How do you sharpen your knife?

Hello once again fellow forumers. I was wondering what method y'all have to get that perfect razor sharp edge on your knives. I have tried to sharpen my Buck (USA Made) knife over and over again. I have used whet stones, smiths handheld sharpeners, and smiths "diamond" coated sharpeners. Does anyone have any advice on why I might not be getting an edge?

I was in your exact position when I decided enough was enough, and I picked up a warthog. I will never turn back.

The only thing I have found to work on my buck knives is a Lansky system at 17 degrees and you really have to work for it. I would not claim to keep my knives at razors edge but sharp enough for skinning meet my objective.

Buck knives can be difficult to sharpen...they harden their steel to 60-61 HRC. The higher the HRC the harder the steel. The key to keeping a knife sharp is determining the angle of the edge grind then never letting it get dull. If it does.. the warthog, lansky and others can put a new edge on it. If it has a 15 or 17 degree edge and you try to sharpen it at 20 or 25 degrees you will wear your arm out.

Grandpa gave me one of these and showed me how to use it... never had a reason to use anything else.

I've always thought that Buck knives were easy to sharpen and Puma knives were tough.

Anyway, after being introduced to diamond plates for sharpening woodworking plane irons and chisels, I put all my fancy and VERY expensive traditional stones away to gather dust. I use DMT diamond stones now and I sharpen freehand. Takes a while to get the feel and the angle, but practice will get you there. I've had 50 or more years to get it right.

I'd be embarrassed to be caught using a Lansky system or anybody else's. Not saying that you shouldn't use it, but my grandpa might be watching from heaven and I know he'd be disappointed in me.

Get the diamond stones (plates). No oil needed. Just sharpen with the dry plate. Removes metal very quickly, then just wash the plate with soap and water, dry it, put it away. Never wears out and never dishes. Get a Medium and a Very Fine and then a leather strop, and you are set for life. And get some small ones for your possible bag. I can dull a blade skinning a hog and have a new edge on the blade very quickly.

I never even heard about diamond plates until the woodworking school showed me.

Got one of these.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=N6GVHHNjMgE

Warthog

X2 best money I have spent on a knife sharpener ever.

I bought a Work Sharp system 2 yrs ago and now use nothing else. They are easy to use and put a razor sharp edge on a blade. They come with belts with different abrasive level. After you get an edge it is easy to simply touch up the blade on the fine belt and bring the razor edge back after usage.

I use a spyderco sharpmaker. It seems to do a pretty good job and is easy to use.

Warthog all the way.

We skinning over 1,000 animals a year and sharpen allot of knives. It's the best thing on the market.

Is there a particular model you prefer? Looks like V-Sharp is offering three:

--Curve;
--XE;
--Classic II;

Just curious if one is "the" one to get or if any are worth the asking price.

Thanks in advance!

Call me snob, but the first trick is having good quality knives. I taught myself to use stone (true stones, ceramic, and diamond stones) and strops. I found that larger stones are easier for me to use. I have several several stones and through experience some blades do better with certain stones. One thing I would suggest is learn to use stones with carbon steel blades. The carbon steel is easier to cut and faster to sharpen. And most important, you have to mantain the exact angle with each pass or your edge will be rounded (but a rounded edge does hold an edge longer).

same as navasot.
been doing it that way for years.
you just have to keep trying
'till you figure it out.
that's what i did.

I doubt that I get a knife as sharp as some of you guys. I have used and own a lot of stones including diamonds without worrying about the proper bevel. I also own and likethe wheels that the guys at the gun shows use and it's pretty good. Gotta admit that I don't skin 1,000 animals per year. If I can slice a piece of notebook paper without tearing, it works for me.

Agree with hornedfrog that junk knives aren't worth trying to sharpen.

Yep, cheap $3 carborundum stone. Been using them for 40 years and in a the first 20+ of that used a knife daily. Now, not as much but the stones the same. You can use them wet or dry. Over the years tried the lanskies, and other systems but for me they were more trouble than they were worth.

Anyone use a paper wheel? Waiting on some more knifemakers to chime in.

I think Panch0 does and he likes it. Most of us just use progressively finer grinding belts then maybe top it off with a leather belt. I start out with and 80 grit then a 150 then 320 and finish with a 400. When I'm in the field I use a smiths pocket sharpener. Its got a gut hook hone which comes in handy for my go to blade,

I used a Lansky for years and it worked great, but the set up took too long. Bought a Worksharp and like it a lot!! Sharpens knives and tools fast (and does a great job).

JR

Thanks guys, I have been looking at the warthog and it seems really nice. And the fact that its $100 vs what I was thinking when I thought "fancy knife sharpener" is good too. Do the rods come with it or do they have to be bought separately?

Yeah, I have a paper wheel with carborundum dust on one wheel and grinding/polishing compound on the other. I like it but generally use a stone..

Stone. I can't afford to have a fancy sharpener at every place I use a knife but I can keep a decent stone close to where I am. Most people who can't use a stone have no business using a knife.

Been using an inexpensive set of the Smith Crock Sticks for a couple of years now. Easy and puts a razor edge on all of my knives. Very portable and convenient, I keep a set with my hunting gear and have a set on the counter in my kitchen.

I suck at sharpening knives. I can do a touch-up but wouldn't claim to be able to sharpen one. I use a stone in the woods and a Lansky system at the house. I learned the hard way that, at least for me, the first step to sharpen a knife is to not let it get dull in the fist place. I found a knife I like and bought three of them. I take each one in annually for a professional sharpening on a rotating basis. That way I always have two, usually all three, ready to go. The knife shop I use (actually a taxidermy shop that also sells knives) offers free life-time sharpening on most of their mid-to-upper-quality blades, so the pro sharpening doesn't cost anything.

Bench grinder.

I have the warthog classic II in the house and a lansky collecting dust in the shop.

Ended up going with a Dans Whet Stone Arkansas EZ-Hone after a recommendation from my Grandpa. He can make some razor sharp blades with his. I got the one with 4 different stones and some honing oil. We shall see once it arrives.

Spyderco Sharpmaker and a Work Sharp.

I now recommend Dans Whet Stone! Straight razor sharp knives now. Just knew I needed something better than the five dollar toy sharpeners at Walmart!

I could always use a sharper knife. Thanks everyone for the feedback.

I use a whetstone now with oil but it's a tedious process. I can get a razor's edge, but it takes some effort.

The Warthog certainly gets good reviews here. So does the Work Sharp System. I watched the work sharp system video above, but the system just looks cheap to me. Is it? For those that use it, is it cheapy or does it hold up well?

Leaning Warthog. I've seen them at the gun shows but will pay closer attention next time.

I have a steel and a diamond wet stone.

I don't use the stone much, I am a firm believer in not letting a knife get dull, I keep the steel with the knife all the time, if I notice it dulling hit the steel a little and your back in biz!

I have a saw for bone do most of my gutting with a buck and use fillet knives for trimming and deboning meat and the same stone and steel works great for me on all of them.

I usually touch one up with an arkansas stone, but every now & then I use a 6" rag polishing wheel with jewelers rouge to keep it shiny and sharp. Touch em up with an old leather belt. I also keep a smaller stone in my pack and touch up occasionally as I field dress.

Patience is a virtue when sharpening a knife!

I use a belt sander with many different grit belts. The finest is a leather stropping belt with 4000 grit compound. It puts a superfine edge on everything I've ever sharpened.

Lansky for years and now recently paper wheels

Still using the Lansky after 30 years.

LOL..I agree with that.

maybe its the KNIFE.

the work sharp will put a razors edge and is easy to use but it cuts a 50 degree edge.depending on what your gonna use it for and the knife blade itself it might not hold that edge very long..

I think I've tried about everything. I sharpen my carry knives reguarly and prefer to always have a shave-sharp on hand. Had the warthog, did not like that it does not sharpen the first 1/8 near the handle. I have done most of my sharpening with a lansky. I found the lansky to be the most accurate. You do need to make note of where you clamp each individual knife. Now I have a 2x72" belt that I use up to 1000grit and then finish and touch up with paper wheels. Paper wheels are good if you already have a bevel that you like and you do not need to remove deep gouges. Biggest reason for failure is not sharpening enough on each side for the opposing bevels to touch at tip. You should be able to roughly shave with the coarse grits before starting with the fine grints. Just my 2 cents.

I'm a Lansky fan as of today. 17 or 20 will keep my blades plenty sharp.

Wart Hog, Wart Hog and Wart Hog!!!!!!!

Wart Hog, Wart Hog and Wart Hog!!!!!!! Great thing about it is that if you show the wife how she can sharpen all the kitchen knives with out any problem.

Work Sharp.

V-Sharp Warthog!

My dad says its the best material gift I've ever given him. Two believers here for sure.

Gave the only Buck I ever owned to someone I was mad at. Use laminated hard/medium Arkansas stone and oil. If in the shop I do have a paper wheel for quick work.

Have lots of knives but use Cold Steel Master Hunter and custom drop point.
TC

I ordered a Warthog last night. Anxious to put it to use.

I let the guy at the gunshow sharpen it for a dollar...

I've used a Lansky system for 20 years now. I've thought about trying waterstones, but they are quite expensive and the Lansky works for me, so why fix it?

Tom

I also sharpen with the sandpaper, $5 worth of sandpaper and a flat surface will get the job done for a long time. After I finish with the sandpaper I strop with a leather strop.

Couple of wet stones but always finish off with a broad head sharpener.