Rounding my Tips–Help!

[mike]

I am still somewhat or a newbie with my WEPS. Lately I’ve been rounding my tips something awful.

I was wondering if anyone knew the most common causes of this, so I could try and troubleshoot what I’m doing. I am unsure if it’s my technique, my set-up, both, etc.

Thank you in advance.

[tcmeyer]

mctrinket:

Usually, rounding the tip is a result of your control of the stones. Don’t run the stone completely off the tip. Finish your stroke with the block still on the edge or lifted off.

On the chance that I’m wrong, can you post a photo of the problem – like of a tip with this “rounding problem? Better yet, a video of your motion?

[mike]

Thank you tcmeyer. I may well be sweeping past the tip. Perhaps I need to slow it down.

[wickededge]

It might be helpful to pay attention to the pressure your thumbs and fingertips are applying to the stone. I find that when I put too much pressure at my fingertips, the stone wants to rotate toward the tip of the knife and rounds the tip as I finish the forward stroke. You can balance this effect by lightening the pressure in your fingertips and/or adding a little pressure with your thumbs to keep the plane of the stone constant.

-Clay

[tcmeyer]

There you go grasshopper! Wisdom from the master.

[Pat]

A tendency to round tips comes likely from too much pressure on the stones while sharpening.

If you need to remove a lot of metal at a time, up and down strokes are best while moving SLOWLY along the edge to keep things even. If you are stroking along the entire edge after you have apexed to your desired angle, then you should really lighten up a lot and stroke right past the tip without tending to move around it. You will find when you lighten up your touch, you will not tend to round it off.

If you do round it off some, you can go back and work at the tip slowly, ensuring the tip is flat against the stones.

Also, get a 20x lighted loop to inspect….this will change your sharpening life forever, if you don’t already have one.

[Steven N. Bolin]

I definitely agree with everyone about paying attention to the pressure.

I actually was telling my girlfriend of 5 years the other day how what I thought was light pressure was still WAY TOO MUCH pressure. My advice is mount a larger kitchen knife on your WEPS for practice. The longer edge will give you more surface area to focus on with every pass. Also, when you approach the tip apply a bit more pressure to the tips of your thumbs, and keep that same pressure as you come off the tip. Try not to focus on any other aspect of your technique while your try this.

I hope to make a brief YouTube video discussing the issue.

In the mean time, give it a few shots and don’t lose heart!

[tcmeyer]

Tonight I was sharpening a batch of small folders and without realizing it, found I was using a particular stroke to avoid damaging the point. I use a very deliberate “down and toward me” motion, beginning with the stone sitting on the point. I only let about 1/3 of the stone width extended past the point. This ensures that the stone is flat on the bevel and cannot rock about the tip.

On a somewhat related matter, I also solve the problem of getting the pronounced grind lines one stone width from the rise at the heel (the ricasso). Using the same principle as described above, I start strokes from the near end of the bevel with the stone resting flat on the bevel and the side of the stone resting against the ricasso. Strokes are then started forward and upward. The idea is to never allow the stone to move vertically at this point, a motion which will cause a distinct whoopsie in the bevel appearance.

You blend the grind lines from the two motions somewhere in the middle. In the knives I was doing, the blades are only 2″ long, so the “down and toward me” strokes are almost full length.

Granted, this whole method requires deliberate motions. For the most part, I stone one side at a time, taking care not to deviate from the principles I described here.

[Pat]

Concerning the tip-start stroke you described, that is how I ensure to make or keep a good tip. If the tip is not well defined already, I will reset it by scraping a stone 200 or 400 grit along the spine at the tip to bring the spine side of the tip back, then along the edge to handle the edge side of the tip. It takes a lot longer to reform a tip with normal sharpening than to do this first.

@tcmeyer – I really appreciate the way you have described the fact that you have to be deliberate and take your time, especially on the areas that are quickly destroyed, like the tip.

Concerning up and down strokes, when reprofiling, you will do a lot of those…I just found that you should inspect your progress very often and keep the stone moving laterally as you move vertically, else you will create a dip in the bevel quickly.

[Mr.Wizard]

tcmeyer, I am having trouble visualizing what you are describing. If you have the patience could you draw an illustration?

[Leo Barr]

Tcmeyer sums up a good method to avoid rounding the point or another point is the tip of the heel on a Japanese knife.
You should firstly slow down the WE is a tool not a machine which means that the results will vary greatly depending on your attention if your plates are sliding off and down from the tip then you will remove it . Ideally the stone should be perpendicular to the edge a longer knife may well make this positioning of the plates impossible so as mentioned by Tcmeyer stroke inward this will prevent this happening but the most important part of any non mechanical sharpening is to observe the effects of your efforts whether it be with freehand sharpening or a WE.
The WE performs best with a smooth repeatable rhythm , a light but firm pressure excessive pressure particularly at the tip may not only damage the shape but may well create a shallower bevel through flex.
The trick is to constantly look carefully at the effect the sharpening is having on the bevel you will find at first a loupe is vital but over time your eyes will begin to recognise the bevel shape without the loupe.
I would suggest that you look in detail at the bevel every 5 passes maximum this will prevent any real damage either through bad strokes , the set angles slipping or the vice working loose.

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