Freehand Knife Sharpening (With Stones/Plates)

[john_pifer]

The recent thread in the Firearms/Lubes/Cleaners section got me interested in knives and freehand knife-sharpening. I started watching YouTube videos on knives and sharpening, and quickly fell down the rabbit hole. My goal is to get to the point where I can bring up a hair-whittling edge on a blade.

Just bought a set of DMT (Diamond Machining Technology) diamond-coated sharpening plates (extra coarse, coarse, fine, extra fine), a dual-sided paddle strop with one side suede and the other side smooth leather, some green honing compound, and also ordered some diamond-infused spray compounds (1 micron, 0.5 micron, 0.25 micron, and 0.125 micron).

I have several cheap knives laying around that I'll start practicing on. The other night, I was playing around with a cheap steak knife. Messed with it for quite a while. Never was able to detect a burr on either side. But I did get it to where it would slice paper pretty cleanly. Obviously a lot more practice and research is needed!

Who else is into knife collecting and sharpening? Anything you've learned that you've found to be essential or valuable information?

 

[uc50ic4more]

I have a whetstone (one side of coarse, the other fine) that I use for kitchen and hunting knives 2x/ year. I test them by shaving the hair on my arms. :^)

It makes for a surprisingly fun afternoon.

 

[joekingcorvette]

I used to be a meat cutter and was interested in keeping a sharp knife. I also filleted lots of fish with a regular knife before going to electric. I use a Norton 3 sided sharpener which is bathed in olive oil. You start with the coarse then use the next one then finish with the fine stone then steel the knife. Some knives have different angles and if you have trouble getting them sharp change the angle and gradually you can get the blade honed down to where you find it easiest to sharpen the knife. I have about a dozen different fillet knives and some other knives as well. I usually spend about an hour and sharpen them all at the same time.

 

[demarpaint]

It is an art, I give mine to my father. He was a butcher. When he's done sharpening a knife I can shave with it.

 

[Virtus_Probi]

Originally Posted by uc50ic4more
I have a whetstone (one side of coarse, the other fine) that I use for kitchen and hunting knives 2x/ year. I test them by shaving the hair on my arms. :^)
It makes for a surprisingly fun afternoon.

I can get a good knife amazingly sharp with a whetstone, but I need to pick up a new one soon! I've had my present one for over 20 years...

 

[Snagglefoot]

Whetstone for me. Way better than a steel sharpener. But I'm no pro like some of you guys.

 

[Al]

I have a 9" long 5/16" ceramic bar. Just sharpen it like a butcher knife. W orks well when you get the hang of it.

Discussing knife sharpening is like arguing politics.

 

[john_pifer]

Originally Posted by Al
I have a 9" long 5/16" ceramic bar. Just sharpen it like a butcher knife. W orks well when you get the hang of it.

Discussing knife sharpening is like arguing politics.


Aw geez... Don't bring "P" into it!

 

[BigD1]

Hair whittling sharp will be easier with water stones I would think.

I have tried lots of sharpening stones over the years including DMT diamond, water stones, ceramic, and Norton stones. Never did buy a translucent Arkansas because they are very expensive, but I still want one.

Nowadays, A Norton Crystolon (silicon carbide) combination bench stone in coarse/fine does what I need it to do. It sharpens fast, and it leaves a nasty toothy cutting edge.

 

[john_pifer]

Originally Posted by BigD1
Hair whittling sharp will be easier with water stones I would think.

I have tried lots of sharpening stones over the years including DMT diamond, water stones, ceramic, and Norton stones. Never did buy a translucent Arkansas because they are very expensive, but I still want one.

Nowadays, A Norton Crystolon (silicon carbide) combination bench stone in coarse/fine does what I need it to do. It sharpens fast, and it leaves a nasty toothy cutting edge.




Nice!

I look forward to doing a lot of practicing, reading, watching videos, and learning what works and what doesn't.

The main reason I went with the diamond plates is that I'm interested in getting some knives with the high-carbide "supersteels", like the CPM S90V, 110V, etc, and I've heard that diamond is the way to go on those. And, of course, the diamond plates will also sharpen regular steel, too. But I'm sure some stones are in my future, also.

I've also heard that these DMTs last for years.

 

[BigD1]

The DMT's are definitely good that's for sure. My favorite is the extra coarse because it can fix a bad edge fast.

Water stones are messy, and they have to be flattened periodically. They are what I call less forgiving on creating a super sharp edge compared to a diamond stone and other stones. A 3000/4000 grit water stone is going to leave a mirror edge. When I would get a good slurry going with a water stone, it was like so easy to get a scary edge. Just not worth the effort for me now, but it sure was enjoyable when I was doing it.

 

[hatt]

Something like this has always worked the best for me.
You have to change up technique a bit if not doing a Scandinavian grind. I bought a Spyderco Sharpmaker but I never got great results.This guy has a bunch of good knife videos.

 

[john_pifer]

Originally Posted by hatt
Something like this has always worked the best for me.
You have to change up technique a bit if not doing a Scandinavian grind. I bought a Spyderco Sharpmaker but I never got great results.This guy has a bunch of good knife videos.


Good video, Hatt. Thanks for posting that. I'm going to watch more of his videos.

I liked that stone. Pretty, and sounds good when he's honing that blade on it. I like his description of slicing the water off the stone. Just good all around tips.

Maybe I'll have some time after work tomorrow to play with mine a bit.

I think I'll also order an Opinel knife or two to practice with. They're like $10-15 on Amazon. Carbon steel, thin blade, wood handle. Supposedly the "best cheap knives" you can get. I've seen the edge on one brought up to "hair-whittling sharp" on one. This is a guy called Michael Christy. I've gotten addicted to his channel over the last couple weeks. Be careful - it's addicting to watch how good of an edge he can bring up on a blade. Also lots of cool Spyderco pocket knives.

 

[BigD1]

Mora fixed blade knives are good and cheap. Carbon and stainless available too.

 

[john_pifer]

Originally Posted by BigD1
Mora fixed blade knives are good and cheap. Carbon and stainless available too.


Thanks. I'll check those out.

I also want to get a high-magnification jeweler's loupe for inspection of the edge bevel.