WOW! 154-CM + Oil Stones

Z

zhangmaster12

Joined
Sep 14, 2007
Messages
504
Wow, 154-CM is great stuff!
Its holds an edge great, chewed through many cardboard boxes today work.

Decided to sharpen it.... on an old unknown oilstone.

Man, this stuff sharpens easily, and get very sharp, on a medium stone (compared to those super duper waterstones nowadays)!

As always, pics or it didn't happen.

IMG_0082.jpg


This is without stropping!

IMG_0083.jpg

Tools used


Seriously guys, if you are new to sharpening, get a stone and practice. Watch Murray Carter's youtube videos. You will have some nasty sharp knives with a bit of practice!


/end of tooting own horn/
 
Any idea on the hardness of that blade? How about the edge angle? I can get the same high sharpness edge with just a 1000 grit water stone on my Benchmade 550HG, but have a lot of trouble with other blades. I feel that Benchmade runs some of their steels harder than others, which minimizes burring and makes that kind of edge easier to obtain. I haven't tested this theory, but some of the easiest sharpening blades I've had were Benchmades in 154 CM and AUS-8.
 
me2 said:
Any idea on the hardness of that blade? How about the edge angle? I can get the same high sharpness edge with just a 1000 grit water stone on my Benchmade 550HG, but have a lot of trouble with other blades. I feel that Benchmade runs some of their steels harder than others, which minimizes burring and makes that kind of edge easier to obtain. I haven't tested this theory, but some of the easiest sharpening blades I've had were Benchmades in 154 CM and AUS-8.
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Angle: no idea. The factory angle worked well for cardboard and wood, so I stuck with it. Gettin the burr was pretty easy, maybe 3-5 minutes each side. The motion I use on my stone is pretty much the same as on a Japanese Waterstone. For some reason, I can't sharpen for shit on daimonds yet (i only have the credit card sized ones).

I have no idea the grit of the stone, dunno if its medium, fine, or coarse, i inherited it from my grandfather who brought it from a china.

As for the steel:
From leatherman website:

Crater®-series and Selway: 420HC
US made, from Crucible Metals. 420HC is used because it has good edge retention (stays sharp), toughness (it's not brittle), and is corrosion resistant.

Expanse®-Series, Ukiah® and Nehalem®: 154CM
US made from Crucible Metals. 154CM is used because it has even better edge retention, toughness and corrosion resistance than 420. We have used our CATRA edge retention test equipment to compare 154CM to 420, and the 154CM holds an edge approximately 3X longer.

Steens® and Klamath®: S30V®
US made from Crucible Metals premium grade stainless steel created especially for knives. It is a powder made steel with uniform structure and clean steel properties. S30V blades are even more corrosion-resistant and keep their edges significantly longer than 154CM; according to our tests, 6X longer than 420.

Rockwell hardness by steel type:
420HC: 55-59
154CM: 58-60
S30V: 58-60

Other blade steels:
440C is commonly used for knives and has gotten somewhat of a bad name for its ubiquity. ATS-34 is another common high-end steel; it is basically the Japanese version of 154CM. S60V is another premium steel with superior edge retention.
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I have never owned a Benchmade, I their designs just don't appeal to me that much. Every says they're great though....:cool:

edit: oh! I found the angle:
What are the blade angles of our knives?

The main bevel grind (the overall angle that defines the knife) varies slightly depending on the product but is close to nine degrees. The actual cutting edge grind for all plain-edge knife blades is 32 degrees. This is the same angle used on all our plain-edge blades - Crater and Expanse series and our multi-tools. The serration angle on the Crater and Expanse combo knives is 16 degrees. Our other serrated blades fall within the same range with slight variances depending on the product.
Click to expand...
 
After many years of using various stones I started to notice how different stones and steels reacted with each other. At times the odd couple's can work the best. Sharpening by hand also has its up and down times and other times when the planets aligne, the sun shines, and the birds sing you create perfection that truly brings amazement to yourself.

Congratulations on your success with hand sharpening.
 
Great to hear it!:thumbup:

Knifenut is correct, I believe. I tend to use a very wide variety of methods when sharpening depending on my mood and the specific job at hand. I use a sharpmaker w/diamond and regular rods, belt sander, oil stones, diamond stones, a strop, an old leather belt, sandpaper.........the list goes on. The point is, sometimes one method seems to work and another doesn't when the very next day it may be reversed completely. If one thing isn't doing it for me on a particular day, I just try another method till I'm satisfied.
 
Congrats on a fine edge. I'll have to move my oilstones back to the front of the drawer. It shows the old way of sharpening still have there place. Thanks for the pics.
 
Thanks guys!

I would never use an oilstone on a knife larger than 7 inches or if it had a lot of belly, waaaaayyyy to much work.
So dont throw away those diamonds and grinders!!! :D
 
I would ! It has nothing to do with the stars aligning or the little birds singing . It has to do with know how . I sharpen my knives the same way everytime and get consistent results . Norton's SiC stone coarse then fine and IF I want any finer then a few strokes on the fine AO and strop . Its basic pratice . Do the same thing the same way and you'll make yourself good at it . DM
 
When you don't understand what is said I guess its hard to respond . Being consistent is not what I was talking about, its the rare times when mind and body are clear and body mechanics are at a superior level that abnormal results are achieved. Its the times when diet, weather, and mood can have bigger effects than knowledge.

When sharpening becomes natural and is something you can do withought much thought their are days that come along that bring amazement to yourself with above average level of perfection you are able to achieve. These are not weekly or monthly moments and lucky if they even happen once every few years or a few times in a lifetime. I guess a lot of it also depends on how much pride you put into the work you perform.
 
I have had planet alignment sharpening times, as well as apocalyptic meteor showers the next time with the same method, maybe a different knife. I can relate to knifenuts post. I am still new to hand sharpening, and some blades I can whittle hairs once I am done, some, I can barely get to hair poppin sharp, which to me is not done. I will not give up, and love the fact that it is a quest, and not always an easy quest to get scary sharp, all the time. I do not devote a large amount of time to sharpening, just when I feel like it. When I sense the excitement from the OP in regards to his work, it brings me back to my breakthroughs. Great post, and congrats.
 
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