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Thread: Whetstones
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03-04-2020, 09:44 #11
- Join Date
- Mar 2012
- Location
- Port Elizabeth
- Posts
- 5,961
Re: Whetstones
Waite until they have a special or shop around. The Global knives site is expensive. Takealot and Loot have some good specials on Global products from time to time.
https://www.globalknives.co.za/minos...et-stones.html
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03-04-2020, 12:38 #12
- Join Date
- Aug 2012
- Location
- Stella
- Age
- 46
- Posts
- 10,870
Re: Whetstones
Some thoughts on your questions. Please take note that I do not always conform to what everyone else does. Most of my knives are old and slightly worn, but they get the job done every day.
The type of steel plays quite a role. Some types of steel simply do not sharpen well, and even if you should get them sharp, they get dull from laying around or being looked at. One of the steels which works really well is the Victorinox knives. Their steel is surprisingly soft, but keeps an edge and sharpens easily.
The angle of the cutting edge is also quite important. Generally, people have identical angles on both sides of the cutting edge, but I once met a guy who deliberately used different angels on a biltong knife. He had a 15 degree angle on the inside edge of the knife, and a 30 degree angle on the outside edge of the knife. His theory was that the piece of meat being cut should be forced away from the rest.
Keep in mind who will be working with your knives. If it is to be used by everyone, stick with an angle of 25 or 30 degrees. This makes the cutting edge blunter but stronger. On my own knives I prefer using less than 20 degrees, simply because the have less resistance and cut much easier.
Use two or even three different types of stone. One coarser stone to shape the cutting edge, then one finer stone to hone it. I have stopped using oil on most of my stones, simply because oil tends to clog over time, resulting in a very smooth stone which does not function as intended. I use mostly water because it dries quickly and is less messy.
As to the boxes for the stones: I no longer use them when sharpening. The boxes warp, fall apart, collect dirt, etc. Instead, I have a thin, sticky rubber mat which I use on a large tray. The stones get wrapped in cloth. My preference is for Japanese water stones. I have also found that a little more time on a good finer stone gives better results than less time on a coarse stone.
Most knives are produced with a definitive cutting edge which stands apart form the bevel. My personal preference is for a slightly rounded cutting edge, aka (double) convex grind, similar to the edges of the Japanese swords. It is also close to the "fairbairn-sykes cutting edge". My reason for using this is that is slightly stronger than the regular flat cutting edges. It also pushes the material being cut away.
On sharpening a knife:
If possible, teach yourself to sharpen with both hands. It is easier to work if one can change between hands to sharpen both sides of a knife. Take care to deliver identical results with both hands.
Pull the knife towards you in a single, long stroke. Take special care to maintain the angle of the knife on the stone. (Don't use worn out stones - the concave bubble in the middle does not deliver a straight cutting edge). Once used to the sound, you will start hearing the difference when the knife's angle changes on the stone. When I grew up, folks used to sharpen a knife by rubbing it to and through on a stone. It does not really result in a clean and efficient cutting edge, but rather in a coarse cutting edge which gets worn away by sharpening fairly quick. One can also move the knife spine first across the whetstone; this method usually results in a burr on the edge of the blade.
Sharpen the tip of the blade by picking up the handle of the knife as you reach the tip of the blade. Otherwise the cutting edge towards the tip of the blade gets broader over time.
I usually start with ten strokes on one side, then ten on the other side of the knife; then nine strokes and nine strokes, etc. I do this to remove equal amounts of material from both sides of the cutting edge.
Lastly, strop your knife once finished on a piece of coarse leather. PLEASE DO NOT smear it to and through like in the movies!!! This damages all your efforts to maintain a clean and efficient cutting edge. Rather put the leather on a hard and straight piece of wood, and move the knife spine first over it.
Ten strokes on one side, then ten strokes on the other side, then nine strokes on both sides, then eight stroks etc.
By doing this one usually gets a cutting edge which cuts hairs from your arm.
A knife is really sharp when it can chop through a single hair, dangling from one end. Please do not chop through the tip of your finger like I did
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03-04-2020, 13:03 #13
- Join Date
- Aug 2012
- Location
- Pretoria, South Africa
- Age
- 34
- Posts
- 12,555
Re: Whetstones
I take my belt, hook the loop part on my big toe, pull it tight and strop. Works like a charm, and there's no sharpening system I've found to date that can get my Kershaw hunting knife that sharp. It's really razor sharp, I've used it to shave before church one Sunday morning on a bet before.
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03-04-2020, 13:12 #14
- Join Date
- Aug 2012
- Location
- Stella
- Age
- 46
- Posts
- 10,870
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06-04-2020, 12:08 #15
- Join Date
- Jun 2009
- Location
- Inne Cape
- Age
- 65
- Posts
- 2,525
Re: Whetstones
Look up Kitchen Samurai
Based in Cape Town, they have whetstones, whetstone brackets, and Japanese kitchen knives, to name a few.
Also look up Zulu Grey for fine whetstones from Natal
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28-09-2020, 12:27 #16
- Join Date
- Jan 2010
- Posts
- 64
Re: Whetstones
Why not try Aliexpress. You can find some decent prices on there even though shipping cos a bit more with covid. Sometimes a goood deal is to be have even with more expidied shipping
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28-04-2021, 11:47 #17
- Join Date
- Nov 2019
- Posts
- 441
Re: Whetstones
Although not a Whetstone, but the sharpening system like lansky uses baby whetstones. Ive had a lot of success with it, finishing off by edges with the 1000g and then strop.
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