Spyderco Standard - sharpening?

baraqyal

baraqyal

Joined
Nov 30, 2000
Messages
860
For the life of me, I can't get my spyderco standard to become even vaguely sharp. I don't know what I'm doing wrong. All of my other knives are kept shaving sharp (even my 12+ year old minibuck). I've tried just about everything I can think of.

When I sharpen it, if I really try, I can get a curled over edge. I go through and do that to both sides - just like in the sharpening FAQ. This same process has resulted in a razor sharp knife on all of my other knives. However, when I'm done with the standard, all I have is a dull knife. I've gone through and read everything I can about sharpening. Is the standard hollow ground or something?

What angle should I be sharpening it at? I've tried all sorts of different angles, with no result. I got it shaving sharp once, and that lasted for all of about opening 3 letters. It's driving me crazy. What am I doing wrong? I can get my cheap crkt zytel mirage (aus6) a heck of a lot sharper.

Believe it or not, even my cold steel CAT has more ability to cut. What's the deal? Should I get serious and get out the metal files and re-profile? Or even (gasp) send it back to spyderco to be sharpened? Help!

-- Rob

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Me fail english? Thats unpossible!
 
Spyderco will re-sharpen their products FREE. I say send it back to hq. (Or trade it to me for my Goddard lwt ;-)
 
I have a sharpening set from gatco, a no-name benchstone, and one of those ribbed steel sharpeners. As I said - the rest of my knives come out very sharp, even large kitchen knives. Maybe this is the excuse I've been looking for to go for a sharpmaker 204.
smile.gif
Or, perhaps it's some kind of mental block.

Either way, I have a birthday coming up in about a month - so I'll be getting that sharpmaker.
-- Rob
 
Hi Rob. If the Standard model that you have is ATS-55, it is probably harder and more abrasive resistant than the other models mentioned, thus harder to sharpen. It is possible that you are creating a burr, a burr often feels like a sharp edge, then the burr breaks off??

I'm confident that a Sharpmaker will make it very sharp (shaving).

sal
 
That's sort of what I thought. Should it be harder than ATS-34? Maybe I just need to try a little harder. Thanks for the advice - I'm definitely getting that sharpmaker.
-- Rob
 
Update:
Last night at about midnight, I was able to get my standard shaving sharp. Finally. I believe the trick was leaving it in the drawer for a week or two, and then staying up til the witching hour to sharpen it.

Actually, I don't know what the trick was. I never got a burr to form - at all. I used a very shallow angle. Maybe it's that I'm not used to ATS-55? Its supposed to be like ATS-34, but it sure seems different.

Regardless, the standard is in my pocket again. Just like most computer problems, there's nothing wrong with the knife, just operator error.
smile.gif


-- Rob

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Me fail english? That's unpossible!
 
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