sharpening stones...

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Sep 4, 2011
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thanks to some research on this great forum, i have just ordered myself a dmt 8" coarse stone and 2 spyderco 8" stones in medium and fine. Question is, how should i finish off the knife after this, im looking for that perfect mirror finish... any advise on a relatively cheap way to accomplish this would be great. How close to a mirror finish can i get with the fine spyderco stone?
Thanks for any help!
 
I'm pretty sure it depends on the steel but one of the experts will have to confirm that. I've got a similar setup: DMT course/fine, Spyderco medium, Spyderco fine, and a knivesplus strop. I get pretty damn close to a mirror edge on my folder with that setup and I've only started freehand sharpening a few weeks ago. I think a Spyderco ultra-fine before the strop would get me there but it's not in the budget at the moment. My folder has a Duratech 20CV blade. My fixed blade hunting knife has a 01 carbon tool steel blade and the above setup can get a perfect mirror polish.

Sorry I'm not much help but this is a good question and I look forward to what the experts have to say.
 
The jump in grit, between the DMT coarse grit (45 micron diamond) and the ceramics (Spyderco medium & fine) is a huge leap. Odds are, you won't get a mirror on your edge unless something in between eases the transition. The scratch pattern from the coarse diamond will be a LOT of work to clean up with the Spyderco hones alone, which aren't nearly as aggressive as the diamond. A DMT fine & EF would help clean that up, and going through the DMT EEF wouldn't hurt. Then follow with the ceramics, and stropping with 6/3/1 micron diamond paste, in order, would also help. Keep in mind, this is for a 'true mirror' finish, or at least as close as you can get. You can still put an excellent cutting edge on a blade with much, much less.

For a 'true mirror' finish on steel, the grit progression really needs to be very tight, with the smallest possible gaps in between grits. Otherwise, there'll likely be too many coarse scratches left on the steel, for finer grits to sufficiently erase in a reasonable amount of time. If trying to mirror-polish one of the very abrasion-resistant supersteels, it'll take even more time & effort.

Edit:
Diamond cuts much more aggressively than the ceramics, and the 'grit' standards are completely different between the two abrasive types. For example, to approach the finish left by the medium Spyderco hone, you'll likely need to go as far as the EF or EEF DMT, before transitioning to the medium ceramic.
 
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These are the stones i bought,
http://www.amazon.com/DMT-D8C-Dia-Sharp-Continuous-Diamond/dp/B0001WP1L0
http://www.spyderco.com/catalog/details.php?product=80
http://www.spyderco.com/catalog/details.php?product=82

obsessed with edges, Ive read in a couple places on this forum that the setup i bought worked very well, is there a cheaper alternative then having to buy 2 new diamond stones? maybe a coarse or extra coarse spyderco?
thanks!

That setup can do a great job in putting an excellent edge on your blades, but I don't see it achieving a mirror finish without spending a LOT of time on the Spyderco hones, at least.

So far as I know, there is no 'coarse' or 'extra-coarse' hone from Spyderco. Their hones are only available in medium - ultra-fine.

At a minimum, I'd at least invest in the Fine (25 micron) DMT hone, to be used in between the coarse (45 micron) DMT and the medium Spyderco. That'll probably make the biggest difference, for the money spent. You'll still need to spend a lot of extra time with the Spyderco hones to refine the scratch pattern as much as possible, to achieve a near-mirror finish. I still don't see achieving a true mirror, even with this addition. These will be plenty, however, for putting some great cutting edges on your knives. The 'perfect mirror' is a nice luxury, but really doing it right won't come easy (or likely cheap, either).
 
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Thanks for the great response! What is your take on the leather strop? Needed?

My bad. I overlooked that in my last reply. A strop is always a good idea, and the diamond compounds I mentioned earlier (DMT 6/3/1 micron) would add a lot of versatility. In particular, the 1 micron compound is very useful. I use it quite a lot. Lots of other options out there, but that's a good start. :)
 
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ok, so i picked up a new stone yesterday and ended up with the DMT DuoSharp® 600/1200 Grit Diamond Stone.
So what im thinking is i start with the dmt coarse stone if needed, then move to the duosharp and hit it with both sides, then move to the spyderco medium and then the spyderco fine. A quick strop on the leather with some paste and.....?

sound about right?
thanks again!
 
how sharp should i be able to get a knife with just the duo stone 1200? I got it to the point where it will consistantly shave/cut hair but still feels rough...
 
ok, so i picked up a new stone yesterday and ended up with the DMT DuoSharp® 600/1200 Grit Diamond Stone.
So what im thinking is i start with the dmt coarse stone if needed, then move to the duosharp and hit it with both sides, then move to the spyderco medium and then the spyderco fine. A quick strop on the leather with some paste and.....?

sound about right?
thanks again!

The abrasive on the coarse side of the Duo-Sharp is exactly the same as your original coarse DMT (should be 45 micron on both). I don't see a need to use the coarse on both hones. Aside from that, Your sequence looks good.

(Please disregard my 'brain fade' above. Inaccurate content stricken. :o)
 
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the coarse stone i bought says its a 325 grit
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=370638528072#ht_1652wt_1037
and the duo stones say 600/1200 i'm assuming that means the grit would be 25/600/1200 respectively on these stones, no?

You're right. For some reason (brain fade, on my part), when I looked at the '600/1200', I assumed 'coarse/fine' (when it's really 'fine/ef'). Never mind. You have what looks like a good sequence (45/25/9 micron). :thumbup:

Coarse = 325 grit ('mesh') = 45 micron
Fine = 600 grit ('mesh') = 25 micron
EF = 1200 grit ('mesh') = 9 micron
 
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