Turnaround time on factory sharpening?

[catamount]

Using my beginner Sharpmaker skills, I managed to make my ZDP Caly Jr. less sharp I think I'll send it in, but I'm gonna miss it while it's gone

[d.g.g]

I wouldn't if I were you. You have to the tools and the instructions to make it crispy sharp! Be patient and start with the grey and be sure the knife is very sharp at each step before proceeding to the next step. The ceramic rods on 10 times harder than the ZDP189. Be patient. It may take an hour to get it sharp. The biggest problem I had with the Sharpmaker were the instructions. I never could make 20 or whatever passes on the rods and voila', knife was sharp. I learned to keep at it until it was sharp.

Are you using the 40 degree rod setting? I would.

[BlackNinja]

I wouldn't if I were you. You have to the tools and the instructions to make it crispy sharp! Be patient and start with the grey and be sure the knife is very sharp at each step before proceeding to the next step. The ceramic rods on 10 times harder than the ZDP189. Be patient. It may take an hour to get it sharp. The biggest problem I had with the Sharpmaker were the instructions. I never could make 20 or whatever passes on the rods and voila', knife was sharp. I learned to keep at it until it was sharp.

Are you using the 40 degree rod setting? I would.

I would have to agree with not sending it in! I think the turnaround time is 4-6 weeks. In that time, I'm sure you can get eneugh practice. I'm a newbie with the Sharpmaker myself. Some knives I got razor sharp, and others I made more dull. I need a lot more practice, to say the least. The only I've sharpened so far was my Military, and I think I got it sharper than when it came! I tried it on some C/S knives, with mixed results. Some BMs which I only got one razor sharp, and others with mixed results. Right now, I'm working on kitchen knives. I'll practice with these (and other POS knives I picked up) until I ever use it on one of my nicer users. Good Luck

Joe

[ront]

Hi Tom,
I agree with what the others have said. I had a bit of a time with my Sharpmaker when I first got it, but just keep working with it. It WILL come to you and then you will love it!

Ron

[Axlis]

I'm thinking of doing a send in on my Harpy too . I can't seem to get rid of the burr, like it's just getting worse!

[vinny72xx]

The trick for me was to make an even number of passes on the stones, alternating sides after EACH pass. 1 left, 1 right: ONE. 1 left, 1 right: TWO. 1 left, 1 right: THREE, etc., etc...........until sharp - works like a charm.
The instructions just say do an even number on each side, so I did 20 on one side, then 20 on the other, and was always left with a burr on one side. Then I watched the video that came with my Sharpmaker, and AH HAAAA.......there was Sal doing one left, one right...........................

[zenheretic]

Turnaround varies per the amount of backlog, of course. I just got one back and it was about 6 weeks.

[vampyrewolf]

Even I get good and bad days sharpening.

Most days I can shave hair no problem in under 5min.... some days, I'd be doing good to cut melted butter with the 'edge' I end up with . But thats why we all have more than one carry knife. Can leave it on the table, and come back to it in a day or so.

Hell, I even had to use my 204 to get my zowada popping sharp last time, freehand just wasn't cutting it(REALLY need to clean the stone, the 204 barely gets used so the stones stay cleaner). Nothing like all 4 stages at 30deg, about 10 strokes each, to restore my hair popping edge. Even the serrations pop hair after a quick stropping.

I'd say watch the vid a few times, memorize the book, watch the vid a couple more times, and then take your time with the 204. Slow, steady strokes are better than whipping your edge along the stone. You will maintain your angle and contact area better with a controlled motion. You only need about 2kg worth of pressure on the greys and about 1kg on the whites. By using less pressure on the finer stone you are less likely to raise a burr when it can be a real pain to remove.

I fully admit that when I work freehand I can go 2-3x faster than with the 204, but thats because I KNOW my angle will be more or less constant(1-2 deg doesn't matter to me, 5 does). I just use the same finger position all the time and keep the stone on my leg. Can feel if the knife is hitting wrong, never mind hearing it. I've only missed the stone once, only failed in missing my fingers twice Years of experience is a wonderful thing.

Just keep working away at it, you will eventually learn how to get shaving sharp edges with little effort. And along the way you can always buy new toys to learn on. I'm always learning new tricks.