Sharpening

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Vicv

Joined
Aug 22, 2011
Messages
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ok another problem with knife sharpening. I started using a cheap combo stone from Canadian tire. I can actually get them decent sharp. Then I bought a lanky guide rod system and it works decent for pocket knives if they're carbon but removes stainless so slow it's a waste of time. I've read Japanese water stones work fast and well. So I bought a naniwa 220 Superstone and a king 1000/6000 combo. I'm pretty decent at holding a consistent angle. So I tried sharpening my already pretty sharp santoku on the 220. It does nothing. I spent about an hour sharpening just one side and never raised a burr. What is going on? I'm about ready to give up on doing this myself. Thanks for any help
 
I have found this graph very interesting when I started looking into benchstones for sharpening, I am still saving up for DMT stones. Though paper wheels are great as any other powered tool, my preference is for benchstones as it is portable.

Grit_Type_vs_Sharpness_Chart3.JPG
 
Thank you for the welcome. This is a good forum. And I appreciate to offer of services but I don't want to be without my knives and I've put over $200 into sharpening equipment and don't want to throw it away. I just got the waterstones today. I know practice makes perfect but holding my thumb in the same spot to keep the angle should have produced a burr and it didnt
 
Sounds to me like you are waiting until your edges are as dull as a butter knife before you sharpen them. If that's the case, try doing it when they first show signs of slowing on the cut. It's 10X easier to touch up the edge on any knife of any steel than it is to bring one back from the dead. You'll also find your blades will wear out much less as you won't have to grind them all away.
 
Vicv said:
Thank you for the welcome. This is a good forum. And I appreciate to offer of services but I don't want to be without my knives and I've put over $200 into sharpening equipment and don't want to throw it away. I just got the waterstones today. I know practice makes perfect but holding my thumb in the same spot to keep the angle should have produced a burr and it didnt
Click to expand...
Mark the edge with a Sharpie to see where you're at. I normally eye my edges to see if I'm hitting the very edge itself, but that might be difficult to do freehand.

Unless said Santoku is made out of ceramic, you should be raising a burr if the marker is removed at the very edge of the bevel.
 
I used the marker trick. I think I may be having a problem holding it consistent. I kept my thumbs under it and everything but you could tell by looking at the edge. I also have a problem
Once I get past around 5" from the bolster area. I also think cause it's such cheap steel
My wusthof chef knife worked much better but the curve is difficult. Are there any good angle guides that work? And any advice on how to do the whole knife instead of in sections while still maintaining angle? Thanks
 
practice practice practice!!! Freehand sharpening can be extremely frustrating but once you have the fundamentals down you will start to see improvement. Freehand sharpening is very satisfying and I wouldn't sharpen my blades any other way.

For a while I used a DMT aligner clamp(around $12)with bench stones to teach my self the proper motion, angles, etc and to develop some muscle memory. I have found that it is difficult to get consistent results this way as there are too many variables when clamping the blade in the aligner but in my opinion it was a great teaching aid.
 
(Edit: looks like I'm not the only one making this recommendation, so I'll add a +1 to Talley1013's comment above.)

If you're just wanting an angle guide to use with your bench stone, you might look into getting a DMT Aligner clamp. Don't have to buy the whole system, just the clamp. Costs maybe $10 - $15, depending where you get it. It still emulates good free-hand technique, which will help train your hands for the feel of it, but with the added assistance of the angle guide.

DMT has a video demonstrating how the Aligner clamp is used with a bench hone. They demo it with a DMT bench hone, but it can be used with others. Here's the video:

[video=youtube;iZOM_3Xi8O0]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZOM_3Xi8O0&feature=player_embedded[/video]
 
I'll add a 3rd to the suggestion of the Aligner clamp. It's a great aid when putting on a new edge. Just be sure to run the guide along the table and not on the stone or it will wear out. I use the Aligner most often with ordinary wet/dry sandpaper when camping and don't want to carry heavy stones. Although I have just about every sharpening device made, I find myself using the Aligner quite frequently, especially when I'm in a hurry and don't feel like spending more than a few minutes to get a good edge.


Stitchawl
 
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