Water stone sharpening Media
Published: 8 years ago
https://northarmknives.com/
Many people who try free hand stone sharpening give up due to frustration or lack of results. The main reason for that is, they lack proper guidance. Learning to stone sharpen requires some patience and practice but I think that anyone can do it. With in-depth instructions to follow a beginner can achieve decent results quite quickly. They may not produce razor sharp edges, but they will make a dull knife sharper. Getting perfect, hair splitting edges, will take a little more practice and dedication but it is certainly possible! This video is an in depth description of how I stone sharpen and should describe everything a beginner needs to know to be successful. My sharpening routine is based on Murray Carters method.
The first thing you'll need to get started is some stones. I like diamond or water stones, but oil stone will work too. To have a complete set you need three grits. One coarse stone in the 200-300 grit range. A medium grit stone in the 800-1000 grit range and a fine stone in the 3000 to 6000 range. I prefer 220-800-4000 and I use king water stones from Japan but their are many good manufacturers out there. Having all three grits will let you quickly bring a knife from butter knife dull to razor sharp. You can get by with just the medium and fine if you don't let you knives get really dull.
To decide which stone to start on, evaluate the knife's edge using the "light" test. We describe this test in one of our "how to test knife sharpness" video. If the knife fails the test, start on the coarsest stone. If it passes, do a paper test, described in the same video. If it fails that test, start on the medium grit. If it passes the paper test then you can leave the knife as is or touch it up on the finest stone.
Use the technique shown in the video to determine the correct sharpening angle. Re-check the angle frequently to stay on track. Sharpen one side of you knife using the technique in the video, until you develop a burr on the opposite side. Now do a couple of alternating strokes to knock the burr off. Next Sharpen the second side of the knife until a burr forms on the first side. Next do a few alternating strokes. Perform the light test on the knife. If it passes move to the medium grit. If not then go back and do more alternating strokes until you are satisfied.
On the medium grit, repeat the same steps as on the coarse grit. It will be a lot faster as you are only refining the edge further on this grit, not re shaping the edge. In other words, removing the scratches from the previous grit and replacing them with medium scratches. Once you have removed the coarse scratches on each side of the cutting edge bevel, do a few alternating strokes. Now run the knife edge across the grain of a clean piece of scrap wood. This helps remove micro burrs. Do another few alternating strokes and then perform the paper test on the knife. It should slice paper reasonably well. It won't push cut but it should slice through.
Now comes the final grit. This is where a knife goes from a toothy working edge to razor sharp! If done properly you will be able to push cut paper or even shave with the knife after this grit. As with the medium stone, you are just replacing the previous scratches with finer ones. Sharpen each side until it is really polished looking. Now do a few alternating strokes and use the wood again. Then more alternating strokes. Now do a paper test. Or, if you're ok with patchy arm hair, try shaving a few hairs off your arm. If the knife isn't as sharp as you'd like, do more work on the fine grit. If you still aren't getting the results you want, repeat the light test to insure you haven't missed any severe dullness.
As a beginner you may have to settle for a little less than razor sharpness. As you get better at sharpening and holding a steady angle, you will get sharper and sharper edges! Whatever you do don't frustrate yourself by sharpening for hours or anything like that. If you've made the knife sharper, stop! It will probably already cut as well as you need it too. Try again next time to make it even sharper.
The steel we use in our knives is called CPM S35VN. It is a very high end stainless. It is high in alloy content. IT was designed to hold an edge really well but still be sharpenable with most tools. If you are using anything tougher or hard, CPM S110V for example, you will want to use diamond grit. Trying to sharpen these steels with ultra high carbide content can be frustrating using conventional abrasives.
I hope this has helped to clarify free hand sharpening! Don't hesitate to ask questions in the comments or via email!
https://northarmknives.com/
Many people who try free hand stone sharpening give up due to frustration or lack of results. The main reason for that is, they lack proper guidance. Learning to stone sharpen requires some patience and practice but I think that anyone can do it. With in-depth instructions to follow a beginner can achieve decent results quite quickly. They may not produce razor sharp edges, but they will make a dull knife sharper. Getting perfect, hair splitting edges, will take a little more practice and dedication but it is certainly possible! This video is an in depth description of how I stone sharpen and should describe everything a beginner needs to know to be successful. My sharpening routine is based on Murray Carters method.
The first thing you'll need to get started is some stones. I like diamond or water stones, but oil stone will work too. To have a complete set you need three grits. One coarse stone in the 200-300 grit range. A medium grit stone in the 800-1000 grit range and a fine stone in the 3000 to 6000 range. I prefer 220-800-4000 and I use king water stones from Japan but their are many good manufacturers out there. Having all three grits will let you quickly bring a knife from butter knife dull to razor sharp. You can get by with just the medium and fine if you don't let you knives get really dull.
To decide which stone to start on, evaluate the knife's edge using the "light" test. We describe this test in one of our "how to test knife sharpness" video. If the knife fails the test, start on the coarsest stone. If it passes, do a paper test, described in the same video. If it fails that test, start on the medium grit. If it passes the paper test then you can leave the knife as is or touch it up on the finest stone.
Use the technique shown in the video to determine the correct sharpening angle. Re-check the angle frequently to stay on track. Sharpen one side of you knife using the technique in the video, until you develop a burr on the opposite side. Now do a couple of alternating strokes to knock the burr off. Next Sharpen the second side of the knife until a burr forms on the first side. Next do a few alternating strokes. Perform the light test on the knife. If it passes move to the medium grit. If not then go back and do more alternating strokes until you are satisfied.
On the medium grit, repeat the same steps as on the coarse grit. It will be a lot faster as you are only refining the edge further on this grit, not re shaping the edge. In other words, removing the scratches from the previous grit and replacing them with medium scratches. Once you have removed the coarse scratches on each side of the cutting edge bevel, do a few alternating strokes. Now run the knife edge across the grain of a clean piece of scrap wood. This helps remove micro burrs. Do another few alternating strokes and then perform the paper test on the knife. It should slice paper reasonably well. It won't push cut but it should slice through.
Now comes the final grit. This is where a knife goes from a toothy working edge to razor sharp! If done properly you will be able to push cut paper or even shave with the knife after this grit. As with the medium stone, you are just replacing the previous scratches with finer ones. Sharpen each side until it is really polished looking. Now do a few alternating strokes and use the wood again. Then more alternating strokes. Now do a paper test. Or, if you're ok with patchy arm hair, try shaving a few hairs off your arm. If the knife isn't as sharp as you'd like, do more work on the fine grit. If you still aren't getting the results you want, repeat the light test to insure you haven't missed any severe dullness.
As a beginner you may have to settle for a little less than razor sharpness. As you get better at sharpening and holding a steady angle, you will get sharper and sharper edges! Whatever you do don't frustrate yourself by sharpening for hours or anything like that. If you've made the knife sharper, stop! It will probably already cut as well as you need it too. Try again next time to make it even sharper.
The steel we use in our knives is called CPM S35VN. It is a very high end stainless. It is high in alloy content. IT was designed to hold an edge really well but still be sharpenable with most tools. If you are using anything tougher or hard, CPM S110V for example, you will want to use diamond grit. Trying to sharpen these steels with ultra high carbide content can be frustrating using conventional abrasives.
I hope this has helped to clarify free hand sharpening! Don't hesitate to ask questions in the comments or via email!
https://northarmknives.com/