Sharpening Help

D

DANGELO

Joined
Oct 20, 1999
Messages
422
My friend recently received a new knife; a DACOR made in Solingen, Germany, of Stainless Steel. The piece is from circa 60's/70's...The knife looks like those old commando knives.

The piece weighs a ton, and seems to be full tang, with some type rubber grip. Pommel is of the hammer type (flat and cylindrical). Blade is extreme clip point. There are about 4 inches of saw teeth on the top of the blade. There is also a SAE ruler on the blade surface. Blade is about 7". Total pice lenght is around 12" in length.

We are looking to get the origins on this piece, as well as find out where we can get it sharpened. We have tried EVERY method we know, and are unable to achieve anything more then a utility edge on the piece.

Anything you guys can offer would be GREATLY appreciated!

Happy New Year!!!
sld

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God's choices in inflicicting suffering are unsatisfactory to us, nor are they understandable, unless innocence offends him. Clearly he needs some help in directing the blind fury with which he flogs the earth...


 
This is intersting. I have a lot of trouble believing that it was made in germany when the ruler isn't metric. It probably is solingen made in germany steel as the stamp says, but I bet it was made somewhere else.
I don't really know what to say about the sharpening since I can't see what your doing, or what the outcome is to each different method tried.
So:
Have you tried thinning the cutting edge(more acute sharpening angle)?
Going to finer stones?
Do you strop it? If so is this causing the edge to roll?
Are you keeping the bevels completely flat?
Good luck.

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Fix it right the first time, use Baling Wire !
 
For a really dull knife there are a few general approaches. If the knife is not unusually hard, go get a new Nicholson file (8 to 12" mill bastard). Work the secondary edge down to 15-degrees or so. Then finish with any good hone. Another cheap way is to use silicon carbide sanding disks and a reversable electric drill. Run the drill in the direction that it is going from the thick part of the blade to the edge (don't sit too long in one spot and burn the edge). As in filing, reduce the secondary edge down to around 15 degrees, then finish with a bench hone etc.

The professional way is to find a belt grinder or a grinding wheel and reduce the secondary bevel. These tools cost a little more. Most sharpening services (in the phone book) have a belt grinder and could rough the edge down. I don't trust many people with a grinding wheel around my blades.

Generally you can get a good edge once the blade is thinned a little.

All this assumes that the steel is good in the first place. I have often found that bayonets work best if sharpened with a file and then slightly deburred using a medium hone. This leaves a really toothy edge that cuts well on a thicker blade.
 
Interesting... Anything made in Solingen can usually be sharpened. I suspect you need to have the angle reground by an expert. There should be a knife shop somewhere near that can do it for you. Once it is correctly ground and sharpened, you should have no trouble maintaining an edge for quite some time.
 
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