Sharpening help

M

MSTR

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Nov 23, 2015
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Would a double sided dmt coarse/fine stone followed by a knife plus strop be good enough to get very sharp knives? Or should I get the fine/extra fine stone
 
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I would prefer the coarse/fine as it would be more versatile than the fine/xfine. You shouldn't have trouble getting very sharp edges with coarse>fine>strop.
 
Get a Lansky Turnbox less than $20. 90% of the time I use it. The other 10% I use waterstones. Strop is good also.
If you must dmt then start with the fine/extra fine its less aggressive unless blades are very dull then you may need coarse - depends on the blade condition.
 
I don't own a lansky, but the sharpmaker is much easier than freehand. At least it is for me anyway. So I guess the lansky would be too.
 
both are essentially freehand
they simply require you to hold the knife at 90 degree angle
as you rub it on the abrasive


you can take any hard stone,
put it against a wall/board/book to angle it,
and then slice down just like sharpmaker or lansky
it doesn't have to be vertical, you can angle the stone horizontally and slice horizontally

its freehand, you still have to keep edge either perpendicular or parallel to the stone
(at an angle)

sharpmaker comes with 30 degree and 40 degree settings (15dps/20dps)
sharpmaker comes with 2 triangular medium rods 12.5 +/- 1.0 micron or P1500 grit or J1200
and 2 triangular fine rods 6.5 +/- 1.0 micron or P2500-P3000 or J2000-J2500
also has settings for scissors, stones have groove for fishhooks.

lansky deluxe turnbox comes with 40 degree and 50 degree settings (20dps, 25dps)
lansky deluxe turnbox comes with round 2 medium 600 grit (25micron) grey rods, 2 fine 1000 grit white rods (18 micron)
 
fetzer85 said:
I would prefer the coarse/fine as it would be more versatile than the fine/xfine. You shouldn't have trouble getting very sharp edges with coarse>fine>strop.
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Ditto. :thumbup:

Lately, I often use ONLY a DMT Coarse or Fine, with minimal 'stropping' on jeans afterward. With a good touch (very, very, very light), either grit can leave great working (& hair-popping) edges on their own. The Coarse/Fine combo is more versatile overall, because it's fully capable of doing ANY amount of work on a blade, from completely regrinding a new edge, to repairing damage, and even setting up and refining a great working edge. But a strop with a well-chosen compound can enhance that, if you choose to use it. The same could be said for the DMT EF (& EEF) hones as well.


David
 
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MSTR said:
Is the lansky system actually a lot easier than freehand?
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Yes and no. In saying that, I mean if your freehand skills aren't fully developed yet, it can help you produce a decent or great edge. If and when your skills do become fully developed, freehand sharpening will become 2nd nature, and the guided/clamped fixtures will start to feel very limiting in their usefulness, almost like a restraint to what comes 'naturally' in a more developed freehand technique. That's what prompted me to eventually give up using my Lansky, as I started to feel like it was getting in the way of what my hands were learning to do on their own.


David
 
That works for me. It's what I use for 99% of my sharpening. Just picked up a coarse (red, actually)/fine (green) 10" DMT for Christmas (I have been very good). I've used the 6" bench stones for a couple of decades and they still work perfectly, but the larger size is better for honing longer blades.
 
Alberta Ed said:
That works for me. It's what I use for 99% of my sharpening. Just picked up a coarse (red, actually)/fine (green) 10" DMT for Christmas (I have been very good). I've used the 6" bench stones for a couple of decades and they still work perfectly, but the larger size is better for honing longer blades.
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Sounds like you've actually got the Fine/EF combo. The green DMT is actually the EF (Extra Fine), and the red is Fine. Blue is the 'Coarse' in DMT's lineup. So the Coarse/Fine combo would be blue & red.


David
 
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MSTR said:
Would a double sided dmt coarse/fine stone followed by a knife plus strop be good enough to get very sharp knives? Or should I get the fine/extra fine stone
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I've been using a course DMT & balsa strop with 1 micron diamond spray per advice given here,to sharpen s110v & other harder steels. I've been getting very sharp edges this way, easily shaving sharp.
 
To answer the op, a coarse stone will get you a sharp edge but it will be very toothy and not refined. After that a fine stone will smooth it out but it will take a while. My opinion is to get a coarse, medium and fine stones and a strop. That will set you up to get a nice clean sharp long lasting edge
 
unless you have a damaged blade you have no need of coarse fine and ex fine the coarse will remove far to much metal, it is used for quickly removing a lot of metal fast. I never go to a coarse unless absolutely necessary. the dmt's cut fast and are aggressive. if you cant get a decent edge you need to refine your skills with the 600 1200 followed by a strop. I can pop hairs off the 600.
 
115Italian said:
To answer the op, a coarse stone will get you a sharp edge but it will be very toothy and not refined. After that a fine stone will smooth it out but it will take a while. My opinion is to get a coarse, medium and fine stones and a strop. That will set you up to get a nice clean sharp long lasting edge
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Thank you
 
MSTR said:
Would a double sided dmt coarse/fine stone followed by a knife plus strop be good enough to get very sharp knives? Or should I get the fine/extra fine stone
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I don't know you, or how well you sharpen. I am not an expert either... I think the coarse\ fine combo would serve you well. Many custom makers finish with a grit like a dmt coarse. The fine stone is refined enough a majority of people and steels. My advice would be this combo and go so very, very lightly on those dmt plates.
I get a lot from Jason's posts and and he stated he regularly reminds himself how lightly he needs to go when using diamonds. That simple sentence I read improved my work with dmt by an easy 20%. I hope he posts here, and I would listen to what he says. Have fun and good luck.
Russ
 
I just went quickly to knives for sale by custom makers. There are three Gentleman that quote that they finish on a 325 coarse Smith diamond home.
One of these guys is Joe Calton. The knives I get from him are really damn sharp. 325 is coarse for a kitchen knife but on his blades it is an almost delightful feeling going through food.
325 coarse and 600 fine just seems like a good place to start. I wish I had started with these two, would have saved a lot of time and heartache.
Russ
 
mycough said:
I don't know you, or how well you sharpen. I am not an expert either... I think the coarse\ fine combo would serve you well. Many custom makers finish with a grit like a dmt coarse. The fine stone is refined enough a majority of people and steels. My advice would be this combo and go so very, very lightly on those dmt plates.
I get a lot from Jason's posts and and he stated he regularly reminds himself how lightly he needs to go when using diamonds. That simple sentence I read improved my work with dmt by an easy 20%. I hope he posts here, and I would listen to what he says. Have fun and good luck.
Russ
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Ditto that. Jason Speaketh the Truth. ;) :thumbup:

That's the whole key to using diamond hones. Whatever other hone/stone types I've used, I've constantly reminded myself to dial down pressure used on diamond by at least a factor of 3X. Makes all the difference in finished results and, as it turns out, adapting to a lighter touch will improve finished results on all other hone types as well. Figuring out how to get the best from a diamond hone trained my hands how to better sharpen on everything else. It has paid off across the board, for me.


David
 
I have a full range of DMT Dia-Sharps that I have used for about 8 years now. I've switched to waterstones for my finer sharpening needs but still use a Coarse DMT for a lot of my knives and for my customers that use premium wear resistant steels.

I like to recommend the Coarse DMT and 1 micron diamond strop as a basic sharpening kit for harder steels (i.e. high Vanadium steels). It can be used as an all around sharpening kit but I prefer waterstones on lower alloy and non stainless steels. Diamond stones tend to be a little aggressive on lower alloy steels while the waterstones yield a cleaner and less burred edge. It actually works well to follow the DMT Coarse with a 2000 grit waterstone like the Shapton Glass when working with lower alloy steels. I like a little more refinement to steels like my VG-10 or 1095.

I don't like to go past the Coarse DMT on high alloy steels because I find it to be the best edge for that type of steel.
 
Jason B. said:
I have a full range of DMT Dia-Sharps that I have used for about 8 years now. I've switched to waterstones for my finer sharpening needs but still use a Coarse DMT for a lot of my knives and for my customers that use premium wear resistant steels.


I don't like to go past the Coarse DMT on high alloy steels because I find it to be the best edge for that type of steel.
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Would you place m390 in this group? I am loving this steel and am trying to find tune my sharpening routine for it. (Sorry for hijack of thread...)
Russ
 
Unfortunately, my experience with M390 (benchmade) has been very poor from a user standpoint.

I go by Vanadium %, if it's over 4% I usually use my diamond plate.
 
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