i’ve always used wetstones.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003J7QXGQ/
I use it on a tv tray while i watch TV. pull out a pile of knives a couple of times a year and it takes a while, but i’m multitasking.
2 Likes
I have a Chinese clone of one of the units that clamps the knife to keep a fixed angle between the knife and the stone, which is the part that moves. I also purchased a variety of high quality US stones to use with it, from recommendations found in forum discussions.
I find it easy to get a knife back to “sharp” but when I try to reach “stupid sharp” I inevitably find that at some point I start making things worse. Even the guided units take practice, and despite my efforts, I have not really become fully proficient.
2 Likes
A course edge can sometimes feel sharper than a very fine edge, because it creates micro-serrations which give it a tooth.
If you feel that’s not what is happening with you, try increasing the sharpening angle by a few degrees for the final few stones. This will create a microbevel and ensure that you are working the edge, and not the entire width of the bevel. Use a light touch and don’t overdo it; it’s like sanding, most of the work is done by the course grits.
4 Likes
Thanks, I will try that next time.
Despite that issue I still found much more success than with purely manual methods. I never learned to use a stone well, and when I try I pretty much turn pocket knives into putty knives.
Yes! Look at the design of a shark tooth, evolution hasn’t changed that in 50 million years - because the design is at its apex.
Waiting in line at a register somewhere, I picked up a diamond block that felt kind of coarse and stroked my leatherman blade on it a few times. Next time I used it I was astounded! It was very fine serrations that gave it a killer edge. I had never had any edge including a new razor blade cut like that.
Had a friend ask if I had a knife, and I gave it to him to trim a rug pad. he came back in a few minutes with his eyes open wide and handed it back and said “That thing is a deadly weapon!”
Of course it depends on what you need a blade for, you wouldn’t want to shave with that thing.
Yeah, I would use porcelain for a finish on an edge. I Think @markevans36301 is a coarser porcelain for fast cutting.
1 Like
This is correct. I have made a few mini sharpeners with a very fine ceramic and people have loved them. If I can ever find that ceramic again I’ll buy a lot of it.
My regular sharpener is what I call a best compromise. Corse enough to sharpen anything shy of chipped but fine enough to give you a very good working edge.
3 Likes