Stripping and sharpening or re-profiling BK9

L

Lakanen7

Joined
Dec 24, 2012
Messages
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I recently got my BK9 delivered. After a bit of banging around with it I have 2 questions:


1. What is the best way to strip/remove the coating? I have seen a couple of different ways and would love your opinions and expertise!

2. It doesn't seem that the blade is as sharp as I am used to. Is this a possibility that I feel this way because of the angle of the grind? If so, what do you keep your angle at and if you have reground, what profile did you use?

I hope I am asking these questions correctly. Your help and advice is greatly appreciated!

Thanks!
 
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I would use a chemical stripping agent on the new coating it peels off great, I use zip-strip but cleanstrip or others work well too.

as for the grind angle I have mine re profiled at a 25 degree v but convex edges work well too.
 
I have been stripping mine one stick at a time. I convexed the edge on mine its very sharp.

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Cleanstrip or Citristrip both work well. I've only had to touch up the edge on mine twice. I've kept it at the factory angle and it has been great. I've been able to shave arm hair with mine even after heavy chopping and batoning. Convexing is a good way to go if you're planning on using it as a dedicated chopper & wood processing knife since it will leave the edge with a lot more steel behind it.
 
Something to think about...
If it's cold out and you're stripping the coating in the garage it will take awhile.
When I stripped my 9, I set up a halogen lamp beside it and it really sped up the process.
It only took about 10 minutes. The new coating peeled off like a very thin rubber. Nice!
 
Cleanstrip is great, i havent (and won't) strip my 9, but i've stripped other blades before. i would agree with others about convexing it as well, thats the way to go for any 9 i'd say.
 
Need help, just let citristrip sit on my gen 2 bk2 for about an hour and it did absolutely NOTHING, when I stripped my 9 I used aircraft paint remover which worked fast and aggressively but it left the finish scratched up, should I just reapply the strip? or is the newer coating harder to take off with less harsh chemicals?
 
Skip all the nasty gross chemicals and their fumes and go with a brass wire wheel on a bench grinder to strip your BK9. Back to bare steel in less than 5 minutes.
 
Citristrip is some pretty weak stuff. I use something more aggressive, like FastStrip or KleanStrip and the job is done pretty efficiently.
 
Anything that advertises better for the environment work less and in the end will probably be just as bad for the user.
 
The fellows have given you good advice for stripping your BK-9. A convex edge is the best edge for the blade and it is easy to maintain.
 
Alright after about an hour and a half of sitting in a second coat I got some of it off with a little elbow grease *phew* but next time I'll jut use that $8 aircraft paint remover, worked in minutes not hours
 
Bdt - if room temp is below 60° you're going to have a hard time with any chemical stripped. I have no idea what the temp is in New England but the warmer the better for stripping. Just my 2¢...
 
It was around 70 today I think it was just the strength of the stripper, took a few rounds but with a razor blade I took the rest off :) thanks for the tips though I'll remember that for next time
 
Funny this thread pops back up.

Doing this very thing tonight, whilst at work.

Jason Epoxy Paint stripper is what I use, and a belt grinder to remove the ramp.

Moose
 
BK2 is stripped and stainless hardware is in, looks really nice, I left the bk2 and bkt kabar stamp on with a bit of coating around them, pretty sleek, can't seem to get this thing sharp, had to stone out a heavily rolled part of the edge near the tip and I'm not totally sure but I think the grind is uneven... I wish I had a bench grinder and the skills to put a convex on it :(
 
I convexed this one by hand Derik has some great tips on doing it with a mousepad sandpaper and a nailfile

 
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