How To Please help me sharpen my Sebenza 21.

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Mar 9, 2020
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My large Sebenza 21 was dull out of the box and I decided to purchase the sharpmaker triangle to sharpen it. I’m a beginner I’m sharpening so I used my Buck 110 first on the 40 degree side with the rougher stones then switched to the ceramic. I got it sharp enough to shave and slice though paper easily so I then moved on to my Sebenaza and did the same thing. I ended up rounding the tip and having little to no effect on the sharpness of the edge.

Can someone recommend maybe an alternative system better for beginners that doesn’t involve me holding the knife like I do on the Sharpmaker?

It’s really bothering me that the knife I’m carrying as my EDC has a rounded tip and is dull.
 
My large Sebenza 21 was dull out of the box and I decided to purchase the sharpmaker triangle to sharpen it. I’m a beginner I’m sharpening so I used my Buck 110 first on the 40 degree side with the rougher stones then switched to the ceramic. I got it sharp enough to shave and slice though paper easily so I then moved on to my Sebenaza and did the same thing. I ended up rounding the tip and having little to no effect on the sharpness of the edge.

Can someone recommend maybe an alternative system better for beginners that doesn’t involve me holding the knife like I do on the Sharpmaker?

It’s really bothering me that the knife I’m carrying as my EDC has a rounded tip and is dull.
 
Sebenza forum, maintenance forum, or even the spyderco forum would me more relevant. This sub is dedicated to traditional knives.
 
My large Sebenza 21 was dull out of the box and I decided to purchase the sharpmaker triangle to sharpen it. I’m a beginner I’m sharpening so I used my Buck 110 first on the 40 degree side with the rougher stones then switched to the ceramic. I got it sharp enough to shave and slice though paper easily so I then moved on to my Sebenaza and did the same thing. I ended up rounding the tip and having little to no effect on the sharpness of the edge.

Can someone recommend maybe an alternative system better for beginners that doesn’t involve me holding the knife like I do on the Sharpmaker?

It’s really bothering me that the knife I’m carrying as my EDC has a rounded tip and is dull.
 
Sebenza’s come with a slight convex edge. It will take longer to reshape the edge to a true V grind using the sharpmaker. The tip can be fixed also. To prevent rounding the tip, don’t continue to pull the blade off the stone. The tip has to be stopped on the stone and not pulled off, if that makes any sense. I’ve rounded tips using a narrow stone and not realizing that that’s what caused the tip to become rounded.
There’s some videos that show how to use the sharpmaker. If you’re just wanting something else, I’ve got a KME that serves me well. There’s a wide variety of guided systems available, it just depends on how much you want to spend.

Edit : mark the edge with a sharpie so you can tell when you’ve reached the apex/ very edge of the blade.
 
Regardless of what knife it is, I'd suggest a Smith's or Lansky Guided Rod sharpening kit.
I don't know what blade steel your knife has, but both companies make the guided rod kits with your choice of Arkansas Stones for "regular" steel, or diamond stones, for the "super steels". Both also have a kit that includes an extra stone to sharpen serrations, if you need that.
 
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Sebenza’s come with a slight convex edge. It will take longer to reshape the edge to a true V grind using the sharpmaker. The tip can be fixed also. To prevent rounding the tip, don’t continue to pull the blade off the stone. The tip has to be stopped on the stone and not pulled off, if that makes any sense. I’ve rounded tips using a narrow stone and not realizing that that’s what caused the tip to become rounded.
There’s some videos that show how to use the sharpmaker. If you’re just wanting something else, I’ve got a KME that serves me well. There’s a wide variety of guided systems available, it just depends on how much you want to spend.

Edit : mark the edge with a sharpie so you can tell when you’ve reached the apex/ very edge of the blade.

Thanks for your response. What you say makes sense to me. When I was sharpening I was focusing on making sure that the tip was pulled off the stone I didn’t realize until after that it cause the rounded tip.

I’m thinking about a Lansky system but eventually I will probably get a KME. I just have a deep desire right now to be able to sharpen all my knives without relying on anyone else to sharpen them. I thought about sending it in for a spa treatment but decided against it.
 
Sebenza’s come with a slight convex edge. It will take longer to reshape the edge to a true V grind using the sharpmaker. The tip can be fixed also. To prevent rounding the tip, don’t continue to pull the blade off the stone. The tip has to be stopped on the stone and not pulled off, if that makes any sense. I’ve rounded tips using a narrow stone and not realizing that that’s what caused the tip to become rounded.
There’s some videos that show how to use the sharpmaker. If you’re just wanting something else, I’ve got a KME that serves me well. There’s a wide variety of guided systems available, it just depends on how much you want to spend.

Edit : mark the edge with a sharpie so you can tell when you’ve reached the apex/ very edge of the blade.

Exactly what Ajack60 Ajack60 said. Pulling the tip off the stone will round it.
Check out the Wicked Edge as well. Excellent sharpening system, but a little pricey.
I use the W/E system, but can also sharpen buy hand on stones.
The W/E works wonders when re-profiling the edge.
 
Get the diamond or cbn rods, use the 30 degree slots to reprofile and apex, 40 degree for microbevel.

The sharpmaker is a great system, don't jump to something else right away. Learn your tools rather than getting another tool you have to figure out. Just my opinion. Love the sharpmaker.
 
I am a big fan of hand sharpening, it's much harder to learn but after you master it you can get insanely good edges without having to be tied down to a dedicated system. It's not for everyone, it does require a significant investment of time and effort, and will require a few throwaway knives to learn. While I don't have one, I do like the idea of the sharpmaker. It's a great system, its only drawback is that it can be slow in operation by its nature.

I think there are a couple reasons for the difficulty you are experiencing. Your Buck 110's edge is at less than a 20 degree angle from the factory, so you reach apex pretty much immediately when you go to sharpen and you can feel the sharpness right away. The above-mentioned partial convex on a Sebenza's 20 degree edge would take significant time to break through, compounded by the higher wear resistance steel. If you keep your form tight and keep going it'll probably get better, but unless you are using the aggressive diamond rods I don't think it's going to cut very fast.

If the guide rod systems make sense to you I can't fault you for using them, I used to use them and it was so easy to get an insane edge on a knife using them.
 
I use a Sharpmaker. Watched a lot of YouTube videos and practice on cheaper knives before I got the nerve to try my Sebenza.

JDavis882 has some very good instructional videos on using the Sharpmaker.
 
Unless you get the diamond or CBN rods for your Sharpmaker you're going to need to spend a long time on the ceramics to reprofile the edge, like a lot of people say the Sharpmaker is more of a sharpkeeper. I'd highly recommend getting a KME(I love mine) or sending it off to someone to get sharpened.
 
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