Proper sharpening angle for every day carry

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pborst2023

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I had a very basic question. I just bought a work sharp, Ken onion edition. And they recommending a 25° angle for pocket knives as a default. Is that a good default? I wanted to use 15 more like my kitchen knives. But if there’s a good reason for knife maintenance to do 25° I’d like to get your thoughts. Thanks. Paul.
 
Depending on what they mean by a 25° angle (per side or inclusive), that figure may or may not be a good starting point. If they mean 25° per side (50° inclusive), that's an extremely wide edge and it won't cut very well - or maybe not at all - when the apex dulls even slightly. And whichever angle is best also depends on what uses your knife will be put to.

For my own typical uses with my pocket knives, I like something in the 25° inclusive ballpark (that would be 12.5° per side). Great slicing geometry, so long as the blade isn't subjected to unusually hard use, like heavy chopping or twisting during cutting, etc., all of which can severely deform or chip a thin edge. Anything around 30° inclusive (15°/side) will cut pretty well and is usually safe for most any blade, so long as it's not subjected to very hard use. That's usually a decent starting point, after which you can see how it holds up and then decide if you want to take it narrower or a bit wider, for the sake of balancing cutting performance against the need for frequent repair or heavy resharpening to keep it cutting well.
 
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The work sharp is a convenient tool as long as you don't burn it out.

David Mary

Mixed Thread 'Work Sharp belt grinder'

The Works Sharp is quite an effective tool. The belts they provide cut well, and last a fairly long time. I used the Work Sharp with the blade grinding attachment, after owning the original, and realizing very quickly that the guide was basically worthless to me. Once I stopped using the guide, and just went freehand on the original, my result improved, my sharpening time reduced, and my tips stayed pointy (it can be difficult to avoid rounding over the tip when using the original WS with the angle guide). Then when I got the Ken Onion edition with blade grinding attachment the results...
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You have to be careful with the point, it will be easy to round it if you don't understand the angle of attack you need to use with it.

If your knife is thin behind the edge (say, .012" or less), then a 17-19° per side convex edge is quite sharp, but also quite durable. It's around what I use, along with a 20° per side microbevel applied with the Spyderco SharpMaker. You can go even lower in angle than that if you want to, depending on the steel and how you'll use it, but I have never felt the need to.

If your knives are thicker than that, you would be best to get the blades reground thinner first, but if you can't do that, then lower angles are probably going to serve you better.
 
If that 25 degrees means per side it's a bit too steep for a knife and won't cut very well. Ideally you want it somewhere between 15 and 20 degrees depending on what you usually use your knife for and sometimes even the steel of the blade itself. A steeper edge will have more stability making it suitable for cutting harder materials, but it will also require more force to cut through material due to the shape. A more acute edge will slice like a laser, but at the cost of a more less stable edge. I personally "aim" for around 17 per side as a happy medium. With steels that are tougher or smaller knives that won't see anything harder than an apple I'll go lower. But this is just my personal preference, it's largely up to you to find your perfect angle.
 
Good night! 25 degrees? That would be 50 total. I have one knife I have to sharpen at 50 (leatherman blade) and it cuts poorly and dulls fast.

Ain't no way id recommend 50. I use 30 degrees on all my knives and no microbevel. And I ain't batoning brass rods, but I use them hard. Cutting zip ties, carpet, drywall, carving hard plastics, cardboard etc. I think you will be alot happier at 30 degrees than 40 or 50. And if your knife steel can't handle it without chipping you can easily increase the angle in minutes, it takes alot longer to go the other way. 30 just cuts better and stays sharper longer. I'd go down to 20-25 total on some of my lighter use knives but my sharpener doesn't that low and I don't hand sharpen.
 
Per side. So they are recommending 50° total for pocket knives. But most here seem to think that’s too wide so I’m gonna go more narrow maybe 30 total 15 per side, which is the limit of the work sharp
 
25 degrees per side is absurd
 
I just want to add if you use the Work Sharp belt system you will get a convex edge. I mention this because when I first bought one and tried it I ran a SAK through it to try first. It didn't feel very sharp until I realized I had just laid open my thumb feeling the edge. That convex edge can be misleading if you are used to the feel of a V edge.
 
Thanks. There seems to be consensus in this group that the 25° per side recommendation for folders from work sharp is too wide. The work sharp can onion edition allows a range between 15° and 30° per side and is for sharpening folders and tools. Based on what everyone has said, I’m going to go down to 15° from my folders and re-examine when I do tools and scissors. Thanks.
 
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