As a gear freak and a knives "amateur", I just had to buy different sharpening systems.
The only one I really use is a flat fine stone (from someplace in Belgium), on which I do my best to restore my knives edge.

I also bought, a year or two ago, a Lansky sharpening system : I tried it on some knives, was not satisfied with the sharpening angle, forget it in a corner.

Cleaning shelves at home, I get it out again today and tried it on Doug's RSK : it should work for that knife ! But I don't want to damage it....
Question : what angle would you recommend to sharpen Doug's knife ??
20? ?

TIA
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(edited ...)
And anyway, how do you know what angle you have with a Lansky sharpener ?
Even if you keep the same reference hole to slide your stone, I guess it varies with the blade width .......
<img src="/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />

Hi frenchy,
The tighter the angle, the finer the edge. A "tight" fine edge can be made VERY sharp, VERY fast, but it will wear quickly. A wider angle gives a sturdier edge, but it's tougher to impossible to get a "beyond shaving" edge with a wide angle. Think tight angle = scalpel, wide angle = axe. The right angle depends on the blade you're sharpening and what you'll be using it for. When "holding the bevel" is referred to, it means keeping a consistant angle, no matter what that angle may be. If the angle varies on a given edge as you sharpen it, you get a rounded edge (not good), if the angle remains the same, you get a flat (sharper) edge. This is true whether you're sharpening a scalpel blade (15 degrees) or an axe (I like about 40 degrees). I prefer a bevel of about 30 degrees for a general use pocket knife, and a good diamond hone to touch it up with as needed. Hope this helps.

Troy

Thanks for the info.

I understand the differences in angles (razor vs axe ...).
My questions are :
- how to have a constant angle, at each sharpening session, with a Lansky system, as the position of the clamp on the knife will vary, thus the angle too will vary.
- what is the angle used on Doug's knife, out of the box ?

I don't want to completly redefine a new different angle on the blade, at each sharpening session.....

Pick an easy to remember spot to place the clamp (most of the time, center of blade, from tip to guard, works pretty well, or right behind the nail groove on a folder), if you put it there every time, you'll be close enough to not degrade the existing edge. A millimeter one way or the other shouldn't throw you off enough to matter. While holding an exact angle through the life of the blade would be ideal, very little in life is ideal, and in this case, if you hold the same angle to within a degree or two, you should be able to get a VERY sharp edge if the metal in the blade is worth anything at all. Good luck, and remember... practice, practice, practice...

Troy

well.... as I don't want to ruin my best blades, I will propose to sharpen my co-workers knives.... for a fee ....... <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

You're gettin' the idea <img src="/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />.

Frenchy:

You remind me of a Serbian relative who was chief engineer for a shipping company with flags out of Puerto Rico.

His company sold one of their boats to some Arab businessmen and he was assigned to help the buyers crew sail the boat to their home port and then fly back to Puerto Rico.

He approached the buyers Captain and offered to help them save 15% on fuel usage for a $5,000.00 fee. If they would agree, they would only have to pay him when they reached their distination and could verify at least a 15% savings on fuel. They asked him why he didn't do this for the company he worked for and he explained that they were too cheap to appreciate his ability so he never did anything extra for them. The Captain accepted his offer.

He got a hold of the old fuel log book and changed all the figures to reflect usage 20% higher than it really was in the old log book. When they reached port and he pulled out the old log book to compare with the log they kept on their trip, they were overjoyed to see that they had made a 17% savings in fuel usage.

He got his $5,000.00 and flew back to Puerto Rico. I hope they never catch on and I hope your co-workers never catch on. <img src="/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

Bountyhunter <img src="/images/graemlins/cool.gif" alt="" />

well, now, let's see ......

I never intended to ask so much ...
just 1 Euro per knife !!
<img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

And they really would get better cutting knives .........

I have no experience with the Lansky sharpener, but I can tell you the RSK Mk1 is edged at 30 degrees. In my experience, most folks "sharpen" their knives too often, remove much too much metal when none or little is required. Mostly all they need is a good steeling.

Mine came sharpened unevenly. It had a larger bevel on one side than the other. I was able to fix it with my Lasky, but is that normal?

Some variation in a production knife is acceptable, but in most circumstances it should not be noticeable. If you had contacted Aeromedix or Benchmade I expect they would have either exchanged it or fixed it FOC. One reason I chose to work with Benchmade is their high standards and excellent customer service in those rare instances when there are issues.

Lansky is the only thing I have used on my RSK and I'm certainly no expert knife shapener. I use the 30 degree angle with the fine and super fine stones and have had great success so far. I haven't been able to get it as even as the factor edge it came with but I can get pretty close. It gets it shaving sharp in about an hour and that's good enough for me. <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

I figured they would deal with it, but I was 1 day away from a camping trip and didn't have time to send it in. At the time I thought maybe I had messed it up, because I didn't notice it until I had been sharpening it for a few minutes. But when I got back and reworked it, it took me quite awhile to straighten it out, I don't think I could have messed it up that quickly.

Anyways, the Lasky did a great job of straightening it out. I'm very happy with the knife, and I've added the mini-RSK to my christmas list.

A GOOD axe has a LOWER angle edge than most large knives!

Frenchy,

If you want an easy sharpening system that is almost idiot proof, take a look at the Spyderco Sharpmaker. It is easy to set up and I have taken some older knives that havent been sharpened correctly for years and they are now hair popping sharp.

Garrett

Yeh ! that's what I need ........ how did you know ?!? <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

(Thanks for the info. But I think I have already looked for it here and not found it)

I got mine on ebay from a guy called Razorsharpknife. You can get them from NewGraham.com as well. If you need more places I can get them to you.

Garrett

Before ordering anything new on the web, I will wait to see if I finally receive what is already ordered (combo knife sheat and hammock ...)
<img src="/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />

When you say the RSK Mk1 is edged at 30 degrees, do you mean 30 each side so that the total angle is 60, or 15 each side so the total angle is 30?

I ask because I've just bought a Gatco Edgemate system. It offers angles from 11 to 29 degrees. It doesn't even go up to 30, and says 29 should be used for cutting carpet etc. By eye 29 degrees looks like the angle from the stone to the blade on one side - the stone is guided on a rod, and if you hold the blade horizontal the rod makes a 29 degree angle to it.

I am wondering if the 30 degrees you recommend is measured differently, namely taking the total angle from one side of the blade to the other, rather than to the horizontal. In which case it would correspond to an Edgemate setting of 15 degrees.

That's 30 degrees (nominal) included angle or 15 degrees per side.

Agreed. The Sharpmaker is the way to go. The simplest, easiest way to sharpen knives with minimum setup. Woks well with the baisc kit, but If you want to reprofile and get that extra final polish, buy the accessory diamond coated and extra fine stones.

now, you really got me confused ......

Looking at the Lansky instruction sheet, I found a schematic, showing "their definition" of sharpening angle : that's the angle between the sharpening stone and the blade.
If I use the 17? slot on the Lansky tool (the finest, there is no 15? position), I will "sharpen" the side of the blade, not the cutting edge (I hope you understand.....sorry... my vocabulary is not adequate...)
if I use the 30? slot, then it looks like the stone is really sharpening the cutting edge

?????????????????? <img src="/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" /> ??????????????????

Sorry, but as I've have not used the Lansky in many years and never on the RSK Mk1, I really can't comment vis-a-vis their instructions, which sound very confusing to me. The edge angle is an included angle and not sure how that translates to their definition. I'd suggest using the old magic marker trick, which should set up the angle of the sharpening stone appropriately and ignoring the confusing instructions. The Blade Forums Sharpening FAQ covers this: http://www.bladeforums.com/features/faqsharp-puttingtogether.shtml

I use the Lasky Sharpener, and the angle marked on the guides is included angle. If you use the 30 degree hole, if that was the angle of the stone to the blade, then the included angle would be 60 degrees! That's the edge of an equilateral triangle, and not even an axe would be sharpened that bluntly.

One thing you need to be careful of is that the blade is clamped down straight. If it's angled either way, then the bevels won't be even on both sides.

Preliminary statement : geometry and I (me ?), we said good-bye to each other a long time ago. The only thing I remember is that a right angle boils at 90? ... <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

And now, you want me to understand geometry in english !!! Argh...... <img src="/images/graemlins/crazy.gif" alt="" />

I don't even know what's the 'included' angle ... Should I guess it's the angle made by the two sides (slopes ?) of the cutting edge ? <img src="/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" /> (*)

So, I just took the Lansky sharpener and make a few measurements.
Let's say the tool make a right triangle ABC, with the right angle being point C.
When my RSK is positionned in the tool, the very edge of the blade (point A) is at 11cm from C.
The 30? hole (point B) for the stone's guide is at (about) 5cm from point C.
A bit of trigonometry (told you it was a long time ago : I had to look in an encyclopedia to get this right ... well, I hope it is .. <img src="/images/graemlins/blush.gif" alt="" /> ) :
hyp = about 12 cm
sin(a) = opp/hyp = 5/12 = 0.41666666
>>> a = about 27?
so the angle made by the two sides of the edge is about 54?

If the edge of the blade was positionned exactly at the end of the tool, hyp would be about 10cm >> angle would be exactly 30?

Therefore, the larger the blade, the smaller the angle, using the same hole as a guide.
So the angles indicated on the Lansky tool are just rough references, nothing more.
For instance, the lowest position marked 17? is only to be used on razor style blades. Does the RSK qualifies for such a style ?

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Did I compute/understand something wrong ? Any math geak around here ??

TIA for correcting me.


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(*) included angle = angle included between the two sides ! Is that it ? Did I finally got it ?

> That's 30 degrees (nominal) included angle or 15 degrees per side.

Thanks, that put my mind at rest.

I would have preferred to buy a Spiderco Sharpmaker but I couldn't find a UK supplier. The Gatco seemed to get the best reviews of what was available. I knew I needed something because I've failed at sharpening for many years. My RSK was well blunt after I'd applied a steel to it. <img src="/images/graemlins/frown.gif" alt="" />

I don't think the Gatco Edgemate Professional is as good as the Spiderco. The instructions weren't really adequate. It tells you to grind a certain number of times, with no mention of forming a burr. Also, the grip is poorly designed and doesn't, well, grip. I found it helps to put cardboard between the grip and the blade.

However, the stones remove metal alright and the system does help keep a consistent angle. I've got my RSK cutting arm hairs again so I'm happy for the evening.

I'd like to add my note of approval for the Spyderco Sharpmaker, I've used Lansky and EdgePro systems with good effect, but the Sharpmaker is by far the easiest to set up, use, and take down.

I'm amazed that it consistently puts a better edge on my knives than I can get with either of the clamp-type systems. Seems counterintuitive, but I won't argue with results.

I'd also like to reinforce:

- The use of the magic marker, especially when finding out what the danged settings mean

- Working to raise a burr (and being able to detect one with your fingers or eyes)

- Using a steel and leather strop to maintain an edge for long periods between sharpening

All these things work well for me.

Bear

I will second the comments on Sharpmaker. I used to have a Lansky and gave it away once I got a Sharpmaker and I'll never go back. Not that there was anything wrong with the Lansky... it's just that the Shaprmaker is a lot better. I will also second the comments about using a magic marker. I use a magic marker any time I am reprofiling, whether with the at home with Sharpmaker or in the field with a hand stone.