Craig Davis

[Craig Davis]

+2

[Craig Davis]

Wow–the jewelers loupe doesn’t lie and sure shows the scratches…

Looking forward to using this tool to work on my technique. B)

[Craig Davis]

Easy fix for the hardness. Send it to Paul Farner. He is awesome just to talk to and a wealth of knowlege.

I sent a BM 581 Barrage in M390 to him recently to go to 62. I’m excited to get it back to say the least.

[Craig Davis]

Thanks for the pics Mr. Wickededge.

So tonight I did a (very) slight reprofile on my NIB BM Barrage. I can say that it now has a Wicked Edge and M390 is absolutely no match for my new toy.

Disassembled the Barrage and the blade is going off for heat treat.

[Craig Davis]

I know nothing about WE’s business but I can tell you that it takes a lot of money to grow. A lot of money.

Any of you guys ever wait for a knife? I’m into Randall’s and they are at 4.5 years out.

And I couldn’t wait to get my WE either. B)

[Craig Davis]

The SOG blade is tapered and does not have a flat place to mount it in the Wicked Edge base…

Is there a way to clamp this type of blade up in the WEPS?

Have you seen the Sharpening a Full Flat Ground Blade page?

In addition to Chet’s idea, I use a thin piece of leather to hold some blades, others have recently said using a piece of Moleskin works well.[/quote]

I have not seen the Full Flat Ground Blade page. Guess what I will be reading…

Thanks for the info.

Craig

[Craig Davis]

Craig,
I use “electrical friction tape” on all my knives, it really locks and holds the knife in the vice with no residue and no over tightening. Another thing and I know it won’t help with the SOG but with folders, especially those with heavy handles is I fold the handle up 90 degrees so I don’t have all that weight of the handle hanging out there.
Chet

I have read about using friction tape. I will give it a try. I’ve not had any issues with this until I tried to sharpen a blade with a full taper and no flat areas to grab.

Thanks for taking the time to help.

Craig

[Craig Davis]

So tonight I sharpened four blades. All went OK (still learning) except a fixed SOG knife. This knife has temporarily kicked my ass.

The SOG blade is tapered and does not have a flat place to mount it in the Wicked Edge base. For this reason, no matter how I tried to mount it, it was not mounted as tightly as it should have been. I started over three times from 100 grit to strops and it just is like it should be…

The only thing I can think is that the knife moves in the base slightly because of the tapered blade making the base only hold the blade on the very edge. Actually, I have to sight the blade while working it as it moves slightly. I wish my loupe was here so I could actually see what I’m doing.

Is there a way to clamp this type of blade up in the WEPS? I had to stop for the night…

[Craig Davis]

I’ve got the upgraded arms that will take a hex key. Tonight I sharpened four knives and had one arm loosen up once (for the first time).

I will say this, with my limited experience with this system, there is a way to tighten these screws. You must “find” the detent while turning the screw. I mean “find” the detent by moving the arm slightly while turning the screw. If the screw is not centered on the detent it will loosen up.

[Craig Davis]

6. You must stop sharpening when there is no more hair on your arm.

Nope, you still have two legs… and a chest to work on..
😆

I like the enthusiasm.. but take your time.

Keep it coming.

Phil[/quote]
I didn’t want to mention that both legs and chest are now bare… :huh:

Probably the most amazing thing I saw was how the blade really shined when I used the Micro Fine Ceramics. The real test will be with the loupe but I bet it won’t look nearly as good under the microscope.

[Craig Davis]

Holy schnikes! I have a couple knicks from my first night too…

I didn’t count my strokes but listened and felt when the stone seemed done. Maybe I should count a bit?

I am amazed at how awesome this sharpener is! I have a lot of homework to do as I need to learn how to use the Cube (played with it some but don’t presently understand it) ton name just one facet. I ordered an LED 30/60 loupe and am really looking forward to SEEING what’s going on as I can’t really see what’s important. Hopefully it’s here soon.

Craig

[Craig Davis]

Allrighty!

I got home and assembled her and jumped right in. Started with an old Buck 110 for practice.

That worked pretty well so I chucked-up my newest EDC–a Benchmade Grip in CPM M4 with scales from Keyman. She came out really nice but I did not work-up a burr the first time around (still learning…).

Then I got my wa-gyuto kitchen knife (which is a huge part of why I got the WEPS). That knife is REALLY thin and is much different than “normal” knives. Different in the way it flexes, sounds when sharpening, the blade is sandwiched steel and it’s much longer than what I had played with thus far. It came out nice too.

After another japanese-style paring knife I got a couple Randall Made Knives out. I have been collecting these for around 15 years and have quite a few that I am not affraid to use. Here’s a Model 26 Pathfinder with desert ironwood and black and brass spacers:

Here’s a Model 8 Trout and Bird knife. The top is sharpened for chopping and I touched that up first (was a little tricky to get the base to hold it due to the tapers):

And my temporary case (until I find what I want):

So I thought I would mention a few things I learned on my first date with the WEPS.

1. I wasted time when I did not raise a burr initially.

2. The coarse diamond stones remove steel fast. It really didn’t seem to matter what type of steel it was. I put a 17° edge on my CPM M4 and it really didn’t take long at all to raise a burr.

3. I didn’t do so well with the Strops. Good thing they only cost $40. I was trying to go to fast on my wa-gyuto and they don’t look so new anymore.

4. You really can hear and feel when a stone is done.

5. I put micro bevels on all the blades I did today. A moth ago I had never even heard of a micro bevel. I put around 25° with the fine ceramic lightly for this edge.

6. You must stop sharpening when there is no more hair on your arm.

7. I still have a ton to learn.

[Craig Davis]

I ordered the unit a day before I started this thread from Bob (Oldawan–he has posted in this thread). It would have shipped sooner but he was waiting for the rod ends and I told him to just ship the whole unit together. I would definitely recommend him as it seems he normally has everything in-stock, his communication is excellent with order updates and he seems very knowledgeable regarding sharpening and stones.

[Craig Davis]

i AM SO STOKED ABOUT (possibly) RECEIVING MY NEW TOY TOMORROW… :woohoo:

I’ve got my cheapest knife at the ready!

[Craig Davis]

Welp my wicked edge kit is waiting at my door step for me to come home from work.. Accessory stones weren’t delivered yet so ill only be able to try it up to 600 grit… Regardless I can’t wait to go home and try it out.. 😀

That’s awesome! Mine arrives tomorrow and I’m counting the minutes.

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