Beginner: Best way to sharpen a knife without ruining it

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Keil Carpenter

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Sep 23, 2016
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I have an ESEE 6 that I use for bush-craft and have only just started my interest in knives so I really dont know ANYTHING about sharpening knives. I have looked at hand held sharpners such as the Lansky BladeMedic but people say that I shouldnt use it with such an expensive knife. So I am looking for suggestions and recommendations for an easy and safe way to sharpen my ESEE 6 that is somewhat noob safe. ESEE says that they try to keep a 20 degree edge on their knives if that is of any help

Thankyou
 
Get some cheap knives from the local Goodwill etc, a combination stone from the local hardware store, and a bottle of mineral oil from the pharmacy. There is a ton of freehand sharpening advice on this forum. Do not learn on your ESEE.



Once you have a good idea what you're doing, transition to your better knives and if desired, other stones or abrasive surfaces.
 
Learning to sharpen "freehand", as it's called, is always a good thing. You're much more flexible as a sharpener if you can sharpen without the help of guided systems. A trick that a lot of people use is to take a black marker and blacken the bevel on the knife you're sharpening. Hold the knife so that when you sharpen it, you're removing the marker on the bevel from the blade coating down to the edge. When you do that you're holding the angle at which the blade was originally sharpened. This will sharpen your knife and remove the least amount of metal to do it.

And, like HH said, get a couple of cheap knives to practice on first. Read through the freehand sharpening threads here on BF. There may even be some stickies on freehand sharpening at the top of the page. Here's a decent starting place: http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/s...hat-is-sharpening-a-knife-about-(2015-updates!)
 
Keil Carpenter said:
I have an ESEE 6 that I use for bush-craft and have only just started my interest in knives so I really dont know ANYTHING about sharpening knives. I have looked at hand held sharpners such as the Lansky BladeMedic but people say that I shouldnt use it with such an expensive knife. So I am looking for suggestions and recommendations for an easy and safe way to sharpen my ESEE 6 that is somewhat noob safe. ESEE says that they try to keep a 20 degree edge on their knives if that is of any help

Thankyou
Click to expand...

As stated, learning freehand is the most versatile, you can then sharpen on just about anything. But a decent guided system will also get you on a "path to sharp", (link provided just to show examples), allowing you to learn what it takes to get a blade sharp, without the added factor of learning to control the angle. A good choice IMO, would be WorkSharp's Guided Sharpening System, you get everything you need in a nice package (decent base, abrasives, and a guide to help you learn angles)... probably one of the most versatile packages, and a great way to learn freehand.

You can also get a decent sharpening stone, and prop it up at the angle you want to sharpen at... also a way to learn freehand with an easier way to control the angle.

There are many paths to sharp... and, as others have stated, no matter what you decide, practice on cheaper knives first.
 
Victorinox fibrox handle kitchen are good for practice also. Sometimes mystery knives are crappy steel and won't take an edge, it can be discouraging.


Russ
 
All good advice. I think most beginners don't even know the basic sweeping motion so watch videos (watch out that you don't learn something wrong though) do get that right first. Here are some links of technique that I think is solid. You see them though using first quick forth and back motions and then sweeping motions along the entire edge. Go slow, only as fast as it feels comfortable. I know that you want to copy their speed - don't! The first two are our own HeavyHanded and Jason but there are many, many others showing great technique on the net:
1) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9DWdfhnpBe0 and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SuGwd9YZ8_g
2) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XgOXvtJDm5E
3) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BIIw5U-DRF4

Take a cheap knife but not a ruined one. A cheap knife with a nice bevel on it that you can try to follow. Mark your entire edge with a permanent marker. Use one stroke on each side the way you just learned it from the videos and try to remember (both muscle and eye) the angle at which you held the knife. Look at the edge and see where you removed metal. Adjust your angle a bit accordingly. Mark the edge every single time if needed, do another sweep, look again. After a while you get a hang of it. Pay particularly attention to the tip and the heel of the edge, those areas are often neglected. Read the stickies up on top about basics of sharpening, burr etc. That's all the theory you need too, just like getting a drivers license, you need theory and practice.

Next (or maybe this is first) get a good quality stone, there are many. Most of us recommend either a Norton India combo stone or Crystolon stone to be used with oil or a slow wearing coarse/fine waterstone for beginners. Waterstones (also to some degree Crystolon stones) can be tricky as far as edge finishing is concerned so I wonder if you would be best of with the Norton India combi stone. The ESEE 6 (1095 steel) will have no problems to get sharp on it! If you acquire knives with modern steels down the road, you may have to change up the approach a bit.
 
mycough said:
Victorinox fibrox handle kitchen are good for practice also. Sometimes mystery knives are crappy steel and won't take an edge, it can be discouraging.


Russ
Click to expand...

You can sharpen a beer can.
 
jpm2 said:
Yes, beer cans have better metal than some knives.
Click to expand...

Not true. Any knife can be sharpened. Bevel geometry has a lot to do with sharpening. Whether it STAYS sharp has to do with how good the steel is.
You can sharpen a piece of brass to razor sharp.
 
I see no shame in starting with a cheap lansky guided setup. You can learn to freehand on cheap knives while using the lansky to keep the good one acceptably sharp. Learn exactly what is happening with the lansky and try to duplicate it on a benchstone.
 
jpm2 said:
I see no shame in starting with a cheap lansky guided setup. You can learn to freehand on cheap knives while using the lansky to keep the good one acceptably sharp. Learn exactly what is happening with the lansky and try to duplicate it on a benchstone.
Click to expand...

I was thinking the same thing. The Lansky, GATCO, or DMT Aligner and the "marker trick" or "sharpie trick" will keep the good knives sharp w/o much risk of damage. I actually think those cheap sharpeners will beat most freehand sharpeners.
 
Bill DeShivs said:
Not true. Any knife can be sharpened. Bevel geometry has a lot to do with sharpening. Whether it STAYS sharp has to do with how good the steel is.
You can sharpen a piece of brass to razor sharp.
Click to expand...

You have really helped the op. Go polish something...
Russ
 
I shared exactly that- knowledge, not the notion that "crappy steel" can't be sharpened.
Don't fill the OP's head full of nonsense like that.
 
Bill,

While crappy steel can be sharpened by experts like yourself, Heavy Handed, or Jason, or anyone who has practiced some, it's more difficult to get there (including burr formation and removal) than a good steel. For a beginner, less problem is better. I always recommend Victorinox paring knife (3-4$ only) that has adequate quality while not costing a lot. If OP likes pocket knives, a Cara Cara or Meadowlark will be a good start.
 
I can freehand good enough to get a 'useable' edge and I have 2 guided systems (Lansky and Apex clone) but, neither is easier to use than my Sharpmaker. I would recomend it, for a beginner.
 
Chris "Anagarika";16513398 said:
Bill,

While crappy steel can be sharpened by experts like yourself, Heavy Handed, or Jason, or anyone who has practiced some, it's more difficult to get there (including burr formation and removal) than a good steel. For a beginner, less problem is better. I always recommend Victorinox paring knife (3-4$ only) that has adequate quality while not costing a lot. If OP likes pocket knives, a Cara Cara or Meadowlark will be a good start.
Click to expand...

Thanks Boss, exactly what I was getting at.
I don't want to squabble with a legend, just thought my post was germane.
Russ
 
A ceramic rod system like a Spyderco Sharpmaker or Lansky turn box is a good place to start. It is a form of freehand sharpening that holds the stones at preset angles so all you have to do is keep the knife vertical. It still requires some technique which you learn as you go. The skills can later translate into freehanding on bench stones.

You're unlikely to ruin a knife using those tools, though if you need to reshape or repair an edge they can be rather slow. You can invest in diamond or CBN rods for the Sharpmaker to speed up re-profiling if you want. I never did. I use diamond or SiC stones freehand if required before moving to the Sharpmaker for finishing.

These days I'm good enough at freehanding that I don't really need the Sharpmaker but I still use it for convenience and speed with some of my knives.
 
For the newbie, something like the $25 Lansky TB 2D2C 4-rod turn box sharpener is pretty much foolproof and quick to learn.

With preset angles of 20° and 25°, the included diamond and ceramic rods will keep your ESEE 6 plenty sharp.

Here's a video of it in use ...
[video=youtube;LupzMlpaV8Q]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LupzMlpaV8Q[/video]
 
Bill,

I respect your valuable sharing on this forum and have learnt much from you too. I hope I don't come across squabbling. Just trying to help a beginner with a good start. Once experience built, experiment with various steel including crappy ones will give insight about various aspects of sharpening.

Getting down the basic right is important IMHO.
 
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