I suck at Knife Sharpening - Videos, classes, suggestions?

[Muskykris]

Careful with a belt sander, they have been known to destroy the heat treatment on the edge if used incorrectly. They can heat up steel fast. It seems @Muskykris knows what he is doing, this statement is for the guys who would buy a sander without knowing and ruin a favorite knife. (It’s me, I’m this guy)

Good post, I have ruined a few tips
Now I know to keep it cool

Definitely good to start with cheap knives and work your way up, don’t attempt to sharpen a $300 knife on day 1

 

[thomas3705]

Find a super cheap knife that has a similar shape/bevel to your nice knives and practice on that over and over again until you can get them scary sharp. That'll give you more confidence when you go to sharpen your quality knives.

 

[Swamppirate]

I use the Chef’s choice diamond hone. Works great….

 

[junitas03]

I will swallow my pride and admit I suck at sharpening knives - I have two high quality fixed blade knives (Cabelas/buck elk hunter, and a Benchmade Hunter) I have the worksharp mini belt sharpener and no matter how I follow the instructions - my knives never get that really good edge on it. I usually have to take them to a buddy's dad who uses an old table top lansky and he can get them shaving sharp.

Any good suggestions, videos, or even knife sharpening classes? I have to get to the point where I can sharpen my own knives and not rely on someone else.

I was terrible at it too, but I scooped one of these up - https://www.worksharptools.com/products/guided-field-sharpener

The videos never helped me cause there's a lot of nuance and feel involved, IMO.

Anyways, this handy little tool helped me get the angle right, and create some type of muscle memory.

Now, I can get a blade super sharp - takes a little practice. But, it's guided with the correct angles.

 

[EdP]

Read this thread and you will soon see that there are numerous effective ways to sharpen a blade.

You say you want to learn and also point to your buddy's dad as someone who gets your knives shaving sharp. There is your resource for some instruction right there in your first post. Copy what he does and practice on your kitchen knives.

 

[Jpsmith1]

Careful with a belt sander, they have been known to destroy the heat treatment on the edge if used incorrectly. They can heat up steel fast. It seems @Muskykris knows what he is doing, this statement is for the guys who would buy a sander without knowing and ruin a favorite knife. (It’s me, I’m this guy)

It's also very possible to botch the edge hard with a belt system.

 

[D.Cutlery]

If you want to just quickly sharpen with a fixed system
- TSPROF [Well built, lots of adapters and 1x6" stones available] $$$ costly
- Tormek T4 Bushcraft [Easy to use and learn, slow wet stone] $$ cost
- Worksharp Precision Sharpener [Affordable and also options for adapter and stones] $ economic

The most versatile option is learning freehand with bench stones. It's easily portable and can sharpen anywhere.

Start off with 400 grit Diamond plate and leather strop loaded with 3 to 10 micron diamond emulsion. (400 plate stays flat and you can learn to hold an angle, if you cant get a knife sharp on that, you need more practice before adding more stones.)

 

[Sns2]

I use a KME sharpening system and they really produce some good YouTube stuff covering the sharpie method and the importance of the burr edge.

I too currently use a KME system with diamond stones. I was once like the OP, in that I couldn’t sharpen squat. Just made knives more dull. I’d get a cheap knife, use it a while, and get another. Then I went to Havalon. Worked fine until we dropped a nice moose on the Alberta Prairie in bitterly cold temps and wind. Fat was freezing on the blades, making it basically worthless. Thankfully, my partner had his fixed blade custom that was a real eye opener to how lovely a real quality knife is. Finally said if I’m gonna have nice knives like I wanted, I have to teach myself to sharpen. I started out with the basic Worksharp precision adjust unit. For the price, it is a very straightforward, fixed angle and clamp system. I also bought a few knives to practice on. I’d sharpen them, dull them on bottom of a cup, and start again. Then I went to the KME system with diamond stones. Quite a step up from the basic Worksharp precision adjust (they have higher end models too). The KME is a helluva quality, American made product with a fabulous facebook group that posts videos and answers any questions members might have. After I mastered that system, I said I needed to learn sharpening on a flat stone, so I got a DMT 8” fine/coarse diamond stones. Used a sharpie, and can now sharpen very well the traditional way. Even an old dog can learn new tricks, but if you have the money, that KME seems to me the sweet spot for price, quality, and value. I wish the OP the best of luck on his sharpening journey. I find sharpening knives to be very relaxing. An old skill I wished I had learned decades ago.

 

[bigunit]

After trying most systems out there I've settled on the work sharp precision adjust system. I also use the work sharp belt sander but only for kitchen and fillet knives. My hands are pretty calloused and I have a hard time feeling a Burr so I typically use the sharpie as well as a magnifying glass

 

[TaperPin]

If anyone likes using a diamond coated steel rod and would like to add to the edge sharpness, I have resisted a white ceramic until now, which is like a 2000 grit. It definitely keeps the edge sharper and stays sharp longer than just a diamond steel by itself.

 

[Lionhound1975]

The easiest sharpener I have found to put a hair-shaving edge on most blades is the Warthog V-Sharp A4 sharpener. It sells on Amazon for about $105 and you can buy course, medium, and fine diamond rods as well as ceramic rods. It is pretty much fool proof and is good quality. I also have the Work Sharp Angled sharpener and the Spyderco Sharpmaker but the Warthog A4 is much easier to use than either of those. I have used it on ESEE, Cold Steel, Mora, CRKT, White River, Fallkniven, and a few custom knives from bladesmiths in the Fergana Valley of Uzbekistan. The Warthog worked with all of the different blade shapes and different steels.

I first saw Warthog sharpeners over in some hunting stores in South Africa where they are made. I used a demo in the store to put a shaving edge on a fairly dull ESEE 6 camp knife within 5 minutes. I was convinced after that and got one.

The A4 sharpener is too heavy to put in your pack so I would leave them at home or camp. For something to put in the pack to top off a blade in the field, I use the Lansky ceramic crock sticks that come in the wood box with 20- and 25-degree angles.

 

[Wolfshead]

I’m another KME user and fan.
I’ve been using it for twelve years and I can put a razors edge on a knife with it.
It does take time.
I also have the work sharp mini belt grinder sharpener. It can sharpen knives, BUT there is a steep learning curve and once you take something off a knife you cannot put it back on.
KME is also guaranteed if something wears out they will replace it.
After 12 years things do wear out and they have replaced it.