Question on Spyderco Sharpmaker Ultra Fine rods

V

Vindicated

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Aug 19, 2004
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Quite a few months back I purchased some Cold Steel knives (V. Grande & SRK) and a Camilus Heat. I loved how sharp they were right out of the box. However, it didn't take very long to lose the hair popping razor edge. So I bought a Sharpmaker kit to touch up my knives and so far been getting good results.

I can easily bring any knife that is semi-sharp to begin with to a razor edge but I can't get my knives to the next level of sharp. I've tried using baby oil on the white fine rods which helped a little bit but still not better then when my knives were brand new.

I'm wondering if its worth buying a pair of Spyderco's Ultra Fine rods. Will they take me to that next level (equal or beyond ColdSteel's sharpness) or is true Scary Sharp only obtained using Water Stones and extreamly fine grits? And if you were to measure the UltraFine rods in grit, what would it be equal to?
 
I don't think you're supposed to use any oil on the Sharpmaker rods. Not sure if this can lead to any damage or clogging? Someone else could probably elaborate on that.

The ultra fine rods will put a keener edge on your knife than the standard white fine rods.
 
The UF rods will get you about as far as possible with a stone and a light touch. If you need to go sharper, you'll have to strop.
 
If you already have a strop, you can go from the fine rods to the strop and see if that gets you what you want. If not, the ultrafine rods are great, and they do make a noticeable difference if you're going for a polished edge.

Joe
 
Try doing all of the sharpening you can at the lowest angle that fits with your blade. Whenever possible I work with the 30-degree setting in the Sharpmaker, but if you have a knife with a more obtuse grind you might have to do your work with the rods in the 40-degree holes. Go through all of your steps at your best pick angle up through using the flats of the white (fine) rods. The added step that might help is to put a miniscule micro-bevel on the edge at a slightly greater angle. Working on the flats of the fine rods make a few very light strokes with the spine of the blade tilted slightly inwards (away from the rods as you use them). Be sure that your touch is extremely light and that you stroke alternating sides. Due to the flexibility of the apex of your edge the metal you are micro-beveling will bend slightly and your micro-bevel will be almost parallel to your previous honing surface. This light touch at a slightly higher angle will partially hone and partially smooth your edge. This step will give you another step up in sharpness if you haven't already tried it. If you get the ultra-fine rods try using them for this micro-bevel step and you will get even sharper.
 
whatever you do, make sure to throw those fine rods in the dishwasher next time you run a load of dishes, to clean all that yucky oil off. they don't need oil, and were actually made to be used without it.

abe m.
 
As much as I like the UF stones, I would go with a strop and some compound. This is no dissing here, but I am a little surprised that the Sharpmaker as it is, isn't getting you beyond CS factory sharpness. I would use the black marker to see if you are really working the edge or only when you are not maintaining the blade perfectly vertical (can happen if the bevel on the knife is only a few degrees higher than the Sharpmaker setting you are using)
 
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