+2 for the Lansky. A good cross between old school and can't screw it up machinery.
How do YOU sharpen your knives?
- Thread starter SlyMoose
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+2 for the Lansky. A good cross between old school and can't screw it up machinery.
Add on: it will also help you learn technique and function, which will help you to freehand later.
I use a 4000/8000 grit Norton waterstone. I originally bought it for my straights.
+1. I quit using my Lansky after I bought a couple diamond hones. You can get a diamond "chef steel" that works great for touch ups during big jobs like butchering a deer and such. Works great on kitchen knives too. I use the diamond hones on my woodworking hand tools as well. That's why I bought them originally.
Slymoose, you can use water or oil on the stone, it will help.
^^this but with a few stones less.
Slash McCoy
I freehand dog rockets
No,most razors do not have a 10-12 degree bevel angle or honing angle. A typical bevel is about 17 degrees, so half of that would be 8.5 degrees for the actual angle between blade axis and hone. A bevel angle of under 14 degrees doesn't work well for a razor, and one of 20 degrees or more is very underwhelming to shave with. Sweet spot is usually between 16 and 17 degrees. Half of the bevel angle being the actual honing angle, as pre-set by the ratio of spine thickness to the distance between the edge and the back edge of the spine's bevel flat. You dont get a choice, basically. The spine is your built-in honing angle guide.
Yeah the Lansky, Spyderco, and similar systems work great for knives. So does an inexpensive set of diamond plates, or India stone, or carborundum, or soft and hard Arkies, just about anything. I dont find edges finished beyond 1k to have the kind of performance that I like in a kitchen or pocketknife. I think a bit of toothines helps with control and effectiveness, and a slightly toothy edge usually lasts a while, especially if you give it a lick or two with a steel ever so often.
I am so busy I seldom have time to even hone another razor. I dont break out the fancy stuff for a knife, of any sort, and I dont even own any knives that cost over $40 or so. What do I use to sharpen them? One of those $3 pull-through carbide/ceramic vee sharpeners. 2 or 3 pulls and it cuts like a micro chainsaw. Sorry to be so crude, but that's how I do it. Takes 10 seconds. If I think I will need it, I carry it in my pocket.
Yeah the Lansky, Spyderco, and similar systems work great for knives. So does an inexpensive set of diamond plates, or India stone, or carborundum, or soft and hard Arkies, just about anything. I dont find edges finished beyond 1k to have the kind of performance that I like in a kitchen or pocketknife. I think a bit of toothines helps with control and effectiveness, and a slightly toothy edge usually lasts a while, especially if you give it a lick or two with a steel ever so often.
I am so busy I seldom have time to even hone another razor. I dont break out the fancy stuff for a knife, of any sort, and I dont even own any knives that cost over $40 or so. What do I use to sharpen them? One of those $3 pull-through carbide/ceramic vee sharpeners. 2 or 3 pulls and it cuts like a micro chainsaw. Sorry to be so crude, but that's how I do it. Takes 10 seconds. If I think I will need it, I carry it in my pocket.
Are those things chromatographically in order?
I purchased one of these when they first came out. Man have they gone up in price!
https://www.wickededgeusa.com
https://www.wickededgeusa.com
I'll use a Lansky diamond set going all the way to the sapphire stone to get my knives back to razor sharp.
Simple ceramic rod is used for most touchups' in the field while hunting or a small whetstone for tougher field sharpening.
Simple ceramic rod is used for most touchups' in the field while hunting or a small whetstone for tougher field sharpening.
Short answer? It depends on the blade, the condition of the blade, and what sort of edge I'm going for. For instance, on my hawksbill cable knife, I've never mastered the use of a flat stone or diamond sharpener, but have good results on one of those sharpeners that has two carbide and ceramic mounted in a V shape. For serrated, I use cone-shaped diamond coated sharpeners. I've had good results getting a workable edge with flat diamond coated sharpeners, but for a sharper edge go through a progression of stones, from a medium grit stone to a soft Arkansas stone to a hard Arkansas stone.
One of my favorite is a sharpener that had a stone of medium grit and a carbide mounted in a V. The carbide V allows me to get a quick edge when a blade is really trashed, and then I can give it a better edge.
On oils: Some whetstones require water or oil. I think that this is mandatory with natural stones, but not sure. I've soaked stones in water and used 3-In-1 machine oil and mineral oil. Mineral oil is thicker, but unlike 3-In-1 oil isn't toxic, so I like to use it on blades that could be in contact with food. The problem with mineral oil is that it can also gum up stones to a certain extent. In general, a light oil is good for sharpening.
While it could be technique and lack of oil or water that's giving you problems, I've also had stones and sharpeners that wouldn't work worth a flip. This includes some name brand stuff. I have a small Smith pocket sharpener that has the carbide and a ceramic "polishing" V that doesn't sharpen worth a lick. The only reason I haven't tossed it is that it has a small tapering diamond coated rod that's ideal for small serrated edges. Then again, my favorite sharpener is by Smith, and I use a Smith soft Arkansas stone and a couple of other Smith sharpeners that use the carbide and ceramic "V" that works perfectly. It's just that one sharpener I wouldn't recommend (it's the small black pocket one, BTW).
If it's not the stone, it might be your blade angle. Too high and it's going to blunt it. There's plenty of resources on the net for finding instructions (won't cite them because a good many are on commercial sites). Basically, for an everyday knife, you want to hold it about 10° to 15° to the stone and move it like you're trying to cut off a slice among the top. Note that my father does it the opposite way, by pulling the back of the blade toward him so that the cutting edge is never going toward his hands or body. To be honest, when I haven't had results by the "cutting" motion on a stone, I've resorted to the pulling method my father uses. I think you get a better edge by the cutting motion, but that's just my opinion.
What type of whetstone are you using?
One of my favorite is a sharpener that had a stone of medium grit and a carbide mounted in a V. The carbide V allows me to get a quick edge when a blade is really trashed, and then I can give it a better edge.
On oils: Some whetstones require water or oil. I think that this is mandatory with natural stones, but not sure. I've soaked stones in water and used 3-In-1 machine oil and mineral oil. Mineral oil is thicker, but unlike 3-In-1 oil isn't toxic, so I like to use it on blades that could be in contact with food. The problem with mineral oil is that it can also gum up stones to a certain extent. In general, a light oil is good for sharpening.
While it could be technique and lack of oil or water that's giving you problems, I've also had stones and sharpeners that wouldn't work worth a flip. This includes some name brand stuff. I have a small Smith pocket sharpener that has the carbide and a ceramic "polishing" V that doesn't sharpen worth a lick. The only reason I haven't tossed it is that it has a small tapering diamond coated rod that's ideal for small serrated edges. Then again, my favorite sharpener is by Smith, and I use a Smith soft Arkansas stone and a couple of other Smith sharpeners that use the carbide and ceramic "V" that works perfectly. It's just that one sharpener I wouldn't recommend (it's the small black pocket one, BTW).
If it's not the stone, it might be your blade angle. Too high and it's going to blunt it. There's plenty of resources on the net for finding instructions (won't cite them because a good many are on commercial sites). Basically, for an everyday knife, you want to hold it about 10° to 15° to the stone and move it like you're trying to cut off a slice among the top. Note that my father does it the opposite way, by pulling the back of the blade toward him so that the cutting edge is never going toward his hands or body. To be honest, when I haven't had results by the "cutting" motion on a stone, I've resorted to the pulling method my father uses. I think you get a better edge by the cutting motion, but that's just my opinion.
What type of whetstone are you using?
This may be Your Mileage May Vary territory. We called that a rolled edge and locally it was frowned upon. For sharpening, we just use equal strokes on both sides of the blade until it's sharp.
If you have the angle right, I would think that because of the lack of some kind of oil, you are having a build up of swarf, (metal particles), that is preventing the whetstone from, "cutting", (sharpening) your blade.
Mike
A burr is the result of two intersecting planes, i.e., the bevel. I would not call it a rolled edge...that's entirely different. A burr is something I look for when honing knives or tools to let me know that the bevel is set and it's time to move forward with polishing. It can easily be removed by dragging the edge on a piece of wood or a hard felt block.
Where's the rest of em?
Increasing grit from left to right.
Ah. For some reason it didn't dawn on me that you had different manufactures mixed in.
i work with a whetstone but its not easy /need some hand touch feeling
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