Sharpening question

[Brackish]

My father left his Gatco 5 stone sharpening system with me, because I’ve asked him to borrow it so many times. I spent about 20 minutes on my Mini-Grip (154CM) today. Started with the fine stone, because I’ve recently sharpened it. I was shooting for shaving sharp, but I just wasn’t able to get there. Any tips or tricks you guys can offer? I don’t own a strop of any type, so that’s not an option. Do I even want it that sharp?

Thanks!

[blues]

After you clamped the knife were you able to determine (by blackening the bevel with a Sharpie or marker), whether your angle was set so that you removed steel from the entire bevel?

If so, did you bring up a burr on the entire opposite side from the side you were working? And then bring up a burr on the other side?

And finally, did you remove the burr by gentle strokes with the abrasive (at a slightly higher angle if necessary)?

You may have some remaining burr. Try slicing newsprint or phone book paper and see if the edge catches in a few spots.

That's one place to start. (You might consider a slightly coarser hone next time if you have to start over.)

[Brackish]

After you clamped the knife were you able to determine (by blackening the bevel with a Sharpie or marker), whether your angle was set so that you removed steel from the entire bevel?

If so, did you bring up a burr on the entire opposite side from the side you were working? And then bring up a burr on the other side?

And finally, did you remove the burr by gentle strokes with the abrasive (at a slightly higher angle if necessary)?

You may have some remaining burr. Try slicing newsprint or phone book paper and see if the edge catches in a few spots.

That's one place to start. (You might consider a slightly coarser hone next time if you have to start over.)

I didn’t use a sharpie because the system allows you to set the angle. First time I sharpened it, I went from coarse (for quite a bit) all the way through fine to be sure the angle was correct.

How do I determine if I have created a burr?

Yes, I did finish each side with light pressure using the fine stone.

I’ll grab a newspaper while I’m out tomorrow. Don’t have that or a phone book. It did catch on regular paper though. Tore it actually.

Thanks for the reply!

[blues]

You're very welcome.

Okay, the system lets you set an angle...but that angle doesn't necessarily match the angle of your edge bevel. (Also, any difference in the spot you clamp the knife since the last time you did it can change the angle somewhat.)

If the angle on the clamp is too low (shallow), you'll be sharpening above the edge, probably near the shoulder of the bevel.

If the angle is too high, then you'll sharpen the edge but you'll be creating a new, more obtuse bevel.

Mark the edge bevel with a marker and see where a couple of light strokes removes the marker. Try to set the Gatco so that you are removing the marker from the full width of the bevel.

Once you are sharpening and reach the edge, you'll create a burr on the side of the edge apex opposite the one you are sharpening on.

You can feel it with a fingernail or sometimes with a fingertip as you run them down toward the edge from above. (NOT along the edge... but from spine to edge.) Once you have a burr the whole length of the edge, do the same thing on the other side.

Then you have to remove the burr as explained above.

The fact that you are tearing the paper means that you either have a dull edge or have portions of burr / wire edge that need to be removed.

I think you'll have to read some threads that explain the process in greater depth so you'll know exactly what you're looking for as you sharpen.

Another tip is to look at the edge under bright light. A sharp edge will not reflect light. So if you see light being reflected as you look down at the edge from above, then you know that you have more work to do...whether sharpening or removing the burr.

[brainfriction]

All good points. Getting that even burr across the whole edge is key, sometimes you'll get a burr in one spot, so you'll want to focus on the areas where it hasn't formed yet. The burr is pretty easy to feel if you're starting out with a coarse stone, I usually check with a fingernail or you can even try cutting through a piece of paper towel, if the burr has formed it will usually snag small bits of paper.

The other thing, are all the stones close to the same thickness? Sometimes with a guided system, the coarser stones will wear out faster and you'll end up with stones of varied thickness. Then when you switch from one stone to the other you're changing your sharpening angle just enough to make it difficult to get that hair popping edge that you're after. If that's the case you can compensate for the different stones, and check with a sharpie every time you move to a different stone.

[Dee]

Brackish,
Gatco and lansky depend on consistency in how they are clamped for results. The first time you sharpen on them, make a tracing outline on paper of the knife in the clamp. The next times you sharpen, put the knife and clamp on top of the tracing to make sure they match before tightening the clamp. A little variation and you will be stroking for a long time with those little stones before you see any sharp results. Also it only takes a little downward pressure on the rod (between the edge of the blade and the guide hole) to bow the rod and stone. This raises the bottom end of the stone, puts the contact point on the top shoulder of the bevel and will keep you from ever apexing. Only use pressure directly above the bevel, or on the stone below the bevel. The latter will keep the stone on the apex, although too aggressive might give you a bit of convex.

[sal]

Hi Dee,

Welcome to our forum.

sal

[Dee]

Aloha Sal,
Thanks for the welcome. I live in Honolulu.
Dee