You guys do some fantastic work on these edges. ....i cant even get my knife sharp enough to cut butter and y'all are splittin Atoms. I have tried and tried and tried for years and just cant seem to make it work. I have used bench stones, hand stones, the lanksy system, pull throughs(hate them but atleast my knife cuts for a minute after using one, theybjist seem tonmess up the geometry).. Everything but power tools and i just seem to make them duller and duller and duller everyday, i dont want a polished razor edge injust want a decently sharp blade and caint do it. I can get my flat parts halfway sharp but the belly might as well be a baseball bat lol.... I can sharpen axes, why cant i sharpen my knife? That will be all just needed a good vent before ingo back tondulling this once incredibly sharp blade.
It definitely takes some skill development and muscle memory, bit once you get that first one figured out, it falls into place. Pressure and knowing when to stop/move on are tough at first. What's you kit currently? What knives are you working on?
It has been mostly a cheap knife situation until now. But i bought a 6 and i am working in that currently...its my first "nice knife" so id really like to work this out. Right now my only sharpening tools are a lansky puck, a lansky system (kinda worn out) and a cheap ceramic pull through....also have some natural stines from around the ptiperty ive been testing on my cruddier knives. Id really like to be able to do it with a bench stone and not use all the clamps and guides and what not When i get a little extra flow in the wallet i will probably get a half decent stone and and start back at the beginning. If that doesnt work ill get new stones for the lansky system and see ifni can make it work now that i have a nicer knife with better Steel. My neighbor has a work sharp electric jigger but i wont let him run my 6 through it. I am determined to get it by hand, i just hatebthe thought of ruining this knife in the process.
You'll get there man. Watch some good videos and make sure to mark the edge with a sharpie marker so that you know you're shaving metal where it needs to happen. As for ruining you're new knife, don't worry too much about it. As long as you are sharpening evenly on both sides, you should be fine. Even if you do goof up the grind or round a tip, that can all be fixed. It takes a hell of an effort to get a knife to irreparable by hand.
That is comforting. The problem with the videos is out of 100 of them i end up getting 99 different opions. From whatbive gather so far thoufh i need to make a bur, flip it. Make a but, flip it make a bur and keep that up with finer grits and then hone. Im a lot of thinga but a quiter aint one kf them LOL. This knife WILL be sharp again.
Persistence pays off! I like to get a burr, then flip and get a burr, then alternate strokes to get rid of the burr lightly. After that it's just polishing on finer grits. No more burr formation. The theory behind that being, the initial burr formation is your new edge, then everything that comes after is just refining and tuning that edge you've made.
Good to know. Do you have a favorite type of stone? I have a small old broken Arkansas soft stone that seems to treat mt pretty well and i was thinking on a set of those in different harness. I want to try to stay away from synthetics if possible.
Man, I have a ton I like to use. They all do well with different things. If I had to pick, I'd say my Dan's Whetstones Arkansas set are my favorite to use. They're kinda slow, and don't sharpen higher end super steels very well, but those with a carbon blade just feel so freaking awesome.
Ill give them a look, thank you so much. Should i invest in a strop as well or wait until i get the sharpening down.
@StrawBunyan, it took me a long time to figure out what worked best for me. I use the lansky because it's fool proof lol. I still can't use an Arkansas stone and the pull through sharpeners can do more damage than good. I tried using one on one of my esee's and it would take little chunks out of the metal. Kevo has been a big help also and you can take his word as gold. Also for field sharpening (or just to get a working edge) I use the work sharp field sharpener, one of the best $30 investments I've ever made. It's a 20 degree angle which is perfect for esee knives. Good luck man and just keep at it. If I can sharpen, anyone can lol.
If the lanksybis fool proof im screwed LOL. And i have noticed the pull through makes my knife "feel sharp" but doesnt actually seem to sharpen it. Since i lack any finer stones i have been using it suoer lightly as a hone for now. I am glad i asked here because youtube and mt idiot friends have been getting me nowhere. You guys are the best
Also, my 6 doesnt seem tonline up on the 20 degree hole on my lansky. It aost seems between 25 and 30, but again it is old and abused by all of the junk knives ive been given over thebyears (my friend gave me a shrade that my bastard file wont even take metal off of. ) i needed this boost, thanks again.
Nah, the problem with the lansky is full flat grind knives. If the blade is angled like on ffg, the knife can move in the clamp, messing with the sharpening angle. What I did to fix this is put a few layers of electrical tape on each side of the blade where your clamp goes. This really helps holding it in place. Periodically check it though. Also what Kevo said, watch the pressure you're putting on it. Too hard and the knife will move. (I know he was talking about Arkansas stones but the same applies here as well) Esee tries to get a 20 degree angle but that isn't always the case. As good as the knives are I've had to reprofile quite a few to get the 20 degrees. Use a sharpie and color along the edge, again line Kevo mentioned, and you'll see the progress. It will take a while so patience is a must. If using the Lansky, I'd start with a course diamond to get the profile, then go to the course stone then medium then fine. If you don't want a mirrored edge you can go to a strop from there to remove any remaining burrs. I find it best to use the sapphire (ceramic) attachment as it really fine tunes the edge. Although it will shine the edge up. If you use the leather strop attachment, make sure to use some compound on it I use the green but any should work. I hope this helps.
@StrawBunyan That is a tiny little stone you got there lol. On strops, I consider them a definite must. It's one of those weekly maintenance items for me. That said, they aren't too hard to make yourself if you have some spare leather laying around. I've used everything from bridle leather to hard pressed felt, nylon, denim, and even newsprint in a pinch. If you want to buy a paddle, @Flex makes some awesome ones.
Got it. Ill let you guys know how it goes. My next post in here will either be buggin ya with more questions or showin you a sharp knife lol. Im on my way to get a sharpie now. And ill pick up some compound. Should i orser new lansky stones while i am learning and then switch to stone stones or will it act more like a crutch and not translate to hand sharpening...if i switch to stones after lansky will i have to learn all over again or does it help me develop the memory of the angle?
Okay, more questions, sorry. What grit should go up to when i get these things? I looked at the Arkansas stuff and the set comes with 600 ,1000, and 2500...do i need to go that high for my knife? And is 600 going to be enough to re profile or should i go lower?
