Sharpmaker question

[Brant]

For those who have the additional Ultra Fine Stone triangle, did you purchase 2 or do you use one and flip it to hone blades? I guess I’m asking is it worth getting two or can you make do with one? Can you make do without it, or was it a worthy purchase that makes the blade that much sharper?

Thanks

[Coastal]

I bought 2, and haven't used them for a couple years. I like the larger grits better.

[Sharp Guy]

I have two UF as well but rarely use them too. I don't even use the fine stones anymore. Usually always the mediums.

[ImHereForTheMilitary2]

I haven't bought them or the diamond stone yet but they're on my list for when I need them

[WilliamMunny]

I think you need two. Even if you flipped it, it would be that much harder to hold your knife angle.

[zuludelta]

For those who have the additional Ultra Fine Stone triangle, did you purchase 2 or do you use one and flip it to hone blades? I guess I’m asking is it worth getting two or can you make do with one? Can you make do without it, or was it a worthy purchase that makes the blade that much sharper?

You can make do with just one, but it is so much easier & more convenient to use two at the same time. Time is money, as they say, and I think if you add up all the time you will save instead of wasting time repeatedly flipping a single UF rod over years of use (if you do alternating passes), it will be worth it.

As for the benefits of the UF rods themselves... that's really up to your use case. I don't think you need them if all you're after is a perfectly functional working edge. The Medium & Fine rods will work just fine for that. I've been able to get hair-whittling edges on my kitchen knives using just the Fine rods. I use the UF rods primarily as part of a progression towards a more polished edge on simpler ingot steels (e.g., 154CM, 14C28N, VG10, Nitro-V, 9Cr18MoV, etc.), mostly just for looks (I don't see much functional improvement, and I sometimes overpolish the edges & take some of the "bite" out of them). It's a fairly specific & limited use case, if I'm being honest.

If you're looking to buy extra rods for your Sharpmaker, a more versatile addition might be the CBN rods or the Diamond rods. They make reprofiling/repairing a knife using the Sharpmaker a more practical option, and they are also the best sharpening tool I've found for use on serrated blades in vanadium carbide-rich "super steels" like S30V, S35VN, Cru-Wear, and K390.

[Bill1170]

I never use the ultra-fine rods on my Sharpmaker, and only use the fine rods on the few knives where I want a polished edge. CBN/diamond plus medium rods do 95% of my maintenance needs.

[Murphy Slaw]

I never use the ultra-fine rods on my Sharpmaker, and only use the fine rods on the few knives where I want a polished edge. CBN/diamond plus medium rods do 95% of my maintenance needs.

Man, those CBN are the bomb, I just got mine a few weeks ago.

[mekidear]

Medium and fine then a strop is plenty for a user.

If I need something more aggressive I smear some diamond lapping paste on the medium rods - works a treat and much cheaper than the CBN rods

[Brant]

Thanks for the answers. It sounds like the original kit will probably be all I’d need!

[cabfrank]

If you're looking to buy extra rods for your Sharpmaker, a more versatile addition might be the CBN rods or the Diamond rods. They make reprofiling/repairing a knife using the Sharpmaker a more practical option, and they are also the best sharpening tool I've found for use on serrated blades in vanadium carbide-rich "super steels" like S30V, S35VN, Cru-Wear, and K390.

This is great info, kind of what I was expecting to hear. I should get a set, I'm just not sure which. I'm leaning CBN.

[fanglekai]

I just use the brown stones anymore. You can get a pretty refined edge with the F and UF, but I get clean phonebook paper slicing from the brown stones, so I stop there.