Sharpening system?

Heinz Doofenshmirtz · **on:** December 05, 2011, 05:40:57 AM

Hi guys. I'm considering a sharpening system. I learned how to sharpen on a stone when I was in high school and working in restaurants as a cook, and got quite good at ti, but I've found I'm having some consistency issues with angling blades during sharpening. I've never felt it necessary before, but I'm not sure why I'm having these consistency issues. I'm thinking it's just that I'm out of practice, and I don't have a large stone anymore that is conducive to holding the blade at the same angle while doing the sharpening.

So, which system would you recommend and why? I've looked at the Lansky system, and the Sharpmaker as well, but I honestly don't know anything about them, as I've always done things by hand until now. I'm still doubtful about buying and using a system, because I really want to get my freehand skills back up to snuff, but I'm not sure I can afford the time. Any thoughts would be welcome.

Ashley · **Reply #1 on:** December 05, 2011, 05:48:50 AM

I'd suggest a lansky 4 rod turnbox, diamond kit, ot sharpmaker in that order. Poor fish on ebay has sharpmakers on sale for $29.99 free shipping. I just bought one.

mvyrmnd · **Reply #2 on:** December 05, 2011, 05:59:48 AM

Big +1 on the Lansky. I have the Deluxe kit, and I've finally stopped 'butchering' my knives

Peter · **Reply #3 on:** December 05, 2011, 06:14:19 AM

Hi Heinz i would get a knife with a big bevel on it {no 2nd bevel} then don't look at what you are doing just move the knife up and down till you feel the bevel lock into the stone. Do this for abit, and then you will start to get the feel of 2nd bevels. After saying that i don't like 2nd bevels because they are a PITA and hand file them off most my knifes. :cheers:Peter

theonew · **Reply #4 on:** December 05, 2011, 07:09:15 AM

Don't buy a system, buy a felt tipped magic marker and spend a little focused time refreshing your skills

Freehand sharpening is such a valuable skill to have.

MeadMaker · **Reply #5 on:** December 06, 2011, 03:28:36 AM

The Sharpmaker has been very good to me. I've always used waterstones for my chisels and plane irons and got shaving sharp edges, but a decent edge on my knives eluded me. The Sharpmaker ended all that. My knives are nice and sharp.

Syph007 · **Reply #6 on:** December 06, 2011, 03:31:20 AM

For SAKS the sharpmaker for sure. You can get a SAK shaving sharp very quickly. For my moras with scandi grind I use a waterstone, or diamond stone. I recently picked up the lansky system, but havent had a chance to try it.

Heinz Doofenshmirtz · **Reply #7 on:** December 06, 2011, 06:47:31 AM

Thanks for the info everyone. The Sharpmaker seems like it'd be the easiest to use. I'm in no rush though... not like I have a pressing need for it, so I'm going to take my time deciding.

dks · **Reply #8 on:** December 06, 2011, 04:58:26 PM

I use the Lansky for most sharpening tasks, including Swiss Army knives. There is a fixed angle setting on the Lansky (I do not remember which one now.....) that is just perfect for them.
Have a look at this too: http://forum.multitool.org/index.php/topic,33482.0.html

Sparky415 · **Reply #9 on:** December 06, 2011, 09:12:43 PM

I have one of these and it works well for me

(It takes all the skill out of the job but means you get the same angle every time)

http://lansky.com/index.php/products/std-3-stone-system/

Zakk · **Reply #10 on:** December 06, 2011, 09:48:00 PM

if you are gonna maintain a sharp edge get the sharpmaker.its great for daily touchups.but if u want to reprofile an edge, repair a chipped edge or have some hard steels(d2,m4,s30v,zdp-189...) with dull edges go with the lansky deluxe system with 5 stones(can be diamond too but they are expensive u can buy them seperatly thought).ultra fine stone is gonna give a nice mirror polish(hard on s30v imo) and coarse stones will works well at reprofile jobs.

Sparky415 · **Reply #11 on:** December 06, 2011, 09:53:52 PM

I'm saving up for a coarse diamond stone for mine

Zakk · **Reply #12 on:** December 06, 2011, 10:02:47 PM

nice man.

tell me your experience when u used it.

Sparky415 · **Reply #13 on:** December 06, 2011, 10:25:23 PM

It won't be for a long time as I have too much to spend my money on at the moment

The coarse stone in this set has done a lot of work for me so far and is still going strong

but I am an impatient/lazy person so I am saving my pennies

http://lansky.com/index.php/products/std-3-stone-system/

Craig · **Reply #14 on:** December 06, 2011, 11:22:01 PM

I have a Lansky and a Sharpmaker. I find the Sharpmaker much easier to use.

MeadMaker · **Reply #15 on:** December 07, 2011, 01:53:26 AM

You can reprofile and fix nicked edges with the Sharpmaker. I picked up a set of 320 grit 1/2" triangular ruby rods from an abrasive supply house. They speed up the process. The ruby rods are available in grits all the way down to 60, so if you want to get really aggressive you can.

Potassium Hydroxide · **Reply #16 on:** December 08, 2011, 06:26:54 AM

Can the sharpmaker get knives shaving sharp?

Zakk · **Reply #17 on:** December 08, 2011, 06:29:23 PM

yeah it can.But like MeadMaker sad for reprofiling u have to get some extra coarse stones to fit there or buy the diamond rods if u want to get a very dull knife to shaving sharp with sharpmaker.

AimlessWanderer · **Reply #18 on:** December 08, 2011, 07:28:26 PM

I touched up a couple of blades yesterday that were struggling to function properly, and used the Victorinox Pocket Knife Sharpener. Often if a blade just needs a quick touch up I'll use a steel, but these two needed some more work so the Vic was used.

Byrd Wings Slippit took a couple of mins, and the new Byrd Tern took about ten mins. I didn't get them super scary sharp - never do - just got them very usable

Good thing about this is it's portable - mine lives in my EDC bag. I do have a Lansky, but only tend to use that for major reprofiling

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