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Permalink Reply by Brian W. Barrett on February 23, 2013 at 10:49pm

I don't know about the size of the blade but Buck makes a double sided diamond sharpener that can be purchased from Bass Pro or Cabela's for $25-$30. It only has a coarse and a fine, although not that fine but will get the meat of the work done. As far as angle . . . patience and practice. But the diamond sharpener is the first thing I have ever used that I could actually sharpen a knife on. Got it 4 or 5 years ago when I was 26. Yeah, I'm lame. With that and a Lansky fine, without the guide I "could" shave with it.

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Permalink Reply by Drew H on March 8, 2013 at 4:36pm

Learning to use a stone is optimal, you just have to maintain a consistent angle of sharpening on both sides. You can do this by constructing a wooden guide to a certain angle by either cutting it with a circular saw or marking it with a protractor and cutting it with a regular saw. You'd then use this piece to start out your stroke and do ten strokes on one side, then ten on the opposite, using the guide again to maintain the same angle on the other side. 

You could also purchase a Lansky sharpening system which keeps the angle correct for you. Here is a link to the Diamond Sharpening version, it will get it the sharpest of all of the lansky sharpeners. 

http://www.budk.com/catalog/product.jsp?productId=159387&;

I've attached a photo showing how the system works.

Attachments:

• LS04100_Inuse.jpg, 277 KB

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Permalink Reply by Carl M on May 3, 2013 at 2:48am

I got this from a professional knife sharpener.

Starting with a sharp knife, you use a "steel" to maintain a sharp cutting edge. When the knife loses that fine cutting edge you use a steel to get it back. Stroke the knife blade edge on the steel 3 to 4 passes on one side and stroke the other side of the edge the same amount of passes. Reduce the number of strokes by one and repeat the procedure until you are down to one pass and give it several single strokes, alternating sides.

Sharpening a knife is where you replace the proper bevel on the knife edge. After use and steeling, the edge wears down to a blunt bevel. Usually you can tell this by when the steel just isn't doing its job. Use medium or coarse stone and replace the bevel. Different techniques for this. Either way, when you start to "curl the edge"  on both sides, switch to a fine stone and smooth the edge. Should be pretty sharp by now. Use a steel (or strop) to get a very sharp edge. Depending on it's use, if you get to sharp of and edge, like razor, it will actually dull quickly. 

My game butchering knives are sharp, but my kitchen knives are very sharp. Bone is very hard on a very sharp edge.

That also brings up using a poly or wood cutting board to cut on instead of a counter, ceramic plate or glass cutting board. I know someone wants to 'jump" on that wood cutting board idea but if you keep it clean by wiping with a soapy cloth, rinsing, drying and keeping it oiled, there shouldn't be an issue.

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