rummels

They are just a white nylon washer.  They have an ID of 1/4″, an OD of .500″ and are 1/32″ thick.  I imagine a 1/16″ thick washer would also work.

I also use them on the guide rods to keep them from loosening.

You should be able to buy them at any hardware store.

I have used nylon washers and lock nuts on my micro adjusters.  The nylon washers push against the lock nut and keep it from loosening.  They work really well.

Let us know how the LAA works out for you.  I have the WE130 and I also found it necessary to add the LAA to my accessories.  It has worked really well for me.
rummels

Because you are using a LAA, you can tighten its jaws just enough to hold the knife in place.  Then position the AAG as I suggested, and move the knife forward or backward in the LAA until it is where you want it.  This assumes you are protecting your blade with masking tape.
rummels

John
The majority of the knives I sharped on my WE130 require the use of the LAA.  My solution to this problem was to not use the Depth Key and to align the AAG as shown in the image below.  It has work extremely well for me over the last three years.
rummels

I am not sure I understand what is being asked for in this thread.  Isn’t a “hex head” and a “thumbscrew” two different things?

If this is what the question is asking about, this is what I did to be able to tighten the L-Brackets on the degree bar:
I replaced the thumbscrews on the L-brackets with plastic 9/16” knurled knobs from MSC In…[Read more]

Modernflame
If your micro adjusters are moving, you may want to try the solution that I implemented.  I put nylon washers between the lock nuts on the micro adjusters and the L-brackets.  I did this about a year ago, and my micro adjuster lock nuts NEVER loosen up on me.  The nylon washer is slightly compressed when you tighten the lock nut, so it…[Read more]

000Robert

It has.  I was particularly helpful as I was trying various approaches to burr/wire-edge removal.  It allowed me to see what the impact of each approach was on the edge and the scratch pattern.

rummels

The Celestron MicroDirect 1080p HD arrived on Monday and since then I’ve used it while sharpening several knives.

The Microscope is 6″ long, which is probably larger than most of the microscopes that have been discussed on this forum in the past.  And it has two cables that connect the end of the microscope to the display (one is a USB…[Read more]

Thanks for the good feedback.

Given my options, I have decided to take a different approach.  Some friends gave me a 22″ HD LCD TV.  When they got rid of cable TV, they had no use for it as it is a “dumb” TV.  So I am going to try the Celestron MicroDirect 1080p HD handheld microscope.  I has a HDMI connection to the TV with a 3.5MP high spe…[Read more]

Thanks to all for your input.  I have concluded that using something similar to the Sharpmaker will be the best approach for me.  I have a multi-angle drill guide, so I am going to make a base for the Sharpmaker’s ceramic rods that will hold them at angles that are very close to my sharpening angles.

Ah!  Got it.  Thanks NorCalQ

Rummels

I have found this discussion to be very thought provoking.  I have never considered where on the stones I have been placing my fingers.

So I went and picked up one of my diamond stones.  I apparently put my index finger near the top of the stone, with my other three fingers and my thumb on the bottom half of the stone.  This just seems like a na…[Read more]

Thanks for the input.

Ironically, my sharpener has never gotten noticeably dirty.  It has always been kept really clean.  My thinking is that this is just the result of two aluminum parts being forced to press against each other while moving.  The wear on both components is identical.

I still have the small cylinder of foam in place that tc…[Read more]

tcmeyer
I assume I should use a nylon .243 brush?
Thanks
rummels

Probably due to my inexperience, I have been unable to find any discernible difference between two identical kitchen knives that were finished with either 1000 grit or 3000 grit diamond stones.  Both will easily slice through newspaper (thanks in large part to a recent suggestion from MarcH to remove any wire edges by finishing each and every…[Read more]

As silly as this might sound, I have had a lot of success using blue masking tape and a short piece of cable tie.  I tape the piece of cable tie to the spine of the knife.  This approach makes it much easier to position the knife above the depth key, given that you can rest the cable tie on the depth key while you clamp the knife in the vice.
rummels