You guys who sharpen with stones, talk to me.

Plumberdv

Plumberdv

Joined
Sep 26, 2008
Messages
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I've been feeling pretty disadvantaged because I can't seem to use a stone to sharpen any knife. As it is, give me a dull knife and a stone and I'll give you back a ruined knife everytime. :o

I've been checking these out and I just noticed the little yellow dodah sitting on it. It looks to be a guide to help hold the knife at the proper angle. Is that what it is and is it effective? I think I would like to give it a try and see if I can develop the skills needed and not ruin too many knives in the process.

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go buy a cheap steak knife that not serrated and practice practice practice. or you can go get yourself a guided system from lansky or smiths and spyderco. it took me the longest time to learn with a stone. and there isn't any good way of teaching someone, you just need to go read/watch some instructional videos or maybe watch someone around you.
 
I'm a huge fan of the paper wheels now. Still love a good stone and used them for many years, good at it, but it takes much more time than the wheels.

It's not hard but hard to explain in text, sort of like giving a haircut over the phone.

I'm sure there are some youtube vids out there. The diamond stones are nice if you opt to go that way, I would also look at Nortons.
 
Yeah Dave,that yellow thing goes under you're blade to set the proper angle. A consistent angle on both sides is the most important thing when you're sharpening.I'm using the Smiths stones that look like the one in you're photo.Hopefully David Martin will weigh in on the subject,I believe he really knows his stuff when it comes to getting a blade razor sharp.
 
I feel you pain Plum and am in the same boat. I intend to get that tri stone set up and use some of the cheapies I have laying around to practice and pick up super cheap bay 110s that have good blades and bad other parts to practice on.
 
Hi Plumberdv -

That little device may work, but it will hold all knives at the same angle, and not all knives are sharpened to the same angle.

I am no expert, but I have been getting great results of late with a DMT Duofold, and here is how.

I lay the knive on the stone as if I were about to shave a slice off of the face of the stone.

Then I work the spine of the blade up an down gently, feeling for the point where the bevel is flat on the stone. Practice this to see what I mean - maybe pick out a knive with a nice wide bevel to start with.

Once you have the feel for where the bevel is resting flat on the stone, take three nice gentle slices across the face of the stone, ,making sure you lift and turn for the curve of the blade to the tip if need be.

If you are right handed, you probably just held the knife in your right hand and did three swipes - now swap the knife to your left hand and repeat on the other side.

Keep going back and forth, taking three swipes on each side - gently, applying little to no pressure when taking your swipes.

I do this on a DMT green diamond stone and the edge will get shaving sharp.

It just takes a lot of practice to get to where you start "getting it".

Good luck and best regards -

mqqn
 
The tri stone set up works pretty good,just take you're time and practice.Once you get the hang of it,you'll find it's a fun way to pass some time and relax.:)
 
Yes, I think the Tri-hones are good as well . It does take some time but 1) its something worth learning, 2) its not as hard as you think . Watch some vids and pratice on some old kitchen knives until you get the hang of it . Just sharpening, not changing the angle (rebeveling) . Theres one in this, go to sharpening http://www.sharpeningsupplies.com
after watching this should you have questions, ask away and we'll try to talk you thru the process . Good luck and thanks Horse for the vote of confidence . DM
 
That yellow thing doesn't work for me, as I like to keep the blade at a lower angle when pushing. The trick is to try to get the feel for the blade edge's angle and use the blade edge itself as your guide. Start out with knives that are slightly dull to touch up, gradually going to duller blades as you get the feel for it.

That tri-stone is a good set up. Start out with a relatively easy steel to sharpen (420HC) before you go to a premium steel. And yes, use Buck knives to learn. You, Plum, aren't going to use knives with crappy steel from China, or even good steels from other manufacturers. Get a feel for the steels you will actually use.
 
I'm not very good at sharpening free hand myself,but I'm learning.

I've been watching vids by So-Lo(he's a member here).They have been the easiest to understand so far.Have a look:
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=778791

That young man is darn good with the stones:thumbup:

Good Luck Plumberdv & P A T I E N C E :)
 
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I've found that keeping the knife still and actually moving the stone helps me keep the angle better. I picked this up from a few vids online.
 
Plumb - A couple good tips have been provided, but one that will allow you to see EXACTLY what you are accomplishing on the edge, is to take a Sharpie or magic marker, and coat the edge black. Then as you sharpen, take note of that black line to make sure it is being removed right to the edge.

As mentioned, use a practice knife that you don't worry about taking some extra steel from the edge until you get comfortable.

One popular setup is the "Sharpmaker" by Spyderco. It is around $50, comes with a set of medium abrasive, and ceramic triangular stones, a base that holds the stones at two different angles and instruction video.

Also, if you have "old" eyes like me, I like to wear an "optivisor" so that I see precisely what the edge contact to the abrasive is.

Peter
 
peterinct said:
Plumb - A couple good tips have been provided, but one that will allow you to see EXACTLY what you are accomplishing on the edge, is to take a Sharpie or magic marker, and coat the edge black. Then as you sharpen, take note of that black line to make sure it is being removed right to the edge.

Peter
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Good advice....I've used stones for over 40 years....they make other sharpeners :confused:..:D
 
Thanks for all the input guys. I'm going to order one of those (in the picture) and start practicing. I already have the Spyderco Sharpmaker and the diamond sticks for it are coming, so maybe I'll have it covered.
 
Plumberdv said:
Thanks for all the input guys. I'm going to order one of those (in the picture) and start practicing. I already have the Spyderco Sharpmaker and the diamond sticks for it are coming, so maybe I'll have it covered.
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Actually, like many things, sharpening can be taken to many levels. For hand sharpening, the Sharpmaker is an excellent choice and the setup pictured looks to be nice as well.

For those that take sharpness to HIGH (hair splitting) levels, Edge Pro seems to be amongst the most popular and Wicked Edge is competing with that.

These are more expensive systems and I cannot speak with experience about them, as I have been able to suffice my sharpening needs with the stones and abrasives that I have.

Practice is key!

Peter
 
I guess I better run down to Walmart and stock up on 110's to practice on and a case of Bandaids!
 
I really admire you guys that use bench stones. My hands shake so much that every time I try, I end up with a scandi grind. :eek::o:D
 
I have used stones to sharpen my BUCKS for years and what works for me is a three stone set up, soft, hard and black and they are single stones, the tri hone was too high off the bench, as I rest and slide my hand on the bench. I do not trade hands and use the taking a thin slice method push or pulling, and try to match blade to the stone length by using a stone that is one to two inches longer than the blade. Object is to match length of stroke to amount of stone used. When younger I learned that a short blade will hollow out a long stone. The sharpie trick works good to identify where you are contacting the stone; another thing that really helped me was to stop trying so hard for an angle number and just develop your own wrist angle that creates an edge that works for the knife use. Most of all practice, practice and it will be enjoyable.
 
This may sound a bit odd but, something that I've noticed has helped me with free-hand sharpening on stones, is stropping (on leather w/hard backing). I spent a lot of time getting used to the 'feel' of finding the bevel (as mentioned earlier in the thread), and where/how to place my fingers on the blade in order to maintain the correct angle & pressure. If you have just ONE knife with a really good edge on it, practicing stropping while focusing on NOT making it duller, has helped me quite a bit. And the bonus is, if you're technique is a little bit off, you still won't damage your edge too much.

I've started free-handing on diamond hones a bit lately, and noticed right away how much easier it has become, since I spent so much time stropping earlier. The 'feel' is still there, you're just moving the blade in the other direction.
 
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