Some Noob questions about Swamprat...

Steel130

Steel130

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Ok one I know this is probably a dumb question but I cant really find much about Swamp Rat even on their website. So
1. Swamp Rats are USA made right?
2. Will a Spyderco Sharpmaker suffice in sharpening the SR101 steel that Swamp Rat uses?
Edit does anyone know what the grind and angle of the edge on the Rodent Solution is?
thanks
Steeley
 
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Swamprat is made by Busse Combat in Wauseon Ohio.
SR101 is modified 52100 ball bearing steel and sharpens easily.
You will see a lot of high end custom knifemakers using it.

I do not have a sharpmaker, but I believe there are set angles on it.
If it does not match the angle of the edge on the knife you will work hard getting it to that angle.
Some Swamprats like the RMD LE are a full height convex edge and will not work well on the sharpmaker.
The RMD LE is an amazing knife and worth learning how to sharpen convex:thumbup:
 
As mentioned above, the sharpmaker limits you to a flat microbevel and I'd imagine it would be pretty difficult to reprofile. My Swamp Rat came with impeccable fit and finish, but the finish angle is around 60 degrees inclusive. It's shaving sharp out of the box, but a bit on the obtuse side for my tastes when it comes to performance. I thinned mine out to 30 degrees inclusive, by hand, and it took a LONG time. The steel is hard and the grain size is small. Wet and Dry barely touched it. I'm not sure how much harder or more abrasive the Sharpmaker rods are, but either way I'd plan on spending a long time thinning it out if that's your desire. It's worth it in the long run though, they stay sharp forever.
 
I use the Sharpmaker rods freehand-style to sharpen my Rats. I find that the corners seem to work the best.

My RMD also came with a fairly thick edge. I've been reprofiling it by hand on an economy Norton stone that I picked up for $7 at Home Depot. This stone is _rough_, so it's good for removing a lot of metal. Even at that, it's still taking awhile.
 
It took forever to bring my RMD and SW bevels down to 30 inclusive on the Sharpmaker. Weeks. Thousands of strokes. I lost the overall count after a few sessions when I totally zoned out for about 500 strokes, just elsewhere, total muscle memory.

I also skipped the micro-bevel at 40 degrees, as recommended by Spyderco for its folders, because the interminable bevel grinding convinced me that SR-101 is hard and tough enough to not need one.

One last note: The corners on the rods do cut faster, but I think the flats are necessary for getting the best symmetry at the tip. The flats, and a willingness to just keep going until it's done.
 
So not to seem lazy but is their a person on the forums that you would trust to reprofile the knife to a 20 or thirty degree angle?
 
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SteeleySawyer said:
So not to seem lazy but is their a person on the forums that you would trust to reprofile the knife to a 20 or thirty degree angle?
Click to expand...

If you want a really nice thinned down convex edge, forum member Horn Dog is good to go. He has sharpened two of my Bussekin knives and does a beautiful job. He is somewhat notorious on the forums for his great sharpening skills on the belt sander. I would contact him. :thumbup:
 
Thanks alot for the info gottahaveit27 I may look into that. Reports are that the Rodent Solution is FFG which doesn't bother me at all.
 
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