sharpening spyderco

[USAbred]

ok so I have a feeling this has already been discussed but I can't find the answer I'm looking for. I use a Gatco system to sharpen my knives. generally I just follow the angle recommendations provided by gatco on the inside of the box. I do some fixed blades at 25 degrees per side and a few thin folders at 22degrees a side. after I sharpen the knives are shaving sharp but I always feel like I could get more out of them. this past week I purchased my first spyderco which is the endura 4 saber grind. what angle do you recommend sharpening? I contacted spyderco with this same question but have yet to receive an answer. Thanks guy

 

[Jastab]

22º is kinda obtuse imo. A lot of peeps around here keep most their blades in the 15-20 mark. I do 18º per side on my wicked edge for folders and 20º for fixed. Spyderco seems to have a 15-20º edgea on all their models I have. The more acute the edge the sharper it'll be, but sacrifice edge retention. This is just my .02$

 

[k1ssthecook]

Hey, the edge angles can vary from knife to knife. I know the sharpmaker is set to 40 degrees.

I usually put my own edge on every new knife I get...

 

[Bob6794]

Those recommendations are more like guidelines they are meant to be broken. Read up on Acute vs Obtuse angles and the advantages and disadvantages of them and decide for yourself. Acute angles are capable of cutting things easier but a more obtuse angle isn't prone to damage as much. That's the short version of it.

As for me I use the DMT Aligner and I generally take my knives down to the lowest angle which is around 17degree per side for the type of knives I use. My knives generally slice up cardboard, plastic packaging, letters, etc. So a more obtuse angle isn't required in my case, in fact I go lower if I could.

 

[Cynic2701]

I've found that a 30 degree inclusive edge (15 degrees per side) is a well balanced choice for most pocket knives--especially those in the "higher end" steels that knife aficionados collect.

I think many people would be surprised at how well a sub-25 degree inclusive edge holds up in actual use--knives in ZDP-189, in particular, work great at these acute angles.

 

[USAbred]

cool thanks a lot everyone very helpful

 

[blame it on god]

I've found that a 30 degree inclusive edge (15 degrees per side) is a well balanced choice for most pocket knives--especially those in the "higher end" steels that knife aficionados collect.

I think many people would be surprised at how well a sub-25 degree inclusive edge holds up in actual use--knives in ZDP-189, in particular, work great at these acute angles.

This.

ZDP-189, S90V, M4, CTS-XHP and many others do great at 30° inclusive or less. Anything more than that is a waste of premium steel.