Sharpening

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L2bravo

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Jun 14, 2013
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Hey guys, long time lurker here. This is a great site, and there is a wealth of knowledge to be had.

When it comes to sharpening knives, I recently bought a Sharpmaker. I can put an unbelievable edge on a knife with that system. I really like it. But I am a little confused.

When it comes to reprofiling, I see it's shortcomings. Should I get the diamond stones for it? To aid in cutting faster? Or would I be better off getting something like the Lansky, to cut more material, and have the ability to put more angles as well?

I realized that there are "better" systems out there, but thats not in the cards right this second. I appreciate the input guys! Thanks, Josh
 
My suggestion for reprofiling is to get a norton crystolon stone, and a cheap knife, and learn how to freehand a new bevel on. You can also use the sharpmaker to assist you by leaning the stone against the rods and sharpening that way.
 
If you want to do a lot o reprofiling then I would look at an edge pro kit with atoma stones. Otherwise the edge pro with our choice of upgraded stones is an excellent system.

TBH I'm not a fan of the lansky. With some practice you can use it to put a decent edge on your knives but its kinda a PITA. And it certainly does not remove enough material quick enough to reprofile anything.
 
I'll second the lansky being a poor choice for reprofiling. While it can make an edge that looks just as crisp and clean as an edgepro/wickededge it's very slow and cumbersome in comparison. The small narrow stones and rapid wearing/slowish cutting coarse stone the lanksy comes with makes it a real chore.
 
Ok, I am starting to understand that the Lansky is not the deal. How much will an edge pro run me? What is the best way to get set up with it? IE: stones, grits, and such. I have looked at them (online), but know very litttle about them.

When you do reprofile a knife with it, do you then use something like the Sharpmaker? Or just use it to keep it touched up?

What about ordering the diamond stones for the Sharpmaker? Will that serve in knocking down a thicker edge, in a decent manner?

Thanks for the help guys.
 
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Pretty broad question. How sharp do you want to go?
2k? 8k? 30k?

A good all rounder setup I would recommend would be an

EdgePro Apex - 165.00$
Atoma 140 plate. - 75.00$
Shapton Glass 500 - 50.00$
Shapton Glass 2000 - 64.00$
Shapton Glass 4000 - 72.00$
Kangaroo Strop (3x8) - 40.00$

Costwise a person can spend quite a bit of money on sharpening equipment. I put the cost of everything up top minus the shipping. Seems like quite a bit. But you will get some amazing edges with a little practice and that set up will last you a very very long time , even if your working on some very wear resistant steels such as s90v or s110v.

I don't know anyone that uses the sharpmaker for reprofiling. Its capable of touch ups but it definitely does not remove enough material to reprofile.
 
Sadden, I appreciate your help. But, like I said, in my first post, I dont think $500 worth is in my cards right now. I kinda busy unassing my daughter's broom riding witch of a mother.

Maybe I am not getting the full extent of the whole concept of reprofiling. I'm sorry for the broad question. How neccesary is it? How sharp do I want to go? I dont know, but with the Sharpmaker, I am able to get push cutting sharpness, and plenty sharp to do pretty much anything I need it to do.

I do use my knives a lot. I am a fireman, and they get used at work quite a bit. So again, the more I look here, the more I am gettting confused. Thanks again for the help.
 
If you want a one stop "it works and it doesn't get much better" practical sharpener, and don't want to put in the time to learn to sharpen freehand (which lets you use a realllly cheap stone to do the rough work and then keep it maintained to razor sharpness using the sharpmaker) then get the basic edgepro kit. I used to have an apex-3 but sold it because quite frankly it made things too easy and my freehand skills went into the gutter. It is expensive, and you'll go "170 bucks for a piece of plastic??" at first, but it's a high quality american made sharpening tool and will last you for many, many years, and give you some of the best edges you can get. I recommend either the basic apex-1 kit if you don't plan on doing much reprofiling, or the apex-3/ chefknivestogo essential set with the shapton stones. The latter two are a bit more expensive, but I have resharpened a Busse Battle Mistress with the apex 3, and it wasn't a difficult job at all.

What reprofiling is, is reshaping the edge to a thinner angle. You can go very thin with the reprofiling and use a slightly wider angle (via the sharpmaker or the whatever system you're using) to increase the durability of the edge, so you get a knife that cuts better, and is just as durable at the edge where it matters as it was before. The thinner edge also makes touchups very quick and easy as there's less steel that needs to be removed to form a new cutting edge.
 
If you are getting them sharp enough with the sharpmaker, then why switch it up or try to reprofile? To answer your questions "How necessary, and how sharp", that is different for everyone and different for different steels.

There are some knives however that do require reprofiling, and I have been able to do it with a Lansky and the diamond stones. I specifically bought an extra coarse diamond stone for that purpose. While it does take some time to reprofile an edge, I can't tell you if it's easier or harder than with the EdgePro since I've never used it.

I've never used the Sharp Maker either, but it looks like the surface of the stone is narrower than on the Lansky.
 
My above post was just answering your general interest in the Edge Pro and what some good stones for it would be.

So if you just want to do some reprofiling and then bring yourself your regular edge with your sharpmaker then I would look at the shapton glass 220grit (44.00$) or an a dmt dia sharp xc or xxc. Or theres the lapping films by ken Schwartz.

Theres lots of options but wouldn't go too low or you will have a hard time bringing the scratch pattern up with the sharpmaker.
 
I've really come to love the Sharpmaker. I used the Smith's 3-in-1 system for years which is similar for about a third the cost but with some limitations (the rods are only 4" and set at what I understand to be 23 degrees. Works great for touch ups and is pretty portable. Also includes a fine grit interrupted surface diamond stone mounted on the base.

I'm not interested in the sharpening techniques some here have but if you get a really damaged edge, it would take forever to fix on the standard Sharpmaker. As the cost of the diamond rods is the same as some diamond whetstones or more, I ended up ordering a 6x2 coarse Dia-Sharp from Amazon. I can use it free hand or lean it against the rods. I don't know how well that stone will reprofile at 320 but it's going to be better than the brown Sharpmaker rods.

http://www.amazon.com/DMT-D6C-Dia-S...231205&sr=8-3&keywords=6+inch+diasharp+coarse
 
The sharpmaker is the best tool for keeping !! your knives sharp. However, this rod system (DMT has something similiar and there are others) is the only system that allows you to use it freehand, follow the right angle (which is vertical) and have feedback at the same time. All other gadgets/clamps etc. do not improve your skills at all!! Don'T buy a wicked edge or Edge Pro, it is like having a Maserati and a chauffeur that drives it for you! I would second the Norton Crystolon stone to reprofile your knife if necessary, to an edge less than 20 dps, then you can use the sharpmaker (sharpkeeper) as the easiest maintenace tool out there.
 
Nothing at all wrong with the edge pro. Your freehand skills improve with your use of freehand. And vice versa.
 
My main problem with these clamp and guide systems, especially the Edge Pro, isn't how well they work but how much they cost. The Lansky and similar doesn't appeal to me at all. I like simpler things.
 
I had a Lansky when I was about 15 (25 years ago), and could put some mean edges on my knives at the time. I haven't used one since. That's the only reason I even brought that up.

I don't have any knives with super steels in them yet. IE; M390, and the such. I am just concerned about how hard they can be to sharpen, from hearing others talk. Thanks again for all the opinions guys.
 
L2bravo said:
I had a Lansky when I was about 15 (25 years ago), and could put some mean edges on my knives at the time. I haven't used one since. That's the only reason I even brought that up.

I don't have any knives with super steels in them yet. IE; M390, and the such. I am just concerned about how hard they can be to sharpen, from hearing others talk. Thanks again for all the opinions guys.
Click to expand...

With the right abrasives "supersteels" don't act much different than any other steel. Silicon carbide like norton crystolons are the cheapest way to get an abrasive that will rapidly cut through any steel you're likely to encounter. Once a sharp edge is established with the rough stone then the finer ones have alot less work to do and go much faster.
 
If you're not a "Surgeon" then why are you wasting your time and expense with all crap...get a Workshop WSKTS Knife sharpener for $69.95. No I don't work for Workshop but I do own their WSKTS knife sharpener. Works Great!!
 
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