The work sharp Ken onion edition

Bobby3326 · May 23, 2015

bgentry said:
A couple of quick words on belt longevity:

I've used the original set of belts, plus my own mix of stiff precision belts and occasionally a 60 grit ceramic to sharpen a pretty sad collection of beaten and abused knives that were brought to me by various people. The majority of these blades had never been maintained in all their years of use and required major metal removal. By my rough count I've done around 180 to 190 blades like this so far, using these two sets of belts.

Both sets of belts are still going strong with the P120 having one little tiny spot missing grit. All belts *seem* to cut at original (or very close) speeds. I use a belt cleaning stick (looks like a giant eraser) every few blades on all the belts that need it. This only takes maybe 20 to 40 seconds per belt and keeps them nice and clean. I attribute the long life I'm getting from the belts, in part, to this cleaning process.

Brian.

I'll have to look into this cleaning stick...is it simply a belt grinder cleaner?

bgentry · May 23, 2015

Yep. Standard sanding belt cleaning stick. Harbor Freight has them for $8 I think. The size is big enough to last for a lifetime with just the worksharp. On a real belt sander it would still last you years of light use.

Brian.

Bobby3326 · May 23, 2015

bgentry said:
Yep. Standard sanding belt cleaning stick. Harbor Freight has them for $8 I think. The size is big enough to last for a lifetime with just the worksharp. On a real belt sander it would still last you years of light use.

Brian.

Awesome thanks for the tip bud.

Bobby3326 · May 23, 2015

IUKE12 said:
kitchen knives at 15-17, you're in for a treat

Ok so I just learned a valuable lesson, kitchen knives are NOT as easy as my outdoor knives...good thing I started on a cheap Faberware set.

I think this is from a combination of the 17° angle, thinness of the knives and less quality steel compared to my thick outdoor knives at 25° with I'm assuming better steel...dunno what Faberware uses.

I'll have to keep practising before moving on to the good kitchen knives. The outdoor knives I feel comfortable with and blast thru em. Just did my son's prodigy, my wife's prodigy, an lmf2, and a schrade schf 14 I just picked up in the amount of time it took me to get 1 kitchen knife fixed lol.

KG4ULR · May 23, 2015

Trying to get the wife to cooperate as well. Especially when it comes to the wooden handles.
I will get the "Ken Onion" edition if I get one.

Now if I could just get the wife to stop putting them in the dishwasher and then throwing them all together in a drawer. Fat chance on that...[/QUOTE]

bgentry · May 23, 2015

Bobby3326 said:
Just did my son's prodigy, my wife's prodigy, an lmf2, and a schrade schf 14 I just picked up in the amount of time it took me to get 1 kitchen knife fixed lol.

You've just experienced what kind of blades I've been working on with my WSKO! Beaten to death blades that take longer because the edge is essentially flat. In many cases you can't really even call it an edge anymore because it's so flat and blunt.

You'll get used to judging this by examining the blade before you start. I look for a reflection on the cutting edge. The more easy it is to see the reflection, the more dull and flat the edge is and the more work it will require.

The good news is you got a respectable edge on that blade. Good job.

Brian.

Bobby3326 · May 23, 2015

bgentry said:
You've just experienced what kind of blades I've been working on with my WSKO! Beaten to death blades that take longer because the edge is essentially flat. In many cases you can't really even call it an edge anymore because it's so flat and blunt.

You'll get used to judging this by examining the blade before you start. I look for a reflection on the cutting edge. The more easy it is to see the reflection, the more dull and flat the edge is and the more work it will require.

The good news is you got a respectable edge on that blade. Good job.

Brian.

Yea with some work I got those 2 with a respectable edge. The real challenge is the small steak knifes (non serrated ones) the blade height is much shorter and they're in rough condition with chips in the edge. The blade height thou is what's proving most challenging, I can't rest it against the guards like the larger blades.

bgentry · May 23, 2015

It might be time to try out some freehand without the guides. That's how I do all my blades on the WSKO.

In the more severe cases (deep chips, etc), I cut the edge into the belt at around 60 to 75 degrees. Not quite flat, but almost. In those cases, I'm seeking to grind out the chips and establish the shape of the blade first. Then I form a new set of edge bevels at the correct angle. Hopefully your steak knives aren't quite that bad off. But if they are, you cant do it. Just takes time and patience.

Good luck,

Brian.

Bobby3326 · May 23, 2015

bgentry said:
It might be time to try out some freehand without the guides. That's how I do all my blades on the WSKO.

In the more severe cases (deep chips, etc), I cut the edge into the belt at around 60 to 75 degrees. Not quite flat, but almost. In those cases, I'm seeking to grind out the chips and establish the shape of the blade first. Then I form a new set of edge bevels at the correct angle. Hopefully your steak knives aren't quite that bad off. But if they are, you cant do it. Just takes time and patience.

Good luck,

Brian.

Yea I'm going eventually try free handing and getting the attachment for doing it...I've only had the wsko for a week, I'm taking baby steps lol

Four-and-twentypence · May 23, 2015

Gentlemen, to those of you with a Worksharp of whatever variety, how easy is it to change the temper of a blade, or round a point? My biological grandfather rounded a point on a multitool (SOG) seemingly easy; it was a very acute tip from the factory.

Bobby3326 · May 23, 2015

Four-and-twentypence said:
Gentlemen, to those of you with a Worksharp of whatever variety, how easy is it to change the temper of a blade, or round a point? My biological grandfather rounded a point on a multitool (SOG) seemingly easy; it was a very acute tip from the factory.

Honestly if you don't follow directions it's probably quite easy to round off the tip. However I followed directions and have sharpened atleast 15 knives in the short week of owning it. I've experienced no rounded tips bc I follow the instructions and keep the edge perpendicular to the belt and stop the tip in the middle of the belt and cut the power. If you pull it straight thru without stopping the tip you'll round it off.

This machine is far easier to use then I'd ever imagined, and is one of the best things I've ever bought.

As far as damaging the temper, I feel the blade during use, if it starts feeling warm I dip it in cool water. Only the course belts really even create any heat and it's still minimal.

I reprofiled my bk2 with it, and proceeded to go beat the crap out of it chopping down a dead oak tree 5" in diameter, then chopping it into sections, then batoned those sections into kindling. After all that it was still wicked sharp, no chips or rolling.

Braincandle · May 23, 2015

I too have the WSKO and use it to sharpen all of my knives as well as anyone at work who has a dull blade. One recommendation I give to everyone using it, if you don't want to scratch your blade, put blue tape on the blade everywhere except the edge. I have several Spyderco PM2's and a few others that have scratches on the blade from the guide. Metal dust got on the guide during the sharpening process and while pulling through left scratches where it contacted the guide.

Also for anyone wondering if many shops carry the belts, here in Houston all Northern Tool and the Ace Hardware closest to my house carry the belts.

I've seen the blade grinding attachment and am curious if anyone has one and uses it. I may be able to use it for shaping scales much like I do with my 1 x 30 belt sander.

Bobby3326 · May 23, 2015

Braincandle said:
I too have the WSKO and use it to sharpen all of my knives as well as anyone at work who has a dull blade. One recommendation I give to everyone using it, if you don't want to scratch your blade, put blue tape on the blade everywhere except the edge. I have several Spyderco PM2's and a few others that have scratches on the blade from the guide. Metal dust got on the guide during the sharpening process and while pulling through left scratches where it contacted the guide.

Also for anyone wondering if many shops carry the belts, here in Houston all Northern Tool and the Ace Hardware closest to my house carry the belts.

I've seen the blade grinding attachment and am curious if anyone has one and uses it. I may be able to use it for shaping scales much like I do with my 1 x 30 belt sander.

Good tip, I haven't noticed it yet since I haven't sharpened anything with a polished blade yet. It doesn't hurt coated blades atleast hasn't mine yet.

Bobby3326 · May 25, 2015

The more I use this thing the more i love it!!! Just sharpened my ax and hatchets, and my lawn mower blades and it only took maybe 25-30 minutes....The one hatchet came without an edge at all (it was completely rounded)and I'd spent hours on it previously with a dremel since so much metal needed removed, which the results were fair at best. About 10 minutes of time on the work sharp I've managed to put a good edge on it

vilePossum · May 25, 2015

Hrhr got the deal, almost new work sharp with 2 sets of replacement belts. Looking forward to it towards the end of the week.

Bobby3326 · May 25, 2015

vilePossum said:
Hrhr got the deal, almost new work sharp with 2 sets of replacement belts. Looking forward to it towards the end of the week.

Congrats!!!! Just follow the directions to the tee and you should have wicked sharp blades in no time...I pounded my bk2 and strongarm thru some real dry pine and oak today...using the bk2 to baton and chop a 10' long and 5" diameter real dry pine tree into 2'sections then proceeded to baton those sections into kindling with the bk2 and strongarm followed by feather sticks. Then batoned some oak that was laying around from before and both knives still have incredible edges...The bk2 only needs touched up due to an unfortunate collision with a cinderblock.

efaden · May 26, 2015

Good thread... with working with the KO have you found any other accessories you must have?... I was looking at leather strops and was curious about the Blade Grinding attachment with its leather belt vs just using a strop with diamond spray, etc...

Thoughts?

bgentry · May 26, 2015

If what you want is a really refined polished edge, the included x4 and "6000" (purple) belt will get blades crazy screaming sharp. In fact, much sharper than most blade steels will hold for more than a cut or two. I think that kind of polish is mostly useless and stick to somewhere between the X22 and X5 depending on steel and intended use.

Ken Schwartz makes a *linen* belt for the WSKO that I haven't ordered yet. With this, you can use any of his emulsions from diamond, to CBN, to polycrystaline diamonds, etc.

I guess it's all about the finish you are wanting to achieve.

Brian.

Bobby3326 · May 26, 2015

bgentry said:
If what you want is a really refined polished edge, the included x4 and "6000" (purple) belt will get blades crazy screaming sharp. In fact, much sharper than most blade steels will hold for more than a cut or two. I think that kind of polish is mostly useless and stick to somewhere between the X22 and X5 depending on steel and intended use.

Ken Schwartz makes a *linen* belt for the WSKO that I haven't ordered yet. With this, you can use any of his emulsions from diamond, to CBN, to polycrystaline diamonds, etc.

I guess it's all about the finish you are wanting to achieve.

Brian.

I find the purple to generally dull the blade more than sharpen it...I ran a few knives thru just to see the difference. They were hair popping sharp after the x4, and after the purple belt they no longer were popping hairs..had to run em back thru the x4...This was with my outdoor knives at 25° so maybe it does better on a finer edge.

Bobby3326 · May 26, 2015

efaden said:
Good thread... with working with the KO have you found any other accessories you must have?... I was looking at leather strops and was curious about the Blade Grinding attachment with its leather belt vs just using a strop with diamond spray, etc...

Thoughts?

I haven't had it long enough to try any of the accessories, but I do plan on getting the blade and tool grinding attachments to atleast try em once I've completely mastered what I already have.