11-19-2016
Sharpening Knives
This is an amazingly complex subject, with all manner of lore,
not to mention gadgets you can buy. You can sharpen free hand,
but most people are best served with some kind of jig to maintain
a constant angle. There seem to be 3 levels of skill in knife sharpening:
- People who grind away with some stone and who don't really have a clue.
- People who use a guided system.
- Artists who sharpen freehand with a series of special stones.
I own the Spyderco "Sharpmaker" and feel it is an excellent choice if you don't want
to spend a lot of money on a fancier system.
Many people who own a fancy guided system also own and use a Sharpmaker.
The sharpmaker costs about $60.
The Sharpmaker though is for keeping knives sharp.
If you have a seriously dull or abused knife, or want to reprofile a knife,
you most definitely want something else.
The above is an SEM image of a Spyderco factory edge on K390 steel
taken by Todd Simpson from "Science of Sharp".
Feedback? Questions?
Drop me a line!
Tom's Knife Info / tom@mmto.org