best knife sharpener

[Hammell]

This was a good week for hunting, nailed a bear and mulie buck. Now I need to touch up my knives, 2 buck knives. They have actually been used a quiet a few animals before needing a sharpening.

So what gadgets do you guys use to sharpen knives?

 

[sdguy55]

Diamond stone.

 

[reptilezs]

i have crock sticks(similar design to the spyderco sharpmaker) for touch up. need to get a few bench stones for reprofiling. i do have a few diamond rods and small diamond stone with handle

 

[nomad69]

Lansky system is what I use. I **** at freehanding an edge.

 

[0.511MeV]

I have a selection of bench stones in India, Arkansas, and Waterstone. I also can put super fine grit paper on a surface plate or on a piece of rod stock or the like if I need to do something strange (serrated knives for example).

I do like bench stones quite a bit, and I have to resist the temptation to buy even more. I'd like to pick up some of the more interesting types of stone like the Belgian blue and yellow whetstones.

 

[franzdom]

Wicked Edge!

http://www.wickededgeusa.com/

Not cheap but you did say "best"

I have it and it is awesome!

 

[Davefr]

Small granite surface plate and assorted sandpaper grits.

 

[SpeedCoach]

I've gone the lazy route.....

the work-sharp knife sharpener! Works fantastically well.

I've also got the spyderco sharp maker, which I've had success with. But I've also not had success a time or to. The work sharp works well and works fast. I've kept the spyderco so far....but its fast collecting dust.

Speaking of, I think the kitchen fleet is due for a touch up today.

 

[NUTTSGT]

When I used to carry a Buck knife, I had some of their oil and one of their stones. I followed their instructions and my knife was always sharp.

 

[Plasmatic]

Lansky system is what I use. I **** at freehanding an edge.

+1. The Lansky set has never let me down.

 

[Panama]

Maybe not the best but it works. Learned from my Grandma nearly fifty years ago to
use shards of broken pottery and 3-in-1 oil. It takes a practiced hand not to change
the angle of the edge.

 

[bart1]

I like ceramics and particularly my Spyderco Sharpmaker.

 

[bigcaddy]

I learned from grandpa/dad and have always used a oil stone or now, a diamond stone. It does take some practice but you can always try to sharpen and junk knife and see where you get. I think mine are EZ Lap diamond stones with a center groove for fish hooks. I like everything razor sharp

I think the angle is 15 degrees for optimal edge. Use a protractor just so you can see that angle relative to the stone and just ballpark it when you freehand.

Once you get it down, just touch up your knives and they will hardly ever need to be "sharpened" Its easier to maintain an edge then trying to create a new one after abusing it!!

I hit my pocket knife on a diamond stone at least 2 times a week and the same for my kitchen knives after using them.

 

[Outlawmws]

I used to do the freehand routine, and got very good results, and after finishing with the finest stone I had available, finished on a jelly jar to remove all the stone marks. later I was able to get sheets of .025 and 050 thick Aluminum oxide substrate material, polished and unpolished from where I work and used that. My dd got mad at me once when he borrowed my pocket knife to strip some wire back, as he used the "roll it on you thumb" method. He cut his thumb to ribbons on the razor sharp edge, and didn't realize it until he cut a little deeper, and discovered he had a half dozen somewht parallel cuts or more...

Why use the glass to "polish" the edge? A smoother edge lasts longer, and you can really see the difference if you look at an edge under a microscope. an unpolished edge has a real saw tooth look to it,especially with conventional slice or honing motions, and even a shallow slide action will minimize this but not eliminate it.

For while I also used the Fiskars mini crock stick pull through sharpeners (handle grip and smaller key-chain thumb grip) to finish off the edges, and I still keep a key-chain version in my hunting/camping fanny pack for in the field touch-ups. I'm not sure these small key chain units are still available from Fiskars, but they are worth getting of you can find them. Smith's also sells similar units, including one that is adjustable for angle

Lately I've gotten lazy and use the Smiths and Frost Cutlery BladeMaster Sharpening Fixtures, as I can get an exact edge angle without any effort. Of the two I like the Blade Master better overall, as it has four angles available, (15, 19, 24 & 29 deg.), compared to The Smith's 2 angles (20 & 25), however I have more different stone types in Smiths; but I can mix and match the stones since they are both rod controlled systems.

I will usually start with a very sharp angle to get the blade thickness near the edge thin, then in most cases give a final more durable edge at a slightly less sharp angle.

 

[jmm]

My method for everything BUT scissors:

If I buy something new with no real edge or really screw up a nice edge I start with a fine mill file just to knock the burrs out, very very light pressure. Then move on to a medium Arkansas stone and oil. I work the hell out of the blade on the medium Arkansas, trying to get a uniform bevel on the blade. Then move on to hard Arkansas and oil, working an edge to the blade. It should be reasonably sharp, but not razor sharp, when I finish on the hard Ark. Then I clean the knife as best I can (to remove any traces of oil), and pull out a 4000 grit Japanese water stone. I work the knife on this stone until I can wet my arm and shave hair off of it. Then I strop with an old belt -- one or two passes per side on the rough side, two or three on the finished side. Test the knife on my arm to see the edge held its shape (that it isn't weak), and there you go!

The Japanese stones work differently than arkansas stones. They have to be cleaned after every use. And where you oil an ark stone before using, I've found you don't just wet the Japanese stone before use. I've seen folks sharpen knives while submerged in water, but I find it works best to work your knife under a trickle of water in the sink.

I know my method doesn't make much sense. Why not use all Ark or all Japanese. Growing up, I used just the two Ark stones and got sharp edges. But I could never shave hair with them. [I don't know why I chose this to be my litmus test...don't ask] So I added a Japanese stone to the mix, and it works! You can get everything you need for well under 100 dollars.

 

[jmm]

Forgot to add, I do knives freehand. I practiced on a lot of lazy afternoons growing up, and I can do it pretty well. It's not perfect, but it works damn good. For wood-working plane blades, I use a cheap jig that works perfect. Scissors are so annoying that I take them to work and sharpen them on a dedicated low speed grinder. Given a 3 minute lesson, anyone could learn to clamp the scissors in the jig and work an edge back in them.

For regular maintenance, I run my knives up and down a Dexter Russell diamond grit steel. Regular steel works fine too.

 

[mrjaw14]

Lansky system. I want a spyderco sharpmaker though

 

[Outlawmws]

FYI Lansky, Smith, and the Frost BladeMaster are all on the same principal. Lansky seems to be a hybrid of the Smith and BladeMaster (Smith guide sticks with a twist and Blademanster guide/clamp with a twist...)

 

[EverettNo1]

I use soft and hard Arkansas stones. The hard Ark is really small though which makes it difficult and dangerous to work with. After, I strop on the smooth side of a belt. I heard using jeweler's rouge on the strop makes it more effective and polishes better, but I haven't tried it myself. I do all my knives free hand

 

[bigcaddy]

My method for everything BUT scissors:

If I buy something new with no real edge or really screw up a nice edge I start with a fine mill file just to knock the burrs out, very very light pressure. Then move on to a medium Arkansas stone and oil. I work the hell out of the blade on the medium Arkansas, trying to get a uniform bevel on the blade. Then move on to hard Arkansas and oil, working an edge to the blade. It should be reasonably sharp, but not razor sharp, when I finish on the hard Ark. Then I clean the knife as best I can (to remove any traces of oil), and pull out a 4000 grit Japanese water stone. I work the knife on this stone until I can wet my arm and shave hair off of it. Then I strop with an old belt -- one or two passes per side on the rough side, two or three on the finished side. Test the knife on my arm to see the edge held its shape (that it isn't weak), and there you go!

The Japanese stones work differently than arkansas stones. They have to be cleaned after every use. And where you oil an ark stone before using, I've found you don't just wet the Japanese stone before use. I've seen folks sharpen knives while submerged in water, but I find it works best to work your knife under a trickle of water in the sink.

I know my method doesn't make much sense. Why not use all Ark or all Japanese. Growing up, I used just the two Ark stones and got sharp edges. But I could never shave hair with them. [I don't know why I chose this to be my litmus test...don't ask] So I added a Japanese stone to the mix, and it works! You can get everything you need for well under 100 dollars.

The jap stones are what I use for my Japanese kitchen knives. The can be bought very cheap at a Japanese supermarket like marukai. I place the stone on the sink divider and let the water just trickle on it. The grits are 1000 amd 6000 but the blades are like razors and are always sharp so just a touch up is needed

 

[jmm]

The jap stones are what I use for my Japanese kitchen knives. The can be bought very cheap at a Japanese supermarket like marukai. I place the stone on the sink divider and let the water just trickle on it. The grits are 1000 amd 6000 but the blades are like razors and are always sharp so just a touch up is needed

My method exactly. Ever try doing it submerged? I saw a sashimi chef do it that way once and tried it. It's really awkward and you view of the angle gets seriously distorted.

 

[Outlawmws]

I use soft and hard Arkansas stones. The hard Ark is really small though which makes it difficult and dangerous to work with. After, I strop on the smooth side of a belt. I heard using jeweler's rouge on the strop makes it more effective and polishes better, but I haven't tried it myself. I do all my knives free hand

Make up a slightly recessed holding block out of wood.

 

[EverettNo1]

Make up a slightly recessed holding block out of wood.

Great idea! That'll make it even easier and less frustrating to get it right the first time

 

[Conductor562]

Get yourself a nice Lansky Diamond set. I would order an additional sapphire finishing stone as well. It's a really nice system. I've been using it for years and have yet to have a bad result.

 

[AndyA]

A flat piece of steel and a little dab of 1200 grit clover compound. You can wash the steel if you ever want to change grits. The steel will eventually get worn into a dish shape. It'll take years by hand at 1200 grit. It's cheap enough to just get a new piece of steel.

A copper lap also works. The grit gets imbedded in the copper so you can't wash it and change grit size (at least not toward the finer direction). The copper doesn't wear like the steel since the grit gets embedded and doesn't erode the copper. I have a copper lap with 5 mircon diamond paste that I use for a final hone on carbide cutters.