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what angle for the edge?
- Thread starter harkamus
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- Sep 8, 2011
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- 2,696
40 until today. I just reground my ZT 350 to 30 degrees inclusive and man is it sharp!
For kitchen knives I would say: make a relief bevel at the lowest angle you're comfortable with (a few degrees), put a micro-bevel on it, and adapt this to what happens in daily use. Depending on steel and usage this will result in an angle between 12 and 40 degree inclusive.
Razorsharp-Travis
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- Aug 16, 2011
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I used 20 most of the time up until a week ago- I am at 18 a side and im not turning back 
, did the ol rubberband on the SM rod trick- my SM can do 13, 15, 18, and 20 a side 
. I have some knives at angles like 10 a side or less, and a chopper at 22 a side with convex back bevel
, did the ol rubberband on the SM rod trick- my SM can do 13, 15, 18, and 20 a side . I have some knives at angles like 10 a side or less, and a chopper at 22 a side with convex back bevel
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- Apr 23, 2007
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12 degrees inclusive. Wowzers. I thought 20 degrees was acute already. I always though 40 degrees was too obtuse for much of anything regardless of grind and edge geometry. Well, I suppose if you have a very shallow hollow grind that's super thin when it approaches the edge, then 40 degrees is fine.
- Joined
- Jan 27, 2012
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- 157
I've been playing around with edge angles on my ESEE 4.
I was going 30 degrees inclusive on my ESEE 4 which I liked. It was sharp and when it dulled on a wilderness trip it was easy to just put a higher angle microbevel on by hand with a pocket sharpener. This allowed for one resharpening by hand during a longer trip (with my poor hand sharpening skills).
All was well for a while but later while batonning and carving the edge became chipped so now I go with 40 degrees inclusive on my Edge Pro. So far it has been holding up well.
My thought is I want the most acute angle possible that won't chip/damage easily. I am trying to find that sweet spot. Since my ESEE 4 is my "hard use" blade, for now I will stay with a higher angle.
I was going 30 degrees inclusive on my ESEE 4 which I liked. It was sharp and when it dulled on a wilderness trip it was easy to just put a higher angle microbevel on by hand with a pocket sharpener. This allowed for one resharpening by hand during a longer trip (with my poor hand sharpening skills).
All was well for a while but later while batonning and carving the edge became chipped so now I go with 40 degrees inclusive on my Edge Pro. So far it has been holding up well.
My thought is I want the most acute angle possible that won't chip/damage easily. I am trying to find that sweet spot. Since my ESEE 4 is my "hard use" blade, for now I will stay with a higher angle.
Jeeze. I must be doing it wrong. I generally just follow the factory angle and on most of my folders (Sebenza's, 0560's, Striders, Spyderco's, etc) the edge seems to be around 36-40 inclusive. I guess I should really get some 50/80 grit stones so I can re-profile with the Wicked Edge. Is it really that big of a difference with those kinds of angles? I don't really worry about edge retention with higher end knives that I don't exactly beat on and that I can just touch up with the Wicked Edge quickly anyway.
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- Mar 7, 2001
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- 4,608
All my free hand sharpened is about 30 inclusive. The Resilience is still factory, about 35-40 but the profile is very thin, it still cuts well.
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- Apr 12, 2009
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The difference is huge. Especially when you get down to 30 inclusive or less. I really do believe the geometry of the edge, and of the grind behind it, has a much greater impact on cutting ease than any other factor, regardless of how pure the apex of the edge might be.
Makes sense. I always knew a less obtuse angle is going to slice better, but I guess I just haven't reprofiled an edge enough to experience the difference first hand. I think my Sebenza is 40 or even 42 inclusive at the moment. I guess there would probably be a significant difference if I took it to 30*. I definitely need some extra coarse stones, though. I've only ever tried to trim down the edge geometry by a degree or two different from stock, and it takes FOREVER with 100 grit stones. Thanks bringing this more to my attention. This could be a revelation! lol
- Joined
- Jan 2, 2012
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I run my ZDP Delica at about 20 inclusive. It chips like a mother though.
Most of my higher end steel knives sit about 26-30 inclusive and stuff like my Cold Steel or Case knives like about 34-38.
Most of my higher end steel knives sit about 26-30 inclusive and stuff like my Cold Steel or Case knives like about 34-38.
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- Nov 22, 2009
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It can be demonstrated easily by push cutting something resting on a scale. Record the peak value and you will see the difference.
This could be done with slicing cuts also, but the rate of draw can be a significant variable.
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- Mar 7, 2001
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Tried cutting up 2 pizza boxes with Navy k631 and Resilience, one each.
Same blade thickness, 3mm but Navy being narrower and I only convexed it a bit (not really thinning down the edge much), it loses to the Resilience with factory bevel. Resilience cuts better because of wider blade resulting in thinner steel behind the edge, even at 35-40 bevel.
Same blade thickness, 3mm but Navy being narrower and I only convexed it a bit (not really thinning down the edge much), it loses to the Resilience with factory bevel. Resilience cuts better because of wider blade resulting in thinner steel behind the edge, even at 35-40 bevel.
I do the same. It doesn't make a huge difference to me, and I get annoyed with reprofiling because it takes forever.
I honestly don't know the angle of any of my edges.
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- Mar 13, 2012
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Is there a chart of some kind somewhere on the net or here that would have a breakdown so to speak of the different angles with the type of cutting activity etc. {?} That would be sweet. I've thought about that for a couple of years and actually jotted down some cutting activities along with the edge degree just from reading on the net....but nothing really solid or enough that I believed it to be the gospel.
I'm sure I wouldn't be the only one elated to have such info. I would print it out and laminate it till I could memorize it and even then....still keep it tucked away in a handy spot for future reference. I look forward to any response.
I'm sure I wouldn't be the only one elated to have such info. I would print it out and laminate it till I could memorize it and even then....still keep it tucked away in a handy spot for future reference. I look forward to any response.
- Joined
- Apr 12, 2009
- Messages
- 13,534
Is there a chart of some kind somewhere on the net or here that would have a breakdown so to speak of the different angles with the type of cutting activity etc. {?} That would be sweet. I've thought about that for a couple of years and actually jotted down some cutting activities along with the edge degree just from reading on the net....but nothing really solid or enough that I believed it to be the gospel.
I'm sure I wouldn't be the only one elated to have such info. I would print it out and laminate it till I could memorize it and even then....still keep it tucked away in a handy spot for future reference. I look forward to any response.
A lot of manufacturers of sharpening systems & tools have their own 'recommendations' regarding edge angle vs. intended use. Most or all of the guided systems (Lansky, Gatco, Aligner, etc) usually put that information in the product instructions (and can usually be found on the mfr's web site). Problem is, it's all pretty subjective and variable from one manufacturer to another. Not to mention, steel type and quality of heat treat makes most of the difference anyway, in determining what angle is 'best' for a particular blade. And each individual user, after getting acquainted with their own blades & habits, will form their own views about what 'works best' for them.
In very general terms, it's widely assumed most blades used for relatively common cutting chores (paper, packaging, food prep, etc.) will do fairly well at ~ 30 degrees inclusive (15 per side), and blades used for very hard use, such as chopping and cutting in very tough material, would do better with something around ~ 40 inclusive (20 per side). This assumption is seen in many/most of the V-crock style sharpeners (like Sharpmaker), which are almost universally set to sharpen at either/both of 30 and 40 degrees, or somewhere in between. Specialized cutting tasks, like carving/whittling (chisel grinds are common) and bushcraft (scandi grinds), and Japanese-style kitchen use (sushi, etc.), sometimes lean towards very thin edge angles at < 30 inclusive (sometimes much narrower, using quality steel that can support very fine edges).
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