So, I jacked up this 0450CF pretty good...

Rasco

Rasco

Joined
Jan 3, 2014
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I recently picked this 0450CF up on the forums and swapped the green standoffs out for some red ones from a co-worker's 0450, and I couldn't have been more pleased with the result.

Then I tried to sharpen the thing...
I also recently picked up the Blade Grinding Attachment for the Ken Onion Work Sharp. I'm pretty familiar with the WSKO and can get most knives very, very sharp, but the 0450CF just didn't wanna comply. Seemed like no matter what I did, it was just sooooo thick behind the edge, it wasn't really getting very sharp, just shiny.
After trying several times on the WSKO (starting at 120 and going all the way back thru the grits) I was still not getting the results I wanted, so I figured, I'll send it off to Josh or Big Chris or someone who can make this thing sharp again for me. But I figured, why not take one last stab at it on the Edge Pro Apex?

Since it's already pretty F'd, it's gonna be a user for sure, so I got crazy and took it down to 15 degrees on the EPA.
And it looks.... not great.
Even the non-knife dudes in my office are like "wtf...?"

It's still not as sharp as it should be, considering what I did to it. Was kinda hard taking it from convex back to a V grind, and it's razor sharp in the center, but the tip and the base are still not that sharp. I think I, if you can believe it, failed to remove enough steel (using diamond plates on the EPA) in those areas.

I just called it good cuz I was tired for the night.

Anyway, this is still likely headed out to someone for a regrind, but just thought I'd share my sharpening troubles.

IMG_20160526_184401093_zps26ydarhu.jpg


IMG_20160526_184616264_zpsqdmwjsar.jpg
 
If it wasn't for the black coating it probably wouldn't look too bad, try touching it up on the spyderco sharpmaker if you have one, I bet it would make it sharp in a hurry.
 
I do have one, but I rarely use it anymore. At this point, the Sharpmaker could probably add a pretty good microbevel, but I think there was a smidgen of Sharpie left on the tip and near the base. So, for as much as I hammered this thing with the diamond stones (120 & 600), I guess it still didn't get all the way down to the edge in those areas...

I may give it another round on the EPA before I admit defeat and send it off.

When you go that thin on the EPA, there's really no way to avoid having the edge get huge like that, is there?
 
I have been defeated a few times before. Get some sleep. Come back to it tomorrow. Or even a few days later. Think. Give it another try. After that, think some more. You can't screw it up beyond repair. If it is still lost on you. Send it to Josh. No shame in that.
 
I like to thin the edge out first. I usually use the BGA and start with a 18 degree angle. Once I am happy with it (don't sharpen to the edge) I set the angle to 22 and sharpen to the edge. These angles are examples but it works well on my thicker knives. Think of it as a micro-convex-bevel.

Hope this was clear.
 
If it makes you feel any better, I totally botched three knives in a similar fashion over the course of learning to use the blade grinder attachment properly. They were cheapish fixed blades, but discontinued cheapish fixed blades that I can't easily replace :(
 
You did a good job getting out the scratch pattern, a lot of people wouldn't even tried that with that knife. I don't know anyone that has tried anything that involves some skill, and learning, to knock it out of the park. Without fine tuning there skills first.
 
I have the same trouble with my EPA. A lot of times it is because there is no sharpening groove/choil at the heel of the blade and the stones hit the ricasso and twist up, not making contact with that part of the blade. Sometimes this causes a slight recurve in the blade from the factory, still haven't figured out why I cant get the tip perfect yet. I figure it is just something with the edge pro not matching the same angle when working at the extremes
 
Pretty sure that most everyone that sharpens has done similar. I know I have. And my first utter failure to take an already thin knife to a super low angle, also happened to be a black blade. Sure makes everything stand out, good or bad.

Like everyone has already said, there are still options. May as well have fun with the learning curve. [emoji3]





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People are Strange, When You're a Stranger....
 
The slight recurve (less noticeable now, after going to 15deg on the EPA) developed from the WSKO-BGA.
Maybe I am still learning, but I had that set to 15deg also, so the belt was pretty tight. Maybe I'm just pressing too hard. But when I tried using light pressure, I felt like the belt wasn't making contact all the way to the edge, just getting like most of the secondary bevel (?)

After several tries with the WSKO-BGA, the end result was a blade that was very very thick behind the edge and not particularly sharp. Shiny, but not sharp.

Other knives have been no problem for me on the WSKO-BGA, so this was a frustrating setback
 
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