Want to Try a New Sharpener…Advice Please.

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Nalapombu

Joined
Oct 26, 2001
Messages
303
Hey all.

I have had a basic Lansky system for a long time. If I am to keep it I need to get some new hones. When I checked the prices, I saw that I could buy a different sharpener for not much more than all new hones would cost. The problem is I don’t know which one would be best for me to get.

I want to be able to sharpen folders and fixed, big and small, serrated and plain. The serrated capability is not a make or break, but it would be nice to have.

Would you all mind giving me some advice and suggestions on what sharpening system would work best for me? I want to be able to put a great edge on my knives even if I have to establish a new angle on a knife.

What system have you found works great for you and isn’t expensive? What sharpener would you recommend to your best buddy if he asked you?

Thank you for your time and help.
Larry
 
I ask without snark or judgment what "expensive" is to you. Because besides income, expensive really looks a lot different from the inside of a skill/hobby/interest than it does on the outside.
It would help to know what kind of steels you have too.
Really freehanding gives you the most flexibility. That is an unavoidable truth.
But a Sharpmaker with the addition of some diamond sticks (?) seems like it would work for you.
Wicked Edge or Edge Pro with some better stones if you have more money to drop.
 
Nalapombu said:
What system have you found works great for you and isn’t expensive?
Click to expand...

A great and inexpensive system is the Work Sharp precision adjust. Not that good for bigger knives, but www.gritomatic.com will soon have an upgrade kit available for the Work Sharp precision adjust for this purpose.

Nalapombu said:
What sharpener would you recommend to your best buddy if he asked you?
Click to expand...

If I had to recommend the best system for the price for my best buddies (Which I actually did recommend and they do use it), then a Hapstone R2 Standard - no question about it. Paired up with a set of Venev Ursa or Centaur stones, a digital angle gauge, a Hapstone fine tuning adapter and 2 spring stoppers.

www.gritomatic.com

Hapstone R2 Standard Knife Sharpener

Hapstone R2 Knife Sharpener is the new knife sharpener from Hapstone, supplier of successful Hapstone R1. Hapstone R2 on par with Hapstone V8 and Hapstone M3 is part of the Hapstone Modular Platform, innovative technology to let customers configure and upgrade the sharpening system with no...
www.gritomatic.com www.gritomatic.com

www.gritomatic.com

Venev Ursa Series Dual Side Diamond (3)Stone Set [6" x 0.6"]

Venev Ursa Series Dual Side Diamonds are used for sharpening knives on Hapstone and TSProf guided knife sharpeners, as well as freehand sharpening. Diamond sharpening stones offer excellent performance in sharpening knives of any steel.Ursa Series is 16 mm wide dual side diamond with two 1...
www.gritomatic.com www.gritomatic.com

www.gritomatic.com

Digital Angle Gauge

It's very important to keep a sharpening angle consistent on a guided knife sharpener. The angle should not change when replacing one sharpening stones to another. In order to control the sharpening angle, one measures the angle between the knife plane and the sharpening stone.There are many...
www.gritomatic.com www.gritomatic.com

www.gritomatic.com

Fine-Tuning Adapter for Hapstone

Fine-Tuning Adapter is a simple tool for maintaining the chosen sharpening angle while working on Hapstone knife sharpener.Specification Material: Aluminum Compatibility: Hapstone Modular Sharpeners, Hapstone M2, Hapstone V6, Hapstone V5, Edge Pro Apex
www.gritomatic.com www.gritomatic.com

www.gritomatic.com

Spring-Assisted Stopper Ring [6 mm]

Spring-Assisted Stopper Ring to limit the movement of the horizontal shaft in the pivot unit. The stopper is suitable for 6-mm guide rods and compatible with all Hapstone knife sharpeners, TSProf Blitz and Kadet.
www.gritomatic.com www.gritomatic.com
 
My experience is limited to the ceramic Spyderco bench-stones, the Sharpmaker and the Worksharp (Ken Onion Edition). The easiest is either the Worksharp or Sharpmaker. I especially like the Worksharp for larger knives. It is difficult to go wrong with the Sharpmaker for ease of use and it offers a fair amount of flexibility for sharpening knives, scissors, etc.

I am currently using my bench-stones simply because I want to learn how to sharpen free handed.
 
I'm pretty new to sharpening systems, so my advice is worth exactly what you've paid for it. I do have a Gatco diamond system, which is a lot like the Lansky, and it's pretty decent for the money. With that said, I did a lot of reading in an attempt to get a good system, and good value for my $$$. I looked at just about every sharpening system I could find (and there are a surprising number of them out there), but I was particularly interested in the KME, Edge Pro and Hapstone systems. I had pretty much settled on a Hapstone when I stumbled across a used R2 at a price I could not pass up. It seems like the dual clamp system, especially the angled clamps, allows for a bit more flexibility and stability than KME's single clamp. Plus, I like the fact that it's a modular setup, so that if I decide I want a magnetic table for a knife rather than the clamp, I just have to buy that module and it will fit on the base I already own. I'm very happy with it. Good luck in your search!
 
It depends on how big of a knife you want to do, but I think the KME gives you a lot for the money. The hapstone R2 also looks nice, but I've never used one.
 
Nalapombu, For the kind of money to replace your Lansky rod's I'd consider the following-
I Just chose to get a couple grand kids an open box Work Sharp Precision Adjust, with offer to answer any questions. Had them measure finger pressure on bathroom spring scale for helping a deft sharpening hand. Their highest end steels are Chinese VG10 and Benchmade 154CM. Couple weeks in, they each have one knife sharpened, an unknown steel and a VG10. Folks are making nice 3D printed mods which will add functionality (public libraries have / are getting 3D printers), plus Gritomatic has separate 4 and 6 inch aluminum stone carriers. After the kids have a batch of knives under their belt with stock setup, inexpensive add-ons, balancing factory offerings in, will prove useful. Free hand is the ultimate goal over time.
Could of gone with a Sharpmaker had a used model 203F or 204 been available. Thingiverse has some really great Sharpmaker 3D printer files.
To complete kit, I would add:
1 pair of very coarse (80 / 120 / 150) grit 1/2 x 6 inch triangle rods from Congress - Mold Master Hard Silicon Carbide $11.90+SHT;
1 pair of Idahone’s 1/2 x 7 inch 100 to 200 grit Ceramic Coarse rods $32.00+SHT;
1 pair of least expensive 6 inch diamond plates from Gritomatic and a roll of 3M double sided tape.

Spyderco’s rods on unified chart

The Grand Unified Grit Chart

EDIT: Since creating this chart, it has gone through many revisions and has become far too unwieldy to keep saving as a JPG. Mainly, because it won't fit on one *screen* any more. So, the latest version will now be kept HERE! Well, I've seen a lot of charts comparing various grit sizes in...
www.bladeforums.com www.bladeforums.com
 
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I really like the Hapstone R2 Lite personally. I originally started sharpening on a cheap knockoff Edge Pro table thing. It worked but I wanted someone that held the knife.
So I already had some decent stones coming from that janky system to the Hapstone and a decent idea of what I wanted from the system.
I picked the Lite model because I preferred a more stable clamp and it's held the majority of my knives just fine. Excluding my Spyderco Yojimbo, I have to disassemble and clamp just the blade itself. Plenty of upgrades to the system, quite modular. I use the Chosera stone kit for softer steels and Venev diamond stones on my work knives (granted, sometimes I freehand sharpen on my 3d printed edge pro stone holder). I really love the Venev stones but being made in Russia might be a problem (especially price and availability). I guess CGSW stones would be a better option but I prefer having the 6" stones so I don't know if there are any available in that format.

There is also the Work Sharp Ken Onion + the belt grinder attachment system which works really well. I used it quite a few times and it's fast and easy to use. I would never recommend the Work Sharp Ken Onion without the attachment, because the attachment is the only thing that makes this system relevant imo. I prefer it over my Hapstone because it's less messy and very little setup time. Just need to be careful of how long you leave the blade on the belt for and how fast the belt is going.
 
EvilWiffles said:
I really love the Venev stones but being made in Russia might be a problem (especially price and availability).
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You are correct there my friend, it will be a big issue, as will the Hapstone systems as they come from Ukraine, or they did. When the conflict started all the Hapstone systems and attachments sold out with in days where i live, and are marked as sold out they usually have backorder available. Same with a most of the Venev stones and anything from Gritomatic and Hapstone. Luckily i bought my Venev stones after reading all the reports about them here.
 
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