Meat Cleavers

[Leo Barr]

I am currently awaiting my WE. I have sharpened several meat cleavers on an EP it is simple moving the blade around to keep it more or less perpendicular with the stone.
Bearing in mind the spine to cutting edge is probable 4 inches or more and that the edge turns almost through a right angle up to the spine ; is there a sweet spot to clamp on the WE so as to cover the edge without having to re-clamp it for the curve through 80Ëš or so up to the spine ?
I just cannot quite picture how it could be done- perhaps the apex of the curve becomes the top so both the heel and the point are downhill.
I am sure many WE owners have done them so if anyone has experience sharpening these on the WE I would be interested in some information

[cbwx34]

Maybe not quite what you’re looking for, but here’s a video where Clay shows a cleaver set up in the WE…

… and a link where he talks a bit more about it….

R&D wih new CCK cleaver.

[Leo Barr]

Those sort of Chinese cleavers or even the Global cleaver is I am sure a breeze to sharpen this one I am not so sure about. It will be a good one to wear in my stones when I get my WE.

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[cbwx34]

Ah… that makes your original post make a bit more sense.

Don’t have one… but basically it’s just two straight planes. I would think you could set the top edge like normal (similar to Clay’s video), then adjust the horizontal distance so the 2nd edge is about the same distance from the clamp as the top edge (or closer or farther if you want a little different angle). Marking with a Sharpie type marker will help find a correct “fit”. That’s what I would try first anyway.

[Leo Barr]

Okay thats one thought I had the other was to set it so that the apex of the corner so to speak was set at the top and the edges slope away from that . Not yet having the WE it is hard to know how much variation in the cutting bevel angle would be and whether that would be practical .
I am sure someone will have found the way to sharpen these and I am certain that putting it in the clamps and holding an angle cube would assist in getting the sweet spot.

[cbwx34]

You’ll see it better when you get your WE, but I think either way will work. Take a look at this photo…

(from this page Does the angle change…)

… in particular the angle change in the first example where it starts at 26.2, goes down to 25, then back up to 26. The pivot doesn’t really “see” horizontal or vertical, just the relationship to the pivot. If you’re sharpening a straight edge, the angle doesn’t change.

If you mount it like you suggest (which I’m picturing like an inverted V?), you should see the same thing… so I guess what I don’t know without having one in hand is which way would be easier to setup and duplicate as needed, and hit the angle you desire.

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[Leo Barr]

Looking at Clay sharpening Tanto type blades I think that this will probable be the way to sharpen this meat cleaver once I get the WE.

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