Freehand sharpening: a conversion in progress?

[gibs0n]

I recently received a fantastic deal on a Techno 1. The point was a bit blunted, not terribly but enough that the tip wouldn’t even penetrate paper.

I love my sharpmaker and I’ve used it to restore talon like pointy tips to both of my crickets and my friend’s Delica. But I couldn’t get the tip back using my regular (and note: totally novice) tricks. (A note here: I’m sure a hard core collector or sharpening whiz would scoff at my work, but it’s sufficient for me.)

At first I thought it was just the XHP being difficult, and maybe it was. But I decided to make a run at it with freehand. I turned my sharpmaker over, put the brown stones in the slots, and did a handful of strokes where the tip should be pointy.

And just like that, a nice sharp point took shape that with the slightest pressure puts a pin hole puncture in paper! A few more strokes for the edge on the back of the sharpmaker and now it’s a very even and sharp edge!

All that to say: I think I’m becoming a convert to free hand / bench stones. Might have to pick up some Spyderco stones and practice this some more! I think years of using the sharpmaker has given me a pretty good feel for what the angle against the flat should look like.

Any suggestions for good bench stones? I’ve only ever used the sharpmaker.

[TkoK83Spy]

When using the sharpmaker as a benchstone, isn't there a gap between the stones? I think I set mine up one day and there was a gap, or the stones didn't set evenly. One rested lower than the other.

First benchstone I got was a medium grit Smiths stone from Dicks for like $18. Served me just fine. Was quicker than a sharpmaker once I got the knack of it. The ease of maintaining a perfect edge with various grit stones is what drew me to the Sharpmaker.

[p_atrick]

There is a gap on mine. The narrow rods also make freehand sharpening with the SM a bit more tedious. It'll work in a pinch, but get a wider stone if you really want to freehand. I do have to say that the way Michael Christy sharpens with the SM rods is interesting. He sets one end of the rod on a table and holds the other. He then sharpens the knife in this configuration, and he can move quite fast as well. I tried it, but could not keep consistent angles for both the rod and the blade. I'd need lots more practice to use this method without messing up the blade.

[blues]

There are lots of good choices for bench stones, (including the Spyderco ceramics in M-F-UF), but it would help to know what steels you are generally working with.

Some good choices would include anything from Norton's Silicon Carbide (Crystolon) and Aluminum Oxide (India), to Shapton Glass water stones or plated or bonded diamond bench stones. Each have their own strengths and weaknesses.

[vivi]

Spyderco makes some very nice stones.

My personal setup is the Spyderco medium bench stone for maintaining my edge, and a DMT XX course for reprofiling bevels.

[bearfacedkiller]

Grinding the spine down can do wonders when trying to restore a pointy tip.

Some diamond stones combined with the Spyderco stones makes a very effective set of bench stones. DMT are nice but if on a budget you can get some Lansky diamond benchstones for cheap. A coarse/fine Lansky diamond stone is my beater benchstone and I don’t have any real complaints with it.

[Deadboxhero]

Naniwa professional stones are nice.
I like the 400, 800, 3k

The Naniwa Diamond Waterstones are better I recommend those especially since there on sale at Japanwoodworker for $100ish per stone which is well below cost.

DMTs area cheaper but don't last as long and leave a scratchy finish which may be beneficial depending on the objective.

Spyderco ceramic for benchstones, Eh. Loads too fast compared to others, advantage being they dish less but there are better stones that have the same feature yet cut any carbides, cut faster and finish better like the Naniwa Diamond Waterstones.

Venev Diamond, good for the money, affordable resin bonded diamond stones. Better then the Spyderco ceramic IMHO just not as well known, it's a sleeper. Made in Russia.

King stones, the classic mud bricks. Excellent feel and finish but lack cutting power and dishes fast.

Naniwa super stone, Not for stainless pocket knife steels, resin stones with alumina abrasive made for single bevel and razors cut too slow and dish fast on other applications.

Shapton glass- comparable/same as the Naniwa Professionals, (Ford vs Chevy) they are magnesia bonded, splash and go Ceramic/alumina abrasive.
I prefer Naniwa, cheaper and more stone.

Atoma, superior to DMT but still wears out and finishs toothier then the grit rating.

When looking at stones you only need two to three grits. So don't go crazy.

Course medium and fine.

Really you only need the course and the medium

Coarse (200-400) Medium(800-1500)

For example, 400 then to a 1000 is a very basic jump.

Some stones can make bigger jumps, some can only do small jumps.

If I could only have one stone it would be an 800 grit stone.

You can strop off the medium with a 1um Diamond Spray on leather and tree top hair like a boss without overpolishing the apex.

[Deadboxhero]

Another classic stone everyone starts with is a Norton India stone. It's a synthetic oil stone made out of sintered aluminum oxide abrasive grains with very minimal bonding. Use it with Windex or simply green for the best results. A similar stone is the Norton Crystolon which uses Silicon Carbide.

Also with any of the stones besides the resin diamond and Spyderco ceramic you need to invest in a method to keep them flat be it a special flattening tool or a piece of glass with loose Silicon Carbide grit.

[Surfingringo]

I have a Llanky diamond combo (325/600 I think) that has worked great. It’s about 5 years old and still going strong. Very affordable too.

[Deadboxhero]

I have a Llanky diamond combo (325/600 I think) that has worked great. It’s about 5 years old and still going strong. Very affordable too.

Too pricey Lance :D :D :D

[Pelagic]

Freehand is very fun and satisfying.

[gibs0n]

Grinding the spine down can do wonders when trying to restore a pointy tip.

Exactly what I did!

I discovered I think the tip was blunted because the backspacer was replaced with standoffs. Which looked great but allowed the tip to be easily brushed by anything entering the pocket or otherwise brushing against the back end of the handle. Swapped the stand offs back out for the stock backspacer for now, and it’s much more difficult to come into contact with the blade closed.

Now to find a nice after market backspacer. Preferably moonglow.

[vivi]

Naniwa professional stones are nice.
I like the 400, 800, 3k

The Naniwa Diamond Waterstones are better I recommend those especially since there on sale at Japanwoodworker for $100ish per stone which is well below cost.

DMTs area cheaper but don't last as long and leave a scratchy finish which may be beneficial depending on the objective.

Spyderco ceramic for benchstones, Eh. Loads too fast compared to others, advantage being they dish less but there are better stones that have the same feature yet cut any carbides, cut faster and finish better like the Naniwa Diamond Waterstones.

Venev Diamond, good for the money, affordable resin bonded diamond stones. Better then the Spyderco ceramic IMHO just not as well known, it's a sleeper. Made in Russia.

King stones, the classic mud bricks. Excellent feel and finish but lack cutting power and dishes fast.

Naniwa super stone, Not for stainless pocket knife steels, resin stones with alumina abrasive made for single bevel and razors cut too slow and dish fast on other applications.

Shapton glass- comparable/same as the Naniwa Professionals, (Ford vs Chevy) they are magnesia bonded, splash and go Ceramic/alumina abrasive.
I prefer Naniwa, cheaper and more stone.

Atoma, superior to DMT but still wears out and finishs toothier then the grit rating.

When looking at stones you only need two to three grits. So don't go crazy.

Course medium and fine.

Really you only need the course and the medium

Coarse (200-400) Medium(800-1500)

For example, 400 then to a 1000 is a very basic jump.

Some stones can make bigger jumps, some can only do small jumps.

If I could only have one stone it would be an 800 grit stone.

You can strop off the medium with a 1um Diamond Spray on leather and tree top hair like a boss without overpolishing the apex.

Great advice here.

I'd add that sometimes slow cutting stones are a good thing. For touch-ups I don't want to remove more steel than I have to. That's why I got away from diamonds for finishing my edges. They're great for setting bevels though!

[gibs0n]

Spyderco makes some very nice stones.

My personal setup is the Spyderco medium bench stone for maintaining my edge, and a DMT XX course for reprofiling bevels.

Which medium? I see the 303 and the 302. I’m leaning toward the 302 because it’s wider, are there any other functional differences? I too primarily use medium for maintence.

[gibs0n]

I’ll also note that all my EDC knives are s30v or XHP. May get s110v one of these days.

My tasks are fairly light: mail, tape, fruit. Rarely but occasionally harder like twigs or cardboard.

[razorsharp]

On Aliexpress and Wish you can buy sharpening plates from 80 grit to 3000 grit for a few dollars each. I would pick up the 220, 400, 800, 1200, 2000 and 3000 grit plates and have a play with those. They leave very good edges for the money spent.

[vivi]

Spyderco makes some very nice stones.

My personal setup is the Spyderco medium bench stone for maintaining my edge, and a DMT XX course for reprofiling bevels.

Which medium? I see the 303 and the 302. I’m leaning toward the 302 because it’s wider, are there any other functional differences? I too primarily use medium for maintence.

The 2x8" 302m.

https://www.knifecenter.com/item/SP302M ... azor-Stone

The extra length and width vs a sharpmaker stone give me a better edge.

[Bill1170]

In a pinch away from home I can find a Norton Crystolon stone at most hardware stores. They are cheap and they cut well. At home I prefer diamond plates plus water stones for polishing. Sharpmaker for maintenance.