Ballpark expected Bess scores for different stones

Welcome to the W.E. Forum JackStraw.

Give yourself some time.  Consistent, predictable sharp results using your WEPS takes time and lots of practice.  Even after I thought I knew what I was doing since I was producing nicely sharpened knife edges, I saw my results continue to improve.  As I sharpened more for years after that, my edges improved as I gained even more experience and refined my methods further.

I have never sharpened any knife intentionally to just 600 grit. (That doesn’t mean other knife sharpeners shouldn’t do that.  I’ve just never had the need to do that). With W.E. diamond stones I usually take any edge I sharpen to a minimum of 1500 grit.  Some better knives through 3000 grit.  Then they’re finished with my usual strop regimen, 4µ/2µ.  The only way I know when I’ve finished with any grit, is when it’s as sharp as I believe it’s going to get and it looks as good as I think it can look. That is usually when continued sharpening efforts with that grit brings no further edge improvement.  If you’re in doubt that you’re finished with a grit, do more strokes.

I’m not a stroke counter, my methods are results driven.  I just do whatever I feel I need to.  I do sort of keep track of how much edge work I do, but just to keep my sharpening strokes balanced somewhat equally, knife side to side.  Whatever and however I sharpen the left side I do the same to the right side. That is for a 50/50 symmetrical beveled knife.  Asymmetrical grinds are individual by the knife.

To remove a knife from the WE130 to test the sharpness on the BESS Edge-On-Up after each grit to determine the current sharpness seems like a lot of work.  I test for sharpness progress by pulling a small strip of newsprint or phone book paper down onto the clamped knife’s sharpened edge.  I compare the feel and sound from repeated tests I perform as I continue sharpening with a given grit.  It’s easy to feel improvements with this method.  When the edge is sharper you’ll know it.

I still continue working with my Edge-On-Up to gain confidence in my readings.  Every sharpened knife I test I’m still using that as an opportunity to learn about using my Edge-On-Up tester, better.  The only readings I can repeat consistently are double edge razor blades and standard gram weights. These I purchased to use as a control test to verify the unit for accuracy.  I have from time to time made successive sharpness tests with the exact same readings.  But not enough to think “I’ve got it”.  If I can test successive readings less than 5 grams apart, I call it a “result”.  I can usually achieve results now that I can accept in 3 or 4 repeated tests.  I test my sharpened knives at the tip, middle and heel. I’m looking for good sharpness readings and consistency all along the knife edge, tip to heel. I use the test results to refine my sharpening techniques hopefully for improved future outcomes. I still consider knife sharpening on the W.E., even after several years doing it, to be a work in progress. Every knife I’m looking to improve my technique and outcomes. I don’t re-clamp and resharpen poor scoring sharpened knives looking to improve the sharpness outcomes. I use these knives until they need to be touched up again. However long this may be.

If I can achieve a BESS score of 200 or less I know the knife is sharp. (Afterall, 300 on their chart is a high-end chef’s knife).  A chef’s knife reading of 150-140 is very sharp and very respectable and regularly achievable for me.  Closer to 135-125 is scary sharp and one of my good sharpening jobs.  Then down around 110-105 is scary sharp and less common for my chef knives but, I do see these scores every several knives.  Under 100 is rare for me and maybe suspect.  I wonder if it’s a wire edge. Usually, only a knife I’m doing just with a low test score the goal, will I get a that low a reading.  Those knives I generally finish with diamond lapping films and they’re really just for show.

I sharpen my personal chef knives generally from 17dps to 25dps.  All are done with a full grit regimen which I choose for the condition of the starting edge.  That’s generally between 500 grit and 2000-3000 grit and sometimes up to 5000 grit. I then finish each knife with 4µ/2µ strops.  All my personal knives I use so the sharpening goal is utility, durability and practicality.  The steel type has a lot to do with sharpness results. High carbon (non-stainless) steels, seem to take a sharper edge and easier with lower BESS scores than my similar style stainless steels knives when sharpened using exactly the same method with equal bevel angles.

Some do sharpen to 600 grit as a finished knife.  It’ all about what you want to do with it.  Sharpening is a very individual thing.

Yes, the 50/80 is aggressive but it has it’s place.  Being as coarse as it is it requires a pretty good break in period.  You may want to break it in on a piece of flat bar steel. You can pick up a length at Home Depot.  Just cut a suitable piece off to use in your WE130 with a hacksaw.  If a grit is causing a lot of damage it’s probably not the grit for that duty.

Experience helps to determine which grit you should use first.  It’s best to try to start with the finest grit you can get by with.  Try a grit like 400.  If that is taking too long or you have to work too hard to see the results you expect, then step down a grit to 200 and try it again.  If it’s still too tough go down to 100 grit.  The idea is to not impart heavier, deeper scratches than are needed, balanced with not wearing out the finer grit stone too soon because you should have been working with a more coarse grit.  Try the different grits.  Maybe put one on the left and the other on the right side guide rods so you can compare them directly. Afterall that’s what beater knives and learning curves are about.

Later on down the road, when you’re doing a touchup on a personal knife you previously sharpened on your WE130, 600 or 800 grit may well be your starting place.  Match the grit to the job.  Ideally we don’t want to work harder than we need to and we don’t want to waste good steel we can’t put back on the knife edge.  Enjoy the journey!

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JackStraw