Serrated edge sharpening tool

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jackknifeh
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Serrated edge sharpening tool

#1

Post by jackknifeh »

In my experience and opinion the DMT aligner setup with serrated edge sharpening rods is the best. In my experience I repeat. It controls the angle and direction of stroke and the rods are the same quality as other DMT products. They come in coarse, fine and extra-fine grits. I have the coarse and fine grits. I don't have any EDC serrated edge knives. The only serrated edge knife I have is a bread knife in the kitchen. The only thing I use this DMT set is for sharpening notches that I want a little large as well as sharp inside the notch. I used it on the bread knife a few years ago and it works great. You need to slide the blade clamp along the blade on longer blades. I think you would want to move the clamp every 3 or 4 serrations or so. Here is a picture. The sharpeners come in a folding handle. They unscrew and then screw onto the rod needed for the aligner clamp.
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Here's a picture of a knife in the clamp and the sharpening rod close to the position for sharpening.
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Here are pictures of the sharpening notch I sharpened on the Techno. There is already a notch on this knife but it is ground flat. I prefer them sharp inside for some things. I don't like a string getting caught in the notch when it's dull. I also have used these notches for cutting the insulation on electrical wires.
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Here's a picture of a notch on my new ESEE IZULA II. There is no notch on this knife out of the box. I've come to like sharpening notches on all my knives.
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Cost? I think the clamp is about $10 and the rods w/handle are about $21 each. I got the coarse grit rod because the sharpening notches I create need a lot of steel removed. If I were sharpening serrated edge knives I wouldn't need the coarse rod. Fine and/or extra-fine would be good. One thing about this setup is I don't think the DMT rods will get inside the smaller Spyderedge serrations. The tip of the rod is 1/16" in diameter. The size of the serration determines the area of the rod you use.

On knives I want a very small sharpening notch I use a triangle shaped needle file. These also can create a notch that is sharp inside. These files can be used instead of the DMT setup but they will take a little longer and you have to control the angle manually. IMO the angle on sharp sharpening notches isn't that important regarding accuracy. The aligner system has approximate angles based on how you set it up. I'm getting off topic as usual. This thread is about the DMT aligner for sharpening serrated edges. The sharpening notch is just the only thing I use if for since I don't use serrated edge EDC knives. For anyone with questions about different methods or tools for sharpening serrated edges this one deserves consideration IMO.
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jackknifeh
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Re: Serrated edge sharpening tool

#2

Post by jackknifeh »

I forgot one benefit of this tool. With careful use you can maintain the very sharp points on each serration. I've tried sharpening serrated edges with the tools like this without the blade clamp. For me it would take quite a bit of practice to be able to keep the edge looking good. Mine always ended up with different angles in each serration, rounding off some of the tips, etc.
bdblue
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Re: Serrated edge sharpening tool

#3

Post by bdblue »

I bought a used SE Endura to play with and it came very dull. It will take a lot of work with the DMT rod to sharpen this knife. I've wondered if it would be better to use something like a chainsaw round stone to sharpen the big serrations.

This Endura has the combination of big serrations and small serrations. The DMT rod will work in the big serrations but not in the small ones. I think the corner of a Sharpmaker rod will work in the small serrations but this will take a lot of work as well.

Once I sharpen it I want to do some comparison cutting between the SE Endura and a PE blade. I've always thought it would be easy to sharpen a SE blade with good equipment but it also helps to not let the knife get extremely dull.
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Evil D
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Re: Serrated edge sharpening tool

#4

Post by Evil D »

Tapered diamond rod and a Dremel with a cotton buffing wheel loaded with the compound of your choice. It'll change your outlook on SE.
JD Spydo
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Re: Serrated edge sharpening tool

#5

Post by JD Spydo »

I personally find Spyderco's currently discontinued 701 Profiles to be much better at sharpening serrated edges>> especially for Spyderedges and most other serration patterns too. If they ever bring back the 701 Profiles I hope that they add 2 more grits i.e. diamond and ultra-fine.

Now I'm always open to check out other equipment to sharpen serrations with but those 701 Profiles fit the spikes and scallops almost perfectly and keep the serrated edge in the same shape as when they left the factory.
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Evil D
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Re: Serrated edge sharpening tool

#6

Post by Evil D »

JD Spydo wrote:I personally find Spyderco's currently discontinued 701 Profiles to be much better at sharpening serrated edges>> especially for Spyderedges and most other serration patterns too. If they ever bring back the 701 Profiles I hope that they add 2 more grits i.e. diamond and ultra-fine.

Now I'm always open to check out other equipment to sharpen serrations with but those 701 Profiles fit the spikes and scallops almost perfectly and keep the serrated edge in the same shape as when they left the factory.
Have you tried the Dremel after your 701 yet?
JD Spydo
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Re: Serrated edge sharpening tool

#7

Post by JD Spydo »

Evil D wrote:
JD Spydo wrote:I personally find Spyderco's currently discontinued 701 Profiles to be much better at sharpening serrated edges>> especially for Spyderedges and most other serration patterns too. If they ever bring back the 701 Profiles I hope that they add 2 more grits i.e. diamond and ultra-fine.

Now I'm always open to check out other equipment to sharpen serrations with but those 701 Profiles fit the spikes and scallops almost perfectly and keep the serrated edge in the same shape as when they left the factory.
Have you tried the Dremel after your 701 yet?
No Evil I haven't done that yet>> I'll be going out to my storage unit here in a couple of days and I'm going to get my big Dremel kit and see what all I have. I do like your idea and I've sort of kept it on the back burner. I'm going to check it out because I'm sure you're on to something that works good.

Again I would also like Spyderco to not only bring back the 701 Profiles but to also add the diamond and ultra-fine grits. I'm sure that would open up several new target markets for Spyderco i.e. like machinists, gunsmiths, jewelers ect.
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Evil D
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Re: Serrated edge sharpening tool

#8

Post by Evil D »

JD Spydo wrote:
Evil D wrote:
JD Spydo wrote:I personally find Spyderco's currently discontinued 701 Profiles to be much better at sharpening serrated edges>> especially for Spyderedges and most other serration patterns too. If they ever bring back the 701 Profiles I hope that they add 2 more grits i.e. diamond and ultra-fine.

Now I'm always open to check out other equipment to sharpen serrations with but those 701 Profiles fit the spikes and scallops almost perfectly and keep the serrated edge in the same shape as when they left the factory.
Have you tried the Dremel after your 701 yet?
No Evil I haven't done that yet>> I'll be going out to my storage unit here in a couple of days and I'm going to get my big Dremel kit and see what all I have. I do like your idea and I've sort of kept it on the back burner. I'm going to check it out because I'm sure you're on to something that works good.

Again I would also like Spyderco to not only bring back the 701 Profiles but to also add the diamond and ultra-fine grits. I'm sure that would open up several new target markets for Spyderco i.e. like machinists, gunsmiths, jewelers ect.

I'll be second in line for those 701's if they come in different grits (assuming you would be first in line lol).

As for the Dremel, if you already get sharp edges with your 701 or something else, the Dremel is going to push your edge to the next level. There's nothing quite like a razor sharp SE.
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