I'm not looking to purchase one I'm just curious about the "triangle"
Does using the pointy section cut the steel faster?
I've heard another forum member here on the past talk about
"High pressure bevel setting"
What is that? Advantages? Is it the fastest way to sharpen? (with the respective grit of course)
As it pertains to the Sharpmaker and it's ceramic rods, I'd say, "It CAN, but it's no guarantee."
The 'pointy' corners will focus pressure on the edge; that's both a good and a bad thing. It can be a good thing, in the sense that the focused pressure can remove metal a little quicker, because the grit digs deeper. But also a bad thing, because with ceramics especially, more pressure also greatly increases the risk of edge damage by rolling or chipping. There's another drawback with heavy-pressure grinding on the ceramic rods, in that the very narrow 'strip' of contact on the hone's edge will load up with swarf very, very quickly; that'll negate any speed advantage after only a few passes, as the rod becomes so clogged it can't work anymore.
Fast bevel setting is much better done on an appropriately coarse stone; and more so if the stone is relatively large, which spreads the workload and reduces the likelihood of clogging as well. The Sharpmaker's ceramic rods aren't coarse enough, aggressive enough, or large enough to make a significant difference in speed simply by increasing grinding pressure. Doing so will likely be counterproductive in the end.
BTW, the triangular shape of the SM's rods is aimed more for use on serrations, as opposed to creating a significant speed advantage in bevel setting.
David
