Getting your knife razor sharp

[Rogue Wolf]

...im going crazy...i got whetstone up to 10000... was able to make it cut and shave the hairs off my hair but felt more like a used razor blade.....brought a diamond stone and ceramic angle adjustable knife sharpeners...but i can't improve it... thinking maybe my angle holding was poor... I see people getting their knives shaving sharp which slices through paper like a hot blade through butter...but i am like a step away...any advice on how to get my sharpening to the next level...i have done cardboard and leather straps to help finish it but still cannot not make it perfect.. the material im using is 44a

 

[ole ed]

...im going crazy...i got whetstone up to 10000... was able to make it cut and shave the hairs off my hair but felt more like a used razor blade.....brought a diamond stone and ceramic angle adjustable knife sharpeners...but i can't improve it... thinking maybe my angle holding was poor... I see people getting their knives shaving sharp which slices through paper like a hot blade through butter...but i am like a step away...any advice on how to get my sharpening to the next level...i have done cardboard and leather straps to help finish it but still cannot not make it perfect.. the material im using is 44a

The thing about "shaving sharp" is that it's not going to stay that way. I've sharpened alot of knives in 40 years. I try to get them practical sharp. If you can shave snow flakes on your thumb nail it will do most anything you need it to do. If you really need more than that get a stereoscopic microscope about 80 bucks on Amazon and look for what's wrong. P. S. Don't cut your self.

 

[DADI03]

It's all in the bevel. A thin edge will be sharper by weaker. I can't sharpen anything though. I own dulling stones. Some of them handed down from my papaw. When he had them they were sharpening stones but I guess he used all of that part of of them. He always had a sharp knife on him. He did all kinds of whittling projects and hand wove baskets.

 

[nicaburns]

Getting a shaving sharp edge is easiest if you create a burr/wire edge and then refine and polish that burr till it falls off. For me, that is easiest on a belt sander. On stones and most setups folks generally skip creating a burr and just polish till sharp which requires very precise angle and pressure. Some systems make that MUCH easier than bare stones.

 

[moosensquirrel]

before you begin, one must have a knife with steel that is very hard and with a grain size that is suitable for a razor edge. One cannot sharpen any finer than the grain size of the steel. It takes practice as well.

 

[Retired Army]

Until a few years ago, I sharpened knives with whetstones/diamond stones and could put a good edge on them. I have since invested in a Ken Onion Worksharp. I can get my knives as sharp as I wish now in a fraction of the time. And I’m talking scary sharp. I hate dull knives. I use it for everything. Best investment I’ve made when it comes to knives.

 

[3clicks_Off]

Proper angle for what you're cutting.
Sharpen until you get a burr the length of the edge.
Remove burr with a leather straup.

Watch a barber sharpen his razor.
His last step is leather!

Also cardboard will dull any knife, even tool steel

 

[Gaffer1968]

Until a few years ago, I sharpened knives with whetstones/diamond stones and could put a good edge on them. I have since invested in a Ken Onion Worksharp. I can get my knives as sharp as I wish now in a fraction of the time. And I’m talking scary sharp. I hate dull knives. I use it for everything. Best investment I’ve made when it comes to knives.

That's what I looked into....in the meantime, I used my 1" X 42 inch belt sander without the belt backstop with a 1000 grit belt. The only thing I have to do is keep the blade at the same angle throughout the pass on each side. The unsupported belt allows the belt to give a convex grind vs a flat bevel. I've got to where one pass on each side is what keeps them sharp.

 

[SOLGardener]

I used a lansky kit for years and while there ate better kits available the Lansky taught me the angles and to hold a consistent angle by hand.

Now I more often put a convex edge on my blades with 800 to 3000 grit aluminum oxide paper on something like a firm mouse pad. Again, the consistent angle of the blade matters.

That said, I have a Blackjack #5 with an A2 blade that's convex ground and a Vulture Equipment bushcraft with a D2 blade that is a scandi grind. The Blackjack doesn't feel super sharp to your thumb nut cuts like a laser. The bushcraft blade feels sharper to the touch but doesn't cut so great. It is however great for batoning and woodsy work amd hold the edge forever.

 

[moosensquirrel]

if your knife is to be used as a weapon, almost any steel ...for a while anyway