Serration sharpening ?

Webs

Webs

Joined
Jul 8, 2004
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51
Ok, I know that sharpening has probably been beat to death around here, but I did a search and didn't come up with the answer(s)/advice I need.
I've got a BM 551S with the combo edge, and I just picked up a Spyderco Sharpmaker 204. Spyderco recommends that both sides of the serrated portion of the blade be sharpened-anotherwords sharpen the serrated knife just as you would a PE. Spyderco maintains that this will help ensure a longer life for the serrations. Alternatively, Spyderco demonstrates another approach where the serrated side is sharpened 3 times for every time sharpened on the non-serrated side. Spyderco says that this will give sharper serrations, but will shorten the serrations life, and require more frequent sharpenings.

I talked to BM about what they recommend for their serrated knives, and no one had a clue until someone talked to Angie (I've seen her praised in the threads before) and Angie suggested I come here!

What do you guys recommend? Should I treat the combo edge just as I would a plain edge and sharpen it on both sides? Should I use the 3 to 1 approach? Or, is it better to get one of the small diamond rods and sharpen the serrations individually, and sharpen the plain edge on the Sharpmaker? :confused:
Any experience/advice is appreciated.

Webs
 
My advice; get a plain-edge. ;) JK. You can sharpen each serration individually with the sharpmaker rods too, that's the way I do it if I want them really sharp. Unless you sharpen them too much I doubt you'll significantly shorten their life by sharpening them equally on both sides though. Just use a light touch.
 
Knifeclerk, that's one of the problems; BM said that they don't sharpen serrations. However, I think that I did see a post here once that said that they sent their combo edge back to BM and BM did sharpen the serrations!? I'd like to be able to learn how to do it myself if possible.
 
I use a Spyderco 204 sharpmaker with the 3 to 1 ratio. I like my knives to be really sharp, and my SE Delica is always ready to prove this. ;)
Indeed, they say sharpening this way shortens the edge life, but I didn't notice significant differences. Besides, I sharpen my knives pretty often. And yes, with a bit of practice you can sharpen each serration individually. This way their tips remain pointy. Using the Spyderco technique, in (long) time the tips of the serrations get rounded.
 
I would do something more like a 5/1 ratio on the sharpmaker. Be careful to follow the serrations to preserve the pointy tips to the serrations. Find some metal rods that are slightly undersized to fit into your serrations. Fold a piece of 220 grit Wet or Dry paper over the rod and periodically use it like a file to restore your serration contours. Work primarily on the side where the serrations were originally ground.
 
WHen you use the stick and the sandpaper as a file, do you go straight up and down at the angle the serrations were cut or do you have to rotate the stick to accomodate for the points?
 
I'd use the stick and the sandpaper like a file and match the original grind. I also have a set of small cylindrical abrassive bits for my Dremel that I use on kitchen knives. The difficulty is in finding bits small enough to fit the small serrations on folding knives.

Another thing that you could get is a DMT:

Diafold® Serrated Knife Sharpener — Mini Butchers Steel, Gut Hook Sharpener and Conical File all in one tool!
1/16" to 1/4" taper (1.6 mm to 6.4 mm)

It is basically a tapered rat-tail diamond file.

(I'll warn you that it wears awfully fast).

You can see it on this web page:
http://www.dmtsharp.com/products/diafold.htm
 
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