Proper way to sharpen a knife...

[Crazyotter]

So I'm wondering how you guys sharpen your knife('s) and get them razor sharp. All I know how to do is the basic whetstone stuff, though I always mess up the angles that way. :thumbdn: Thanks.

 

[Sword and Shield]

Basic whetstone's all I use. Plop a nickel on the stone, lay down the knife, and that's your angle.

Oh, by the way, plural of knife is knives, not knifes. Thought I'd help.

 

[neuron]

Edge Pro Apex 4 for me. :thumbup:

 

[ajbuckelew]

Lol I use a Spyderco Sharpmaker at 40º and am always very satisfied with my results, I can get any knife razor sharp, I recommend getting the ultra fine and diamond stones for it too though. Hope this helps.

 

[brets-ftw]

Ill tell you like my dad told me, same way as getting to Carnegie hall, practice practice practice

 

[Noctis3880]

Practice. No matter what system you use(except perhaps the Wicked Edge), practice is tool #1. For me, I prefer a Work Sharp WSKTS, essentially a mini belt sander with aftermarket Micro-Mesh MX belts. Since it's a power tool, I can sharpen S90V, S110V, CPM-M4, and ZDP-189 with no problems. Though because it's a power tool, any mistake can be costly(uneven edge angles, ground thumb studs, ground handles).

Because I have more issues with holding the knife straight through 100 strokes on a stone compared to 10 passes on a belt, I prefer power tools over benchstones. Also faster than my Edge Pro without the constant need to water, tweak, adjust, and flatten the stones.

 

[Andrew Colglazier]

I use one of these when necessary, a Craftsman 2x42" belt grinder -

Otherwise I use one of these, a triangular diamond sharpener -

One of these, large butcher's steel -

And one of these, a large ceramic rod -

Andy

 

[22-rimfire]

I use large DMT diamond bench "stones" mostly. I have the coarse/fine and very fine grits. I only have use the coarse grit for reprofiling or working on a particularly dull knife. Yes, I sometimes allow my attention to wane and have the angle too fine at times and scratch the sides of the blade. Tis life.

 

[neuron]

Ill tell you like my dad told me, same way as getting to Carnegie hall, practice practice practice

Practice. No matter what system you use(except perhaps the Wicked Edge), practice is tool #1.

Quoting these for emphasis since I left out this part in my earlier, rather terse answer of "Edge Pro Apex 4". A well-designed sharpening system -- and IMHO the Edge Pro certainly counts as such -- can make a difference, but the real key is to find something that works for your needs/abilities/budget and then just keep practicing until you become an expert at using it. Pick up a bunch of old knives at a flea market, garage sale, on eBay, etc. and practice until you're getting good results. Then you can move on to the knives in your collection without having to worry about messing up a relatively expensive knife.

 

[jimnolimit]

So I'm wondering how you guys sharpen your knife('s) and get them razor sharp. All I know how to do is the basic whetstone stuff, though I always mess up the angles that way. :thumbdn: Thanks.

what stone are you using?

free hand sharpening is 90% technique and 10% equipment.

p.s. go to a thrift store and buy some beat up, decent quality kitchen knives to practice on.

 

[Crazyotter]

Ok Sword and Shield, and ok. Was being lazy with my typing.
Ok Neuron.
From what I can see of the spyderco sharpmaker, you just point your knife straight down and run it along the sharpener?
Ok brets, and Noctis and Andrew. Never thought of power tools, think it would be safest if I kept away though.
Ok 22 rimfire.
Ok Neuron, I think thats what I'm going to have to do, is just keep practicing.
And I'm using this random 3 sided stone thats been lying around. Has a coarse, medium, and fine side. Normally start on medium and build my way up to fine. If I'm really carefully I get decent results, but not truly sharp ones. I just struggle with keeping the angles consistent.

 

[Andrew Colglazier]

Crazyotter, it's quite possible to do some very fine sharpening on a belt grinder, even on small knives. One does have to be careful to avoid too much pressure and heat. I normally use the grinder to reform bevels, remove nicks, or reprofile. I do use a grinder on large knives which would take too long to sharpen on a stone or otherwise.

Andy

 

[Davor]

For my straight edge knives, (e.g., most pocket knives and kitchen knives) I use the Spyderco Sharpmaker. For convex blades like most of my fixed blade knives I use 1000 grit sandpaper and a leather strop with green compound.

My fixed blades have more of razor edge then my straight blades, but it can also be the quality of the blade. My fixed blades are Busse and Chris Reeve, while my straight edge blades are Swiss Army and Global stainless steel.

 

[Crazyotter]

I believe you, I'm just horrible with power tools. Truth be told, I had to send my leatherman wave away to be re profiled after I tried power tooling the blade. Maybe sometime I'll try it again, but I think it would be best if I practiced angles first...

And ok Davor. Do you just hold the sand paper in the palm of your hand and follow the convex edge? And what strop do you use? Only just figured out what they are... and ok.
Thanks.

 

[richard j]

if you want to try a powered system that is probably a lot easier to use check out the paper wheels. here is a thread i started on them. http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=578787 i offer help over the phone and i even have members come over to learn how to use them.

 

[Spoutz]

That nickel idea that someone posted just might have made me a whetstone man. we will have to see.

 

[Davor]

"And ok Davor. Do you just hold the sand paper in the palm of your hand and follow the convex edge? And what strop do you use? Only just figured out what they are... and ok. "

You can buy the 1000 grit sandpaper at a hardware store. Place the sandpaper on a mouse pad and strop or move the knife blade away from you or not against the blade. Do both sides. After that do the same with a leather strop with some green compound you can also find at a hardware store. Look it up on the internet. There are plenty of videos on how to do this. It really works if the blade is already semi-sharp and its the best way to keep it razor sharp. This advice was also provided to me by a professional who sharpens knives for a living for the Busse company.

 

[HeavyHanded]

And I'm using this random 3 sided stone thats been lying around. Has a coarse, medium, and fine side. Normally start on medium and build my way up to fine. If I'm really carefully I get decent results, but not truly sharp ones. I just struggle with keeping the angles consistent.

Many of the three-sided hones are manufactured by the better names in sharpening equipment. Make sure you're using it w/ oil if it needs it or has already been used with oil. They may need to be lapped. Glazed or choked stones operate at a shadow of their potential, lapping them will make a big difference. Lastly, start with the coarse stone and work your way up, raising and eliminating the burr twice at every step. By the time you get through on the fine stone, you may very well have an edge that can shave your facial stubble, and will most certainly shave arm hair. There is a wealth of info on this site regarding lapping bench stones, eliminating the burr, checking your grind angle, etc - difficult to cover everything in one thread. Davor has good advice as well, convexing with sandpaper and a mousepad is fairly easy to learn, but you still have to understand the basics. For that, using a whetstone is king even if you don't manage to master it. Just start on some cheap knives B4 moving on to any you care about. Patience, practice, and careful observation are key to becoming competent.

HH

 

[SaturatedShadow]

I just use the freehand method on arkansas stones. I haven't mastered it yet, so I keep practicing.