What Is the Edge Angle of a GEC Out of the Factory?

Vaporstang

Vaporstang

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I thought this would be an easy search, but I can't find it here or on GEC's site. What is the angle of a GEC edge out of the factory? 15deg? 20 deg? or something else?

Thanks!
 
To be fair they sharpen their knives by hand and they have been getting better. The Viper I had seemed to have a perfect 20 degree per side edge going all the way down the blade. Almost every other knife I've had from them got pretty wonky towards the tip though.
 
Some of my older ones have been closer to 25 per side...but as mentioned above they are getting better! I still have yet to get one that I did not immediately sharpen though.
 
OK - I was thinking of doing a quick light touch-up on my ultra-fine Sharpmaker stones,but it sounds like I am going to have to do a more complete job. I will try the light touch-up tonight and if necessary work on it some other night.
 
Thanks guys! The 20 deg wasn't quite doing it. I exaggerated to ~25 and a couple of light passes did the trick. The edge wasn't too bad to begin with but stropping wasn't quite doing it. Looks like I have a fun mini-project this weekend!
 
I think GEC follows the same philosophy as old tool makers
-Quality steel and heat treatment + good grind
-final cutting edge is a personal thing of the owner

At least at the beginning, nowadays the market demands a "factory edge" maybe following the entrance of super high wear resistant steels.
So they now take care of that part too

Mateo
 
Vaporstang said:
Thanks guys! The 20 deg wasn't quite doing it. I exaggerated to ~25 and a couple of light passes did the trick. The edge wasn't too bad to begin with but stropping wasn't quite doing it. Looks like I have a fun mini-project this weekend!
Click to expand...
I learned recently that even at around 17 DPS their 1095 (any good 1095 that is) is a much more durable than expected edge that, obviously, is screaming sharp. I sharpen mine around 17-20 DPS depending on the blade use, and give them a convex by rounding the shoulders. Easy to strop for a month of every day use, then a bit of work on the ultra fine to re establish the edge geometry.

Connor
 
Anymore I tendency to sharpen all my knives at about 20 degrees even my new ones. It seems to be a sweet spot for my use and I don't cut myself no where as much as I use to.:D
 
A quick update: It's been a busy weekend but I did get a chance to redo the edge. Using a Sharpmaker, I re-profiled the edge using the diamond rods to 20 deg / side. Then I worked on through the brown, fine, and ultra-fine rods per Sharpmaker's instructions. I am really pleased with the results. (I always have a hard time getting a good final edge on the ultra-fine rods when redoing an edge but have good luck with them when touching up an existing edge.)

Next time I completely redo a GEC, I might try re-profiling to 15 deg followed by light touch up at 20 deg with the diamond rods, and then work on through the other stones at 20 deg per Sharpmaker's suggestion.

Again, thanks for all of the information and suggestions.
 
Have you tried making somewhat convex bevels yet? It would be easy with a system like that. I LOVE the convex I put on my 53 Cuban Cattleman Clip, a lot of C's I know, and it makes a big difference in edge retention and ease of cutting.

Connor
 
I received a GEC #85 bullet end jack Monday. It has been given a workout all week so I decided to give it a touch up today. I used the Sharpmaker medium rods at 15 degrees per side. I noticed one side had a slightly larger bevel than the other (very small bevel so it is hard to see) so I worked on the "short" bevel side to equalize the relatively small bevels and then did equal passes per side and checked out the edge by slicing magazine paper and then slicing cigarette filters. It is sharper than heck so the edge on my knife must have been fairly close to 30 degrees inclusive as I did not need to spend a lot of time getting it very sharp.
 
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