Sharpening Techniques

[Sulaco]

I am not sure if this is the right forum for this, but I will put it here anyway.

I want to be able to sharpen my own knives but am not good at just using a flat stone. I have a Lansky system and one of those ceramic wheel things that both work pretty good.

My question is, what should I be using? Are these ok? Or is there something better?

 

[Roadrunner]

Welcome! You're in the right place, don't worry. There are better systems, yes, but it depends on how much you're willing to spend. For about $50 you can get a Spyderco Sharpmaker. It's an excellent system that will serve 90% of your sharpening needs. It's one weakness is that it's useless for reprofiling a blade. The preset angles of the sharpmaker are fairly shallow, and so the edges of many blades will need to be drastically thinned out before the Sharpmaker will work on them. The good thing about this is that thinner edges cut much better. A coarse diamond stone works well for reprofiling. You don't need to be an expert sharpener to do this either, precision isn't required. All you're doing is removing metal.

The higher cost alternative is the Edge Pro Apex or Professional system. The Apex will run about $185 with a stone upgrade kit and a coarse stone. The advantage is that this system can be used to reprofile your blades, or you can match the factory angle and not worry about it. The Edge Pro is my favorite system by far. I've used it to sharpen everything from a 1" penknife to a 18" machete, with excellent results at each extreme. I haven't regretted buying it for a second.

Spyderco Sharpmaker and Edge Pro links.

PS: I posted the link to the sharpmaker for informational purposes only. You can find it at a much better price if you look around. www.1sks.com is a good place to buy. Also, if you want clarification on anything I posted feel free to e-mail me.

 

[T. Erdelyi]

I agree with everything Roadrunner said, but I'd like to add that you shouldn't abandon freehand sharpening, but instead keep practicing.

This is a skill that will serve you well for the rest of your life, all you really need is the right stone for the steel removal step of sharpening your at, coarse stones for reprofiling and progressively finer stones till you achieve the desired edge.

The right tools and practice will make you a consumate freehand sharpener. There isn't a more satifying feeling than being able to put a hair poppin' edge on your knife by hand. , 'cept maybe makin' your own knife.

The other systems are really just crutches, don't get me wrong I have the Lansky, Spyderco, EdgePro, just about any variation of a system out there, and they have their place, I use the Spyderco on the kitchen knives for quick tune ups between sharpenings, the EdgePro for major reprofiling, and the Lansky to shim up one side of my bookcase.

 

[VampyreWolf]

I've been doing freehand since the start. 14yrs of practice and I'm still learning.

I have a spyderco sharpmaker(204mf) but only use it on serrated edges... and the 2 times I sharpened a recurve that wasn't mine(I've done em on a flat stone too).