Spyderco Sharpmaker

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flphotog

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Jul 10, 2014
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Not sure how many of you use the Spyderco Shapmaker, I had one for quite awhile and while I love it I have a couple of knives that I could never quite get the edge on that I quite liked.
I ordered a couple ruby stones from Congress Tools, a 120 grit and 320 grit and in a very short time I could shave with these two blades.
I had gotten to the point that I almost bought a power sharpener even though that really didn't sit right with me.

Even better, the rods from Congress Tools cost a fraction of those made for the Sharpmaker, they don't market them as Sharpmaker rods but the 1/2 in triangles fit it perfectly.
 
Nfd538 said:
Can you show the new stones in the SM.
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They look just like the original stones except about an inch shorter which isn't an issue for me.

4wVDrISl.jpg
 
These would be useful, especially the 120 grit. The diamond rods don't cut it, literally. Do you have a link because what I found (link below) shows very high prices.
 
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Posting a link is a nono on this site, just go to the main page and under products look for polishing stones and you will find them. I think all four cost me about $25 including shipping
 
flphotog said:
Even better, the rods from Congress Tools cost a fraction of those made for the Sharpmaker, they don't market them as Sharpmaker rods but the 1/2 in triangles fit it perfectly.
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Hi,
How much is what you paid compared to what? How much was shipping?

update: oh duh :) I see, 4 stones + shipping $25 .... looking at the 1/2 inch ruby triangles in 120/320 grits, shipping must have been free

new question, why ruby instead of moldmaster or RES-CUT?
 
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Funny you mentioned this. I just put a fresh edge on my Buck 301's spey blade, and these might have saved me some time.

Postoak, have Spyderco's diamond rods not fit the bill for you? I haven't tried them.
 
No, the Sharpmaker diamond rods are about 360 grit.

Just this evening I was given a kitchen knife to sharpen. I used a Sharpie and the medium stones to determine that the existing bevel was greater than 40 degrees inclusive so I would need to lower the angle of the primary (and in this case, only) bevel in order to get an apex. I did about 100 strokes on one side and even though the amount of metal to remove to get rid of the last remaining Sharpie marks was small, it didn't do it.

So, I went out to the bench sander and got a burr on both sides at a shallower angle than the Sharpmaker, and then came in and worked through the Sharpmaker stones from medium to ultra-fine to create a micro-bevel. I could just about slice-cut telephone book paper across the grain. That is VERY sharp. Much sharper than needed for the intended use of this blade, but hey, it was fun.

I could have done everything on the sander, but I like getting the Sharpmaker involved. If I had had a 120 grit rod, I don't think it would have been necessary to get the sander involved at all.
 
Wow! Thanks awesome! Thanks for sharing. I should pick me up some of those 120 grit stones! I shouldn't have a problem if I go from those right to the medium and then the fine, would I?
 
Kwon Kwang said:
Wow! Thanks awesome! Thanks for sharing. I should pick me up some of those 120 grit stones! I shouldn't have a problem if I go from those right to the medium and then the fine, would I?
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I'd say that depends on whether or not appearance is important to you. Polishing the grind lines from 120 with the sharp maker brown stones would be a chore. It's pretty intensive even going from the sharp maker diamonds to the sharp maker medium stones on higher end steels.
 
Kwon, I ordered some of the 120s, but noticed they sell many other grits so I also ordered some 220s. If I were doing a big reprofile job like that I'd work my way up through all the grits, 120, 220, diamond, medium, fine, and ultra-fine.

Notice I said that's what I would do. I have no idea if it is necessary. Twenty-strokes per side at each grit doesn't take that long.
 
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Guest5160 said:
I'd say that depends on whether or not appearance is important to you. Polishing the grind lines from 120 with the sharp maker brown stones would be a chore. It's pretty intensive even going from the sharp maker diamonds to the sharp maker medium stones on higher end steels.
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It all depends on the edge you are looking for, a polished edge isn't always the best edge, I prefer a more aggressive edge on edc knives and a more polished edge on kitchen knives. That being said I also ordered 320 grit stones so I"m not going from 120 directly to medium stones. I have no issues getting a polished edge at all. It would depend on the steel of course but getting a polished edge isn't a big deal at all.
 
Has anyone tried the other rods from Congress Tools. I am going to give the Ruby 320 a shot, but would like to find something in the 600 range too. Which of the other Congress Tools stone lines would be the best for that?
 
I have a couple Moldmaster stones for the Edge Pro. The 600 grit was useless, as it just created a ton of swarf and dished in no time at all without doing much to the blade. The 400 grit stone works just fine.
 
Are the sides of the triangle EXACTLY the same as the ShapeMaker stones? Because if they aren't the angles are going to be different even if they fit. I'd also want to know if the edges are radiused the same. that would also affect the angle.
 
I decided to give the ruby 320 a shot. Do these have a break in period similar to diamond stones/rods?
 
flphotog said:
It all depends on the edge you are looking for, a polished edge isn't always the best edge, I prefer a more aggressive edge on edc knives and a more polished edge on kitchen knives. That being said I also ordered 320 grit stones so I"m not going from 120 directly to medium stones. I have no issues getting a polished edge at all. It would depend on the steel of course but getting a polished edge isn't a big deal at all.
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Agreed. I guess I got a little long winded to say that 120 to the sharp maker brown was a pretty big jump.
 
So what is the grit on the brown Sharpmaker rod? I have seen a bunch of different numbers from 1000 to 600...
 
Op is genius with the Google fu! Thanks for this little nugget of wonderful! Going online to order some.

Funniest crap happened I made my wife mad one day (go figure) and she is a redhead and a little crazy sometimes. Anyhow she threw my sharpmaker at me a few MO the ago and broke one of my medium stones lol. God I love her even though she's nuts sometimes. Anyhow I need to order some replacements! Thank you! .
 
Thanks for the great advice, friends. :) Once I've got some spare cash I'll grab the stones and give it a go.
 
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