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Wicked Edge??
- Thread starter dogknott
- Start date
- Joined
- Aug 12, 2010
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- 643
Hard to get a low angle on a small knife blade. Does well on larger knives.
- Joined
- Feb 15, 2008
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- 131
Length isn't an issue. The constraint would be on the angle depending on the blade width. Without knowing the exact width of those blades I can't say with certainty the minimum angle you can achieve, but if you care to measure them and post the dimensions, I'd be happy to calculate it for you. My guess is that you can get to around 18°.
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- Apr 12, 2009
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Any clamped system will be constrained at low angles with narrow blades (measured from spine to edge), due to the edge of the clamp getting in the way.
I don't have the WE, but I've found (with my Lansky/GATCO) that using a slightly higher angle won't hurt performance much with smaller, narrower blades, like your muskrat's clip blades. Such blades are also thinner (usually) and very often hollow-ground too. That thin blade geometry goes a long way in cutting performance, especially if the edge has a clean, sharp, symmetrical and uniform bevel on it. And I'm sure the WE can do that much, at least.
I wouldn't worry too much about the low angle constraint, for your knife. Just go as low as the clamp will allow, and focus on making that bevel as clean, sharp and pure as you can make it. That'll accomplish a lot, in itself.
I don't have the WE, but I've found (with my Lansky/GATCO) that using a slightly higher angle won't hurt performance much with smaller, narrower blades, like your muskrat's clip blades. Such blades are also thinner (usually) and very often hollow-ground too. That thin blade geometry goes a long way in cutting performance, especially if the edge has a clean, sharp, symmetrical and uniform bevel on it. And I'm sure the WE can do that much, at least.
I wouldn't worry too much about the low angle constraint, for your knife. Just go as low as the clamp will allow, and focus on making that bevel as clean, sharp and pure as you can make it. That'll accomplish a lot, in itself.
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I took the calipers to the blade of my Queen 66, measures .416", from the edge to the spine or so, kinda tapers .
I don't, I try for a 25* when using a lansky, My main concern was if the bade would stick out of the clamp enuff(height and length) to get a desirable edge.
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- Nov 24, 2008
- Messages
- 4,748
i have put a edge on small to large knives,works good.......
- Joined
- Aug 12, 2010
- Messages
- 643
They cut better that way. The smaller the knife, the lower the angle I prefer. If Im doing heavy work with a knife, it will be with a big one.
I understand the thinking behind a lower angle for sharpness(usually in kitchen knives) but the edge retention will suffer.....I prefer a higher angle bevel as a pocket knife is used for daily tasks that a kitchen knife (lower angle) is not accustomed to handling. Plus I can still get a hair popping edge with a higher angle on the WE.
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- Apr 12, 2009
- Messages
- 13,538
I used to believe that it was a given, that edge retention would diminish if I sharpened my pocketknives to an acute angle. But, I've noticed a rather interesting benefit to doing so. Since my pocketknives have been sharpened to near scalpel-like edges, I tend to treat them with a little more respect, in how I use them. No need to 'lean into' a cut any more, no more temptation to use it as a screwdriver/prybar. Virtually all tasks I use it for, can be done with almost feather-light effort. As a result, these acute edges have held up quite nicely. And an acute edge on a blade is very easy to maintain (much easier to 'feel' the relatively wide bevel on a strop).
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- Aug 19, 2010
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- 261
hehehe...a "psychologically sharp knife".
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- Feb 15, 2008
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- 131
I did some calculations and came up with the following: If you set the blade approximately 1.5mm into the clamp, you could get to 15°. I don't know the exact distance from of the thumb groove to the spine of the blade but it should be about right to serve as an index point. The diagram shows a blade .416" in the clamp.
