Posted: 2/23/2012 7:59:38 PM EDT
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I consider myself fairly manly. I grew up in the woods, am a damn good shot, love eating deer I've killed and making babies with my wife. Pretty manly stuff. But, for the life of me, I can't sharpen a knife to save my ass. Every time I try I ruin the edge and get pissed. I've watched videos online, tried different methods, etc. but all for not. I still can't sharpen a knife. I've used stones, rods, I'm tired of it and I want an easy way. Whats a good idiot-proof system to sharpen knives? Thanks
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Quoted: sorry, sounds like you are screwed thenI consider myself fairly manly. I grew up in the woods, am a damn good shot, love eating deer I've killed and making babies with my wife. Pretty manly stuff. But, for the life of me, I can't sharpen a knife to save my ass. Every time I try I ruin the edge and get pissed. I've watched videos online, tried different methods, etc. but all for not. I still can't sharpen a knife. I've used stones, rods, I'm tired of it and I want an easy way. Whats a good idiot-proof system to sharpen knives? Thanks just get one of those lansky hand held units for 10 bucks and leave it at that.  |
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I never could get the hang of it until I finally got the hang of it. It just takes a lot of persistence and faith to first get your edge worked up. You have to get a feel for when the blade is cutting into the stone at the correct angle.
Use a little 23 degree blade angle guide to start you off, or you can hold the blade at 90, then 45, then half of 45, which will put you at 23 degrees. You have to keep a consistent angle or you'll never get the edge started. |
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Quoted:
I consider myself fairly manly. I grew up in the woods, am a damn good shot, love eating deer I've killed and making babies with my wife. Pretty manly stuff. But, for the life of me, I can't sharpen a knife to save my ass. Every time I try I ruin the edge and get pissed. I've watched videos online, tried different methods, etc. but all for not. I still can't sharpen a knife. I've used stones, rods, I'm tired of it and I want an easy way. Whats a good idiot-proof system to sharpen knives? Thanks I can't ever get a knife as sharp as the factory with any of the various v tools, wet stones etc. I just either buy a new one or send it back in and use knifes on a rotation basis. |
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http://www.caseyspm.com/Knives.html
I also use a motorized Chef's Choice 130 for the ordinary kitchen knives Have a paper wheel also - have to be really good holding an angle http://sharpeningmadeeasy.com/paper.htm And finally the one i usually use the Gatco Sharpening system - like the Lansky http://www.amazon.com/Gatco-5-Stone-Sharpening-System/dp/B001DB9CQS/ref=sr_1_116?s=kitchen&ie=UTF8&qid=1330060926&sr=1-116 |
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Quoted: If you really want to be a mountain man like you say you are, none of those contraptions will give you the personal satisfaction of handsharpening your own blades to a mirror gleaming edge that slices through shit like warm butter. I lived in a tiny camper in the woods without plumbing/electric, just propane, for a year when I was 18. I lived off of oatmeal, tuna, well water, and squirrels and I got beastly as fuck. Think Jeremiah Johnson with a bigger penis but gay neck beard. I perfected shitting outdoors, could have written a book on it. I tried hours and hours trying to figure it out, but I just suck. I'm not dumb, I got a 31 on the ACT hungover, but I just can't sharpen a knife and it pisses me off.  |
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If you really want to be a mountain man like you say you are, none of those contraptions will give you the personal satisfaction of handsharpening your own blades to a mirror gleaming edge that slices through shit like warm butter. I lived in a tiny camper in the woods without plumbing/electric, just propane, for a year when I was 18. I lived off of oatmeal, tuna, well water, and squirrels and I got beastly as fuck. Think Jeremiah Johnson with a bigger penis but gay neck beard. I perfected shitting outdoors, could have written a book on it. I tried hours and hours trying to figure it out, but I just suck. I'm not dumb, I got a 31 on the ACT hungover, but I just can't sharpen a knife and it pisses me off.
One of these days you'll get it if you keep trying it every once and a while. That's how it happened to me. Try it sometime when you've got a little beer buzz and relaxed, and not in a hurry. |
I've tried literally a dozen knife sharpeners, never was satisfied until I bought on of these.
I only use the grinding wheel to set an initial edge, then only need the paperwheel for touch ups. It ain't cheap, but it's worth it. I bought everything from these folks ... http://www.woodcraft.com/Family/2000219/Razor-Sharp-Edgemaking-System.aspx ... including a variable speed bench grinder that I got dirt cheap on clearance. The instructions with the kit say to run the grinder at a fairly high rpm, but I have better luck at 300-400 rpm, very slow. 
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Lansky clamp system is truly idiot-proof but only works on relatively short blades. The Spyderco unit is not because a person who cannot maintain a steady grip will not get proper results. Further you cannot re-profile a blade with the Spyderco unit. I recommend the Lansky after owning both. Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile |
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Quoted: Quoted: I consider myself fairly manly. I grew up in the woods, am a damn good shot, love eating deer I've killed and making babies with my wife. Pretty manly stuff. But, for the life of me, I can't sharpen a knife to save my ass. Every time I try I ruin the edge and get pissed. I've watched videos online, tried different methods, etc. but all for not. I still can't sharpen a knife. I've used stones, rods, I'm tired of it and I want an easy way. Whats a good idiot-proof system to sharpen knives? Thanks I can't ever get a knife as sharp as the factory with any of the various v tools, wet stones etc. I just either buy a new one or send it back in and use knifes on a rotation basis. My brother works for Case. He says they just use a belt sander. |
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I consider myself fairly manly. I grew up in the woods, am a damn good shot, love eating deer I've killed and making babies with my wife. Pretty manly stuff. But, for the life of me, I can't sharpen a knife to save my ass. Every time I try I ruin the edge and get pissed. I've watched videos online, tried different methods, etc. but all for not. I still can't sharpen a knife. I've used stones, rods, I'm tired of it and I want an easy way. Whats a good idiot-proof system to sharpen knives? Thanks I can't ever get a knife as sharp as the factory with any of the various v tools, wet stones etc. I just either buy a new one or send it back in and use knifes on a rotation basis. My brother works for Case. He says they just use a belt sander. Yep. To tell you the truth I used a grinder on my 5 dollar garbage knife and it holds a pretty good sharpness. I lose all my expensive knifes and had 2 of the same at one point and lost them both. I have no clue where or how. |
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Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: I consider myself fairly manly. I grew up in the woods, am a damn good shot, love eating deer I've killed and making babies with my wife. Pretty manly stuff. But, for the life of me, I can't sharpen a knife to save my ass. Every time I try I ruin the edge and get pissed. I've watched videos online, tried different methods, etc. but all for not. I still can't sharpen a knife. I've used stones, rods, I'm tired of it and I want an easy way. Whats a good idiot-proof system to sharpen knives? Thanks I can't ever get a knife as sharp as the factory with any of the various v tools, wet stones etc. I just either buy a new one or send it back in and use knifes on a rotation basis. My brother works for Case. He says they just use a belt sander. Yep. To tell you the truth I used a grinder on my 5 dollar garbage knife and it holds a pretty good sharpness. I lose all my expensive knifes and had 2 of the same at one point and lost them both. I have no clue where or how. Skanks used to steal my knives when I'd pass out at parties |
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I use a lansky diamond set with the last one being the fine stone with oil.
Use a flashlight to see if the edge is actually touching the stone to check for the right degree. I finish with a russian leather strop and canvas with diamond paste. My game cleaning knives are sharper than my shaving razors. I do spend time on it and find it relaxing. |
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I consider myself fairly manly. I grew up in the woods, am a damn good shot, love eating deer I've killed and making babies with my wife. Pretty manly stuff. But, for the life of me, I can't sharpen a knife to save my ass. Every time I try I ruin the edge and get pissed. I've watched videos online, tried different methods, etc. but all for not. I still can't sharpen a knife. I've used stones, rods, I'm tired of it and I want an easy way. Whats a good idiot-proof system to sharpen knives? Thanks I can't ever get a knife as sharp as the factory with any of the various v tools, wet stones etc. I just either buy a new one or send it back in and use knifes on a rotation basis. My brother works for Case. He says they just use a belt sander. Yep. To tell you the truth I used a grinder on my 5 dollar garbage knife and it holds a pretty good sharpness. I lose all my expensive knifes and had 2 of the same at one point and lost them both. I have no clue where or how. Skanks used to steal my knives when I'd pass out at parties Lol damn that sucks bud. 
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I'm going to throw in my $.50 for the Spyderco Sharpmaker as well.
I got my old SAK huntsman scary sharp with relatively little effort. I barely touched the blade with my thumb, and I felt it go through my flesh like butter. It was a small cut but it was a very light touch, and it bled like hell. Granted, the Spyderco is not a great system for heavy duty knife reprofiling, but it's perfect for learning the basics. Once you ge the angles down, you'll be able to use coarser stones by hand to take out nicks and such, or do light profiling. Use a hone to touch up your blade between sharpenings. A hone doesn't remove any metal, it just re-aligns the metal. So your blades last longer than they would if only sharpened them. A grinder is good for heavy duty work, but I wouldn't get one until you've mastered the basics. |
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Smith's 4" Diamond stone
Awesome sharpener. Doesn't eat the blade and makes for a solid edge that lasts. On the plus side is it is portable. |