Should i Convex my Scandi knife?

[sisk61]

i have a Koster Bushcrafter. I like the simplicity of a scandi grind, but a zero ground scandi chips like nobodys business.. Ever since my first convex knife, ive been hand convexing all my flat ground blades with 400 grit sandpaper and a mousepad because of the ease of touching up a convex. Had anyone sharpened their scandi with wetordry sandpaper on a mousepad?? Or would it be a better idea to just sharpen my scandi the traditional way and strop it?

Thanks!

 

[HoosierQ]

NOOOOOOO. Don't do that to a Koster. Here's what I would do. I like to put a very micro micro-bevel on my scandi's. I freehand but there is always a place for the Sharpmaker in my opinion. What I do with scandis (done it with Mora, Roselli, Helle, Brusletto) is set up the Sharpmaker on the 30 degree "back bevel" setting. About 50 strokes on the edge of the brown rod, 50 on the flat side, then repeat on the white rods and then strop.

The microbevel will be so small that you'll have to hold it up to the light just right to see it, 30 is still pretty acute so it will cut well, there will a "more steel behind the edge", and it will be easy to maintain without going to great pains. This of course could be accomplished free-hand by laying the big scandi bevel flat and tipping it up a few degrees.

No the other option, IMHO, with a nice scandi like a Koster would be to re-do the whole bevel scandi style by laying it flat on the stone. What that will tend to do is create a very subtle convex shape as you just cannot hot it absolutely flat...it will rock a bit. For very hard knives (and I don't think Kosters are) it is recommended to sharpen free hand because that tends to give the bevel a bit of convex.

In addition, from what I understand, Kosters are a little but convex anyway...like Rosellis are...sort of a hybrid between scandi and convex with the bevel almost flat but not quite.

What are you cutting? Do you have a CPM 3V model?

 

[sisk61]

Thanks! i have a waterstone that im not completely sure what grit its at. the only markings on the stone were "coarse" and "fine" Recently, ive been sharpening my knives with a strip of wetordry sandpaper on a piece of flat wood, i learned that from Mors Korchanski's book "bushcraft"

I have the 3v Koster, and that is what pains me. When the blade chips, it takes me HOURS on the stone to get a new bevel. 3v is so hard to sharpen on a stone, i have found the new method to be much easier and quicker. I cut wood and such, its my main camping knife at the moment because of its size and how much of a beast it is. the chips come from pin knots in wood that i baton through. but there really isnt much i can do about that.

I havent put too much thought into putting a micro-bevel on the scandi, i always looked at micro-bevels as somewhat "taboo"

I do strop all of my knives after sharpening, just because i guess.

 

[Shotgun]

Go for it though I would use the sand paper on your strop instead of the mouse pad. You'll get a slight convex that will change the angle of the edge just a little bit which will be about the same as putting a micro bevel on it but retain the ease of sharpening that comes with both a convex and a scandi.

 

[sisk61]

Go for it though I would use the sand paper on your strop instead of the mouse pad. You'll get a slight convex that will change the angle of the edge just a little bit which will be about the same as putting a micro bevel on it but retain the ease of sharpening that comes with both a convex and a scandi.

well.. my "strop" is just a leather belt glued to a piece of wood. thats how we do it in Alabama. the belt is super hard. im going to have to get myself a legit strop sooner or later. After getting a convex, i find it almost impossible to sharpen my koster on a stone.. i just sorta forgot how to do it correctly.

 

[HoosierQ]

No the microbevel is particularly popular on Finnish scandis. Much less so on the Norwegian or Swedish ones. Now remember, we are talking micro-bevel here...not a secondary bevel. Obviously that is a matter of millimeters. If your micro-bevel is a millimeter wide or more...it ain't no micro bevel...that's a full-fledged secondary bevel and at that point you have "de-scandified" your scandi...that's the tabooed practice if you will. If you have to hold it up to the light just right to even see it...it's just right.

The kind of strop you have is fine...that's what we yankees call a bench strop. I used more of a barber's stop in the few knives I have actually convexed.

I am about to get a Khukuri so I will be digging out the mousepad and the sandpaper.

 

[sisk61]

No the microbevel is particularly popular on Finnish scandis. Much less so on the Norwegian or Swedish ones. Now remember, we are talking micro-bevel here...not a secondary bevel. Obviously that is a matter of millimeters. If your micro-bevel is a millimeter wide or more...it ain't no micro bevel...that's a full-fledged secondary bevel and at that point you have "de-scandified" your scandi...that's the tabooed practice if you will. If you have to hold it up to the light just right to even see it...it's just right.

The kind of strop you have is fine...that's what we yankees call a bench strop. I used more of a barber's stop in the few knives I have actually convexed.

I am about to get a Khukuri so I will be digging out the mousepad and the sandpaper.

Thank you, Hoosier! I dont have a Sharpmaker, so im going to have to freehand this one. Im searching for a protractor just so i can make sure im doing it right! lol!

 

[HoosierQ]

Got a better idea than a protractor...trigonometry. Measure the width of your blade in millimeters. Then go here. http://www.carbidedepot.com/formulas-trigright.asp

Plug in the width of you blade as side C. Then plug in 15 (or whatever is half of your intended inclusive angle) as angle A. Then bend up a paper clip and cut it off to be the height show to be side A. Most scandi bevels are pretty acute to begin with...probably in the 25 degree range inclusive. Use the paper clip to guide your strokes. That visual queue works very well and you will find that it goes fast. I have done complete reprofile jobs down to 30 degrees that way and I use this calculator all the time. Works great.

Do yourself a favor and stick with millimeters...way more convenient. a 30 millimeter wide blade will want to be held 7.76 millimeters off the stone at the spine to achieve a 30 angle. Remember to plug in half that into angle A.