True Confessions – I don’t know how to sharpen a knife

[lonepine]

While I get great satisfaction out of making things I call knives, I must admit that I have never been able to sharpen a knife blade. This is a deficiency that I plan to rectify and toward that end I’ve watched several U –Tube videos and will try out several of the techniques I see there.

One of the things that help with sharpening a blade is a good set of sharpening stones. I have an oil stone my dad gave me, and then there’s my recent purchase. On the shelf at GoodWill was a box with two stones. A pink, veeerrrryyyy fine grit stone, and a gray coarse stone. They do not seem to have any oil stains on them which leads me to believe that they are water stones. Fortunately the most of the label was on the stones and I was hoping that someone could help me identify exactly what I purchased for $2. The image should be below.

Closeup

I suspect they are probably Japanese, or at least I would like them to be Japanese. Of course they could be Chinese or Korean also.

LonePine
AKA Paul Meske, Sun Prairie, Wisconsin

 

[jameson2]

at knifeforums' kitchen section you should find a bunch of chronic knife sharpeners, if you dont hear much here. im guessing someone there could tell you more about the stones.

i can tell you theyre waterstones, so dont put oil on them. you want to use the blue one before the red one (no sh!t huh?)

wish i could help more.

 

[Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith]

Looks like a commercial set of kitchen stones. They are water stones, so you soak them in a pan of water for a while before use ,and keep them wet while sharpening.

Now, I appreciate that you are having problems sharpening knives.....but water stones aren't the answer....and may be much harder to use.

What makes an edge sharp is a combination of :
Hardened steel with fine grain - You take care of this by steel selection and good HT.
Proper edge geometry - You need a flat stone and a consistent angle to get the edge angle desired.
Proper blade thickness at the edge - When new, many makers ( me included) make the blade too thick and round the bevel down toward the edge. This is easier than a good flat or hollow grind, but make for a dull knife. Flat grind the bevels to a thickness of about .010"-.005" , and then add the secondary bevel. This will give you a fine blade behind a fine edge. If the blade is too thick behind the edge it acts like a wedge and won't cut well.
Proper sharpening technique - There are all sorts of gizmos and systems to sharpen knives....but they all require that you consistently remove metal to make a keen edge. The stropping off of the wire is the final step to having a hair shaving blade. A flat bench stone, or a set of DMT diamond plates, and a leather strop are all you need to get started. If you want to purchase a system, the Edge Pro is an excellent one.
http://edgeproinc.com/

 

[tattooedfreak]

Well, the writing is definitely Japanese but I can't readily translate it. However, the colours are usually the same no matter the maker, so it should be 250/1000 (blue/pink). If you spent $2 you got a very good deal. You don't need to keep them in water all the time but soak the 250 for a least 10-15 minutes before you use it and keep it wet while you use it. The 1000 doesnt need as much soak time but still needs to be kept wet in use. It won't hurt them to keep them in water all the time if you have a dedicated tupperware container for them and make sure you don't let the water freeze or get sludgey. When you finish sharpening, rinse them off and put them away and they will last you a very long time. Very nice find. I will keep looking for the translation unless someone else does it first

 

[lonepine]

Thanks for the feedback everyone. I'm glade to hear that I got at least my two dollars worth with the stones.

I want to learn to sharpen using stones. I noticed that most demos on YouTube go with long single swipes of the blade across the stone. I've always used a circular grinding motion, continually and gradually moving the blade to prevent putting a dip in the blade. I suspect this is not a good technique.

LonePine
AKA Paul Meske

 

[sunshadow]

circular grinding motion is OK for removing a lot of metal if you need to establish an edge bevel and can hold a consistant angle. long strokes are better for control once you have the bevel. Always keep the steel wet with oil or water using whichever is appropriate for your abrasive.

-Page

 

[BustaCrook]

When I want to sharpen a knife I usially do it front of the T.V and with an old Arkansas stone or my Lansky. I just can't sit there doing nothing while watching the tube. Knocking the wire/burr off with a strope or ceramic sticks works very well.

 

[tattooedfreak]

You dont want to use a circular motion on the water stones, you will wear a hollow in them. You will have to true them up eventually anyway but no need to hasten it. Look at some videos of Japanese sword polishers and you will see how they do it.

 

[hkpokes_you]

The OP should buy a sharpmaker. It will take a lot of practice before stones give him better edges. Still good to have both. He got a great deal those waterstones.