Knife Sharpening

[kjp1969]

Can anyone recommend a decent knife sharpener? Most frequent use would be for kitchen knives, but pocket and field knives, large and small, also.

Many moons ago I saw (on New Yankee Workshop, maybe?) an electric wet stone system that was surprisingly cheap- $150 or so. Perhaps overkill for what I want to use it for. Something simple and reliable (i.e. manual, not electric) would be great.

 

[adventureduo]

Funny you mention knife sharpening Kevin, i just take mine to the Orange mall Knife Gallery

Just got my benchmade back yesterday..... and man, those guys do a good job.

 

[tdesanto]

Edge Pro Apex

Without a doubt, the most versatile and accurate sharpener I've ever used.

The only thing I've seen that looks better is the pro model, but the Apex has served me well for anything from a 10" chef's blade to a small 2" pocket knife.

 

[kjp1969]

Funny you mention knife sharpening Kevin, i just take mine to the Orange mall Knife Gallery

Just got my benchmade back yesterday..... and man, those guys do a good job.

I took my Buck 110 to Plaza Cutlery for sharpening and to have a ding fixed. Great work, and very sharp when then finished. They actually warned me when returning it to me that it was now sharper than probably any knife I'd ever used. They were right.

My lovely wife has a "thing" about sharp kitchen knives. Dunno if I should be worried about that or not. But its a good excuse to shop for a new sharpener.

 

[FLYFISHEXPERT]

I use Spyderco Triangle Sharpmaker. They work really well.
http://www.spyderco.com/catalog/details.php?product=77

I use it on all of my knives, kitchen and field.

 

[slooowr6]

I use Spyderco Triangle Sharpmaker. They work really well.
http://www.spyderco.com/catalog/details.php?product=77

I use it on all of my knives, kitchen and field.

I've the same thing. It works really well for all my knives.

 

[flywgn]

I was a meat cutter (Great A&P Tea Co.) during my high-school years (middle part of the last century) and I'm pretty finicky about our knives. Most of the gadgets one can purchase that are "guaranteed" to deliver the user ultra-sharp edges are simply that, gadgets.

I own one of the Spyderco Tri-Angle models (two sets of ceramic rods: medium and fine grades) and love it, but I still rely for the most part on a variety of stones and a first-rate quality steel. I don't have any difficulty keeping the proper sharpening angle (well-trained by my meat-cutting boss), but if you're unsure about this, having an angle guide is not a bad idea.

At the request of a friend a few months ago I found THIS SITE on line and it's a good primer for sharpening your sharpening skills.

There's something extremely satisfying for me when I put a good edge on a quality knife.

Allen R

 

[tdesanto]

I use Spyderco Triangle Sharpmaker. They work really well.
http://www.spyderco.com/catalog/details.php?product=77

I use it on all of my knives, kitchen and field.

The main benefits of the Edge Pro system are:

1) This is the most important--you can vary the angle to meet the exact factory edge on any blade. You can set it up to match it exactly. The spyderco and anything like it is a fixed angle. My experience with those, is that they're mainly good for honing an edge as routine maintenance.

2) There are multiple stone grades so that you don't have to use one for more than a few passes on each side per stone, then quickly switch out to the next stone. This give the user ultimate control over the process, as you can adjust to the needs of the blade.

 

[Abel Villesca]

Thanks for the link Allen.

 

[Photog]

I've used stones & oil most of my life. It takes a lot of practice to do it correctly.

Then I bought the Spyderco V-Sticks. They made for a more uniform edge, that was always fairly sharp. I had no complaints.

Then I started to learn about the different types of edges, what they are used for, and how to generate them on a blade. To do this, I purchased a Lansky-rod system, a razor strop and polishing compound. Now I have an edge that really is sharp, and it lasts much longer than before. The Spyderco edge would probably be better, if stropped after sharpening too.

The Apex looks like the cream-of-the-crop, for knife sharpening.

Also, the Wicked Edge looks like a nice piece of equipment; but it is more bulky than the other systems.

Learn why and how to strop the edge, if you like them sharp. Stropping.

 

[flywgn]

Brian, good videos and good information. I had forgotten to mention that I use a strop (actually one of our old castoff girths) occasionally as well, but not always.

Watching the chap in the video sharpen a serrated edge reminds me of a time when I discovered that my father-in-law had taken one of his knives with a serrated edge to his electric grinding wheel. I was horrified when I looked at the results. Unbelievable! And this was a man whom I respected in so many ways: excellent bluewater sailor, former captain of PAA's Clipper Ships (the real ones, not the later jets so-named), excellent architect, a Bentley owner, and the list goes on. Needless to say, I scolded him. I felt pretty safe since Diana and I had been married for about 25 years at that time, but gad!

Not to stray too far from the OP's original questions, I'll mention also that we own an electric sharpener (Chef's Choice). I personally believe, though, that a careless user can destroy the temper of a blade with an electric sharpener very quickly. It's a nuisance to restore temper. I have done it a time or two, but now that we don't have the frequent visits of a farrier I don't have that ready-made forge at hand. I've heard of folks using the kitchen oven but I haven't.

Allen R

 

[kjp1969]

The Edge Pro Apex looks outstanding, but I like the price of the Spyderco: http://tinyurl.com/c2qep7

Ordered!

Thanks everyone.

 

[Photog]

The Spyderco, when used properly, puts only one angle edge on the blade. It is easier to use than a stone, but still inconsistent.

For me it was a big improvement over bench stones. You will probably be very pleased with the results.

Buy a belt or strop, and some polishing compound. It will really improve the final edge the Spyderco puts on the blade.


Side note:
What I like about the Lansky and Apex style of sharpeners, is: you can make double bevel edges, and you can create different edges for different types of cutting. And you can easily re-create a damaged edge.

You don't want the same edge angle on your chef's knife as you need on a pocket knife. Even the kitchen knives should have different edges: chef, utility, butcher, chopper, santoku, all need different edges. Unless you are skilled at controlling blade angles against the sticks, the Spyderco will not do this for you.

 

[jsmoriss]

The only thing I've seen that looks better is the pro model, but the Apex has served me well for anything from a 10" chef's blade to a small 2" pocket knife.

Another vote for the Apex kit. Although I have the Apex #3 kit, I could have bought the #2 kit instead...

js.

 

[targa88]

Another vote for the Spyderco system