Reprofiling a bk11

C

CSRevenant

Joined
Jun 13, 2010
Messages
72
Hello,

I have 2 becker bk11's, and both seem to have a very uneven edge, they look like 15/25, and I need to reprofile them.

My only sharpener is a sharpmaker, and getting them professionally sharpened would put me around $30 or more, and a whetstone would be a gamble, as I have no sharpening skill.

At this point, it might be easier and cheaper to go buy a different neck knife than fuss with these two. Are there any cheap methods of reprofiling for unskilled sharpeners?
 
A file then a norton stone will work, but it may be ugly.
You could pick up some W&D sandpaper and a mouse pad and convex the edge. Low cost, and its neigh on imposable to muck it up. Cant go wrong :D :D
 
Unskilled??? you have a SM right? you do realize that's basically freehand right?

Go to home depot or the local hardware and buy a norton combo stone, their about $5. Use it like a bench stone or lean it against your SM.
 
knifenut1013 said:
Unskilled??? you have a SM right? you do realize that's basically freehand right?

Go to home depot or the local hardware and buy a norton combo stone, their about $5. Use it like a bench stone or lean it against your SM.
Click to expand...


Xactly. Another option is a cheapo set of diamond plates, about 10 bucks at Harbor Freight or on Ebay. Just secure them to your SM rod with a rubber band at the bottom of the plate.

diamshrp.jpg
 
As a previous poster said - wet / dry sandpaper will take care of you (or rather, it will take care of your edge). Easy and cheap - just like I like it.
 
Just send those in to Richard. You won't believe how sharp he can make them.
 
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knifenut1013 said:
Go to home depot or the local hardware and buy a norton combo stone, their about $5. Use it like a bench stone or lean it against your SM.
Click to expand...

I said the same thing in your other thread. Just do it already.:mad:...........:D:D

I think the BK-11 is a good candidate for learning to sharpen on. It is made of a good steel with a good heat treat, and isn't too expensive. Just make one a learner. If it is already used, it isn't worth a whole lot anyway, especially dull. If you scratch it all up learning to sharpen it-so what? It is meant to be a user anyway.

If you really get bit by the bug, if you scratch it all up, you will start going through various grits of sandpaper and polish it up!

All in all, you don't have much to lose by just trying it out yourself. You might try putting a couple layers of masking tape on the spine in case you do lay it flat on the stone.
 
And another thing........:D

You can always buy another knife instead of sharpening the one you have, but it gets old after a while. If you sharpen your knives, you will get to use and enjoy them much more than if their useful life is only until they get dull. Even if you take them in to be sharpened, you won't use them nearly as much because it is such a hassle to get them back to sharp.

Take a bit of time and learn to sharpen, and you can use your knife to cut things all day long, instead of just looking at it and admiring the edge. The other day I cut a 10' long piece of cardboard just to see how the edge held up with my work knife. I will also cut things buried in the ground, sheetrock, etc., because I know that knife will be sharp again before the next day. THAT is what it means to be able to use your knife.
 
Sharpening isnt as hard as everyone makes it out to be. Get yourself that norton stone, watch murray carter's youtube vids, and get to work. The BK-11 is a great knife to learn sharpening on, but even better are cheap kitchen knives. Break out a cheap kitchen-aid knife and start sharpenin! Theres no "shortcut" it just takes practice.
 
Woo Hoo! One more for our side! :thumbup:

Oh, and if you have any questions...any questions whatsoever, feel free to ask knifenut. :D Just kidding, I am asking questions here too. :)
 
I personally experimented a good bit with my BK-11... tried 15 degree, 20 and eventually gave it a fairly steep convex grind using a mousepad + sandpaper - I'd say that gives the best performance and edge retention. If you're a beginner though, this is a good chance to learn freehand sharpening as stated by others
 
My bk11 is much much sharper now. The grind is kind of raggedy, but the edge seems to cut well. I might try to polish up the whole ground area if I can, but at least it is shaving sharp now.

Thanks for all your advice.

On a side note, I have some nortons honing oil, made of light mineral oil, would this be good for preventing rust on blades?
 
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