Sharpmaker And M4 Steel?

Razor

Razor

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Dec 8, 1999
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I have a M4 military on the way and was wondering do I need the diamond rods to touch the edge up or will the regular rods work? Is M4 considered stainless or carbon steel?
 
M4 is not stainless. The regular rods work fine for touch ups.
 
jstn said:
M4 is not stainless. The regular rods work fine for touch ups.
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This :thumbsup:
The regular rods will work fine, possibly better than the UF on some high alloy steels (ZDP). Just be patient, even S110v seems to only need a few pressure free passes for a touch up.
 
The stock stones are fine for touch ups, I've used them on my Mantra and it does a great job!

Anything more than touch ups and you'll want Diamonds, CBN, SiC, etc.
 
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I use the regular rods all the time. Haven't had to take boron or zircon to it yet. I love me some M4!
 
yep browns work fine for me on touchups. reprofile i wouldnt use the sharpmaker and any of the spyderco offerings for the sharpmaker. would take far too long.
 
I've been using the Sharpmaker and included rods on my BHQ PM2 in M4 and no hassles.

Don't even need a sharpie to see the edge since it patinas, and then the stones remove that.
 
Cow51 said:
The stock stones are fine for touch ups, I've used them on my Mantra and it does a great job!

Anything more than touch ups and you'll want Diamonds, CBN, SiC, etc.
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I’ve been wondering about this. The diamond and CBN Sharpmaker rods I’m familiar with are coarse. Are these the ones you are referring to? Are there fine rods from these materials? If so, where can I find them. —Thanks!
 
P2P said:
Let’s say that again.

I like to keep a shot glass handy with water and a single drop of dish soap.
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I haven't tried that on my SharpMaker....yet, but I will next time my Caly Jr. needs a touch up...

My wife had an old perfume atomizer that I filled with Windex...I've had GREAT results keeping the rods spritzed every now and then as I'm grinding. It really seems to keep them more gritty feeling-- that's how I'd describe it. It's a feedback thing but I think everyone who gets enough time and practice involved with the SM learns how it "feels" when you're really getting somewhere!

The best advice I ever got <ca. 25 yrs ago> about the SM was keeping the rods clean by scrubbing them with Barkeeper's Friend and a green scotchbrite pad. BKF can be found @ HomeDepot and Harbor Fright. BTW, I'm not a compensated spokesman for either, but it's just that good I've gotta shout it from the rooftop! ;):p
 
4mer_FMF said:
I’ve been wondering about this. The diamond and CBN Sharpmaker rods I’m familiar with are coarse. Are these the ones you are referring to? Are there fine rods from these materials? If so, where can I find them. —Thanks!
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Yup, Spyderco's CBN & Diamond rods are pretty "coarse."

DMT makes some nice and fine diamond hones. Also, the Wicked Edge really makes their guided sharpening hones with great diamond grit ranges.
 
For touch ups? Yeah your good to go man. If you never ever hone your knife and let it go insanely dull or abuse the hell out of it and chip it up then the diamond would be a must.
 
4mer_FMF said:
I’ve been wondering about this. The diamond and CBN Sharpmaker rods I’m familiar with are coarse. Are these the ones you are referring to? Are there fine rods from these materials? If so, where can I find them. —Thanks!
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Yes, for CBN and diamond I was referring to Spyderco's own rods. I don't know of anything finer in Diamond or CBN, however, I have heard good things about the 1/2 inch tri angle rods at Congress Tools(IIRC they go up to 600 grit), specifically the ruby and SiC rods. Both of which I personally have not used.

Instead of getting different rods, I got a DMT Diafold in coarse/fine and just hold that in place against a rod to keep roughly the same angle.
 
The key with the Sharpmaker is to use it to keep your knife sharp. With your M4 steel, if you let it get dull and then sharpen it, you are going to have a battle.

If you keep your knife sharp and use it for touch ups, the Sharpmaker will work fine.
 
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