Hunting knife sharpener - Buck knives

[mossyoakglock]

I currently sharpen my knives on a Bass Pro sharpening stone but want to get something better.

What is a good sharpener for a Buck hunting knife? I have a 119 w/ 420HC steel and a Buck Zipper with the same blade

I also have a few Benchmade knives that I would sharpen as well.

What is a good entry level sharper for these knives that will produce a good edge?

 

[Bill DeShivs]

Any stone should get the knives sharp. If your existing stone is not producing results, it's operator error, not the stone. Buying a new stone won't fix that.

 

[David Martin]

Buck's 420 steel is not hard to sharpen. I use a Norton IB8 stone in combination coarse / fine grit India. Plus a strop. After working it on the fine India it should shave arm hair.
Then take it to the strop for a dozen strokes. After this it should shave every hair it touches. DM

 

[Steve6387]

I was not getting the results I wanted with freehand and the admittedly cheap stones I was using. One of my blades is a buck 119 with 425m
I bought a sharpmaker and am getting much better results. I'll go back to stones to refine my skills but using a sharpmaker yielded immediate results.

 

[theJman]

I currently sharpen my knives on a Bass Pro sharpening stone but want to get something better.

What is a good sharpener for a Buck hunting knife? I have a 119 w/ 420HC steel and a Buck Zipper with the same blade

I also have a few Benchmade knives that I would sharpen as well.

What is a good entry level sharper for these knives that will produce a good edge?

I carry a DMT Diafold fine/extra fine in almost all of my kits. If you aren't comfortable doing free hand it might not be the best choice for you, but for me they work. They're pretty inexpensive as well.

 

[mossyoakglock]

I was not getting the results I wanted with freehand and the admittedly cheap stones I was using. One of my blades is a buck 119 with 425m
I bought a sharpmaker and am getting much better results. I'll go back to stones to refine my skills but using a sharpmaker yielded immediate results.

This is what I was getting at, I guess. I can get decent results freehand/manually but it takes forever. I know I need to keep practicing to get better but looking for something that I can get more immediate results with. Something like the Sharpmaker or a "tool", etc.

 

[pondoro]

The Lansky or Gatco guided systems are very friendly and will work on Buck's 425HC. once you get used to using them and understand what good results look like freehand sharpening on a stone becomes easier.

 

[bucketstove]

This is what I was getting at, I guess. I can get decent results freehand/manually but it takes forever. I know I need to keep practicing to get better but looking for something that I can get more immediate results with. Something like the Sharpmaker or a "tool", etc.

Hi
how many minutes is forever? what are "decent" results?
how is your angle control?
have you tried scrubbing strokes to raise a burr?
what stone do you have?

if you can already get your knife some kind of sharp, you can probably get it shaving sharp , raise a tiny bur, cut it off at elevated angle how to sharpen a knife - Joe Calton

 

[Steve6387]

Even with the sharpmaker, my 119 takes longer than my crovan or aus8 blades. But it is easier and more consistent.

+1 bucketstoves post

 

[Jamesh Bond]

http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/s...D-THIS?highlight=Sharpener+newbies+read+first

 

[Bob6794]

A lot of those "tools" for sharpening like the sharpmaker, dmt aligner, lansky guided setup, edgepro, wicked edge, etc will require you to reprofile the edge to meet the angle that it's using to fully sharpen the blade the first time you use it so it will take a lot longer. Where as if you freehand you can just match the angle and remove enough steel to apex the blade at the angle it's already at. Any chance you know what kind of stone you have or can post a picture of it so we can try to guess what kind it is (I'm guess a arkansas, india, or silicon carbide) but the type it is will help us judge some things. An arkansas for example removes very little metal and stepping up to an india or silicon carbide will remove metal faster but will still require good technique to get good results. For now though try to get in a few hours of practice and see how that goes as skill is more important than what your using.

Here are some links to people who show you how to sharpen knives. I know at least 2 of them are members here possibly all 3 I'm not sure. Watch some of their video's and you will most likely learn quite a lot. Just remember there are billion different ways to sharpen a knife, whats important is finding out what works for you so you don't have to follow their method exactly but try to learn from them.
https://www.youtube.com/user/Neuman2010/videos
https://www.youtube.com/user/MrEdgy81/videos
https://www.youtube.com/user/jdavis882/videos

 

[mossyoakglock]

Hi
how many minutes is forever? what are "decent" results?
how is your angle control?
have you tried scrubbing strokes to raise a burr?
what stone do you have?

if you can already get your knife some kind of sharp, you can probably get it shaving sharp , raise a tiny bur, cut it off at elevated angle how to sharpen a knife - Joe Calton

I can get the knife sharp but it has never been able to shave hair and it cuts paper decently (not like some of the videos I've seen online).

I'm not even sure what stone I have since I've had it for so long. It's a Basspro brand that I've had for probably 10 years. I would like to say my angle control is good but it's probably not.

I don't mind getting a set of stones to sharpen by hand either but if a "tool" is better, then I'll go that route.

 

[DeadboxHero]

Worksharp field sharpener.

The diamonds should speed up the process

 

[Bobby3326]

If you want ridiculously fast sharpening and a really sharp knife look into the work sharp Ken onion edition. Itll get pretty much every knife you own razor sharp in a matter of minutes.

 

[bucketstove]

I can get the knife sharp but it has never been able to shave hair and it cuts paper decently (not like some of the videos I've seen online).

I'm not even sure what stone I have since I've had it for so long. It's a Basspro brand that I've had for probably 10 years. I would like to say my angle control is good but it's probably not.

I don't mind getting a set of stones to sharpen by hand either but if a "tool" is better, then I'll go that route.

what kind of paper can you slice, how slow can you slice it?
what color is the stone, is it one solid color, or is there spots or streaks of other color on it?
do you raise a burr while sharpening?


what is your goal, how sharp are you hoping to get (what do you cut)?


If I can get shaving sharp with dollar tree stone/knife, almost anyone can
it doesn't take a lot of angle control, just some if you can use a pencil...

My advice, take a knife, scrub it on the stone, scrub one side until you raise a burr, then rub the other side until you raise a burr, then a few alternating passes to weaken the burr and stand it up, then elevate angle (or straight to 40) and cut it off with a few light alternating passes , then try cutting paper and shaving and cutting stuff

do it two / three times

it will help you decide if you want to get sharper than that, if you want a system or just higher grit stones or ...

sharpmaker helps you control the angle by keeping the stone tilted at 15 or 20 degree angle

if you have some cardboard you can try that with your stone, fold/cut a triangle/wedge out of the cardboard and put stone on it (stone now tilted at angle), then sharpen keeping the knife vertical like with sharpmaker ... or horizontal (however you cut the triangle)

try sharpening with that and see how you like it


there are a lot of tools/stones out there for sharpening ... but it doesn't take lot to get sharper

 

[theJman]

This is what I was getting at, I guess. I can get decent results freehand/manually but it takes forever. I know I need to keep practicing to get better but looking for something that I can get more immediate results with. Something like the Sharpmaker or a "tool", etc.

Practice is indeed key, but if it's taking forever something isn't right. If all you're doing is sharpening a dull blade - not reprofiling, not grinding out chips - it shouldn't take long at all. Note that some steels do require more effort than others; as an example, I've found D2 is more of a chore than 1095.

I can get the knife sharp but it has never been able to shave hair and it cuts paper decently (not like some of the videos I've seen online).

Not all bevels types shave hair equally well, so that might be something to consider. I get my knives sharp enough to fillet phonebook paper, and yet some of them still don't shave hair all that well. Not all edges should cut like scalpels either. Hard use field knives would be a good example; something that's going to get abused would dull quicker if the edge is razor thin. Make it more prone to roll or chip too.

I'm not even sure what stone I have since I've had it for so long. It's a Basspro brand that I've had for probably 10 years. I would like to say my angle control is good but it's probably not.

That may be the problem as well, or at least part of it. A stone of unknown origin and compound is probably something that should tossed and replaced with a good diamond setup instead. At least that way you'll know what you're working with.

 

[bucketstove]

That may be the problem as well, or at least part of it. A stone of unknown origin and compound is probably something that should tossed and replaced with a good diamond setup instead. At least that way you'll know what you're working with.

tossed? in the garbage? how about no

it could simply be loaded, need washing with soap, or maybe scrubbing with ajax...
it could simply be worn, need conditioning (short rub on sandpaper ... or anything to raise a little slurry )
it could simply be from arkansas

 

[Obsessed with Edges]

I currently sharpen my knives on a Bass Pro sharpening stone but want to get something better.

What is a good sharpener for a Buck hunting knife? I have a 119 w/ 420HC steel and a Buck Zipper with the same blade

I also have a few Benchmade knives that I would sharpen as well.

What is a good entry level sharper for these knives that will produce a good edge?

I carry a DMT Diafold fine/extra fine in almost all of my kits. If you aren't comfortable doing free hand it might not be the best choice for you, but for me they work. They're pretty inexpensive as well.

This is what I was getting at, I guess. I can get decent results freehand/manually but it takes forever. I know I need to keep practicing to get better but looking for something that I can get more immediate results with. Something like the Sharpmaker or a "tool", etc.

Taking the DiaFold suggestion one step further, use it in combination with a DMT Magna-Guide kit (clamp & guided rod made for the DiaFolds). The diamond will work much quicker on the relatively large & thick 119's blade, and the clamp & guide will keep everything under control to minimize errors in held angle. A Coarse/Fine doublesided DiaFold would be a good choice for a large hunting blade, and the clamp would be a cinch to set up on that large blade.

420HC responds to most any type of sharpener or abrasive. But in your specific situation, if you're looking for quick results and something to aid you with technique (not comfortable freehanding, in other words), the DiaFold & MagnaGuide combination may get you there quickest, with relatively moderate expense and minimal 'learning curve' hassle.


David

 

[theJman]

tossed? in the garbage? how about no

it could simply be loaded, need washing with soap, or maybe scrubbing with ajax...
it could simply be worn, need conditioning (short rub on sandpaper ... or anything to raise a little slurry )
it could simply be from arkansas

it could simply be a turd...

 

[bucketstove]

it could simply be a turd...

Coprolite (fossilized feces)? I think that would be too rare/expensive to turn into sharpening stone also much more of a crap shoot than Arkansas stones, it could be calcite, only 2-3 on moh scale, you're not getting very sharp with that

If you can use a red brick or slate shingle to sharpen a knife, surely something sold as sharpening stone by hunting/fishing/camping store ought to do better

one simple way to speed up sharpening is to increase angle, say 25 degrees per side