Who still does at least half of your sharpening manually, on stones?

Do you do at least half of your knife sharpening manually, on stones?

  • Yes

    Votes: 60 84.5%

  • No

    Votes: 11 15.5%
  • Total voters
    71
M

maximus83

Joined
Nov 7, 2011
Messages
2,104
Haven't posted here for a while, but noticed that a large percentage of the sharpening discussions these days seem to focus on sharpening with devices (whether manual guided devices like TSProf, or powered sharpeners).

This got me to wondering not only how many folks still do a majority of their sharpening completely manually, but also, the following questions that I'm hoping folks who respond to the poll, will respond to in the comments. It could make for interesting discussion, at least for me, since I've been out of the loop for a while. :cool:

If you still sharpen mostly by hand...
- Why is that? Is it driven mainly by the enjoyment of doing it that way, years of habit, better control over the results, less cost and greater simplicity in terms of the amount of sharpening gear you need, or what? Do you only sharpen certain TYPES of blades by hand, while doing other types by using a device?

If you sharpen mostly by using devices (whether manual or powered devices)...
- Why is that? Is it a matter of speed/time? Do you believe you get sharper edges, or better cosmetic consistency that you can't get by hand? Do you ever sharpen ANYthing by hand, and if so, why?
 
I do all of my work freehand. Whether doing heavier repair/reprofiling on a belt grinder or touching up on stones, it's all freehand. It's fast, easy (for me), is infinitely variable depending on the needs of the particular tool's geometry, and has the least setup/prep time involved.
 
I voted yes. Because, yes:

maximus83 said:
If you still sharpen mostly by hand...
- Why is that? Is it driven mainly by the enjoyment of doing it that way, years of habit, better control over the results, less cost and greater simplicity in terms of the amount of sharpening gear you need, or what? Do you only sharpen certain TYPES of blades by hand, while doing other types by using a device?
Click to expand...

The only "device" I use these days is a Spyderco Sharpmaker, but even then I usually don't keep the rods in their slots.
 
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I use a small belt grinder on our cheap kitchen knives.

For my own / carry knives I always use a bench stone. Just upgraded from a medium ceramic Spyderco to a Naniwa Diamond Pro and love it. Should have done so earlier.

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FortyTwoBlades said:
I do all of my work freehand. Whether doing heavier repair/reprofiling on a belt grinder or touching up on stones, it's all freehand. It's fast, easy (for me), is infinitely variable depending on the needs of the particular tool's geometry, and has the least setup/prep time involved.
Click to expand...

I would imagine that by now, you're a master on that belt grinder. I still have my condor kephart you reworked about a decade ago.

OP, freehand is the only answer if you prefer convex (which I do)... but if I had one of those super expensive folders I'd probably use a guided system to keep everything super clean.
 
I do 100% freehand, mostly on four inch "pocket" stones, both DMT and Eze-Lap, although I recently bought a 2x6 inch DMT 600 grit that I plan to use mostly with fixed blades.

With regard to "Why is that? Is it driven mainly by the enjoyment of doing it that way, years of habit, better control over the results, less cost and greater simplicity in terms of the amount of sharpening gear you need..." I think I could answer "yes" to each of those. I find it relaxing, a way of learning, developing, and refining a skill, and I derive satisfaction from getting good results. (Obviously all those motivations could apply equally well to sharpening with a guided or powered system, so I guess it just comes down to personal preference. I also drive a manual transmission car and write with a fountain pen using bottled ink! 😁 )
 
Belt Grinder, Files, Carbide Whet Ceramic and Diamond stones, strop all done freehand. I do use a jig for plane blades.
 
I've been doing everything freehand for at least the last 6+ years now. That was my ultimate goal when I set out to learn sharpening, and I've never looked back. It's a satisfying thing to know that I can do everything I need to reset bevels and refine edges using little more gear than 1 or 2 basic stones, and a leather belt belt for stropping.

I used to rely on guided rigs like the Lansky, DMT Aligner, etc, to set new bevels on blades. In the 5-10 years prior to that, the only 'sharpening' I did was very minimal touch-up sharpening on handheld ceramic hones, like the Spyderco DoubleStuff hone. My touch was just good enough to see some improvement in dull edges, doing it that way. But I didn't have the confidence or skill to reset bevels back then.

The one thing I use these days which is anything close to a guided rig is the Spyderco Sharpmaker for very light tuning up of edges. I also use other stones/hones for this type of work done entirely freehand, and I find that relaxing and rewarding. But the SM's user-friendly versatility can't be ignored for this type of work. It's just too easy and it works very well. And its results will benefit from the light touch acquired in learning freehand sharpening in the first place. The SM is still essentially a freehand device, as it still requires the user to maintain a consistent angle and to be able to feel flush contact with the bevels to be effective.
 
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I sharpen by hand 100% of the time. I tried a powered Worksharp KO tool back a few years ago but I was not satisfied with the results so it has been relegated to mower blade sharpening. 😆 Ever since I was a kid I’ve sharpened by hand, my dad, grandfather and uncle’s got me started off and then I developed my own technique that works good for me. During my teens I worked alongside my dad and brother in a shoe repair shop and leather shop where we used knives in abundance and we did all our own sharpening so I got a lot of practice.

Now when a knife is really dull and needs reprofiling I have used a guide to help me keep a consistent angle but if it’s just a routine touch up I can do it freehand without a guide. I usually try to sharpen or touch up before it gets very dull and it doesn’t take much time or effort to get them back to screaming sharpness.

At work throughout my career the guys I worked with took notice that my knives were always good and sharp and some would ask me to show them how I did it and some would ask if I would sharpen their knives for them. Sometimes I did if I had the time but I would try to encourage them to learn how to sharpen their own knives and tools. Practice makes perfect!
 
Freehand every time, except when I am changing the bevel angle significantly, for which I use a guided system. My accuracy in sharpening deteriorates considerably when I increase pressure, and I like being able to change the bevel angle to an exact known reference point.

Freehand is just more fun for me. I like using different stones, which is, for me, just as interesting as using different knives. I like the feel of sharpening a knife on a stone, and how that changes with different stones and different steels. I like building the skill of freehand sharpening.
 
Freehand for 50+ years. Reasons: 1) get the best, most consistent, and precise results--fewer surprises. 2) So many techniques to sharpen and so many abrasives. 3) find right tool and approach for the particular knife
 
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I said "no" but I do a ton of sharpening with stones held in my hand ala Michael Christy ; much of it with hand held Spyderco Triangle rods . Sometimes I use the DMT plastic sharpening paddles with the little diamond plates on them ; think cobalt drill bits and HHS drill bits . . . the odd carbide tipped hole saw . . .
That's for geeeeterdone.
When I want to smile I visit my Edge Pro Apex .
I want to smile quite often .
 
Ace Rimmer said:
I do 100% freehand, mostly on four inch "pocket" stones, both DMT and Eze-Lap, although I recently bought a 2x6 inch DMT 600 grit that I plan to use mostly with fixed blades.

With regard to "Why is that? Is it driven mainly by the enjoyment of doing it that way, years of habit, better control over the results, less cost and greater simplicity in terms of the amount of sharpening gear you need..." I think I could answer "yes" to each of those. I find it relaxing, a way of learning, developing, and refining a skill, and I derive satisfaction from getting good results. (Obviously all those motivations could apply equally well to sharpening with a guided or powered system, so I guess it just comes down to personal preference. I also drive a manual transmission car and write with a fountain pen using bottled ink! 😁 )
Click to expand...

People sleep on pocket stones, I use them as my main sharpening stones too. The only bench stone I use regularly is a coarse diamond to blend the shoulders and apply a lot of pressure - but like you said, I have much more control with the pocket stones.
 
Ace Rimmer said:
I do 100% freehand, mostly on four inch "pocket" stones, both DMT and Eze-Lap, although I recently bought a 2x6 inch DMT 600 grit that I plan to use mostly with fixed blades.

With regard to "Why is that? Is it driven mainly by the enjoyment of doing it that way, years of habit, better control over the results, less cost and greater simplicity in terms of the amount of sharpening gear you need..." I think I could answer "yes" to each of those. I find it relaxing, a way of learning, developing, and refining a skill, and I derive satisfaction from getting good results. (Obviously all those motivations could apply equally well to sharpening with a guided or powered system, so I guess it just comes down to personal preference. I also drive a manual transmission car and write with a fountain pen using bottled ink! 😁 )
Click to expand...
I sharpen a lot of 3” straight edges and never could use a pocket stone. Are you able to keep a true straight edge with pocket stones? Just curious…Ace!😁
 
annr said:
I sharpen a lot of 3” straight edges and never could use a pocket stone. Are you able to keep a true straight edge with pocket stones? Just curious…Ace!😁
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In addition to bringing the knife to the stone like with a bench stone you can also bring the stone to the knife! You may find that easier.
 
FortyTwoBlades said:
In addition to bringing the knife to the stone like with a bench stone you can also bring the stone to the knife! You may find that easier.
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Unfortunately, I’ve tried everything including that. These edges are so straight and highly polished that the margin of error with pocket stone is too great IME.

I must remove microns with the edge— with infinitesimal precision—so if sharpening with pocket stone were possible, I think I would have to wreck too many knives and workpieces to find out.😵‍💫
 
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