Paper sharpening wheels

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golfer1

Joined
Nov 24, 2016
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419
Been reading on this forum a bit about paper sharpening wheels. What I read appeared to be positive and I have been trying to find them for sale. The only ones I really could find were 8' wheels sold by Woodcraft.
What do you folks think about paper sharpening wheels?
Are there different levels of quality?
Where can I find them?
Thanks for looking and best wishes.
 
I got a set from Grizzly tools and tried them for a while but to me they were to easy to build up heat and I no longer use them
 
Not only that but grinding a consistent edge on them makes freehand grinding bevels seem easy in comparison.
 
I have always sharpened on belts using the slack. Laurence "Rhino knives" taught me how to do it, and now i can go from completely dull to taking hair off in ~5 minutes. In my opinion its the overall best way to sharpen. Stones might give a slightly better edge, but the speed advantage of belts is undeniable.
 
I just ordered a set a few days ago. They are Grizzly Razor sharp wheels from Walmart.com with rouge and wax for $45.
I've had a set before and found them fairly easy to use.


Sent via telegraph with the same fingers I use to sip whiskey.
 
IIRC, the grizzly wheels were the best deal I was able to find, back when I bought a set.
I used them for a while, and they work, but ultimately I just ended up take them off the buffer they were on, and putting some spiral sewn wheels on to use for polishing.

Any more, I just use my flat platen set on a low speed to sharpen everything. I've been thinking about making a clamp with an adjustable work rest similar to what Ray Ennis from Entrek knives uses, but I just haven't gotten around to it.
 
I have used the paper wheels for over a year. Prior to that I could not hand sharpen at a consistent angle. Whether using water stones or diamond sharpeners, the process took a looonnng time and shaving sharp was not happening. I tried the paper grit wheel, but found it difficult to use. I now sharpen on slack belt and use the smooth paper wheel with its white compound as a strop. Works great. Takes little time. Are there better ways to sharpen? Perhaps? Probably? But for me the paper wheel is the winner because it gives me sharp blades.
 
I started with the paper wheels way back after long talks with Richard_j but then I replaced the polishing wheel with a buffing wheel and then the grit wheel with a 16 tryzack belt. The wheels work good but it's much faster to use the belt and the buffing wheel. Plush the belt allows me to play with different grit finishes befor buffing to really get an optimum edge for what ever I'm cutting. Last sharpening I used a A100 gator belt and hit it with a buffer and man it was like a chicken light sabre
 
The paper wheel works. I don't like the grit wheel, but I used to do what Bob does, sharpen on a slack belt to get a burr edge and then use the paper wheel with buffing compound for the final sharpen. It works well.
Now I use the slack belt to get a burr edge, then use a leather belt with compound on my 1 x 42" grinder to take the burr off.
 
I have thought about trying a leather belt for removing the burr. The drawback with a buffing wheel is it has to be hard or it will buff a good distance up the edge bevel.
 
i use the slotted wheel to do the final passes on my edge. If you are overheating the edge on a slotted wheel, you are applying WAY too much pressure. The slots blow air up to cool the edge. It took a while to get the technique down.. I admit that I walked away from them after a bit. I came back to them after needing a portable unit to sharpen at the local market.
 
I love them. I've got very expensive Japanese stones, and a Wicked Edge pro system. I had trouble getting used to the wheels, and was so much better on my stones initially. I gave up the wheels and then went back after a year and realized I was using far too much pressure. After learning a lighter touch on them, I can make a blistering edge very quickly on the wheels.
 
I've used loaded leather with good results. Now I mostly use an old felt belt at the end.
 
i use the slotted wheel to do the final passes on my edge. If you are overheating the edge on a slotted wheel, you are applying WAY too much pressure. The slots blow air up to cool the edge. It took a while to get the technique down.. I admit that I walked away from them after a bit. I came back to them after needing a portable unit to sharpen at the local market.
 
Man maybe I need to give them another shot.

Do you guys turn your buffer around or just go edge down?
 
kuraki said:
Man maybe I need to give them another shot.

Do you guys turn your buffer around or just go edge down?
Click to expand...

I turned mine around, and usually held the knife horizontally at what ever point it would take to get about 15 degrees.
 
I do it edge down. Some use the top of the wheel with the edge toward them. It doesn't feel right to me. I will not use the buffer turned around... creeps me out.
 
Part of my problem was I can't get a feel with the edge down it's just all kinds of wrong in my head.
 
Like Rick said, it is the skill of the operator that matters most. I saw a guy at Bass Pro sharpening a Case slippie on a paper wheel and he was throwing sparks, which struck me as being a bad thing.
 
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