I bought some 440c a year ago to try and make some knives. Finally got around to it this past week. I am not very good at it and have made a lot of mistakes. Just trying to find info on youtube and knife forums.

Probably an idiot question...but close to the end of finishing a blade, how do u grind to get the razor sharp edge? I have tried two types of blade bevels so far...scandi and a flat grind. Just unsure how to get that last real sharp edge before stropping???

Hope that makes sense

Thanks

J

Buy a $50 Lansky Knife Sharpening Kit - read the directions and follow them .

If you're going to be putting grinds on a few knives the Diamond Stones might be of more use in the long run .

The Lansky sharpening kit is good. A couple of things I’d add to the instructions from Lansky is to make sure you center the blade in the clamp and then superglue the clamp to the blade. This will ensure that the blade doesn’t shift during the sharpening process.

Or, use a small piece of duct tape between the blade and the holder.

Make and use a strop when you think the blade is sharp.
The strop will finish the job and the blade will be scary sharp.

Make a strop out of a 2" x 12" piece of scrap leather or old belt by rubbing some polishing compound into a wet leather.

Paper wheel with white or pink compound

Thanks for all the help guys... I am just trying to figure things out on my own and all the suggestions are great.

Here r my first 4 knives...butchered the one on the right as it was my first try. I need to grind the filet handle a little thinner i think???


I took my time and spent a lot of time hand sanding the filet knife.






Any suggestions criticisms welcome...wont hurt my feelings...only way i can learn a little bit other than screwing it up myself.

Thx

J

Get hold of michiganroadkill

Yep, message him, get his number and call. He's a great guy.

I did and michiganroadkill is a great guy and wealth of knowledge...Thanks again guys!

Damn guys, don't do this stuff by PM.

Thete was at least one (me) who wanted to learn more.

Believe it or nor, that's why I come here.

Although the [bleep] are entertaining.

Get your primary bevel down to where the cutting edge is .020" or less to start.
I am sure you are not sharpening a blade before heat treat, correct.

I have never tried to get my final cutting edge using a belt sander.

With a new blade I rough shape the cutting bevel (to save stones) with a 1x42 using 120 grit.

I sharpened blades for 40+ years using 12" bench stones and thought I was doing pretty good until
Boise lent me his Edge Pro. Then I learned what scarry sharp really was.

I use a Work Sharp for my filet and kitchen knives. It gives you a slightly convex edge.
Basic unit is about $80.
It works fairly well, but I go to the fixture system with my custom knives.

If you are going to stick with the 2x72 to get your cutting edge, I suggest you do not try to get a
flat bevel for the cutting edge bevel. I would go for a convex cutting bevel. That would require you
to push the blade edge against the belt in a free span area vs against the flat platen.

I would check for a burr before going to a finer grit.
I would think that 600 to 800 grit would be a good place to stop.
Then strop lightly on a piece of leather impregnated with some mild abrasive.
I use Semi Chrome, but I have heard of people using tooth paste or the slurry of scarf from a fine bench stone.

25 degrees is quite steep. Some where around 20 should be a good place for now.
With the Edge Pro I am going to 18 degrees now, and get a very uniform edge.
With the Work Sharp, I normally use the 20 degree fixture.

You do have to make mistakes along the way, so do not get depressed. Knife makers do not make mistakes, they
just are making a new proto type.

Looks to me that you are off to a good start. Just keep at it and it will progress.

Yes I have heard Peters does a good job with heat treat,

Don't be afraid to stick with the Work Sharp for now. It does well.

With the Edge Pro, I start with 120, then 220 then 600 then strop.
I keep the stones wet and clean with water and dish soap.

What ever you method of sharpening, rolling a burr and holding a
consistent angle is very important.

You will find that blades do not grind a lot different after heat treat than before.
Fresh belts are important.
I found 440C to be a little "slippery" on the belt due to the high chromium content, but pretty easy to work with.


There, how is that????
Tim

The science of blade sharpening goes all the way from spitting on an arkansas stone and slatherining
you blade around to "we're going to Mars" technology.

Almost anyone can get a blade reasonably sharp with the simplest of abrasives if they.....

Keep the abrasives clean.
Hold a consistent angle
Chase a burr
Strop to finish.

Making blades and sharpening them takes some time and effort to get good and good is a never ending
progression to great (which few ever achieve)
There are plenty of makers and users out there way past my skill levels, but I have found a relatively
comfortable level for myself and intend to still make personal improvements but not loosing sleep while
on the journey.

Have fun and get proficient enough to please yourself, then.........

What michiganroadkill wrote is worth reading twice. If you get 10 experienced makers together there will be 10 different ways to sharpen a knife. What ever method they use, practice has a lot to do with their success in using it.

michiganroadkill mentioned that he doesn't use a belt grinder to sharpen his knives. We do use a belt grinder. It is a variable speed Dozier grinder. That thing is slow when it is going wide open. We use Lansky type system we adapted to the belt grinder with a worn out 400 grit belt running slow. It gives us a very controlled grind to a nearly finished edge. The angle is adjustable and easily repeatable on both sides of the blade for a very crisp looking symmetrical edge. It is not a quick sharpening fix. It is a slow process that is very deliberate and it still takes practice to be proficient. The most important word in this paragraph is "slow."

If you are going to use a grinder to sharpen the finished blade, be careful, go slow and be very deliberate in what you are doing. Bad things can happen very fast with a grinder and a sharp blade.

Thank you gentlemen.

Mich. Roadkill is giving you sound advice. I would add stick with high carbon steel to start out. Stainless is a whole different animal if your going to heat treat yourself.

So, now that everything is clear as mud, no more questions.

Keep sharp.

I purchased an edge pro today. Quickly took an Alaskan camp knife that I bought used and was beat up. I had tried to sharpen using the belt grinder and it had more bevels than you could shake a stick at...awful. I made it worse.

I started with the 120 grit to basically re profile the edge at 18 degrees and progressed to 1000 grit on the edge pro.

Unreal...slicing paper like I have never seen before. I have had a ken onion work sharp for years, and it is a good little sharpening machine IMHO...you can definitely get to "deer dressing" sharp on the work sharp. The edge pro takes sharpening to the next level.

Thank you michiganroadkill and everyone else for all the help, it is greatly appreciated.

J

Don't be showing off your edge making skills to your friends or you'll be sharpening LOTS of knives and replacing stones before you know it....BTDT.