How do you set your pricing?

Legacy Forum Archive sharpening-as-a-business
21 
The above three are the most recent pricing in this thread.

I went through the archives on the this Forum, on another blade/knife forum and through Google for pricing and through this current thread.  

Having a client for the first time, I'm keeping track of hours and will need to present him with a list of my hours, what I did and (for purposes of this thread) what I charge.

I'm going to use this as a base model and see how it goes.

So, here's what pieced together for pricing from everything I read.

Straight Bladed Knives		$   1.00  per	inch  	$ 5.00   minimum
High-grade Japanese Knives	$   2.00  per	inch  	$ 10.00 minimum
Serrated Knives		        $   3.00  per	inch  	$ 15.00 minimum
Ceramic Knives			$   3.00  per	inch  	$15.00  minimum
Folders 			$  10.00  and up depending on number of blades, etc. by prior agreement 
                                                 with client

Cleavers 			$ 2.00 	per 	inch
Scissors 			$ 8.00 	and up  (for now, I won't be doing scissors for $$)

The above is for Standard Sharp.  (to 800/1000 steel then strop)

Add $ 1/inch for Scary Sharp.      (steel, ceramic, stones, strop)
Add $ 2/inch for Wicked Sharp      (convex, mirror polish, strop)

Bolster/Heel/Ricasso Repair $ 5.00 minimum by agreement with client
Reprofiling/Thinning $ 1.00 per inch $ 5.00 minimum

Shipping & Handling $ 5.00 plus shipping
Pickup charge $ 0.56 per mile (IRS 2014 standard mileage rates)


My goal is to make a few bucks to maintain supplies, etc.  But, were I to generate a decent hourly, I might be able to afford an "investment" knife and an upper grade EDC.  

We'll see.  Thanks to all the Master and professional sharpeners here for leading the way and sharing your experience freely.
22

I have one query on your prices & that is thinning this is necessary on virtually all knives except for very thin knives like Victorinox or for boning knives .The secondary bevel needs to be done each time otherwise the shoulders of the primary bevel wedge up .For knives I do on the WE I do the secondary bevel on diamond bench plates or a belt sander then I do the primary on the WE with just the 600 grit . If a knife is really thick then I would consider charging more.
The difficulty is that it is very easy to neglect thinning on a rod guided system but if you are competing with say a sharpening shop or even someone using a wheel it is most likely that the blades will be thinned as a matter of course.
if there are big shoulders on the primary bevel it does not matter how hair popping sharp it is it will not cut properly except through pre sliced cheese or ham for instance a metal spatular for plastering will cut quite well simple because it is thin.
Unfortunately people always judge your work by your worst output so it is vital to make sure the knife is thin enough .

I rant on Gib and I suspect after attending lectures and shows that you are well aware of this !
Just in case someone else is not aware of this (I certainly was not when I begun sharpening and thought I was doing a really good job).

Think Murray Carter’s 6 steps -step 4 Blade thickness adjustment - the secondary bevel.

23

Leo, why do you do the secondary bevel on diamond plates and the primary bevel on the WEPS? (I understand if you use a belt sander for the secondary bevel.) On most kitchen knives I put a primary bevel of 15-20 degrees and a secondary bevel that is 2-3 degrees less is then quite doable on the WEPS.

24

[quote quote=“LeoBarr” post=17251]I have one query on your prices & that is thinning this is necessary on virtually all knives except …

I rant on Gib and I suspect after attending lectures and shows that you are …[/quote]

Rant on!!

Hey, you all know I’m making this up as I go along!! :cheer:

And, since I’ve never actually charged nor been paid, are these really “my prices”?!!?

So, a set price of $5.00 for thinning on all blades. Or, enough per inch to accommodate. Or, work faster.

25

If I am doing the knives at a restaurant then adding the diamond plates is practical and is quicker than thinning on the WE at 10˚ if I do the knives in the right order there are not more than 1/2 tweaks between most of the knives.
The thinning bevel I do on an Atoma 140 and a DMT to equivalent 600 grit. It is mainly less hassle for me to do it this way since setting up angles is time consuming and I can save time by doing them on the plates to begin with then I just use the 600 paddles for the primary bevel keeping it as thin as possible.
I find it takes about 5 passes per side with the Atoma and then 5 with the DMT to keep secondary to primary in the right proportion provided (and I have previously thinned them this way)I am virtually through to the edge then it is only a few passes on the WE with the 600 to get a good result . The trick is to do enough on the secondary bevel plus it does not have to be as accurate as the primary so it suits poor light as in a restaurant . So I tend to do all the knives in the restaurant on the plates first then get them out of the way and then set up the WE.
The plates also help for correcting the profile since if for instance a cook has been using a steel there is often a hollow in the profile curve so I find the bench plates are big enough to make profile corrections much easier than on the WE or in the past on the EP which is another reason I take them with me.

26

It is difficult to price especially when you are competing with sharpeners that use machinery . I try to have a price that is firstly simple for the customer and one whereby I win on some knives and loose a little on others .
If prices are too complex people can be put off .
Someone once said that the way to increase prices is with volume so if you have more than enough knives to sharpen then adjust the prices this is how restaurants or hairdressers operate and why in big cities a top hairdresser will charge more than 100€ for a hair cut because they are in demand the same can be applied to many businesses like sharpening the busier you are the more people will pay and the more the word is Gib is such a master sharpener so the more you can charge .
Currently I live in Mallorca and language is my barrier plus the Mallorceans think that foreigners are charities for them and should virtually give their services gratis.
I am sure for instance if you had Korin or Japanese knife imports sharpen or repair a knife it would be a double figure sum and you would have to wait.
I move back to the UK soon and will have to see what prices are realistic to start with ; there is another danger that if you do not charge enough then people can think that you are not very good which can be bad for business (that is my belief anyway for services -[too cheep and I immediately think they cannot be any good]).

27

A couple of notes: what murray Carter refers to as the secondary bevel is known as the primary grind /bevel by many others, so we must be clear about what we mean :slight_smile:

So Leo, when you thin one down, do you do the entire main grind like this?

I ask because you mentioned 10 degrees whereas most knives are around 2-4dps on the “secondary bevel”. If this is what you mean, I am surprised it only takes 5 passes… A knife like this will take me 1 hour to do and I typically charge $20-40 just for the thinning, not to mention the sharpening.

Gib, it seems like your prices for mirror finish are CHEAP! I find that I can’t charge less than $30 for mirror finishing a pocket knife, and as much as $50 for thick beveled knives. It definitely takes a while! Now, I can cut some reprofiling time down with my belt sander, but still!

Hope all goes well for you side business!!

28

If the blade is thick I take more than one go to get it there once it is achieved then it is not much to keep it going the secondary bevel is the thinning bevel . The secondary bevel angle is estimated I look for a gap between the spine and the stone and a sustainable angle without scratching the entire face of the knife so I estimate the angle maybe it is less than 10˚.
So to begin with the thinning bevel I will just take the shoulders away from the primary but even then it will be an improvement so each time it is done I take it a little further and the result is less work on the WE . Plus many kitchen knives are soft steel so they grind down really quickly which is another reason why I aim to get the secondary virtually to the edge then it is very little work on the WE and the primary almost becomes a micro bevel I find if I do too much on the edge with the WE then I end up with a wide primary bevel which then takes longer to sharpen.
It is a discipline to do on most knives otherwise the primary gets too wide and shouldered the exception is on boning knives due to there high angle 23˚and it is not necessary for a thinning bevel since the blade needs to be stout to handle the bone scraping similar to where cleavers start off.
I have never really tried for a perfect mirror finish I find certainly 1K on bench stones starts to produce a good shine I have stopped stropping on leather since it is so easy to round off the edge so I strop(hone) on the stones this maintains a good apex on the edge the burr is normally removed through the honing and a couple of passes over a plank of wood.
I think most people are interested in sustainable sharpness unless the knife is to be used for shaving then the mirror edge is more important but when the blade is in this state like a razor it will need stropping after each use.
Whatever the edge it will not last long take a vegetable knife and cut 10Kg of veg and it will need attention or a hunters knife and dress a dear it will definitely need resharpening after that if it is exceptional steel if it is mediocre it will need sharpening half way through.
So for me the mirror finish is really for a cabinet or show knife which justifies a high charge to achieve it so I think your price of 21.66€ is a good minimum for a knife which will probable never be used unless you just mirror finish the secondary bevel which some people do on Japanese knives I prefer the Kasumi (smokey) finish although you need certain types of stones to achieve this neither Choseras or Shaptons do this; King, Bester or natural stones do this .

29

Josh: A quick Google search (and from my viewpoint) shows that the primary bevel on a full-face-grind knife (as with your Spyderco’s) is the flat surface on the side of the blade. A secondary bevel is the one we sharpen the edge with.

By definition, the primary bevel is the first to be ground and the largest in scale.

Have you read or been told otherwise?

30

This is a point I brought up last year that of terminology the secondary bevel which say on a Scandi grind does not exist is the angle between the primary and the main body of the knife some off the shelf knives do not have this say for instance Victorinox or Sabatiers but many knives benefit from the addition of the secondary or thinning bevel between the primary and the main body of the knife .
http://www.wickededgeusa.com/forum/11-thoughts-theories-science-related-to-sharpening/12279-bevels-terminolgy in this the secondary bevel may be referred to the back bevel the problem is that short of using the Japanese terms there is no standard.

Leo Nav

Attachments:

31

[quote quote=“razoredgeknives” post=17261]

Gib, it seems like your prices for mirror finish are CHEAP! I find that I can’t charge less than $30 for mirror finishing a pocket knife, and as much as $50 for thick beveled knives. It definitely takes a while! Now, I can cut some reprofiling time down with my belt sander, but still! [/quote]

Like I said, I’ve been trying to compile what people have said they are charging.

I haven’t actually billed and been paid by anyone yet!! It seems to me that the pricing is low all around.

I will definitely put a mention to potential clients that custom knives and/or mirror polish can be an additional charge.

You remind me to get the agreement ahead of time and don’t do the work and hope to negotiate the price.

That means that part of the “six step” procedure – examining the knife – and in-depth conversation happens with the customer before commencing sharpening.

Josh, thanks for the comments. Astute and incisive, thoughtful comments are how you and others – our elders/predecessors/professionals keep us newbies sharp.

32

Gib I think you are correct to say it is important to examine -the in depth conversation unfortunately for many people is not appreciated most people are bored very quickly I have friends that have stopped me dead in conversation regarding the subject of knives or their eyes simple glaze over so keep it very brief tips heels missing and misalignment but that is not so easy to sort minor alignment or tapping with a brass hammer may sort out some there is however a chance the knife will break if there is a big bend (not so important on filleting knives since most tend to have a permanent bend from use) ; but if it is out of alignment & not flexible then it will not sharpen properly.
In my experience they will dump a load of knives on you if your lucky & then you may discover one or two that are out mostly these people do not want to hang around long still nowadays it is wise to have their phone number and if there is something that is going to be over the projected cost you can let them know plus most phones take pictures so once again you could even mail them a copy of the picture of the problem knife .

Leo Nav

33

Wasn’t sure which thread to post this to – it fits several.

It’s about what is sharp and pricing and Blade Show…

It’s from the website of Andy & Haley DesRosiers – knifemakers from Alaska. http://www.alaskablades.com/index.php/method-a-madness


[b][u]Testing[/u][/b]

The blade is now ready for sharpening and testing. Our testing process is designed to determine that we have properly heat treated blades, and that each blade has the ideal edge geometry for its intended application.

Some of the tests we use to torture our blades are the edge flex tests. These are simple tests where we press the edge down on a small metal rod until we can see edge deformation. If the blade chips at this point, it is too hard, and goes back in the tempering salt. If it stays bent, it is too soft, and goes all the way back to be re-hardened. If it passes the flex test, then the fun begins! Now we start chopping up stuff that normal knives should never have to cut. Some of the things we chop are brass rods, aluminum arrows,  16 penny nails, and of course my favorite, dry moose antler. During this testing process, we are checking to see if there is any damage to the edge, and what kind of damage it is. This helps us to determine the ideal edge thickness and geometry for each blade.

[b][i]Finishing[/i][/b]

When we are completely satisfied with the performance of the blade it is time for the final finishing process. Adam offers blades in three finish options: 

  [b][i][u]Adventure finish[/u][/i][/b] is a 400 grit machine finished blade with some of the forging texture left on the blade. It is our personal favorite, you can still see the evidence of its birth in the fire and force of forging. This finish is ruggedly beautiful,  and has the most character of them all. It is a working finish, and seems to get better with added use and patina. Adventure finish is the least expensive, and is an excellent value.

  [b][i][u]Safari finish[/u][/i][/b] is a completely clean blade with a 400 grit machine finish. It looks the most like a factory finished blade, is crisp, attractive and is very easy to maintain. It is intended as a working finish, and is a less expensive alternative to a hand sanded blade.
 
  [b][i][u]Exhibition finish[/u][/i][/b] is 'the works'. The blade is machine finished to 220 grit, then hand sanded to a stunning satin glow. It is naturally the most expensive as it requires many hours of patient hand work. An average bowie takes about 8 hours to sand.  Exhibition finish is for heirloom quality pieces that will maintain their value for generations to come.

Haley mentioned stabbing the blade’s tip as deep as possible into the moose antler. Then, they reef, tug and pull on the knife. If they break the tip; they redesign the geometry.

34

I looked at their web site its a most impressive site apart from the content which is very interesting the web design alone bears a look they seem to be the real deal which is good to see.
I am not that impressed by makers that purely cut their knives out of stock or make from old files I feel I could do that but forging is a whole new board game I here that forge welding can be precarious with red hot flux or iron sparking and spitting plus the finished result is far superior to a knife cut from a sheet with an angle grinder or hacksaw.
I would like to see more forged knives laminated that is with a hard core placed into a cut piece of softer steel or stainless this seems to produce a knife that is easy to sharpen and yet has the edge hardness to boot.
I would have to agree with their finishes the Adventure finish maintains that organic look to the blade and currently is my preferred finish.
I find my tastes change I used to like highly polished damascus now I like the Kasumi finish found on the secondary bevels it also show up the lamination very well almost like a Hamon line .

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35

well after reading all of these post and from working many fairs now for many months and having not one person even complain or want a lower price, i have a new price list for this coming thur.'s fair and others.

[color color=#bb0000]the funny thing of it is, many of my customers state that they thought it would be a lot more to have their knives sharpened.[/color]
.
pocket knives: 5 bucks and up
straight blades remain at 1 buck per inch.
some japanese knives 2 bucks per inch and up.
serrated blades remain at 3 bucks per inch.

stand by

36

[quote quote=“LeoBarr” post=17271]Gib I think you are correct to say it is important to examine -the in depth conversation unfortunately for many people is not appreciated most people are bored very quickly I have friends that have stopped me dead in conversation regarding the subject of knives or their eyes simple glaze over so keep it very brief tips heels missing and misalignment but that is not so easy to sort minor alignment or tapping with a brass hammer may sort out some there is however a chance the knife will break if there is a big bend (not so important on filleting knives since most tend to have a permanent bend from use) ; but if it is out of alignment & not flexible then it will not sharpen properly.
In my experience they will dump a load of knives on you if your lucky & then you may discover one or two that are out mostly these people do not want to hang around long still nowadays it is wise to have their phone number and if there is something that is going to be over the projected cost you can let them know plus most phones take pictures so once again you could even mail them a copy of the picture of the problem knife .

Leo Nav[/quote]

Yeah, I find the same Leo. I kind of try to gauge their interest and speak accordingly to them. For example, if it seems like a decent knife, or like they just want an amazing edge, I will ask them if they want a hand finished edge or machine finished edge (notice I said “finished”- I don’t want to lock myself into not being able to use my belt sander for re-profile work if needed to save a bunch of time). So, at this point people often times will ask me “What is the difference?” This is where I explain that the WEPS offers several advantages that you cannot get from a machine…

[ol]
[li]Precision - I can set the angle at a precise dps finish[/li]
[li]Toothiness - You simply can’t get a knife as “toothy” sharp as you can on the WEPS - the buffing belt will remove most of the teeth or “bite”. On the WEPS I can finish on a lower grit stone and never have to strop.[/li]
[li]Grind direction will be maximized - this directly plays into the point above - toothiness. On the WEPS you can angle your “micro teeth” in a certain direction based upon the customers use, as Leo has pointed out in another post. You can of course do this on a belt sander as well, but like I said, the teeth are all but gone and this yields little to no affect[/li]
[li]Removes less steel - this is an inherent weakness of powered sharpening that cannot be avoided[/li]
[/ol]

I have had to replace a few knives and scissors in the past. You live you learn I guess =) Now, if I am going to try and bend something I try to tell them that it is a possibility that the blade may break (esp with scissors, knives aren’t really a big deal if you are careful). That way, you put the ball in their court and see what they want to do.

37

[quote quote=“GibCurry” post=17272]Wasn’t sure which thread to post this to – it fits several.

It’s about what is sharp and pricing and Blade Show…

It’s from the website of Andy & Haley DesRosiers – knifemakers from Alaska. http://www.alaskablades.com/index.php/method-a-madness


[b][u]Testing[/u][/b]

The blade is now ready for sharpening and testing. Our testing process is designed to determine that we have properly heat treated blades, and that each blade has the ideal edge geometry for its intended application.

Some of the tests we use to torture our blades are the edge flex tests. These are simple tests where we press the edge down on a small metal rod until we can see edge deformation. If the blade chips at this point, it is too hard, and goes back in the tempering salt. If it stays bent, it is too soft, and goes all the way back to be re-hardened. If it passes the flex test, then the fun begins! Now we start chopping up stuff that normal knives should never have to cut. Some of the things we chop are brass rods, aluminum arrows,  16 penny nails, and of course my favorite, dry moose antler. During this testing process, we are checking to see if there is any damage to the edge, and what kind of damage it is. This helps us to determine the ideal edge thickness and geometry for each blade.

[b][i]Finishing[/i][/b]

When we are completely satisfied with the performance of the blade it is time for the final finishing process. Adam offers blades in three finish options: 

  [b][i][u]Adventure finish[/u][/i][/b] is a 400 grit machine finished blade with some of the forging texture left on the blade. It is our personal favorite, you can still see the evidence of its birth in the fire and force of forging. This finish is ruggedly beautiful,  and has the most character of them all. It is a working finish, and seems to get better with added use and patina. Adventure finish is the least expensive, and is an excellent value.

  [b][i][u]Safari finish[/u][/i][/b] is a completely clean blade with a 400 grit machine finish. It looks the most like a factory finished blade, is crisp, attractive and is very easy to maintain. It is intended as a working finish, and is a less expensive alternative to a hand sanded blade.
 
  [b][i][u]Exhibition finish[/u][/i][/b] is 'the works'. The blade is machine finished to 220 grit, then hand sanded to a stunning satin glow. It is naturally the most expensive as it requires many hours of patient hand work. An average bowie takes about 8 hours to sand.  Exhibition finish is for heirloom quality pieces that will maintain their value for generations to come.

Haley mentioned stabbing the blade’s tip as deep as possible into the moose antler. Then, they reef, tug and pull on the knife. If they break the tip; they redesign the geometry.[/quote]

To me, the tests you do should be dependent upon what purpose the knife was designed for. For instance, I would not take a fillet knife and try to chop a copper rod in two with it (although I guess you can?). I agree that some tests need to be designed for edge retention and flexibility testing, but their tests seem to be more geared towards bushcraft/survival type knives. If I want a slicer grind on something, I won’t take that knife and stab it as deep as I can into wood and try to snap the tip off of it. If it breaks, this doesn’t mean that it is necessarily a bad design. It does mean that it is a bad grind/geometry for a bushcraft/survival setting though - which wouldn’t have been what the knife was necessarily designed for.

that being said, those seem like very interesting tests and like they would work well for harder use knives! I may incorporate the brass flex test into my own knife making. I just need to be sure this is a valid type of test - I remember Cliff saying something negative about it though in the past…

38

I am strictly a hobbyist but have wondered how you guys can make any money at this, so I invited a close family friend to give me a batch of knives from his collection for sharpening. I also wanted some breadth of experience for my sharpening skills.

Well, he gave me a box of 19 knives, of which all but about three are sheath knives. One is a dagger style with a diamond-profile cross-section in the blade and no where near a surface I could clamp onto. Of the rest, most are pretty awful. Some have been passed down from fathers or grandfathers who served in WWII. Unfortunately, any history that might have been attached to them was lost when the heirs chose to sell them.

The first I chose to start on was a new Boker sheath knife still with the anti-corrosive baggy on it. SK5 carbon steel. The factory edge was clearly a quick belt job - maybe 180 grit with a good polishing job. I used the sharpie method to determine the original angles and was shocked to find the left at 27 and the right at 18 (yes, I did check for verticality). After trying to fix the awful grind job (I went to 26 and 20), I found in tiny letters etched on the choil (just ahead of the guard) the word “China”.

The second knife was a clipped-point skinner someone had made from an old file. It’s interesting how lay people seem to think this makes for magical powers. I have enough experience to know that the heat produced during grinding tends to temper all the hardness out of the steel. This one proved problematical when I noticed that my 400-grit diamond stones were flaking off pieces of steel as I approached the apex. Suddenly the the knife edge was worse than when I started. Clearly, the steel wasn’t homogeneous anymore.

So here I am, halfway through the fourth knife and I already stand convinced that I’d have to charge closer to $9 per inch to make a go of it. An that would probably net about $60 per hour; for those hours you were busy. If I was supplementing my Social Security, maybe not so bad.

In any case, now I have an appreciation for how much steel may need to be removed from a poorly executed factory grind.

Any comments? Please!

39

[quote quote=“tcmeyer” post=17582]I am strictly a hobbyist but have wondered how you guys can make any money at this, so I invited a close family friend to give me a batch of knives from his collection for sharpening. I also wanted some breadth of experience for my sharpening skills.

Well, he gave me a box of 19 knives, of which all but about three are sheath knives. One is a dagger style with a diamond-profile cross-section in the blade and no where near a surface I could clamp onto. Of the rest, most are pretty awful. Some have been passed down from fathers or grandfathers who served in WWII. Unfortunately, any history that might have been attached to them was lost when the heirs chose to sell them.

The first I chose to start on was a new Boker sheath knife still with the anti-corrosive baggy on it. SK5 carbon steel. The factory edge was clearly a quick belt job - maybe 180 grit with a good polishing job. I used the sharpie method to determine the original angles and was shocked to find the left at 27 and the right at 18 (yes, I did check for verticality). After trying to fix the awful grind job (I went to 26 and 20), I found in tiny letters etched on the choil (just ahead of the guard) the word “China”.

The second knife was a clipped-point skinner someone had made from an old file. It’s interesting how lay people seem to think this makes for magical powers. I have enough experience to know that the heat produced during grinding tends to temper all the hardness out of the steel. This one proved problematical when I noticed that my 400-grit diamond stones were flaking off pieces of steel as I approached the apex. Suddenly the the knife edge was worse than when I started. Clearly, the steel wasn’t homogeneous anymore.

So here I am, halfway through the fourth knife and I already stand convinced that I’d have to charge closer to $9 per inch to make a go of it. An that would probably net about $60 per hour; for those hours you were busy. If I was supplementing my Social Security, maybe not so bad.

In any case, now I have an appreciation for how much steel may need to be removed from a poorly executed factory grind.

Any comments? Please![/quote]

Tom,

lol this is just funny… you would flip if you ever knew just how much time i have wasted and lost money on doing sharpening jobs. But you live and you learn. You learn to adjust your prices accordingly and to adjust your technique. I can’t do a mirror finish for less than $30 because I will lose money.. and that is on a thin edge that won’t need a lot of work!

What I LOVE to do that saves a bunch of time is:

  1. charge for re-profiling. if they don’t want to pay then let them walk away. don’t lower the value of your time just because they won’t pay. I charge $3-5, even more if it’s really bad.
  2. re-profile on a belt sander and put a final micro bevel on with the WEPS. Just be careful here, things can go wrong on powered equipment real fast… but it does save a BUNCH of time that you would normally have to spend removing the shoulders of the edge.

I really need to convert a tormek jig to work with my belt sander so i can get precise/exact angles that I can match up on my WEPS later.

I get nervous once in a while when sharpening $1-2k customs (haven’t done a ton but have been doing more recently). If I have to take them to a belt sander I have to remind myself that they are just steel and it works/grinds the same way a $30 knife would (on a belt sander doing reprofiling work, not on the WEPS - there is obviously a difference at the very edge).

Oh, and if they are a picky customer, pass on them. It will be more of a headache than anything. The only thing that saved me one time was the fact that I record all of my phone calls on my smartphone (both lines). He said his knife was ruined (because I had done a backbevel) but when I sent him the mp3 of our phone conversation he never replied. this may be something to consider!

anyway, I feel your pain. It is hard to make money and it is a very fine line to walk.

40

[quote quote=“razoredgeknives” post=17584]

Tom,

lol this is just funny… you would flip if you ever knew just how much time i have wasted and lost money on doing sharpening jobs. But you live and you learn. You learn to adjust your prices accordingly and to adjust your technique. I can’t do a mirror finish for less than $30 because I will lose money.. and that is on a thin edge that won’t need a lot of work!

What I LOVE to do that saves a bunch of time is:

  1. charge for re-profiling. if they don’t want to pay then let them walk away. don’t lower the value of your time just because they won’t pay. I charge $3-5, even more if it’s really bad.
  2. re-profile on a belt sander and put a final micro bevel on with the WEPS. Just be careful here, things can go wrong on powered equipment real fast… but it does save a BUNCH of time that you would normally have to spend removing the shoulders of the edge.

I really need to convert a tormek jig to work with my belt sander so i can get precise/exact angles that I can match up on my WEPS later.

I get nervous once in a while when sharpening $1-2k customs (haven’t done a ton but have been doing more recently). If I have to take them to a belt sander I have to remind myself that they are just steel and it works/grinds the same way a $30 knife would (on a belt sander doing reprofiling work, not on the WEPS - there is obviously a difference at the very edge).

Oh, and if they are a picky customer, pass on them. It will be more of a headache than anything. The only thing that saved me one time was the fact that I record all of my phone calls on my smartphone (both lines). He said his knife was ruined (because I had done a backbevel) but when I sent him the mp3 of our phone conversation he never replied. this may be something to consider!

anyway, I feel your pain. It is hard to make money and it is a very fine line to walk.[/quote]

Sage advice there Josh :slight_smile:

Bottom line … business is business.
If its going on the WEPS for just a quick round/tune up and has been done by me on a WEPS before … $12 and up depending on style steel etc.

The calls that come in and say “I’ve got a collector so and so that I paid $1k for and I’ve tried to sharpen and ruined the edge and scratched the sides and messed it up .. can you fix it?” … yes I can but then they get a price range or more properly, a shop time quote with the stipulation I’m not a genie and can tell you without it being in my hands.

If I got to work on it for an hour using whatever machines then to a WEPS to put a perfect angle on it, there’s a cost to it … $65 per hour.

Agree that a mirror finish on a WEPS at the original angle it came with and unchanged in between, $30 is Proper.

These days, I look at my WEPS mainly for the knife nut in myself and my collection.
Its available for customers, but at a premium price on a premium system.

It ain’t paper wheels, that and sanding belts are for fast sharpening.

Oh, my current pricing list:
ZB Sharpening Prices and Rates

Still room for adjustment, especially on the Shears … need to add a range to take in several factors.

For me, my bread and butter are decent quality Kitchen Knife Sets.
You can bang them out, fix any problems and get them back to the client better than new … they are happy as clams.