William
@wrz0170
active 4 years, 8 months agoForum Replies Created
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I use a paper towel wrapped around the spine for some traction and to protect the blade. Then what I would try on this particular one is to use paper towel, then get the rear nub of the jaw on the blade flat (near the stud) and the other forward nub wont’ matter, just make sure it’s firmly on the transition point. Then tilt your handle up in the air w/ the point down towards the base as much as you can w/ out allowing your stone to hit the vise at the desired angle. This should be you there. If you need more clearance or lower angles, use the tormek jig as suggested.
Great suggestions Josh!! Thanks! I will definitely try the paper towel trick. The duct tape and tension, while it worked, I could probably slip a piece of paper in between the knife and the jaws. It was very close!
William
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Quick update. I finally got it! The secret formula was duct tape and the tension at the half way position. As I said, it was stubborn but so am I. 🙂 In any event, I put a nice, shiny edge on the Barrage and I think it’s sharper than from the factory.
William
It looks a lot like an ulu, but I think it might be intended as a skiving knife. In any case, they’re really nice knives to work with. As an ulu, eskimos use them for skinning seals and whales. Traditional skinning knives usually have sweeping, rounded blades. I’d use the approach as Marc described it, but if I understand him correctly, I’d orient it somewhat differently. Assuming that the blade has an arc of about 160 degrees, and assuming that the center of the blade is zero degrees, I’d rotate the blade about 40 degrees, clamping it with the handle well off to one side. Try to put the mid-point of the area you intend to sharpen at the very top. Sharpen that half of the blade, overlapping the center zone so you can blend the bevels as you sharpen the other half when you’ve flipped the knife in the clamp. Geometrically, I think mounting the blade higher would be an advantage in reducing any angle change, so the LAA might be an option you’ll want to consider. The idea is to minimize the rotation of the stone from one end of the sharpening stroke to the other. You want to keep the tangent points at the start and end of the area being sharpened as far from vertical as is possible. Is that confusing? Say so and I will try to make a diagram. My skinners have a somewhat larger radius (about 4 or 5 inches, compared to <3″ for yours ) and I orient them with the mid-point of the belly at the very top for sharpening. I’m sure there’s some change in the bevel angles at the ends, but not so much that it’s noticeable. The tighter radius of your knife might not be so friendly to my method. I don’t have a photo of the knife in a vise, but here’s one of the knives to give you an idea of what I’m describing.
SGAHPWILLIAMZUK Thank you Tom! I think what I may do is get a cheaper round knife or score one off eBay to practice on. This way, when this one comes into fruition a long while from now (on a wait list), I will know what I’m doing with it.
And that’s a beauty of a skinner knife you have. Nice!
William
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Welcome aboard Watchdog!
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Welcome!!!!!!
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I just ordered a set of Nano skin paddles from WE. I like ending off with the .50 and .25 Diamond sprays but my Kangaroo strops have become annoying to use. I know a few silts don’t hurt the stropping effectiveness but when I use them I feel like I’m driving down a rocky road in an old truck. Watched Clay’s vid on his newer honeycomb Nano strops and I figure it will be smoother than I have now. Can I just replace the Roo part of the paddles? Who might carry them? I looked around, but don’t see replacements for the Roo the same size with a sticky backside to mount them to the paddles.
Hey Paul, have you checked in with Jende Industries? They might be able to offer replacements.
I look forward to hearing your experience with the Nano strops!
William
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Marc’s post should be a sticky at the start of the techniques forum!
Agreed! Thank you for sharing the details of sharpening your BM. Interestingly, I too like that 1500D. It does run buttery smooth with the littlest pressure applied. Whether I was using a 100 or 200, I was working my burr the same way. I will be incorporating a more even approach to form that initial burr from now on. After I found my burr on both sides, I would do alternating forward, leading strokes until I had an even scratch pattern from heel to tip I proceeded to my next grit, 400. I scrubbed both sides evenly until the previous grit was completely gone. I then used alternating forward strokes for an even pattern. I would repeat as I progressed. I now always check between grits the angle using the cube. I was amazed at how many micro adjustments you could make. I would also run a Sharpie now and then to ensure I was on track with my angle between the grits.
However, even more interesting , like you, when I move to the 6u DLF is when things get, how can I say it….less tidy. I can’t seem to shake off all the 1500 D scratches. My progression at the moment is 6u>3u>1.5u DLF followed by strops 4u to .5u (cow leather). As a side note, I’m thinking of going one set further, .25 and .125. Just don’t know if I will stay with cow or move to kangaroo for the finisher. I don’t think I will go any further with the DLFs.
Anyway, those 1500 scratches seem to follow me to the end. The bevel is still shiny and sharp. It has to be my technique as there appears to be much success moving from 1500 to 6u from the research and reading I have done.
Dammit! I may be using my BM even more just so I can get it on the clamp quicker 🙂
I want to make sure what I posted is clearly understood. I have nothing against perfectly symmetrical, pretty, shiny, even bevels. This is not what makes a knife sharp. That was proven by the knife I pictured and many others I have photographed, right out-of-the-box. There was nothing pretty, special or even about that knife’s edge. But it was keen… What makes an edge sharp is the precision of the meeting place between the two planes of the bevel sides to form a narrow line, the apex of the knife edge. This is how I define a keen, sharp edge. It doesn’t matter if it’s pretty and it also doesn’t hurt it to be beautiful, even sized, shiny and symmetrical. All that matters is the precision and acuteness of that meeting place, i.e., the line formed where the two bevel planes intersect. I’m just trying to say worry more about the effectiveness of your sharpened edge and less about it’s appearance. When you can do both, sharpen an effective edge and make it nice, even and shiny in appearance, then you’ve got the best of both edges.
A lesson learned on my last venture. Never did get that Kershaw Link symmetrical. But I’m now ok with that. It is sharper than anything I have or had (ask me how I know…. ). The bevels are kinda pretty to boot. 🙂
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