Alright I sharpened the knife again and the edge was better but still not very good. It can cut the printer paper on the shorter side but it can sometimes tear it too. I fully apexed it on both sides. I used my finger nail and scratched down from the spine to the edge to detect the burr. Is it because it is a coarse grained steel? If not can I just use the fine stone to fix the problem instead of starting over with the coarse stone because I don't want to remove too much metal. Not sure if I'm doing anything wrong.
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Sharpening D2
- Thread starter Pink Guy
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As long as the overall edge geometry is good, no need to drop back down to a coarse stone. It might be that you need to do some work with the finer stone to get the edge where you want it.
Make sure as you work that you aren't allowing too much wobble in the mechanics. If the edge bevel appears to be somewhat rounded as you tilt it under light that could be the problem, or part of it. A little bit of light rolling across the edge is OK, too much and your final angle as become overly large. If not, is still likely a burr. They become too small to feel before they become too small to see.
How does it perform on other tests?
Make sure as you work that you aren't allowing too much wobble in the mechanics. If the edge bevel appears to be somewhat rounded as you tilt it under light that could be the problem, or part of it. A little bit of light rolling across the edge is OK, too much and your final angle as become overly large. If not, is still likely a burr. They become too small to feel before they become too small to see.
How does it perform on other tests?
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It's likely there are still some issues along the edge; either burrs or incomplete apex, or both in varying sections.
When cutting in the paper, pay very close attention to where on the blade's edge the paper starts to snag or tear. Draw the blade very SLOWLY from heel to tip when cutting, and watch where the snags happen. Those will be the spots to focus on, either for working to a cleaner & crisper apex, or cleaning up remaining burrs, or both. As Martin has mentioned, any variation in the mechanics (held angle) can complicate things as well; more so if the stone used isn't cutting so well, which will tend to burnish & round over the apex, or create more/larger burrs, instead of cleanly cutting the steel. The more cleanly the stone cuts, the less the burrs will be an issue. A more marginal abrasive that struggles a little to cut the large, hard carbides in D2 will tend to make the user apply more pressure in grinding, and that will exacerbate burring issues on such a stone.
I'm still concerned you might be having some issues with the stone itself; a diamond hone or SiC stone cuts D2 much more predictably and will more easily produce good results on D2, especially in the heavier grinding stages. Other stones & media can do well or even excellent at refining steps, so long as the technique is sound.
David
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I polished the knife again (main blade) and I also finished reprofiling the coping blade (the knife has 3 blades). It can cut the paper on the short side somewhat smooth but still able to do it. The coping blade could do it smoother. I tried to polish the main blade again but I couldn't reach the same sharpness as the coping blade. I'm going to upload a picture of the paper soon (phone isn't connecting to the computer) so you can see the smoothness and roughness of the cut.
Edit: I also just remembered that I sharpen with the edge perpendicular to the stone. Since the main blade has varying width from heel to the start of the belly. It's a Queen Whittler if that helps. I'm not sure if that would cause any difference in angle and therefore causing less smooth cuts on printer paper. And would sharpening the knife at an angle from the stone be better or make a difference?
Edit: I also just remembered that I sharpen with the edge perpendicular to the stone. Since the main blade has varying width from heel to the start of the belly. It's a Queen Whittler if that helps. I'm not sure if that would cause any difference in angle and therefore causing less smooth cuts on printer paper. And would sharpening the knife at an angle from the stone be better or make a difference?
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- Jun 29, 1999
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- 9,881
D2 is easy to sharpen on diamond hones, but it does take longer than lower carbide steels. But once the edge is there it lasts and lasts.
I have used the DMT Aligner for many many Queen slipjoints
The DMT Aligner using diamond stones, from X Course to E Fine
It takes about 1/2 hour with the E Course to get to an apex then it needs much less on the subsequent stones
So D2 take lots of time
The DMT Aligner using diamond stones, from X Course to E Fine
It takes about 1/2 hour with the E Course to get to an apex then it needs much less on the subsequent stones
So D2 take lots of time
- Joined
- Apr 12, 2009
- Messages
- 13,442
Might be trying to polish too soon, before the edge is fully apexed. Queen's D2 will take a wicked-sharp edge even at the coarse stage of sharpening, so long as it's fully apexed. If it's not cutting paper easily, it's likely not there yet. I'd focus on only the coarsest stone, and don't go beyond it until the edge is cutting paper well.
With Queen's typical edge grinds, there's also a good chance the edge angle is still quite thick. If so, it should benefit by thinning the edge angle as well.
For the angle of the blade and honing direction, relative to the stone, I've always preferred a diagonal orientation, instead of directly perpendicular across the stone. In other words, the heel & tip of the blade would be oriented towards opposite corners of the stone, and the honing motion is akin to 'slicing' the stone, with the tip of the blade following (trailing) the heel. I'd also suggest that you try out a 'scrubbing' motion when sharpening, i.e. back & forth with the blade oriented diagonally as described. This technique will be much quicker to remove metal and reach a crisp apex, and I've also found it easier to maintain the edge angle this way, as the blade doesn't have to be lifted and replaced for each honing pass. If/when you get a chance, try it out with some 'practice' blades to get a feel for it.
David
This. I always thin my Queens out before sharpening them, they come way too thick from the factory.
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- Nov 2, 2014
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It sounds like you are having trouble getting smooth even strokes while you sharpen. Something you can try is to set the end of the stone that faces you on a book until it is at the bevel angle, and then just hold the knife flat while you work it. This will make it easier to see which part of the blade you are working.
You can also try stroking the knife in a direction paralell to the edge while still moving it forward and backward a little bit. Sometimes this cross-movement really helps smooth out the edge and polish.
Best of Luck.