TRU HONE vs CANTRA vs the Tormek and others
- This topic has 15 replies, 9 voices, and was last updated 08/29/2017 at 2:09 am by
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I have a Tormek T8, and use it during most sharpening sessions. It is a great complement to the WE systems. Like the WE it has a great build quality. It’s a different animal, though, and takes awhile to learn it’s use effectively, same as WE.
I usually use the Tormek before the WE, to “pre-sharpen” larger kitchen knives, which is what I usually sharpen with my small business. Once “pre-sharpened” with the Tormek, I move all knives over to the WE Gen 3 Pro for final sharpening. The WE provides a better and sharper edge any day of the week over the Tormek. But, then, the Tormek can sharpen a lot more items, like gouges, gardening tools like large shears, lawnmower blades, planer blades, drill bits, axes, hatchets, woodturning tools, etc. Also, with the Tormek, I don’t wear my WE diamond stones nearly as much.
The Tormek will sharpen scissors better than anything I’ve ever seen.
I also like that the Tormek runs nearly silent, with an RPM of only 80. Finally, I really like using the rotating leather strop that the Tormek offers. As previously mentioned, I believe the Tormek is a great complement to to the WE systems. In no way does it replace my WE Gen 3 Pro. I’m just lucky enough to have both.
Alan
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I think I don’t quite understand the question. Catra is a British instititution that makes machines to test knife (angles, sharpeness, etc.). AFIAK they don’t make any sharpness makers, but maybe they make one I don’t know. True Hone make sharpening machines. Evene thought these are expensive, I’d be very carful to get a pull-through machine like a True Hone. Tormek make a very good Sharpening machines. But they’re less flexible than the WE and quite slow (low RPM, which is good to prevent overheating). The results are usually not as good as on the WE, but as Alan says, it could be an (exepensive) complement.
Molecule Polishing: my blog about sharpening with the Wicked Edge
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I agree that the Tormek is a great overall system, however, it is too slow for commercial knife work. I now use the AMK-75 (Click Here for Link) for re-profile work and repairs followed by the Wicked Edge for polishing and perfecting the edge. Because the AMK-75 has a adjustable speed control and the modern “structured” abrasives available on the market don’t heat up as quick as the old abrasives, this has become a great combination without the burdens of heat damage, the use of messy cooling water, and stone wheel truing issues. I believe that the AMK-75 and the Wicked Edge are a Synergistic mating of absolute perfection. I also use the CATRA Focused Goniometer Mk2 (Click here for link) for quick edge angle identification. I can now repair a badly damaged knife and sharpen it to better than factory perfection in under five minutes . In the commercial business, Time is money! Yes, it is true CATRA also produces a pull through sharpener that functions with CBN coated interlocking grinding wheels. I prefer the Tru Hone (Click here for link) over the CATRA system (Click here for link) for it’s “on the fly” angle adaptability, cost, and proven reliability.
Eddie Kinlen
M1rror Edge Sharpening Service, LLC
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The AMK-75 is a very cool looking system.
Agreed. Looks like an industrial version of the WorkSharp.
M1rrorEdge: To finish a job in five minutes, I’m guessing that when you transfer the knife to the WEPS, it must be matching the bevel pretty accurately, with very little, if any, profile matching. Don’t you have to still find the “sweet spot?”
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The AMK-75 is a very cool looking system.
I like the clamp, that it keeps the knife centered.
Marc
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M1rrorEdge: To finish a job in five minutes, I’m guessing that when you transfer the knife to the WEPS, it must be matching the bevel pr
TCmeyer as you are “keenly” aware, the more one uses the WE the easier it gets. Because I am mostly using only the finer stones and lapping films on the WE now, I have less risk of damaging the edge upon initial approach. A simple sharpie and quick swipe tells me everything I need to know to align the blade front to back on the Gen 3 vise. Because the WE Gen 3 clamping system is so easy to use it really doesn’t take any time at all to adjust if required. More often than not, I can get “Spot on” with one or two adjustments when required. Are you still using the original clamping system?
Eddie Kinlen
M1rror Edge Sharpening Service, LLC
+1(682)777-1622I’ve got both the Gen 3 vise upgrade and the original vise on two separate bases, so I can switch between them in a minute or so. I do not have the Gen 3 Pro set-up with the single angle adjustment arm. I like them both equally, as I don’t change from one to the other unless there’s a good reason. I think that if cornered, I’d have to choose the Gen 3 vise as my favorite – I use it at least 3/4 of the time.
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