New to WE, New to Sharpening
- This topic has 7 replies, 4 voices, and was last updated 03/18/2020 at 5:55 am by
.
-
Hi WE forums. I’m new here.
Yesterday was my first time sharpening with a new WE 130, diamond stones, and a few choice add-ons from the local mod crew. Two things I would love to learn more about:
- Is there a place where I can see how others are organizing their sharpening area (layout and what supplies you keep close by)?
- How do I not destroy the fine, pointy tips on knives like the Benchmade Fact?
The second point is about how to hold the stones. Without a doubt, need to learn a lot more about that topic! Suggestions welcome!
Welcome to the forum BK. I suggest you watch W.E. YouTube videos. There’s plenty to gain there…some good some not so good. Take what you like and leave the rest.
Here’s one of my favorite videos for sharpening technique. (You’ll have to watch the video for a little bit before it get’s into the techniques you need to learn.) There are a lot of good videos worth watching made by Clay Allison the owner of wicked edge. Here’s his channel.
I suggest you read through the Wicked Edge “Knowledge Base” . There’s a link to helpful videos there. Also I suggest you go back about 10 pages or so on this forum and read your way forward. You’s be surprised how many of your questions are asked and answered again and again. You’ll also get a pulse on the forum for who’s in the know.
If you have a specific question for a particular forum member, you can click on their blue color type “screen name” shown under their photos, avatars or forum posts. This will direct you to the private messaging page where you can send them a private message.
Marc
(MarcH's Rack-Its)Welcome BK!
Some advise on getting the tip right:
- Get the knife clamped properly. If you have the knife clamped in a poor position then you will likely have very broad bevels at the tip. Check out the thread titled “How I find the sweet spot.”
- Don’t let the stones roll over the tip. You will have to exercise care when working the tip to keep the stones parallel to the bevels. If you rotate the stones toward the tip then you will round it.
1 user thanked author for this post.
Welcome to forum BK! One point I’d like to make after Marc’s comment about YouTube videos is to be careful in implementing some of the techniques used by those posting. Some of them seem like they’re trying to set some kind of land speed record when sharpening their knives which can be extremely dangerous when someone is new to the WEPS. Just take it slow and develop some good techniques always being aware of your surroundings.
BK, learn on junk knives. Hold off on your good stuff till after you have a better idea what you’re doing and after your sharpening stones have gotten broken-in. This can take 8 to 10 knives before the stones are yielding better sharpening results.
Many new W.E. sharpeners scour their local thrift stores for knives to sharpen to learn on. You should find knives in these shops for just a couple bucks.
Sharpening techniques are an individualized thing. Take what you like from each source you use to learn and put that together into your own individual sharpening technique. Nothing is wrong when it produces a sharp edge.
Marc
(MarcH's Rack-Its)1 user thanked author for this post.
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.