sharpening question

[almanor]

So I have been sharpening my blades for decades at aprox a 20 deg angle and honing with a steel. I find that with any SS blade that the fine edge is gone very soon. I cannot find a good carbon blade and at this time I cannot equip a shop to forge my own blades. I haver a folder fron Mancratte that has a much harder steel than most others but is still SS. Is there anything I can do with sharpening or honing to keep the edge. If I cannot shave my arm with a blade I consider it dull. A couple cardboard boxes and the edge is gone.

 

[scdub]

Cardboard tends to be rough on edges due to its composition, however I find that a fine shaving edge is difficult to keep long with any cutting edge.

In general though to preserve the edge there are a few things that help: Keeping the blade behind the edge as thin as possible, which will reduce the effort required to make a cut, and try a slightly convexed and polished edge. This is the longest lasting edge for general use in my experience…

 

[Jason B.]

A combo of cheap steel and primitive maintenance techniques can cause the performance of a blade to suffer.

Sharpen with a stone of 300 until a clean edge with a uniform burr is created. Switch out that Steel for a fine ceramic stone and lightly remove the burr from the coarser stone on the fine ceramic. The resulting edge will be much sharper and last much longer.

FYI, you are probably killing the edge by steeling it.

 

[Obsessed with Edges]

I'm guessing(?) 'Mancratte' folder might be a kit knife from 'Man Crates'? I was looking for Mancratte to find specifics on the steel, but didn't find any such brand. I did find a company called Man Crates selling kit knives (both fixed blade and folder).

If it is the kit knife from 'Man Crates', they list AUS-8 @ 57-58 RC hardness as the stainless they use. If that's the case, then what Jason B. suggested above is good advice. A steel like AUS-8 should respond well to sharpening on a decent stone in aluminum oxide, silicon carbide (SiC) or diamond. The 300-to-ceramic strategy suggested by Jason works very well on steels like this for great slicing edges that are durable and very easy to maintain. It's a good strategy even for inexpensive knives in low-alloy stainless, like a lot of basic kitchen knives. I've grown to favor edges like this on my own knives in similar steels, using a 220 or 325 diamond hone (DMT) to set the edge, and then applying a very minimal microbevel with either a medium or fine ceramic (Spyderco). The ceramic, used at a very light touch in a minimum of passes, works well for deburring and also for narrowing the apex width - both of which will leave the edge sharper and more durable for stuff like cardboard.

 

[Wannes]

Thanks to all of you here. I do about the same as Jason, but with a 600 Atoma, deburring on coticule bleu des Ardennes 4000 and strop a little with 4 microns to further deburr and maintain.
I was here to find out how coarse other knife lovers go. An Atoma 400 is therefore not too coarse.
Approximately reproducing factory edge was my goal.
I use it on M390, S30v, S35V and later on my new Lionsteel T6, K490
Greetings,