Recommendation? Sharpening Stone questions

[Cole Kaspar]

I'm new to the sharpening world and I have several knives I need to sharpen and I'd like to know how to do them myself.

I've looked at several stones and not quite sure what I need. How much do I need to spend on stones? What kind of stones? What "grit?" do I need? And where can I get these stones from?

 

[CSG]

It's hard to beat the Spyderco Sharpmaker for about $75. This uses sets of rods that are inserted into fix angle positions. Lansky makes the inexpensive Turnbox which works very well. Smith's makes one called the three in one that also works well. These three sharpeners (I own them all) are a great way to get started. I also have the Spyderco Med and Fine benchstones as well as their little pocket stones. Lastly, I have a DMT coarse - extra-coarse diamond stone for reprofiling if it becomes necessary. I almost never use it.

 

[Eli Chaps]

No matter what kind of steels you have, a Norton Crystolon JB8 is a great start. It will handle softer stuff and is course enough for higher carbide steels as well.

That said, if you predominantly have high vanadium carbide steels like S30V, S110V, etc. an Ultra Sharp 300/1200 combination diamond stone is also a great start.

I like to stick to 8" stones for the increased versatility.

I'd recommend a universal stone holder and a Sharpie and bottle of mineral oil.

That is if you want to go free hand which I encourage.

 

[Cole Kaspar]

It's hard to beat the Spyderco Sharpmaker for about $75. This uses sets of rods that are inserted into fix angle positions. Lansky makes the inexpensive Turnbox which works very well. Smith's makes one called the three in one that also works well. These three sharpeners (I own them all) are a great way to get started. I also have the Spyderco Med and Fine benchstones as well as their little pocket stones. Lastly, I have a DMT coarse - extra-coarse diamond stone for reprofiling if it becomes necessary. I almost never use it.

What grits would you recommend?

 

[Mr.Wizard]

We need more information. What knives will you be sharpening, what condition are they in, will you be changing edge angles, what are you cutting, what kind of edge do you like? You have one recommendation for very fine stones (Sharpmaker) and one for a coarse stone (JB8), and either could please or frustrate depending on your circumstance and desires.

 

[CSG]

What grits would you recommend?

All three of those sharpeners come with medium and fine ceramic rods. Unless you need to reprofile a blade, I suspect that's all most people need to maintain a sharp edge that cuts paper and hair of your arm. I rarely strop because I really only need a working edge (although I do have a strop and do use it on occasion).

 

[Cole Kaspar]

We need more information. What knives will you be sharpening, what condition are they in, will you be changing edge angles, what are you cutting, what kind of edge do you like? You have one recommendation for very fine stones (Sharpmaker) and one for a coarse stone (JB8), and either could please or frustrate depending on your circumstance and desires.

I'll be sharpening a bunch. I have one buck knife, one folding Damascus, fixed Damascus, etc. They are all in great condition and just need sharpening. I'd like to be able to shave hair off my arm if possible.

 

[000Robert]

I'll be sharpening a bunch. I have one buck knife, one folding Damascus, fixed Damascus, etc. They are all in great condition and just need sharpening. I'd like to be able to shave hair off my arm if possible.

My advice is to save wasting your money on this and that and just spring for a Wicked Edge and be done with it.

 

[Mr.Wizard]

I'll be sharpening a bunch. I have one buck knife, one folding Damascus, fixed Damascus, etc. They are all in great condition and just need sharpening. I'd like to be able to shave hair off my arm if possible.

Since you did not list any high vanadium steel, your knives are in great condition, and you apparently don't intend to change edge angles, the Sharpmaker can work for you. It cannot handle heavier tasks like repairing edge damage or changing angles, but even if later you need something more powerful it will be convenient for tough-ups including serrated edges. The fine rods are more than capable of arm-hair-shaving edges. It sounds like you are intending to freehand sharpen however, so perhaps you do not need the angle assistance that the Sharpmaker provides and you could get the same edges using one each of the medium and fine rods for a total of about $27 (Amazon). (The freehand technique with these rods would not be the same as bench stones. I'm just mentioning it as an option.)

 

[Craig James]

What grits would you recommend?

You need a stone in the 300-400 range first. This will give a good edge that will shave hair and is coarse enough to set a reasonably dull edge. This will get you going and then it really depends on what you want, and you can move backward and forward from there.

go coarser if you need to thin the blades or rest the bevel and finer if you want to refine the edge.

On the finer end of the scale at 400 grit you will see the scratch pattern with the naked eye, at 5-6k (stone dependant) you will start to get a mirror finish... the level of refinement impacts on the way the blade cuts with some preferring coarse edges and some refined. There are lots of posts about the benefits of each across this forum

 

[soc_monki]

I like my sharpal coarse/extra fine diamond stone. I normally use the coarse side and then finish with my spyderco medium stone, get excellent results with just this setup. The extra fine side does produce a nice aggressive edge though, and I do use it sometimes.

If you're on a budget, just the Sharpal stone works great. I just prefer the edge off the spyderco, but it is not necessary.

If you're not wanting to freehand, the sharpmaker with the diamond or cbn rods would be a good system. Takes longer to reprofile but it can be done!