharpen I prefer bench hones, and the belt sander. There really is no majic to any system or method, they all will work. Some work a little faster and some work a bit better but that is mainly based on how much of a polish and low of an angle you can get.
 
Hey now, none of this adult, reasonable, "everybody has a point and nobody is wrong" stuff...we had a good debate shaping up. ;)
 
Last night I put a bunch of sharpening equipment in a burlap sack and tied it shut and left it for a fight to the death...so far there is no clear victor.

Just as there is no single knife that will satisfy everyone, there probably is not single method or apparatus for sharpening that will please every user. The only way to know for sure, is to try them all, and few people can honestly claim to have done this. Oddly, many people will argue over what is best regardless of weather they have tried them all. Either way, it is probably not worth arguing over.
 
This is a knife site----absolutely none of it is actually worth arguing over, but if we all just agreed with each other constantly in a giant love-fest it'd get pretty dull pretty quick. ;)

Even those who HAVE tried pretty much everything (I have an entire corner of my garage that's dedicated to sharpening-specific power tools, strops, guided systems, stones of all types, etc.) will find their favorites, and you're right--not necessarily the same favorites. The one thing I tried and was just thoroughly unimpressed with (and I KNOW many would disagree with me here) is traditional water stones. I just do not like a sharpener that's wearing away almost as fast as the steel is. Yes they produce very nice surfaces, but I can produce very nice surfaces with damned near anything, and do so without a giant puddle of watery stone paste to clean up. I know, however, that there are those for whom water stones are the pinnacle of sharpening mojo, and more power to them!
 
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singularity35 said:
Wouldn't a nice looking edge that performs well, be the best of both worlds?
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i have been experimenting on just that and i have found that a coarser edge finished off on the slotted wheel works the best for all around cutting. a few other members have found out the same thing.
 
Yes, most of the guys I sharpen for get a polished bevel but a relatively coarse micro bevel. My best explanation for that preference is that the extremely smooth surface on top doesn't drag on what's being cut, but the apex of the bevel has enough "teeth" to slice/saw through things more aggressively. I only go for entirely mirror finished edges top to bottom on pure chopping knives, axes, etc. Coarse edges work WAY better in slashing, too, like doing vines with a machete.

Richard, what's been your experience regarding wood chisels on wheels?
 
i have posted about this before in other threads. a buddy who remodels houses was checking out some knives i had and was impressed with the edges. i asked what he used which was a tormek. i showed him the wheels and he had me touch up his wood chisels. he said the slotted wheel worked much better than the leather wheel on the tormek. if you use the slotted wheel to remove the burr, i'm sure you'll like the edge a lot better.
 
Well, so far I have found a bunch of stuff to throw away and an old square that I've been seeking for a long time, but no wheels. I can only take so much surfing at the end of a work day and now require iced tea and a book. I'm absolutely positive that wherever I put those wheels seemed brilliant at the time...
 
So what are you guys calling coarse? At one time I called the edge from my coarse side black SilC hone coarse. Some on the net call a Spyderco brown ceramic coarse. Pretty wide range of coarse depending on who you are talking too.Heck I can really get two different finishes off my Spyderco brown ceramic depending on how much time and pressure I use on it. Richard, did he use any kind of compounds on that leather wheel?
 
he used whatever compound that came with the tormek. i left him a little chunk of the compound i use on the wheels. i'm not sure if he ever tried it or not.
 
To me, coarse means that, without holding it up close to my face, I can look down on a surface and see the scratches easily. Another measure is that if I drag my fingernail perpendicular to the edge, I can feel the little teeth catching. DMT red or even blue is often where I'll stop a micro bevel. A lot of what my guys are cutting is cardboard, and mirror polished edges don't seem to last near as long. If doing a machete for green stuff, I may stop at 180 or 220 on a ceramic belt, followed up by a strop. If hardwood will be on the menu, I go higher.
 
when you find your paper wheels, work up a burr with 80 grit and finish it off on the slotted wheel and then let me know what you think of that edge.
 
Roger. Though WHEN I find the wheels is starting to seem like more of a hope than a guarantee. I'm actually getting frighteningly close to organized, but still nary a whiff of them. I wonder if I boxed them up and stuck 'em on a shelf....
 
Yup a 220 belt is pretty coarse. I should give that a try. Do you strop the 220 edge at all or use it right off the belt? If your like me at all you'r never going to find what you are looking for until you are looking for something else. :) Then you'll say to yourself I'll have to remember that is where those are.
 
I'll finish with a strop unless I'm in a hurry. Always do one pass of dragging the edge through wood to break the wire edge off, as a belt will absolutely create one especially on the soft/ductile steel of your typical machete.
 
t1mpani said:
. If doing a machete for green stuff, I may stop at 180 or 220 on a ceramic belt, followed up by a strop. If hardwood will be on the menu, I go higher.
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Most machete users I see in S.E. Asia use a file to sharpen. Thick grasses, vines, and other fibrous plants seem to be the target of much of the machete use and work best with a VERY toothy edge. Same with the sickles used in Thailand, Cambodia, Lao, Burma, Indonesia, etc., for cutting rice and cane.

Stitchawl
 
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