Spyderco Sharpmaker-30 deg or 40 deg?

R

ratdog

Joined
Dec 19, 2004
Messages
77
What angle should I sharpen my Spydercos like the native with? Also, What angle should I use with Benchmades like griptillians? Also being a noob to the sharpmaker do you have any general tips to make a razor edge?
 
If you're new to sharpening I'd recommend that you follow the guidance in the instructional video and/or pamphlet that comes with the Sharpmaker. Knives at 40 degrees will hold an edge longer, but 30 degrees will be sharper. Hard steels like S30V and ZDP are perfectly capable of holding 30 degrees and that's what I use on them. Some guys will use 30 degrees on everything.

I finish all my knives on a strop. For me that's a 2-inch leather belt with some Flitz.
 
My suggestion is that if your knife can't hold an edge at 30 degrees, instead of backing off to 40 degrees, just get a better knife. For me, 30 degrees represents such a big cutting advantage over 40 degrees (and cutting is ultimately the reason for the knife in the first place, right?) that I'm unwilling to compromise by going to any thicker edge.

Slatts, I don't agree that a knife with a 40 degree edge will necessary hold its edge longer than a knife with a 30 degree edge. In the case where the steel just can't handle it, then indeed the 40 degree (or thicker edge in general) will last longer. But for many types of cutting, it is provable through cutting experiments that a thinner edge can last longer! Depends on what you're cutting and how good you are at cutting it.

Joe
 
I just sharpened my Native flat to the stone, at 7 or so degrees! But, seriously, before I did that 15 degrees worked good, as the factory angle was less than that, and I had no chipping after the first few sharpenings. If you have a lot of chipping issues you can go to the 20 degree setting, but even Sal Glesser says that he sharpens all of his knives at 15 degrees, as all of Spyderco's steels can handle it. So if you have problems at 15 degrees you should send the knife to Spyderco as defective with a chipping problem.

My very limited experience agrees with Joe that if the steel can handle it the edge retention goes way up with a thinner angle. That's a big reason why I thinned out my Native so radically, to see if S30V can handle that thin of an angle without having problems. I think it can, but we'll see. I know that ZDP-189 & SGPS can handle those angles already, from experience, and the edge retention was a lot better than the factory angles. Not to mention the cutting ability and ease of sharpening are radically increased.
 
gunmike1 said:
... even Sal Glesser says that he sharpens all of his knives at 15 degrees, as all of Spyderco's steels can handle it.
Click to expand...
And yet...

When I first went to touch up my Delica 4, the 30 deg. setting appeared to have zero effect. So I went back to the Sharpmaker's manual and noticed it mostly talked about the 40 deg. setting. "Hmmm...," I thought to myself, "I wonder if Spyderco's knives come from the factory at 40 degrees?" So I switched to 40 deg. and viola`, sharpened right up.
 
Hi EDCeeker,

40 degrees is recommended for all edges, "in general". Spyderco makes sure to sharpen all of our own knives at less than 40 degrees so our customers can resharpen more easily. Many are originally sharpened at about 30.

30 degrees on the Sharpmaker is primarily for re-profiling the edge when the edge gets too thick, "in general". In fact, regular reprofiling is better than waiting until the edge is "too thick".

The Sharpmaker is made for the general market, although it is effective enough for the "afi" market as well. Not everyone in the general market is sharpening only Spyderco knives.

Spyderco uses exceptional steels that should easily maintain a 30 degree edge. I personally use 30 degrees on all of my Spyderco's and I usually have a few that are much thinner for personal testing.

Those that are interested enough in knives to participate in forums are usually seeking greater depth in their information, than the "general" market. And the forums are a good source of info.

I'm sure others can provide additional info, but I would guess that most modern steels with a carbon content of .9 or above should be able to hold 30 degrees, and some, much thinner.

sal
 
Sal,
I have been trying to sharpen knives using the Sharpsmaker and invarably I wind up with the tip of the knife becomeing rounded off. I guess I still have to know how to draw the knife all the way without it dulling the tip.

Any good recommendations and does anyone else have this problem?

Ciao 4now
Ron :eek:
 
The most common reason for this is that you're letting the tip slip off the stone occasionally when you get to the bottom of the stroke. Control the tip at the bottom, then left the knife off the stone. If the tip slips off the stone, it's guaranteed to get rounded
 
Joe Talmadge said:
The most common reason for this is that you're letting the tip slip off the stone occasionally when you get to the bottom of the stroke. Control the tip at the bottom, then left the knife off the stone. If the tip slips off the stone, it's guaranteed to get rounded
Click to expand...


Joe,
Thanks for the tip(:D ). Yes, I have been pulling the blade all the way off of the stones and like you said it sure does round off the tip. I will try and do it the way you explained. I think I just get too impatient and want to hurry up the sharpening.

Thanks again Joe,
Ciao 4now
Ron:rolleyes:
 
EDCeeker said:
And yet...

When I first went to touch up my Delica 4, the 30 deg. setting appeared to have zero effect. So I went back to the Sharpmaker's manual and noticed it mostly talked about the 40 deg. setting. "Hmmm...," I thought to myself, "I wonder if Spyderco's knives come from the factory at 40 degrees?" So I switched to 40 deg. and viola`, sharpened right up.
Click to expand...

It may have come with a 16 degree edge, as all of Spyderco's edges are ground by hand and there is some room for error, but from what I have seen Spydercos (and Byrds) come in around 15 degrees or less, and from what Sal has said in the past they aim for around 15 degrees. So, if your delica came with a slightly thicker grind, you would need to reprofile it for it to work on the 15 degree setting. If it had come in at 14 degrees, it would have sharpened up almost instantly on the 15 degree setting. That is the difference 2 degrees can make in sharpening. I would recommend using an X coarse benchstone to lower the angle to around 10-12 degrees (actual angle not critical, just in that general range to thin it out), then touchups at 15 degrees (a microbevel) will take very little time, as you are only honing a tiny amount of steel instead of the whole bevel. Your knife will cut better, and VG-10 can easily handle those angles. Do a search in the toolshed section and you will find some invaluble information on sharpening, shaping, and microbevels.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top