Reprofiling a re-curve blade (Spartan Blades Ronin Shinto)

[AbjectTestament]

Apologies if this is the wrong forum to post this question.

Someone I know is selling a few knives and one that caught my eye is his Spartan Blade Ronin Shinto. He said he reprofiled the blade but it didn't turn out very well and I'd probably want to reprofile it again closer to its original state. My experience with this stuff is zero. I sharpen my knives on a Work Sharp guided field sharpener and that's all I have.
Does it take a lot of effort or tools to reprofile a blade and can it be done with a WS's field sharpener?

The Ronin Shinto is a re-curve blade, would that impact trying to reprofile the blade?

 

[oldmanwilly]

Short answer: yes, you can reprofile with your field sharpener. However, it will take you a LONG time, it will be nigh impossible to keep bevels even, and you will probably wear out the diamond plate before you finish.

Long answer: if you want to reprofile on your own then you're better off buying some kind of guided system. I think Lansky and Work Sharp offer some options that are reasonably priced and will probably be your best bet. Depending on what you want to accomplish, reprofiling can take a lot of time and be monotonous. A guided system removes most of the variables (angle, pressure, etc.) that can make it frustrating to do by hand.

Good luck, please post pics when you finish.

 

[Twindog]

You're likely to ruin the knife trying to reprofile the blade (not the edge) with a Worksharp.

To eliminate that recurve, you'd have to remove a lot of blade, changing the whole design and function of the knife. The forward weight of that knife gives you some chopping ability. That ability would be reduced with a reprofile. And that's a pretty thick knife blade -- 3/16th stock. You'd move the edge back up into a thicker part of the blade, reducing your slicing ability.

And you'd probably ruin the temper.

I'd avoid that knife like the plague.

 

[Obsessed with Edges]

Small handheld sharpeners, like the WS Field Sharpener, aren't well-suited to reprofiling very BIG, THICK blades. Very slow working, with a short hone length and all of the contact only at the edges of the flat hone, in the recurve. As mentioned earlier, it'd take an extremely long time, if nothing else. And all that time spent would introduce fatigue and all the sloppiness and user error coming from that.

Some question(?) as to what 'reprofiling to it's original state' means. If that means going more acute(?) or less acute(?) in edge angle, that could make a big difference in how much work it'll take. Posting some pics of the edge in it's current state and clarifying what the objective is, could help.

In the most general terms for sharpening recurves, I've liked using a 10" or 12" oval diamond honing rod for these, as of the type used for kitchen cutlery. The oval cross-section and relatively long abrasive surface length make removing a greater amount of steel in a timely manner more user-friendly. They're a bit fine in grit, for really aggressive metal removal - most are rated about 600 grit. But they'd still work faster than a small handheld field sharpening tool, due to their greater length and contact width, fitting the recurve more closely.

 

[AbjectTestament]

Thanks to all for the advice. I decided to pass on the blade. The guy flattened the edge down to try to make it a razor but it looked too think and brittle. Thinking I'll pony up the cash for a new one.