sharpening PM-V11

[bandit571]

My "1st" stone I use...

   
Is a SC Carborundum.....soaks up 3in1 oil fast, too....then a second stone..

   
600 grit Medium India with 3in1 oil....then the Wet-or-Dry papers, up to 2500 grit, with the same oil...then a leather strop..

   
Seems to do the job.    On really bad, or messed up bevels...grinder to restart the bevel, 100 grit belt sander to flatten the bevel, then to the stones...Those two chisels took a total of 20 minutes...

YMMV...

[Timberwolf]

My "1st" stone I use...

Is a SC Carborundum.....soaks up 3in1 oil fast, too....then a second stone..

600 grit Medium India with 3in1 oil....then the Wet-or-Dry papers, up to 2500 grit, with the same oil...then a leather strop..

Seems to do the job.    On really bad, or messed up bevels...grinder to restart the bevel, 100 grit belt sander to flatten the bevel, then to the stones...Those two chisels took a total of 20 minutes...

YMMV...

,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
That's a very effective sharpening program, IMO, if you're not using electrons exclusively...

[hbmcc]

Carborundum ... Ahhhh. Yes. The grinder of my youth turning pen knife blades into dull tooth picks. Fifty years ago an axe puck with the ubiquitous double side was issued to every hotshot crew firefighter. I had several but with hundreds of pulaskis and shovels to edge, the choice was an angle grinder.

When I got older, highschool, I could afford an Arkansas Translucent. It is still in my sharpening box. It did little to hold any but a blunt, really blunt, edge on my Buck that cut nails better than game hides. The other day I heard a YouTube knife sharpening guru say all Western knives are too thick. Grind away that fake bayonet blood flute so the thing can cut. I tried to do just that years ago. Back in the day, a Buck strapped to a belt over worn-but-not-ragged Levis was cool.  

When I ordered the 220 grit I wondered about SC and if I still had one of those thin black bricks.

Sharpening D2 requires commitment and no convenience to pocket tools. Allan has heard my PM-D2 sharpening woes. Definitely, diamond and CBN material. Dare I say D2 is better suited to industrial stamping or punching metal parts; or, possibly mortices? D2 may work for other tools but the best use for my Oar Carvers was cutting open a can of beans heating next to a campfire. I could do that with my Buck folding hunter.

Some people love the nuances of leather stropping. I can think of 4 ways to strop on a leather belt. Not while I wear it. I have one, a razor strop, that was used to strop my FIL's butt. They are quick and easy.

The setup I noted, with modifications for shaping, works for my arsenal of O1/W1, A2, D2, #1 laminated and 7/11 steels. My diamond steel plates require very little preparation; I may go back to them, but possible cross contamination between stones demands a lot of cleanup between grits. 

I know anything I say on this subject will curl somebody's lips, but hiding from honest assessments gets us into costly mistakes.

[Timberwolf]

Carborundum ... Ahhhh. Yes. The grinder of my youth turning pen knife blades into dull tooth picks. Fifty years ago an axe puck with the ubiquitous double side was issued to every hotshot crew firefighter. I had several but with hundreds of pulaskis and shovels to edge, the choice was an angle grinder.

When I got older, highschool, I could afford an Arkansas Translucent. It is still in my sharpening box. It did little to hold any but a blunt, really blunt, edge on my Buck that cut nails better than game hides. The other day I heard a YouTube knife sharpening guru say all Western knives are too thick. Grind away that fake bayonet blood flute so the thing can cut. I tried to do just that years ago. Back in the day, a Buck strapped to a belt over worn-but-not-ragged Levis was cool.  

When I ordered the 220 grit I wondered about SC and if I still had one of those thin black bricks.

Sharpening D2 requires commitment and no convenience to pocket tools. Allan has heard my PM-D2 sharpening woes. Definitely, diamond and CBN material. Dare I say D2 is better suited to industrial stamping or punching metal parts; or, possibly mortices? D2 may work for other tools but the best use for my Oar Carvers was cutting open a can of beans heating next to a campfire. I could do that with my Buck folding hunter.

Some people love the nuances of leather stropping. I can think of 4 ways to strop on a leather belt. Not while I wear it. I have one, a razor strop, that was used to strop my FIL's butt. They are quick and easy.

The setup I noted, with modifications for shaping, works for my arsenal of O1/W1, A2, D2, #1 laminated and 7/11 steels. My diamond steel plates require very little preparation; I may go back to them, but possible cross contamination between stones demands a lot of cleanup between grits. 

I know anything I say on this subject will curl somebody's lips, but hiding from honest assessments gets us into costly mistakes.

................................
I had the pleasure of meeting and talking with Ross Oar at a woodcarving show a few years ago...He knows a thing or two about knives and steels..not to mention his skill as a carver. He said that D2 was the best type of steel he had ever used for woodcarving and I bought two of his knives...After using them a while, I agreed with his assessment...I can't find D2 stock in the size I want for my knives but I can get HSS and that is my choice for now, because of its edge holding ability...sharpens to a hair-splitting edge and stays that way longer. Sharpens easily on SC and diamond....and polishes well on charged leather.

[hbmcc]

................................
I had the pleasure of meeting and talking with Ross Oar at a woodcarving show a few years ago...He knows a thing or two about knives and steels..not to mention his skill as a carver. He said that D2 was the best type of steel he had ever used for woodcarving and I bought two of his knives...After using them a while, I agreed with his assessment...I can't find D2 stock in the size I want for my knives but I can get HSS and that is my choice for now, because of its edge holding ability...sharpens to a hair-splitting edge and stays that way longer. Sharpens easily on SC and diamond....and polishes well on charged leather.

I know anything I say on this subject will curl somebody's lips, but hiding from honest assessments gets us into costly mistakes.

I do try to CMA....



I will get back to mine some day. If the steel is not damaged by heat, I might be trying to sharpen at too narrow an angle, shallower than from the factory.

A few of Oar's [Titusville] folders are still offered.  Technical quality is lacking, if not materials. I spent a lot of time on the 2-blade friction folder, and had to keep a single-blade one locked--it required vise-grips to open. The double is strictly casual pocket tool; The weak spring makes it dangerous when carving. I'd own another, the fixed-blade chip carver, if I could feel it first. 

[AHill]

Not directed at any WN members...

I believe that probably 90% of those who use edge tools really don't know how to sharpen them. When you don't have a sharp tool, it's frustrating to use, and there's a tendency to blame the tool instead of the person holding the tool. My observation is the two most common mistakes when sharpening are not spending enough time on a particular grit before proceeding to the next, and declaring you're finished at too low a grit. There are many effective sharpening techniques that can produce sharp edges in the proper edge geometry suited to a particular tool and task. Once you've mastered that technique, you can consistently get sharp edges. Sharp is good.

[wmickley]

Would you be in the 90 percent or the 10 percent?

[Timberwolf]

Not directed at any WN members...

I believe that probably 90% of those who use edge tools really don't know how to sharpen them.  When you don't have a sharp tool, it's frustrating to use, and there's a tendency to blame the tool instead of the person holding the tool.  My observation is the two most common mistakes when sharpening are not spending enough time on a particular grit before proceeding to the next, and declaring you're finished at too low a grit. There are many effective sharpening techniques that can produce sharp edges in the proper edge geometry suited to a particular tool and task.  Once you've mastered that technique, you can consistently get sharp edges.  Sharp is good.

......................................
I believe that probably 90% of those who use edge tools really don't know how to sharpen them.

I don't know the percentage but I do think it is high...judging by my conversations with folks over many years....And I would add another mistake to your list of two...not maintaining a consistent angle while honing or stropping..Watching folks attempt to sharpen edges is sometimes laughable...It is evident that they do not understand what needs to be done OR what they are doing...And many times they blame their failure on the steel, the stone, the oil or the strop, when it is actually their technique.

I agree completely with Allan's post and will bet a ten-dollar bill he knows what "sharp" is an how to achieve it !!!!!

[hbmcc]

Would you be in the 90 percent or the 10 percent?

I wonder if there is a standard for, Good Enough. P. Sellers practicality is likely where one could find that standard on the web currently. Adam Cherubini demonstrated the standard. 

There is that Sharpness Chart floating around comparing edges of various edged tools. Digging into the Knife Grinders behind the chart, the only real world comparison I was able to know was my Feather DE razor blades. They are down near the bottom of that chart. 

Feather will quickly and easily perform "plastic surgery" over my cheek bones, especially. However, I would never consider giving up "baby smooth" for a blade that left a 12-hour stubble and 'razor rash'. 

Whatever Works is another term I've heard and used for years.

[GeeDub]

If you're happy with the results of your sharpening, then I'd just declare victory and move ahead.

Exactly this.  PM-v11 has become a favorite for me.  Sharpening threads have a way of taking on a life of their own as some of us love to talk about it more than even doing it ;-)  Use a loupe or a lighted magnifying glass to make yourself comfortable that the bevel and face are getting well addressed on the abrasive.  That along with the result of use will let you find a happy-place.  You know what a properly sharpened tool feels like in use.  Don't get hung up on comparing O1 to A2 to PM-v11.  Sharpen up and get back to work ;-)