I’m about to receive my WE any day now and I am keen to give my Spyderco a proper edge.
It’s the Endura 4 with VG10 steel.
I use it to skin rabbits, prepare game birds etc and sometime fresh water fish like trout.
I would like some advise if possible please as to what edge would be best suited for the task at above. I would like it to be obviously very very sharp with a long lasting edge if possible?
What would you more experienced guys advise me to do and how to go about it?
I bought the pro pack one, this comes with the 800/1000 grit stones, I also bought the ultra fine ceramic stone pack also which consists of the 1200/1600 grit stones also
My advice would be to find some cheaper knives to practice with and to break your stones in some before tackling your EDC. I have done about 40-50 knives with the WEPS, and I’m far, far more pleased and impressed with the performance of the diamonds than I was in the first 5-10 knives. The edges are much, much smoother and keener now after a bit of break in. IMO so far, the best general EDC edge is between 600-1000 grit though I regularly carry a knife every now and then that’s finished to 0.5 micron CBN. The great thing is that you have enough tools at your disposal now to try out different edges for what works best for you. If a mirrored 3.5 micron edge doesn’t work well for you, then back off to a lower grit and work from there. You’ll eventually find your sweet spot.
Thanks for your help and advise my friend. What I’m worried of a bit, is if I have an ultra sharp knife, will,the edge still last a good while as if I didn’t give it such a good edge?
Steve
[quote quote=“247sniper” post=18458]
Thanks for your help and advise my friend. What I’m worried of a bit, is if I have an ultra sharp knife, will,the edge still last a good while as if I didn’t give it such a good edge?
Steve[/quote]
That’s a curious thought… I know this is something that seems to be a thought on several of the forums, but I don’t know if it is founded on proven evidence. I believe you need to focus on whether you want an edge that push cuts or slices, these are two different things all together. IMHO, what you described would call for a toothy edge… a highly polished push-cutting edge is limited to certain (few) uses…
[quote quote=“razoredgeknives” post=18465][quote quote=“247sniper” post=18458]
Thanks for your help and advise my friend. What I’m worried of a bit, is if I have an ultra sharp knife, will,the edge still last a good while as if I didn’t give it such a good edge?
Steve[/quote]
That’s a curious thought… I know this is something that seems to be a thought on several of the forums, but I don’t know if it is founded on proven evidence. I believe you need to focus on whether you want an edge that push cuts or slices, these are two different things all together. IMHO, what you described would call for a toothy edge… a highly polished push-cutting edge is limited to certain (few) uses…[/quote]
Thanks for that info mate, that’s actually very helpful. What would I get a toothy edge from, the 600 grit stone on the WEP like on your YouTube video?
[quote quote=“247sniper” post=18469][quote quote=“razoredgeknives” post=18465][quote quote=“247sniper” post=18458]
Thanks for your help and advise my friend. What I’m worried of a bit, is if I have an ultra sharp knife, will,the edge still last a good while as if I didn’t give it such a good edge?
Steve[/quote]
That’s a curious thought… I know this is something that seems to be a thought on several of the forums, but I don’t know if it is founded on proven evidence. I believe you need to focus on whether you want an edge that push cuts or slices, these are two different things all together. IMHO, what you described would call for a toothy edge… a highly polished push-cutting edge is limited to certain (few) uses…[/quote]
Thanks for that info mate, that’s actually very helpful. What would I get a toothy edge from, the 600 grit stone on the WEP like on your YouTube video?
Thanks again for your help and advise.
Steve[/quote]
Yes and no… mine are well worn in, I’ve probably sharpened over 200 knives on those stones. I started off with loving a 1k edge for toothiness, then down to 800->600->400 as they get broken in. So you could either go higher, as in the 1k range or you could go with 600 and strop. Just make sure to only do around 10 passes with the 5 or even 10-14 um strops after you have lowered your stropping angle by 1-2 degrees. This should produce some extremely sharp edges!
[quote quote=“247sniper” post=18458]
Thanks for your help and advise my friend. What I’m worried of a bit, is if I have an ultra sharp knife, will,the edge still last a good while as if I didn’t give it such a good edge?
Steve[/quote]
Interesting question, kind of complex because it also should include the nature of the sharp edge e.g. toothy vs. polished. One thing is certain, force applied to the edge makes the blade dull by deforming the metal at the edge. A dull knife requires more force in order to cut so you’re having to apply more force right off the bat with a dull knife. A sharp knife doesn’t require as much force so it’s protected from being deformed for longer.
[quote quote="
Just make sure to only do around 10 passes with the 5 or even 10-14 um strops after you have lowered your stropping angle by 1-2 degrees. This should produce some extremely sharp edges![/quote]
Thanks again mate, helpful info there.
Could you just explain the top bit again for me, a bit clearer so I understand ya, still learning all this stuff lol
[quote quote=“wickededge” post=18471][quote quote=“247sniper” post=18458]
Thanks for your help and advise my friend. What I’m worried of a bit, is if I have an ultra sharp knife, will,the edge still last a good while as if I didn’t give it such a good edge?
Steve[/quote]
Interesting question, kind of complex because it also should include the nature of the sharp edge e.g. toothy vs. polished. One thing is certain, force applied to the edge makes the blade dull by deforming the metal at the edge. A dull knife requires more force in order to cut so you’re having to apply more force right off the bat with a dull knife. A sharp knife doesn’t require as much force so it’s protected from being deformed for longer.[/quote]
Hi Clay, thanks for the help and guidance, it totally makes sense what you have said.
[quote quote=“247sniper” post=18474][quote quote="
Just make sure to only do around 10 passes with the 5 or even 10-14 um strops after you have lowered your stropping angle by 1-2 degrees. This should produce some extremely sharp edges![/quote]
Thanks again mate, helpful info there.
Could you just explain the top bit again for me, a bit clearer so I understand ya, still learning all this stuff lol
Cheers
Steve.[/quote]
Sure Steve =)
When you go from your 600 grit stone to your strop, you only want to use about 10 light passes on each side. Also, before you actually begin stropping you need to lower your angle on each side by a degree or two (below what your stone was). Make sure you are using the angle cube if you have one.
I can’t add much to the “sharp” discussion that hasn’t already been said.
As the Endura is a full flat ground, FFG, blade I would also suggest getting some practice on other knives, especially ones with squared spines. These are easy to clamp in straight. The FFG has to a.) be shimmed in the vice to keep the angle equal on both sides (using tape, puffy tape, moleskin, etc.) or b.) clamp the left side flush agaist the vise, shim the other side for a tight fit, then use the angle finder to see the difference of left side vs right side, then adjust the angle of your stones accordingly.
I tried method A first and found the blade still moves around. I now prepare method B, just clamp it in hard and do the math with the angles. I think around here people use both methods for FFG knives.
Josh’s suggestion to limit the number of strop strokes is dead-on for finishing a toothy edge. If you strop too many times, you polish off the micro-serrations that helps you cut very tuff or very slippery stuff. The scalpel blades I have are polished only on one side to preserve their tooth. A 600-grit or even a 1000-grit edge has “tooth”, the micro-serrations which bite into the material you’re trying to cut. Stropping removes the rough surface scratches which produce friction between the bevel faces and the material outside of the cut point. It makes a big difference in cutting performance, but you want to avoid the chance of knocking down the serrations at the apex.
[quote quote=“razoredgeknives” post=18478][quote quote=“247sniper” post=18474][quote quote="
Just make sure to only do around 10 passes with the 5 or even 10-14 um strops after you have lowered your stropping angle by 1-2 degrees. This should produce some extremely sharp edges![/quote]
Thanks again mate, helpful info there.
Could you just explain the top bit again for me, a bit clearer so I understand ya, still learning all this stuff lol
Cheers
Steve.[/quote]
Sure Steve =)
When you go from your 600 grit stone to your strop, you only want to use about 10 light passes on each side. Also, before you actually begin stropping you need to lower your angle on each side by a degree or two (below what your stone was). Make sure you are using the angle cube if you have one.[/quote]
Excellent thanks for that Josh, that has cleared it up. Just to confirm, if I sharpen my knife at say 20 degrees, lower the stropping angle to say 18-19 degrees, thus stropping most off the bevel but leaving the very edge serrated ever so slightly to leave a slight toothed cutting edge, is that correct?
Tonight I happened to come across a couple of micro-photos I’d taken of a scalpel and thought I’d share them here with you gents. The first two photos here are of a brand-new scalpel blade, just out of the sterile wrapper. These scalpels are ground with about a 25-degree included angle. As you can see, the edge is quite toothy, but the single polished side makes for a very sharp edge that’ll cut just about anything organic. Look closely at the edge in the non-polished photo and you’ll see the micro-serrations. The third photo is presented for comparison of the grind patterns. It’s a reference photo taken at the same magnification of a 400 grit grind pattern on an old Sheffield blade. The stone is pretty new - not yet broken in. Without actually measuring the scratch marks, I’d guess the scalpel is ground with about 600 grit. ??
