So I just purchased a used WickedEdge gen 3 – Need help choosing accessories

[HappyManny]

Hi guys, I’m Manny and I’m new to the WE forums, and knife sharpening in general.

As the title suggests, I just purchased a WickedEdge pro gen 3 on Ebay. It is just the sharperner and base, with no abrasives included.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/172854501378

I figure that I will buy the abrasives that would come with the unit if it were new, as well as the 1200/1600 grit stones but what else would you guys recommend?

If you were in my shoes where you just bought a WE pro gen 3 for $350 shipped with no attachments (except a case) what would you buy to go with it, assuming that you intended to start a knife sharpening business.

Also, if I get the 12/1600 grit stones, which strop set should I get to accompany it? I’m thinking balsa with .25 micron and .125 micron sprays, but i’m not sure.  I have a budget of approximately $600 but i can stretch that a little if it will make an appreciable difference.

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Leisureguy

[Anarchy84]

Personally, I would avoid ceramics. As a relatively new user myself I don’t really see the point with the recent introduction of the 1500 grit diamond stone. My recommendation would be:

100-1500 grit diamond stones

2 sets of blank glass platens

Diamond lapping films (9, 6, 3, 1, 0.5 micron)

Kangaroo / balsa strop with emulsions or sprays

I have gotten incredible results on my Gen 3 Pro using this progression.

Just my two cents

 

 

 

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HappyManny, wickededge

[Marc H]

First I’d like to say welcome to the Wicked Edge Forum.  I’ll suggest stones I think are commonly used and give you a good rounded base to sharpen with.  I am not considering prices so I don’t know if it’ll exceed your budget.

I’d start with a full collection on diamond stones: 100/200, 400/600, 800/1000.  I think the 1500 Diamond is a good finishing stone if you can afford it in your budget.  I would recommend leather strops not Balsa Wood.  With care I think you’ll get a better, longer life span of usefulness from leather.  The 0.5 micron/ 1.0 micron set, abrasive paste plus the leather paddles is a good kit to get, and will meet all your sharpening needs for a utility basis.  I’m not real sure I’d invest in the 1200/1600 Ceramics.  They do take an awful lot of break-in before you really see the benefits of them.  I do think a Digital Angle Cube is a necessary tool to get the most out of your Wicked Edge.

Just the diamonds and the strops can handle practically any sharpening need…after the diamond stones are well broken in.  That requires 8 or 10 knives to see the true good, consistent results you can expect to see with your System.  Sharpening with the Wicked Edge does have a learning curve.  It’s all about technique.  Take your time, go slow and feel free to ask questions.  We’re all here willing to help.  Welcome!!

Marc
(MarcH's Rack-Its)

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Leisureguy, HappyManny, wickededge

[Anarchy84]

Good call on the angle cube, Marc. A definite must have. A chisel tipped Sharpie, some painter’s (or aluminum) tape, and a few good microfiber cloths are also very helpful.

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378pete, HappyManny, Marc H

[Marc H]

Your right, Anarchy84.  HappyManny, you’ll need a depth key, allen key (for micro-adjustments), and a basic alignment guide, too, to set your knives in the clamp for repeatability.  I’d recommend you call Kyle or Sarah, on the phone, at Wicked Edge and discuss it with them to be sure you get all the basics you’ll need.

Marc
(MarcH's Rack-Its)

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HappyManny

[tcmeyer]

Anarchy84 wrote:

Good call on the angle cube, Marc. A definite must have. A chisel tipped Sharpie, some painter’s (or aluminum) tape, and a few good microfiber cloths are also very helpful.

Now that Anarchy84 has mentioned it, I want to make a quick point on the subject of tape.  About 5-6 weeks ago, I had a knife that absolutely refused to stay in position using either the blue painters’ tape or the standard masking tape.  It think the problem was with the degree of polish on the blade.  The tapes simply wouldn’t stay put.   I tried the aluminum foil tape and now it’d my standard.  It sticks where you put it and the corner pads on my Gen 3 vise bite into it very nicely.  It’s a bit of a struggle to remove it from the blade, so I take care to leave one corner folded over to give me something to pull on.  Also, it doesn’t leave any adhesive residue.

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Organic, Leisureguy, Marc H

[Anarchy84]

Aluminum tape has been my go-to as well. Great idea to leave a corner folded over. I’ve had a rough time removing it as well.

[HappyManny]

Thanks for the recommendations guys.  I will get the 1500 diamond stone instead.

I’m fairly certain I will have the depth key, at least it was shown in the pictures of the ebay post.

As far as strops go, i’m hearing a lot of different things about which ones to get. Some say leather, some say balsa depending on who you ask. I’m kind of thinking to go with regular leather or balsa, and ‘upgrade’ to kangaroo at some point once my technique has been perfected. Where do you guys think a beginner should start for stropping? Assuming 100-1500 grit diamond stones and perhaps glass with lapping film.

[tcmeyer]

The 1500 grit diamond stones come with a set of glass platens on the opposite side.  The usual deal is to put 6 micron film on the glass.

If you really feel the need for a mirror finish, I’d add the cow leather strops with 3.5 and 5.0 paste.  Later, if you really feel the urge, go with a set with a finer paste.  The fact is that you have to be downright OCD to justify grits below 1.0 micron.  If you decide that this is really the path you want to go down, there’s a lot of guys here that will hold your hand.

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Organic, wickededge, HappyManny, Marc H

[HappyManny]

Just to be clear, you guys prefer lapping films to strops? I’m curious as to why, I haven’t been able to find any clear concise guide on the subject.

It’s also possible that I’m misunderstanding and you actually want both, but somehow I don’t think that’s the case.  I’m sure you guys will let me know if I’m wrong.

[Marc H]

I prefer Strops. For me lapping films are just another abrasive to be used in my sharpening progression, just finer in grit size.  I always finish off any of my sharpening sessions with strops.  I think to achieve a very sharp edge 1000 grit is fine enough to accomplish that. 1500 grit is one step better if you have the stone, but it isn’t necessary.

Marc
(MarcH's Rack-Its)

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HappyManny

[tcmeyer]

Marc H wrote:

I prefer Strops. For me lapping films are just another abrasive to be used in my sharpening progression, just finer in grit size. I always finish off any of my sharpening sessions with strops. I think to achieve a very sharp edge 1000 grit is fine enough to accomplish that. 1500 grit is one step better if you have the stone, but it isn’t necessary.

This is basically the fact of the matter.  Lapping film are just very fine grit abrasives and stropping paste is a polishing media.  They work quite different from each other, but done properly, the human eye can’t tell the difference, even with a 50X microscope.

I think that stropping has the potential of producing finer edges than film, but it also has the potential of rounding the edge over when done incorrectly.     The consensus here on the forum is that you reduce the angle by 1.5 to 2.0 degrees when stropping so as to avoid the “rounding the edge over” problem, but then you can’t quite be sure that you’re polishing the apex – how soft is the strop material?  How much pressure do you apply?  Film on a hard platen (like metal or glass) requires less finesse – you hold the same angle throughout the sharpening process.

Using strops to their best potential doesn’t necessarily require that you take the bevels down to the smallest possible grit before stropping.  Or that you need to strop down to sub-micron pastes.  Until the film platens became available, we stropped with 5/3.5 micron diamond paste after sharpening to the 1000-grit diamond stones and it made for some very sharp edges.

If I were starting over, I’d get the diamond stones from 100 grit to 1500 grit.  The 1500 stone comes with a glass platen on the reverse side, so I’d buy some 6-micron film.  I’d then add a single set of strops (any of the versions – cowhide, kangaroo or balsa wood) with a pair of the 5/3.5 micron diamond pastes – or maybe the 4 and 2 micron emulsions.

[HappyManny]

tcmeyer,

Would you say that you can avoid the potential rounding over issue by using balsa instead of leather since it’s a bit stiffer?

[Marc H]

HappyManny, I see your question was addressed to Tom, if I may;  Balsa strops are my least favorite material strops.  I too thought they were harder, thus I wouldn.t need to reduce the angle to prevent rounding over the edge.  I have found my balsa wood to gouge and peel layers or flake layers with wear.  The balsa’s surface is no longer uniformly smooth and pitted.  I have ceased using them and only use cow leather strops.  (only because I haven’t yet bought the Kangaroo Leather strops due to the price).

I set my angle back 1-1/2 degree lower when I’m finished using my last stone, (1500 grit diamond). It is about the same thickness and dimensions as the strop so it’s close enough for stropping use accuracy.  Then I just wipe the blade clean to remove abrasive and metal dust and have it.  Wipe it once again when switching to a lower strop grit and have at it again.  It doesn’t take very many strop strokes, (of course always edge trailing) to enhance the finished edges sharpness.  Also I haven’t experienced any edge rounding using this method.

Marc
(MarcH's Rack-Its)

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HappyManny

[Mark76]

Welcome to the forum, HappyManny. As you’ve seen it’s rather personal which abrasives people prefer, so I can mainly give my own opinion.

I’d at least go for the 100-1500 grit stones. These are very high quality and allow you to sharpen fast and precise. I heard some negative remarks about the 1200/1600 ceramic stones, but they’re definitely good, just a little slower. And the jump from the 1000 grit to the 1500 grit diamonds is well doable.

Obviously your budget also plays a role. I love the DLF’s and I have all of them. This allows you to get your knives extremely sharp. But ask yourself what you are going to use your knives for. If you don’t need (almost) mirror edges, 3000 or 5000 grit could well suffice. Or even 1500. And they stay sharp longer.

Stropping is where I think opinions differ most. Balsa strops don’t run the risk of rounding the edge, but they cannot hold very fine compound (say <1 micro) due to their crevices. Leather strops don’t suffer from this and Marc already indicated what you should do to prevent rounding the edge. Both the Leather strops have a stiction that causes burnishing and makes the edge more even. This is especially the case with the WE pastes. Balsa strops with the WE pastes also have this, but to a much lesser extent. I prefer kangaroo leather over cow leather, since kangaroo leather has fewer abrasives in itself.

So, in the end, you have to ask what type of edge you want. If you have any more questions, please don’t hesitate to ask.

Molecule Polishing: my blog about sharpening with the Wicked Edge

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Organic

[Author]

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