Sharpmaker questions - do I have this right?

[zombywoof]

I'm considering getting a Spyderco Sharpmaker, which can be set up for either a 30 deg or 40 deg inclusive angle.

Is the following all correct?

- If the angle of the blade bevel is the same as the Sharpmaker rods, you will be working along the entire width of the bevel and sharpening at that angle.

- If the angle of the blade bevel is greater than that of the rods, you will be working along the shoulder of the bevel, and will not affect the cutting edge until you have reprofiled the bevel to the new angle (which might take a lot of time/work, perhaps to the extent that it's impractical to do without coarser stones?)

- If the angle of the blade bevel is less than that of the rods, you will be working right at the cutting edge and will create a "microbevel" (which may be desireable?)

What would be recommended Sharpmaker angle settings for things like

- Wusthof Chef's / Kitchen knives

- Cheaper stamped (Chicago Cutlery) steak knives

- Pocket Benchmade 154CM folder

- Swiss Army knives

Thanks in advance.

 

[Obsessed with Edges]

I'm considering getting a Spyderco Sharpmaker, which can be set up for either a 30 deg or 40 deg inclusive angle.

Is the following alll correct?

- If the angle of the blade bevel is the same as the Sharpmaker rods, you will be working along the entire width of the bevel and sharpening at that angle.

- If the angle of the blade bevel is greater than that of the rods, you will be working along the shoulder of the bevel, and will not affect the cutting edge until you have reprofiled the bevel to the new angle (which might take a lot of time/work, perhaps to the extent that it's impractical to do without coarser stones?)

- If the angle of the blade bevel is less than that of the rods, you will be working right at the cutting edge and will create a "microbevel" (which may be desireable?)

Correct, on all points mentioned. :thumbup:

What would be recommended Sharpmaker angle settings for things like

- Wusthof Chef's / Kitchen knives

- Cheaper stamped (Chicago Cutlery) steak knives

- Pocket Benchmade 154CM folder

- Swiss Army knives

Thanks in advance.

The Wusthof, Chicago Cutlery and Swiss Army knives would all likely do OK at 30° - 40° inclusive. Knives like these are what most makers of sharpening systems had in mind, when designing in the pre-set angles. You might give 30° a try for a while, and see how each holds up under your usage. If any of them seem to dull too quickly, just adding a micro bevel at 40° could improve durability.

The Benchmade's 154CM might be more interesting to try a little thinner than 30°, if you wish. The steel itself, and Benchmade's heat treat should be above and beyond the other knives mentioned, so it should be able to hold up better at somewhat thinner angles. BUT, do this only if you want. Generally speaking, a 30° inclusive edge angle will serve most any user's needs pretty well, and it's what I view as a 'universal' angle to aim for, if there's any other doubt.

 

[HoosierQ]

I will comment only on the SAK. All of your assumptions were indeed spot on correct.

On my SAKs I set the little blade, the little 1 inch blade at the 30 degree setting and the main blade at 40. My rationale is rather like the spey blade on a stockman...keeping one blade very acute and razor sharp and used sparingly.

 

[ChapmanPreferred]

I believe you've got it.

I would do the 40 degree setting on all but the Benchmade which I would sharpen on the 30 degree setting. I would suggest getting the Diamond rods unless you already have some other sharpening media for reprofiling chores.

 

[zombywoof]

Thanks all.

Regarding (re)profiling I'm also considering a DMT Aligner setup - though setting an angle on it seems an inexact science (dependent on blade width etc), and I've read here of problems with use on narrow (say small pocket/SAK/paring) blades - any thoughts on it as a complement to the Sharpmaker?

 

[singularity35]

Thanks all.

Regarding (re)profiling I'm also considering a DMT Aligner setup - though setting an angle on it seems an inexact science (dependent on blade width etc), and I've read here of problems with use on narrow (say small pocket/SAK/paring) blades - any thoughts on it as a complement to the Sharpmaker?

You can get close to your desired angle with a little practice and experience on the aligner kit. I really like the sharpmaker for maintaining my edges once they have been reprofiled. They can complement each other well but it all come down to the operator. There is a bit of a learning curve with the DMT Aligner but it's not that hard to use it to reprofile. You do need at least the XC stone(black) to make hogging off metal a bit easier.

 

[me2]

I view the Sharpmaker as a tool for maintenance and adding the final microbevel for my knives. I can sharpen my Delica, starting with my coarse waterstone at 17 degrees per side and going all the way to the Sharpmaker white stones at 20 degrees per side. The microbevel can be resharpend a few times before having to go back to the coarse stone again. This does not include dents or dings or chips in the edge. For those I have to go back to the coarse stone. These are relatively rare thankfully, and a quick few swipes on the 204 gets things back in order. Benchmade's 154CM is one of my favorite steels for taking a good edge and holding it for a while. I did not use the 15 dps setting, but for normal EDC, most any steel should hold that, unless you're scraping or otherwise putting a lot of lateral pressure on the edge. I have no-name stainless blades I take as low as 7 degrees per side, with a 10 dps microbevel, and they hold up to daily carry without damage as long as I avoid things like wire cutting an such. Even then, if used with a cutting board, the do fine on copper wire, with a little care.

 

[Obsessed with Edges]

Thanks all.

Regarding (re)profiling I'm also considering a DMT Aligner setup - though setting an angle on it seems an inexact science (dependent on blade width etc), and I've read here of problems with use on narrow (say small pocket/SAK/paring) blades - any thoughts on it as a complement to the Sharpmaker?

For most medium-to-larger knives, the Aligner will do OK. With blades about the width of a SAK's main spear blade (~5/8" or so) or narrower, the clamp will begin to become an obstacle at lower angle settings, because the edge of the blade will be too close to the front of the clamp. There are ways to work around that somewhat, such as putting a shim in behind the blade spine, so the blade won't sit quite so deep. For example, I used a piece of zip-tie to shim the main spear blade of a SAK in my clamp, and it worked out pretty well:

Among clamped systems, the Lansky's clamp handles smaller blades better than the Aligner clamp. The pen blade on a Case 5344 stockman is shown here, and the 2nd pic illustrates how it might be used in conjunction with the DMT Dia-Fold & Magna-Guide:

 

[zombywoof]

Among clamped systems, the Lansky's clamp handles smaller blades better than the Aligner clamp. The pen blade on a Case 5344 stockman is shown here, and the 2nd pic illustrates how it might be used in conjunction with the DMT Dia-Fold & Magna-Guide

Thanks for the pics! - would the Lansky clamp work similarly with the DMT Aligner kit stones/holder for such small/narrow blades?

 

[Obsessed with Edges]

Thanks for the pics! - would the Lansky clamp work similarly with the DMT Aligner kit stones/holder for such small/narrow blades?

I assume so, but I don't have the Aligner hones or holder for those. The Dia-Folds and Aligner hones are wider/broader than Lansky's hones, so they may seem a bit awkward on a very small blade, but that's just a matter of getting accustomed to using them. Whichever type of hones you use with the clamp, just make sure you don't mix brands/types, such as using both Aligner and Dia-Fold hones in the same sharpening job, because the depth (height) of the hones is different for each type, so they won't be working at the same sharpening angle.