Whats the general opinion on the Spyderco Sharpmaker?

If you use knives with a high rc and let them get dull you better have patience, with those steels the 204 will frustrate you more than help you.

It works great on ATS-34 family of steels , but once again you can't let the knife get dull. The rods just don't have the bite, and the diamond sleeves are so expensive.

I'm not sure what knives you carry and how hard you use them. If your a hard user with knives that use the newer "supersteel" I'd give the 204 2.5 stars out of 5.
 
whilst I agree that the ceramics do not reprofile well, they can definitely sharpen up my VG10 spydercos, where others have failed. I think it's a matter of making sure that the angles on your supersteel knives are either less than 40 or 30 (you can reprofile them on benchstones), then using the spydie to put a tiny microedge of 30 or 40 on them.
 
For those of us who can't afford an EdgePro and for whatever reason are incapable of decently hand-sharpening on a bench stone, the Spyderco 204 Sharpmaker IS the answer.

Own one and it's all I need (though I wouldn't mind buying some of them diamond stones to speed up my work on the harder steels)
 
Originally posted by AntDog
...my advise would be to definitely learn to sharpen freehand before you learn any sharpening system. (the most important things are even pressure and holding a consistent angle).
That's interesting. I certainly agree with the consistent angle part... but that is actually the hardest part.

If you are brand new to sharpening, I found, and hear others also say, that freehand is pretty frustrating. I actually think it's easier to learn to sharpen by:

1. buying, say, Juranitch's book and learning, visually and verbally, exactly what a "burr" is and thereby what you are shooting for. I don't see any of these "used" on Amazon, so you'd be in for $20. What price your time and frustration? ...
http://www.razoredgesystems.com/store/index.asp?SelectedCategory=6&CategoryName=BOOKS

2. buy some kind of assisted sharpening device... a jig (Lansky, Gatco, EdgePro) or V crock-stick type (Sharpmaker is sorta one of these).

3. sharpen with an assisted method (holds angle for you), learn the ropes of the burr and it's removal.
4. then graduate to freehand or a benchgrinder (with hard felt and/or hard fiberboard wheels, not regular carborundum!).

Freehand is indeed excellent for reprofiling quickly... i.e. removing a lot of material, and for sharpening larger knives it's a good method, but so is a bench grinder (or better, a belt grinder). I think you are better off with DMT DuoSharp 3x8 or 4x10 Coarse/Fine combo stone for reprofiling, especially if you own or plan to own any of the higher end steels. And buy the DMT holder.

Freehand is much easier to learn after you "get it" on what the burr is and how to achieve it, and then remove it. Just one guy's opinion. And opinions obviously do vary.
 
I love my Spyderco sharpmaker. A super design and the 3 sided rods make sharpening easy. I second the comment on RC hardness I have had trouble with super high rc knives, and S30V was a bit tricky to get just right but I did! I sharpen all my knives in this method using the Spyderco. I even have one stored in my truck at all times as I am the only guy at work who sharpens. I get tons of requests and have even sold several people sharpmakers after they have seen and tried mine.

Thumbs up on the Spyderco sharpmaker.
 
Get one.

I use mine often. It is part of my sharpening tool mix that includes an Edge Pro Apex, diamond stones, strops, silicon carbide sand paper, a Norton India stone and a carbide steel.
 
Yes.
If you can finally get blades sharp on a Tri sharp, is only a hop skip jump to free hand sharpening (which is what all should transcend to}.
If not...forget it...you are edge challenged:)
Rad
 
i like the sharpmaker system but, if one uses the diamond sleeves, won't that remove an excessive amount of steel from the knife edge?

ZS
 
Originally posted by spartan_ajax
I second the comment on RC hardness I have had trouble with super high rc knives, and S30V was a bit tricky to get just right but I did!
High Rc makes knives harder to sharpen (and to dull, imagine that!).

Also, high carbide bearing steels can be quite difficult to sharpen without diamond rods. E.g. high molyb, tungsten, and vanadium steels. Notably:

M2
D2
CPM 3V
CPM 10V
CPM S90V
CPM S60V
CPM S30V
Vascowear / Cruwear

CPM S90V is particularly hard to resharpen. I'm sure 10V is also, just never had any.
 
Originally posted by Zen Strider
i like the sharpmaker system but, if one uses the diamond sleeves, won't that remove an excessive amount of steel from the knife edge?
ZS
It can... but you have control of the amount removed. It goes slow enough by hand it's not a problem.

A power grinder, however, can go faster than you intend.

Diamond comes in multiple grits (but not for Sharpmaker). The coarse is quite useful, efficient, for reprofiling, i.e. removing the required amount of steel to change the edge geometry.
 
Originally posted by Manji
The diamond dust seems to just come off way too easily and it still takes forever to reprofile the high end steels

Just a suggestion, but you may be applying too much pressure on the hones. With the diamond hones just a very light pressure is needed. Let the hones do the work. Hope this helps. :)
 
I really like the 204. I just wish I could find the money to afford the diamond rods soon.
Matt
 
Sincerest apology Zen Strider re my post:
Consider the grit.
Must have sounded a bit out of whack. I lost the fact that you were refering to the 204 diamond rods.
Confusion is because I have used the DMT diamond (4 grit)with the 204 sharpener, and didnt mention this in my reply. I ty-wrap the stones to spare 204 course rods for sharpening harder to sharpen steels as mentioned by rdangerer (ie higher RC, CPM's and of course Paul Bos heat treated), and to reprofile.

I started doing this long before the diamond rods were available and sandpaper was too fiddley. The DMT's allow you to work right up through the course to fine grit range fairly easy, especially when back beveling. A final touch up with the 204 white rods finishes the work.
Rad
 
I've got a Sharpmaker, but it just collects dust nowadays. I use diamond bench stones for reprofiling and natural Arkansas bench stones for everything else.

Someone mentioned S90V being especially difficult to sharpen...might be, but mine have never needed sharpening :)
 
I use the SM rods freehand and just at least after reprofiling the edge. An important thing might be, the longer you have to do the sharpening, the harder it is to concentrate on it, the easier failures apear.

So the system must be slow enough to come in motion and quick enough to keep the angle.

How to learn freehand?

Buy some cheap knifes and try. One or two opinels and a 420 blade were my victims and they survived. A few days ago, i firstly tried the BM D2 and it was surprisingly easy to set he angle back and get it sharp.
 
I am getting good results with the Sharpmaker, but face a quandary for those blades which need reprofiling and currently do not get that sharp: Pay for Sypderco diamond rods, or put that same money towards an Edge Pro sharpening system.
 
I love the Sharpmaker!:D As stated by many others, it is slow going on a reprofile, or on a horribly dull blade. It is a great tool to keep your knives sharp. I also own an Edge Pro Professional. It is a great tool also, it especially shines in those areas that the Sharpmaker is weak in. ie reprofiling and reworking badly damaged or dull blades.
I started sharpening my own blades back in the 70's when one of my friends got tired of sharpening them for me and showed me patiently, how to sharpen a knife,(freehand). I became the next person that everyone asked to sharpen knives when I got good at it. I sharpened freehand until Spyderco came out with their products and I bought my first Spydie, one of the original Police models with a full serrated edge.(Still have it). I bought the Sharpmaker at the same time and realized how easy it was to use. I have been hooked since. But I am always searching out new and different sharpening tools. I have even bought an extensive collection of triangular stones the same tri dimension as the Spydie ones, just a little shorter to use in the sharpmaker base. It has taken some playing around since these stones are sharp cornered and sit a little differently. The end result is that I can use the Sharpmaker base to reprofile also. It is fun trying new things. I was even able to sharpen some nicks out of a EKI Super Commander and match the bevel by tying string to the top of the stones and adjusting their possition till it matched the Commanders edge profle. It worked great with a little messing around. That is not for everyone I am sure, but it was a fun thing to try and has shown me new ways to use the Sharpmaker. Get one, you will not be sorry!:cool: :D
 
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