Sharpening systems...

[DJCantonGA]

Just ordered a KME sharpening kit. A friend has it, and easily gets a hair popping mirrored edge. I spent $242 for everything.

 

[joeldworkin307]

I have a basic wicked edge, a spyderco sharpmaker, and a coarse bench stone with a fine rod. Unusually just need a good working edge so I use the stone most frequently. The systems are useful if you plan to stick with a few knives and one edge type and need a great edge quickly, but I like the simplicity and versatility of stones. Once you learn to use any of them, they'll work well.

 

[DJCantonGA]

I received my KME sharpener on Friday, and I'm impressed. It operates similar to the Lansky, except you have unlimited control of the angle from 17-30°. So far I only have the 100,140,300,600,1500 and a strop with 4 cbn diamond emulsion, and I can get a very nice satin edge. I'll order a few more fine stones and another strop soon.

 

[CAMSDADDY]

I got a Ken Onion for Christmas. I have gotten some really nice edges. I did not read about rounding off the tip but I have figured out how to do it, oops. I use it for most of my knives. I am afraid to use it on my EDC knife which is a Old Timer 3 blade that belonged to my Grandfather. I think I need to get out my sharpener and practice as I have never gotten a razor blade with a stone.

 

[sniper22]

Buy once, cry once. Get the best you can afford for the task you're attempting.

 

[Moondog1]

That's the one my boss had I believe. Like I say, I like it but when most of my blades are relatively inexpensive edc knives it just feels hard to justify. $900 in sharpening supplies for a couple $50-$100 knives feels a bit like buying silver bullets to shoot through a highpoint. Haha

harbor freight 1x30 belt sander with a few belts up to 1000-2000 grit. Then use a 1x30 leather strop with polishing compound. Once you practice a bit you can sharpen a knife to razor sharp in minutes. It's also a great tool to have in the shop for many other uses. The whole setup is under $100 or so and I've gotten years of use out of mine.

Definitely practice on a knife you don't care about though. You can heat them up real quick if you don't know what you are doing. Once you figure it out though, there's no need to get the blade very hot at all when sharpening. You can also reprofile a knife if you are real rough on it and break a tip.

 

[djocon93]

After talking to a bunch of people I came to the conclusion that I'm just going to go ahead and invest in the wicked edge since I know I won't be disappointed going that route. Probably going to order the WE-100 model.

Saw some rumblings on their social media about Black Friday sales so I think I'm going to wait for then to buy.

 

[rbstern]

I have a 5 stone Lansky setup. Built a stand for it, set up to use as one of my swappable stations on my reloading bench. I'm very happy with it. Puts a very nice edge on a blade.

 

[Crumley25]

Love my Edge Pro Apex 4, puts a stupid sharp edge on anything in just a few passes and is a lot cheaper then the Wicked Edge.

With that said, it's hard to beat some DMT diamond stones and a good strop.

 

[moosensquirrel]

as Spider John Koerner said in his song "rent party rag" ......."they's all kinna ways ispose".

For general use, a quality combination india/hard arkansas oil stone can be had for $30-$50. I prefer Japanese water stones. A combo 800/1200 grit finished with a 2000 grit, followed by a leather strop charged with jeweler's rouge will put a scary-sharp blade on a fine grain tool steel knife. Bear in mind that one really cannot sharpen any steel well if the grain size of the steel is larger than that of the abrasive being used.

Above comment is for general sharpening: For edge tools, plane blades and chisels especially, it is important to keep the stone surface a flat as possible. For this, I use a 1200 grit diamond stone for flattening natural or ceramic stones. A piece of 100 grit wet and dry sandpaper, duck-taped to a table saw or other flat surface, is satisfactory for all Japanese style water stones.