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  #1  
Old 09-23-2010, 01:46 PM
Jst1mr Jst1mr is offline
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Please describe your sharpening technique. Nobody loves a sharp knife more than I, from kitchen to filet to deer skinning, but I just can't get great results. I have tried multiple stones (including those guide-rod equipped ones), simple carbide "cutters", etc. It isn't bad steel, as the next guy can take MY knives and get them really sharp. Don't even talk about using a steel, I have done nothing but dull every knife I tried that on. Techniques you can share? Otherwise, I think I'm headed to an electric countertop model
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Old 09-23-2010, 03:06 PM
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I use the Spyderco Sharpmaker. It works well, just pay attention to keeping the same angle on both sides of the blade. If the edge angle does not match either of the two angles available on my Sharpmaker, I re-profile it with the diamond triangles.
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Old 09-23-2010, 03:53 PM
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most stones will work but a diamond faced stone will not wear out. Lay the blade flat on the stone then lift the back of the blade about the thickness of the blade and act as if your are cutting the stone with the edge, turn it over and do the same thing to the other side. always use the same amount of strokes on each side . It will take a little time to do it the same way every time but it will become natural to do it that way.
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Old 09-23-2010, 04:01 PM
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I start with a soft Washita or Arkansas stone and use honing oil. Clean the dirty oil frequently from the blade and stone. Next I use a hard Arkansas again with oil. I finish with a diamond stick similar to a steel. Lastly I polish and deburr with a leather strop.
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Old 09-23-2010, 04:01 PM
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Try a Chef's Choice manual two stage model. The electric models are going to, in general, do bad things to your knives.
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Old 09-23-2010, 04:21 PM
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I use Arkansas stones or Japanese water stones. It's all in the angle. I start off holding the knife at 90 degrees to the stone then lean it over to half of that [45 degrees] then half of that [22 1/2 degrees] then start to sharpen your knife on a soft stone one stroke at a time on each side until it's sharp. Then repeat on a hard stone. A hard stone will be good enough for most people. I would start with an old knife and practice till you get the hang of it. Also it's easier to sharpen a carbon steel knife than it is to sharpen a stainless knife. Just practice till you get it right. Don
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Old 09-23-2010, 04:27 PM
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Originally Posted by HAWKEYE10 View Post
I use Arkansas stones or Japanese water stones. It's all in the angle. I start off holding the knife at 90 degrees to the stone then lean it over to half of that [45 degrees] then half of that [22 1/2 degrees] then start to sharpen your knife on a soft stone one stroke at a time on each side until it's sharp. Then repeat on a hard stone. A hard stone will be good enough for most people. I would start with an old knife and practice till you get the hang of it. Also it's easier to sharpen a carbon steel knife than it is to sharpen a stainless knife. Just practice till you get it right. Don
+1

I didn't learn how to sharpen a knife properly until I worked as a meatcutter in a restaurant. I'm not a fan of the cold, and once I figured out that the sharper my knife was, the less time I had to spend standing in a 40 degree cooler I got really motivated really quick. Consistent angle and practice is where it's at.

The only thing I'd add is that within reason the larger the stone the easier it is to use.
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Old 09-23-2010, 04:30 PM
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Default knife sharpening

Go to BUCK for a good understanding of what has to be done to put on a good edge. Nevertheless, you will need plenty of practice to get it dangerously sharp.

jed
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Old 09-23-2010, 04:51 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Jst1mr View Post
Please describe your sharpening technique. Nobody loves a sharp knife more than I, from kitchen to filet to deer skinning, but I just can't get great results. I have tried multiple stones (including those guide-rod equipped ones), simple carbide "cutters", etc. It isn't bad steel, as the next guy can take MY knives and get them really sharp. Don't even talk about using a steel, I have done nothing but dull every knife I tried that on. Techniques you can share? Otherwise, I think I'm headed to an electric countertop model
One sure fire way, if you can find a real butcher go watch him then pratice pratice pratice. My dad was a butcher I learned young. Please dont use electric wheels they will heat up the blade and take out the tempure. The main thing is to keep both sides at the same angle, if you used something like the Lansky or one of the knockoffs you already know about the angle putting it into practice free hand is a whole nother ball of wax. Now once you get your skill down to an art and you want to make it scalpel sharp get a block of jewlers rouge and put it on a buffer and polish the edge with it, the knife, ax, fro, or what have you will be so sharp you can literaly shave your face with it. Dont be afraid of a steel they are for knives that are already sharp and you just want to touch up the edge. Get a cheap carbon steel knife of good size to practice with they are the easyest to sharpen unlike stainless that is much harder. A wood handled pairing or butcher knife can be had at any grociery store for about 7 to 10 bucks these make great practice knives cause they are ground flat on both sides no tricks or deviations to the grind basicly a V shape.
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Old 09-23-2010, 05:32 PM
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I've got about 20-25 knives so when one gets dull, I just pick up another one. I hate sharpening knives, and I just take a shoe box full of them to the knife sharpening guy and he gives me a good deal since there is a large quantity. I could care less if he uses a buffing wheel, they are just a tool, like a screwdriver or Crescent wrench, but my guns on the other hand ......
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Old 09-23-2010, 05:40 PM
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Sir, FWIW, here's what I do. But first a couple things to bear in mind:

Sharpening a knife involves removing metal. This requires a certain amount of pressure and movement.

Getting a knife really sharp is a multi-step process. If the knife is extremely dull, you may need to put a preliminary edge on with a file. Normally, though, you start out with fairly coarse (soft) stones, then progressively finer (harder) ones, and maybe even finish up with a leather strop. At the end, you're basically just polishing the edge. The pressure you exert also changes, from fairly firm (but not "white knuckle") on the soft stone, and getting lighter as you work though the hard stones and strop.

As you sharpen, it's important to keep a consistent edge angle, ideally the same as the edge angle the knife came with. Too shallow an angle relative to the stone means you're not touching the actual cutting edge; too steep an angle means you're blunting the cutting edge. Rocking back and forth between the two does both, and also leads to sharpening and sharpening and sharpening some more without ever actually getting the knife sharp.

Maintaining a consistent blade angle can be difficult, and that's what the various guides and "V" sticks and such were designed to address. They're not strictly necessary, but they do make it easier. If you don't have something like that, you can tell by feel on the stone whether you're keeping the right angle. If the angle gets too steep, you'll feel the effort increase and edge slow down or catch as it tries to "bite" into the stone. If the angle gets too shallow, it'll feel like a "slip" as the edge comes off the stone and it slides too far back on the bevel.

When whetting the blade on a stone, use plenty of oil and refresh it when it gets dirty. The oil is there to keep the stone from "loading up" with tiny metal shavings. (Remember, you're removing metal from the blade.) Once a stone is loaded up, it's next to useless for sharpening until it's been cleaned. You don't have to use oil per se, either. I've seen good work done with soapy water as well. The main thing is to keep the stone wet so the shavings don't load up the stone.

There are different schools of thought about exactly how to move the blade on the stone. The traditional advice is to stroke the blade across the stone as if you're trying to cut a very thin slice off the top of the stone. I've had no luck whatsoever with that method.

I like to use a more or less circular motion, starting at the hilt end and working toward the tip. Usually I'll make one pass like that on one side of the blade, then turn it over and do the other side, alternating sides until I'm happy with the edge. If I want it sharper, I'll move on to a harder stone or strop. With the strop, you pull away from the cutting edge.

Some folks recommend a variation on the stropping technique using fine sandpaper backed with a phone book. I haven't tried this beyond just stropping, but some very knowledgeable people swear by it, mainly users of Bark River knives and others with convex edge grinds. A Google search for "convex edge sharpening" will turn up some good descriptions and even videos of the method. One such is here.

Hope this helps, and Semper Fi.

Ron H.
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Old 09-23-2010, 07:42 PM
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As stated above, a good, consistent angle (say 25 degrees) will work great for most applications. A buffer wheel, jewelrs rouge, and or a leather strop can have exceptional results as well.

Naturally, the quality of the blade will play a major role in terms of continual use. That is, an exceptional blade can be placed on most knives but may not withstand even moderate use, in relation to a higher-quality knife.

If I can be of further assistance, feel free to send a PM.

Hope this helps
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Old 09-23-2010, 08:06 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Farmer17 View Post
I've got about 20-25 knives so when one gets dull, I just pick up another one. I hate sharpening knives, and I just take a shoe box full of them to the knife sharpening guy and he gives me a good deal since there is a large quantity. I could care less if he uses a buffing wheel, they are just a tool, like a screwdriver or Crescent wrench, but my guns on the other hand ......
So basically your answer to "Please describe your sharpening technique", is just throw them in a box and let someone else worry about it? Well that should help the OP.
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Old 09-23-2010, 08:12 PM
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I like the Spyderco system as well.
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Old 09-23-2010, 08:48 PM
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So basically your answer to "Please describe your sharpening technique", is just throw them in a box and let someone else worry about it? Well that should help the OP.
Sorry, that IS my best answer for sharpening knives. Kinda like the thread about "best way to use dynamite to blow a beaver dam" my answer was to use a backhoe. I've had stones, croc stix, electric sharpeners, belts, v-tools, etc. and none of the items were worth the trouble considering the end result vs. all the effort. I'm sure the OP will get 20 or 30 posts on how to properly sharpen a knife, I wasn't trying to be a wise guy.
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Old 09-23-2010, 09:31 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Jst1mr View Post
Please describe your sharpening technique. Nobody loves a sharp knife more than I, from kitchen to filet to deer skinning, but I just can't get great results. I have tried multiple stones (including those guide-rod equipped ones), simple carbide "cutters", etc. It isn't bad steel, as the next guy can take MY knives and get them really sharp. Don't even talk about using a steel, I have done nothing but dull every knife I tried that on. Techniques you can share? Otherwise, I think I'm headed to an electric countertop model
Man I have to agree with Ron H. The small circular motion as you are going from hilt to tip is , to me anyway, the easiest way for me to maintain the proper blade angle on both sides. I always count how many circles I make on each side, for instance, I carry a Buck 180/ with a 3" blade and I always make 13 circles from one end to the other. It is as sharp as I feel comfortable with. It cuts nothing but game. I also carry an Old Timer 3 blade for everyday things and it is a breeze to sharpen using the same technique. Hope this makes sense.
BTW, anything you can imagine can be used to get a nice edge. One time in a welding shop I used a small cardboard box coated with buffing compound and sharpened away from the edge with light pressure and that was nice.
Peace,
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Old 09-23-2010, 09:38 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Farmer17 View Post
Sorry, that IS my best answer for sharpening knives. Kinda like the thread about "best way to use dynamite to blow a beaver dam" my answer was to use a backhoe. I've had stones, croc stix, electric sharpeners, belts, v-tools, etc. and none of the items were worth the trouble considering the end result vs. all the effort. I'm sure the OP will get 20 or 30 posts on how to properly sharpen a knife, I wasn't trying to be a wise guy.
good enough for me- I took it wrong, sorry.
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Old 09-24-2010, 09:12 AM
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I have a good built in angle in my brain for sharpening knives so my good hunting, filet, boning knives I do on a two sided Arkansas stone and leather strop.

My kitchen knives I just use a sharpening steel on them. Works for me.

For the sharpening challenged I'd recommend the KME (google it) deluxe knife sharpening system for good knives. You can't screw it up plus the owner, Rob, will spend all the time with you on the phone you need to make it work.
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Old 09-24-2010, 09:18 AM
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I have seen the Lansky, Sharpmaker and a good hard stone all do a very fine job. I'd try the Sharpmaker first as it comes with good instructions and is relatively easy to use. This and a couple licks with a good steel before each use should do it. Anything more than that says the knife isn't getting enough attention.

I would avoid the powered sharpeners as they seem to do as much harm as good in most cases.

Bob
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Old 09-24-2010, 09:18 AM
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I use a Spyderco Sharpmaker myself and can keep most of my knives sharp enough to shave hair. It's a very simple system, not fool-proof, but simple.

For a real disertation on sharpening try this LINK

Also check out bladeforums.com and their maintenance section. There are some real experts over there who take their sharpening to insane levels. I can shave hair, these guy whittle strands of hair.
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Old 09-24-2010, 11:01 AM
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I have to say, there is never a shortage of advice on this forum, and I thank you for all of it. This gives me several new things to try and I look forward to giving these techniques a shot. Thanks all!
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Old 09-24-2010, 11:11 AM
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I have a Gatco system that puts a edge sharp enough to give me bald spots on my forearm. Gatco: Sharpeners: Sharpening Systems: Edgemate Pro

Made in USA to boot.

Last edited by RYNO; 09-24-2010 at 11:13 AM.
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