Modernflame

I am grateful to everyone for your feedback. Thank you.

Thanks for the warning. I’m fully aware that I can stop at 400 grit, then strop on the inside of my leather belt. I could also sharpen freehand and make lots of Uncle Randy comments on the internet about sharpening on river rocks, but then I would not be a WE customer. I’ve chosen to use all of the media for two reasons. First, they need to be…[Read more]

Thanks, Marc. I’ll check out that video. Pretty sure it’s the last step, though. Otherwise a few passes on a submicron strop wouldn’t clear it up. Last night I sharpened a cheap santuko with the above listed media, but I skipped the WE strops and went straight to the freehand paddle strops. True, I don’t own the edge on up, but I achieved my…[Read more]

Very interesting. I’ve been programmed to use leather strops with minimal pressure, so my first thought was that I had backed off too far and thus was not cleaning the apex. But maybe I’m actually rounding off the apex because I haven’t backed off far enough. Maybe I’m just stropping too much? I know I don’t need all of that polish, but I like the…[Read more]

The height of the blade is not likely to pose an issue. If you were to build a “big rig” with multiple units in tandem, then neither is the curvature of the blade. In fact, these would easily be taken in stride. The real issue is the length of the blade and the time invested in each sharpening venture. The WE is a precision system, the stuff of…[Read more]

You would need to reposition the sword in the clamp at least a couple of times in a standard WE.  A couple of advanced users on this forum are sporting a “big rigs,” which means that they can sharpen longer knives in one go. I’ll let them elaborate, but I think the sword might still be too long without repositioning. This can be done, albeit with…[Read more]

Best advice on the internet, my friend. I will look into this.

I’m still unclear on how to approach the heel of the blade on a knife like this. Doesn’t the ricasso prevent the stone from reaching the entire edge? I’ve decided I don’t want to cut off the plastic finger guards on the platons. Do some people carve a small choil into the edge? How would you approach a knife like this if it belonged to someone…[Read more]

A great leap forward! I changed the order of my sharpening media, not by grit but by substrate, and it made an immediate difference in the finish of my bevels. Whether it improved sharpness is another question, as I don’t have the Edge On Up (yet). My perception is that this edge on my XM18 skinny skinner (sharpened tonight) is sharper than my…[Read more]

Much appreciated, sir.

I’m resurrecting this thread because of the discussion regarding ceramics. The consensus seems to be that  (a) the break in period is longer and (b) they do something quite different than the diamond stones. WE recommends using them after diamond stones and before balsa strops and lapping films.

What are some philosophies of use that have been…[Read more]

Yes! That’s why I keep this gem. Yes, that’s Frog Lube clouding the finish of the knife. A2 tool steel is not stainless, so I have to keep it oiled in long term storage. It lives in my knife drawer, awaiting the zombie apocalypse.

It’s a beautiful knife, sir. I like the hollow grind particularly. Large outdoor style knives are hardly a necessity for my suburban life style, but that does not stop me from wanting them!

Fair enough. The official number is only ten. Two of these were kitchen knives. I’ll just keep rolling with what I’ve got for a while. Adding a couple of lapping films would be about $100. Not really a big deal, but I’m married. Sometimes it’s not about what I can afford, but what I can get away with.

This thread has helped me a great deal. I realize it’s okay to do something like 3 micron, 1.5 micron and 1 micron DLF, then go to 4 and 2 micron leather strops. Then I can finish on 1 micron and 0.5 micron leather. That is, unless I’ve completely misunderstood, which is certainly possible.

I bought the 1.6 and 0.9 ceramics because I thought they…[Read more]

I think part of this discussion is the proper use of serrated knives. As a rule, I don’t really like them, but I recognize their utility. Sometimes a plain edge knife is not the right tool for the job. As a suburb dwelling office drone, I admit that I don’t often encounter rope or tree roots in my daily cutting tasks, so I’m planning to get a few…[Read more]

Guys, this is really next level thinking and engineering. Way beyond my skill level. My first thought would be to find a way to use Tormek long knife jig to stabilize some of those longer blades, but your solution is far better because it will allow the stones to follow the existing profile.

Another thought. I use the KME, Tormek T8, and now the…[Read more]

Fair enough. I suspect, however, that there are myths among these accepted truths. They cannot all be true simultaneously.

It’s…It’s…knife sharpening heaven. Please hold while I collect my chin from the floor.