Well…my Gen 3 Pro should be showing up any day now. I’m looking into all the accessories that I might enjoy using and right now I’m researching USB microscopes. What brand and model is the most highly recommended? I’ve looked at the Din-O-Lite, Celestron and Carson scopes so far. I want to purchase something that will get the job done and not wish I had bought something different down the road. What is the groups most recommended brand and model? By the way…I’ll be using it on a Mac computer.
The necessity for Mac compatibility may both limit and help determine your selections. I’d shop Amazon. I’m still using the very first and least expensive USB scope I ever purchased. A Plugable model. I’ve tried 5 or 6 others and keep going back to this one.
I use mine with my MacBook and it works fantastic and cheap, a must have
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00XNYXQHE/ref=ppx_od_dt_b_asin_title_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Thanks Richard. I’ve been doing a lot of research on these scopes, and this one seems to always be in the top tier in ratings.
Tommie, just to be clear, which ever model scope you settle on…they all take time and practice to learn to use them so it’s easy for you and you can understand what you’re looking at. All the scopes have a focusing ring that is pretty much right where you’ll want to hold the scope. Learning to hold and use the scope while holding it around the focus ring so not to disrupt the fine focus is a challenge. Those of us using the many different models have adapted our methods we find we like the best.
For instance, I prefer to use my scope usually on the high power and view the bevel and apex from the sides. I’m looking at the scratch pattern and how it interfaces the apex, that is the knife edge. I believe Tom “tcmeyer” and Ed K. “notsharpenuff” prefer to view the apex from the top looking down onto the bevels. They’re inspecting for reflected defects.
Just like our sharpening techniques we all develop our own techniques for using our USB scope as an inspection tool. Figuring out your preference is all part of fun and another aspect of the “learning curve”. I hope that soon using the scope will be second nature for you. Enjoy it.
Thanks Marc. I’ve been sharpening knives for a long time. I just turned 64 years old and am retired. I’ll have plenty of time to practice using both the WE and the scope. Of course I have never had a system like the WE, so it will definitely be a learning process.
We have a lot of kitchen knives that need a lot of work. I was looking at some of them today, and some seem to not even have an edge one one side of the blade. Looks like a lot of rep-profiling in my future. The scope will get plenty of use.
Tommie we’re here to try to help you.
I have profiled knives that were made at the factory with only one beveled side. Those were old inexpensive knives. I also own knives that are also beveled on one side. Those are high end, quality chef’s knives, made for a specific duty like boning.
If you’re in question about what your working with, post a photo. There’s usually someone here who can help.
Marc, the knives I’m talking about are Wuesthof knives. We have had this set for many years and they have mostly been sharpened on the hand held ceramic sharpener that Wuesthof sells. I’ll try to get some pics and post them. I ended up going with a Dino-Lite USB Microscope. I hope it does the job. 
Tommie,
I’ve added some pictures to show what I look for in the reflected light when shooting straight down onto the edge. I used my pluggable scope at the highest magnification.
The first set is my Spyderco PM2 I sharpened two weeks ago. I drew a red line where I tested the edge and then shot three pictures of the bevel - Right, straight down, left.
The next set of pictures is our kitchen work horse. I sharpened it last weekend and the BESS score was around 150. Tonight it tested at 316 but it gets used every day for almost every meal. I took the same pictures - right, straight down, left.
I did the same thing, drew a line at the test point and shot the microscope pictures there.
Not sure these pictures do justice to the visible difference between the edges I see on the computer screen. Just realize that the ultimate goal is to not have any light reflected from the edge when looking straight down with the scope.
Ed K.
These are the pictures of the kitchen work horse.
Ed K.
Thanks for the pictures Ed. I never realized how rough knife edges looked until I started looking at all the microscope pics on here. What is a good bevel degree for most kitchen knives? As you can see in my pics above, my kitchen knives appear to have very little bevel.
Tommie
Tommie,
There are many variables in setting a bevel angle. Your question goes to the science of sharpening. Steel quality, blade geometry, and knife usage all need to be considered. Because the kitchen knife in the picture above sees lots of usage and is used for slicing bread as well as chopping raw carrots, I have settled on 17DPS. I’ve added the last picture I took after sharpening. You’ll notice, I don’t spend a lot of time going for super polish.
In the pic from January, I only went to 600 grit and the BESS numbers are under 200. This last weekend, I only used my new 2200 stones to break them in. I spent about 20 minutes at 17DPS before I got to the apex and quit.
I hope some other forum members who do a lot of kitchen knives will weigh in with how they choose a bevel angle.
Ed K.
While I have time, I want to post some pictures of my pluggable scope. Since I hold the scope tight to the edge and rotate looking at the sides as well as straight down, I’ve worn a groove in the clear plastic shield. Base on a post from tcmeyer, I now wrap the shield with UHMW TAPE 19-20A-.5-18 Tape.
Once the new layer of UMHW tape is in place, I wrap it tight with blue painters tape.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01N5G0Z8Y/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
For those just starting with the scope, you might want to take preemptive measures.
Ed K.
Tommie, 20 degrees per side, (dps), is a good average bevel angle to start with. I believe this is tcmeyer’s mainstay. After beginning with this bevel angle you can monitor the edge durability, longevity and knife performance to guide you to tune the bevel angle more to your liking and expectations.
New knife science applied studies suggest that a knife may be able to do just as well with a narrower bevel then we once thought. This is part of the reason that Ed K utilizes 17 dps as his mainstay angle. I follow this new theory direction, too.
Some users follow the path using a marker to determine the existing knife’s sharpened bevel and match this angle as their starting place. That way you’ll simply be sharing the edge that’s there as opposed to removing more steel as you low-profile the bevel.
You can do web searches and sometimes find the factory recommended angles. There is a user submitted chart in the W.E. Knowledge Base with suggested sharpening knife settings that W.E. sharpener users have utilized and shared.
Basically, thinner knives with harder steels can support more acute bevel angles. There’s a balance to be attempted. The wider the bevel the more applied edge pressure is necessary to push the knife edge through what it’s cutting. This extra applied force needed in turn wears the knife edge down easier. Thinner more acute knife bevels can penetrate and pass through what they’re cutting with less applied force. The balance that must be struck is, is the steel hard and tough enough to support the thinner narrower more acute bevel with out folding or rolling over under knife edge use. Harder steels are more brittle and this steel usually breaks or chips off as the knife edge wears as opposed to rolling or folding.
What ever angle you choose to apply, be sure to record the clamping and sharpening settings to more easily facilitate touch ups and bevel angle profile adjustments you may decide to try.
Thanks for the tip guys! I just ordered a roll. What’s another $14.00 right? My wife is going to kill me when all this stuff starts rolling in! My Gen 3 Pro is on the delivery truck today. I’m excited to start the learning curve. Just hate that I’m going to be out of town this weekend. I want be able to start playing with it until next week.
Great information Marc. Thanks for sharing this. I like the idea of standardizing on a certain bevel angle to start with. I realize that it’s not a “fits all” for all knife edges.
I’ve been murdered so many time the last 8 months Tommie! One thing I wanted to point out that I originally forgot to mention about the USB scope that works with a Mac is that the image on the screen is inverted so it’s really confusing at times as you might imagine. I’ve tried to flip it back to look normal but I haven’t figuring it out yet. My wife uses a USB ear spoon for digging out gunk and it’s the same with that device so maybe others can comment on other scopes that don’t have this deficiency.
I just rotate the USB cylindrical microscope in my fingers, 180º, so instead of the wire coming out of the bottom of the scope, now it comes out up at the top. That will flop your image so the image is with the knife bevel up. Just like the knife is clamped in the W.E. Vise.
I do have an old Windows laptop if necessary. I was just hoping to be able to use my Mac since it’s a 27” HD monitor. I’ll be finding out next week.
Thanks again for the helpful pointers guys.
Well, I have offically lost my marbles! Why didn’t I think of that?