any reasons not to sharpen knives using sandpaper?

singularity35 said:
now I'm confused in another thread I was assured that mousepad and sandpaper is way better than any crock stick gadget. Now I read that angled sticks are better. I did buy and use a sharpmaker and got good results. I even rebeveled my endura with a coarse stone laid on one of the SM's rods. I even tried to fake a convex edge by manipulating the rods on my SM getting 4 angles. that means 3 back bevels and the edge. In that thread I was told that i'd get better results with a mousepad and sandpaper. I tried it and got my endura sharper than on the SM. I thought I was on the right track, now somebody tells me otherwise. maybe I should stick to what works for me.
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You were talking about using the sharpmaker to convex a knife and were told that using sandpaper and a mousepad is a better method for accomplishing that task. The OP here is asking a different question. :thumbup:
 
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Samael said:
Well, it'll work. Kinda. It'll scratch the crap out of your knives and won't really be a fine enough grit to get your knives sharp...
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Hmmm... I'm thinking you may not have been doing it correctly, I have found that using sandpaper results in creating some of the sharpest and most beautiful mirror pollished edges. I tend to get more scratches from stones, though I know that is my own fault from dragging the corner of the stone accross the tip end of the blade. :)

Around here you can get up to 2000 grit wet-dry paper at any auto parts store. :thumbup:

- I'll add that weather using stones or paper, it always helps to finish up on a good strop!
 
sharpening knives is really a complex process.not so much for a person trying to touch up one blade style but multiple blades in complex alloys & also complex angles & bevels.i,m still in a learning process after all these years. knife crazies as myself keep adding knives in super alloys & complex bevels complicated by the desire to attain that super polished mirror beveled zenith. from ground level a crock stick combined with maintenance that does'nt allow the edge to get really dull wiil suffice awhile for novices. however as one sophicates to reprofiling bevels & going beyond shaving hair the plot thickens. until i joined the forum i could'nt conceive getting an edge so sharp that one could whittle hair. also knifenut1013 information about diamond paste moved myself to much higher plateaus.the best process is start simple & take your time so your early efforts do'nt make your edges appear to be something cut by a chainsaw.
 
I make my own knife sharpners. I get a block of wood. 1x2x9 and drill my wholes. then get the sticks. then put them in the wholes and then I start to sharpen my knifes. been useing them for about 14 years. I have a kershaw leek and it is always razer sharp with this system. boy is it cheap price wise too.
 
To the member who started this thread:

You have received a great deal of information to consider and process. You will notice that everyone has a different opinion. Here is my reply to your question:

Many abrasive media (sand paper, diamond sharpeners, natural stones, synthetic stones (I include the Sharpmaker rods in this type) types will sharpen a knife and provide a useable edge.

If there is a Wal-Mart near you, you have access to automotive sandpaper capable of getting your knives sharp. My local Wal-mart carries grits up to 2000 so I suspect most Wal-marts would also carry those grits. I strop edges after using 2000 grit paper with leather that has buffing compound on it and then the edge will tree top my arm hair. The finish that is produced is so polished that it looks wet to me.

I use two base materials to support the sandpaper. First is an old mouse pad for the convex hand sharpening that I do. The second is plate glass for doing "V" edges or Scandi ground sharpening. Both styles of sharpening do a good job, but require practice to become effective/efficient.

A Sharpmaker is an excellent tool and is my favorite hand powered (read non-motorized) sharpening system. It is very capable of producing edges sharp enough for me to shave my facial hair cleanly and comfortably after stroping off of the Ultra fine rods. The Sharpmaker is not my favorite tool for removing chips out of blade edges, but it is capable of accomplishing the task if you have the patience and commitement to put the time in. The Sharpmaker rods will require frequent cleaning to keep the pours of the stones from filling/clogging with the fine metal dust that you are removing in the sharpening process.

If money is no object for you, then I would suggest getting a Sharpmaker, add on the Diamond rods, and add on the Ultrafine rods. This will give you a very good learning tool for sharpening basics, and then down the road, you may want to experement with other styles of sharpening.

Let us know how you decide to move forward.

Sincerely,

Doug
 
Samael said:
Well, it'll work. Kinda. It'll scratch the crap out of your knives and won't really be a fine enough grit to get your knives sharp, but it's better than nothing. But only barely. Really, you'd be better off using the bottom of your coffee cup.
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@carpscot: this post is what confused me. it seems to say:

1.a coffee cup is better than the sandpaper and mousepad recommended by a lot of people in two forums.

2. Crock sticks are better than freehand.


I thought that the consensus was freehand is better as long as you know what you're doing. Don't get me wrong I love my SM for the consistency that it gives me. It's where I undo the mistakes I make trying to learn freehand, stropping, etc.
 
richard thurman said:
I make my own knife sharpners. I get a block of wood. 1x2x9 and drill my wholes. then get the sticks. then put them in the wholes and then I start to sharpen my knifes. been useing them for about 14 years. I have a kershaw leek and it is always razer sharp with this system. boy is it cheap price wise too.
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Could you show some pix? I'm not getting it...
 
The Sharpmaker or Russell would be to get a small chip out of a blade first and foremost. Something that should not be beyond the capabilities of either system, correct?
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No you would need the sharpmaker's diamond rods to accomplish this unless you have an eternity to sharpen. It still takes a long time to get a chip out of say, S30V "with the diamond rods."

If money is no object for you, then I would suggest getting a Sharpmaker, add on the Diamond rods, and add on the Ultrafine rods. This will give you a very good learning tool for sharpening basics, and then down the road, you may want to experement with other styles of sharpening.
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What he said - if you go the Sharpmaker route :thumbup:
 
Whatever works is best.

I love my Sharpmaker, it's really easy to get shaving sharp edges on it. I also like that it is fairly affordable and other gizmos can be added later as needed, or not. It is also very versatile compared to stone sets, as recurves, hawkbills, and serrated knives are no problem.

I recently bought the ultrafine rods and they work great, but instead of the diamond rods I bought a DMT extra-course/course double-sided Diafold for really dull/chipped knives.

I also spent $3 on an old leather belt at Goodwill and less than $7 on green poliching compound at Lowe's and now have a decent strop that I'm actually getting acceptable with. Now I'm looking at adding some 1 micron diamond paste as well, and luckily the belt is long enough I can put it on the other half.
 
I sharpen exclusively with sandpaper on mousepad. To write this method off and say it does not yield a good edge is pretty, well, ignorant. I have rebeveled probably 20 knives from hollow, FFG, saber grind, and scandi grind, and every one of them would whittle hair after I was done with it.

Yes, it does start to cost money as sandpaper wears out, but I am so pleased with it that I don't see myself using stones or a sharpmaker in the near future.
 
You can do everything you need to do with sandpaper and different backing materials as Doug mentioned. It is also the cheapest way to get started and will give you the flexibility to handle different edges. Take this form someone who never had any luck on a Sharpmaker- as popular and "easy to use" as they are, I could never get a knife sharp enough to make me happy on it.
 
I could never get a knife sharp enough to make me happy on it.
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I agree 100% and have got sharper edges with sandpaper & mousepad. My problem is whanever I take that edge to my strop - somehow - I dull the d*** edge again?? :confused:
 
For recurves, you can get round stones in various diameters from www.congresstools.com. Norton stones are available from Lowes and Home Depot, and Ace Hardware for about $5. These have a coarse (very) and a fine (sorta) side, but will give a good working edge and the edges will get better as your skill goes up. A $20 Norton Coarse/Fine India (gray and orange double sided) stone from Grainger or the local woodworking store will give an edge that will whittle beard hair held between my fingers. Sharpening, even to a shaving edge, doesn't need to be expensive. I also rebeveled my Kershaw Random Task in CPM S60V steel using just strips of 320 grit wet/dry paper, then added a microbevel at 20 degrees on the Sharpmaker. It took a while though. I just clamped the end of the paper to a table, using a small piece of shim between paper and clamp, so the clamp didn't tear into the paper. The angle isn't particularly important, just less than 20 degrees. The same method also worked on a Schrade Peanut, but I layed the blade flat on the paper and went from 100 to 1500 grit then stropped, using a piece of leather clamped in the same fashion. This was the first time I got a blade to whittle hair. Basically anything that will cut/abrade the steel will work, some things just work better than others. Coffee mugs have never been my first choice for final edges, but they work better than bricks and gravel from the driveway.

Oh yea, to answer the original question, the only reason I can thing of is removing chips goes faster for me with stones, but if you don't have chips, I'd say go for it. Be careful with the tips though. The slack sandpaper can round them if you're not careful. Of course, so can the Sharpmaker.
 
I put up a picture for you to see. I have a kershaw leek and I use them all of the time. Just a couple of swips and I am shaving my hair on my arm with it again.
 
I roll up the mousepad for recurves, but... I'd rather not have a recurve in the first place.
 
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