I admit it, I suck at knife sharpening. Over the years I've spent a lot of money on all kinds of doodads and thingamajiggers, and I suck at knife sharpening. I sharpen my wood carving knives to razor sharp, but that's different from regular knives.

A friends acquaintance said I should go to Harbor Fraught, or someplace, and buy an inexpensive 1-inch by 30-inch belt sander, or some length, along with an assortment of grits, and also a felt and a leather belt for the belt sander. Probably cost $65-ish for the grinder, the belts are cheap, and the leather belt around $30 or so, etc. Did some googling and found a website named RedLabelAbrasivesdotcom for belts and such. They're in Michigan and pretty much all their products are made there. That makes me happy. Also, a little over an hour from me is Jantz Supply, knifemakingdotcom, in Davis OK, a long time huge seller of all things for knife making. I don't want to make knifes, I just want to make them sharp, and they have sharping supplies too. I might make a trip down to their showroom.

So, anyway, does anybody use a belt sander in 1-inch or 2-inch or so, in maybe a different length? Any advice for me?

BTW I recently rescued an older American Made bench top bench grinder and am getting some cloth wheels for it. I have some rouge for it.

I figured I'd try one more way to spend money on knifesharpening, if it doesn't work for me, well it can sit in the corner awaiting donation or next garage sale, whatever.

I have some junk to just fair kitchen knives I can practice on.

I used to have a local old fart who was the most amazing knife sharpening, but he retired and moved away, and I can't find anyone else to pay around here, so here I go. What the heck, it's only money, and I'm now pretty much retired and have lots of time on my hands.

Any thoughts or comments? Please be nice, because I suck at knife sharping, no snarky comments please. Thanks!
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Have you tried something like a Wicked Edge? Holding a consistent angle is key, and they make that part pretty foolproof. They cost a pretty penny, but may be worth it to you if it helps you get good results.

If you want to go the belt sander route, you could try something like a Ken Onion work sharp. It's a small belt sander with adjustable angle guides to help you hold a consistent angle. I would think that would help you get better results than a regular belt sander where you're still going to be subject to inconsistency.

^^^
I got the Ken Onion model some years ago after seeing sharpening threads here, and it's worked great.

I used to make custom knives as a hobby and sharpened them on a belt sander, a 1 x 30 IIRC.

It removes a lot of metal compared to other sharpening methods, that's one thing to think about.

The other thing, and this is highly important, is that the bench grinder with cloth wheels and rouge is undoubtedly the most dangerous tool you'll have in your shop or garage.

If you get the knife ripped from your hands while buffing it, there's a good chance it'll end up somewhere in your anatomy.

Just something to think about.

FWIW, I use a Spyderco Sharpmaker to sharpen my knives these days.

The WorkSharp Ken Onion (et al) sharpeners are just belt grinders and they come with belts at different grits.

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Work-...Sharpener/1000293661

^^^^ Thanks, I'll explore those suggestions.

Safety first! I've lived long enough to become risk averse.
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I’ve been using Onion Worksharp for every day knives and tools. Western and Japanese knives. Double and single sided. 1 minute per knife. Once a month (steel weekly).

Good (Japanese) knives get the stones.

I like my WorkSharp Ken Onion edition. It wasn't cheap, but it is very good, and hard to screw up. It's possible, if you don't read the directions and get too aggressive to ruin a knife, but you have to work at it.

If you don't know what you are doing with a belt grinder, you can quickly remove a lot more knife than you want. This is fine if you don't have any really nice knives, and you are willing to let a few go in service of learning, but it would suck to bugger up a nice chef's knife and be looking at an expensive replacement.

In simple math, 1 Ken Onion WorkSharp + most popular belts < 1 Harbor Freight Grinder + selection of all belts + decent chef's knife.

ETA 1: I wrote this while others were replying, and see I am in good company.

ETA 2: I have a buffing wheel in my shop, and wouldn't go near it with a knife. The possibilities for disaster both for me and the knife are legion.

My advice is to get an Edge Pro Apex kit. They have different packages available and I bought their 220/400 grit kit, then added 600 grit and 1000 grit stones over the next couple of months.

https://www.edgeproinc.com/sha...nt=Edge%20Pro%20Apex

I suck at knife sharpening and I now sharpen all my knives until they will shave hair off my forearm. My Kershaw EDC is re-sharpened every couple of months to hair-shaving sharpness. Same for my kitchen knives.

I can't say enough good things about this system.

Here's the mirror-finish on my Whustof Santoku knife that's nearly 20 years old.


Tony.

quote:

Originally posted by Perception:
Holding a consistent angle is key

This. It's true regardless of whether you're sharpening using stones/belts/ceramic rods/etc.

If you "suck at knife sharpening" because you can't hold a consistent angle, the belt sander is just going to ruin the knives faster, and won't get you any better results than your other failed methods.

Something like the Worksharp or Edge Pro includes a mechanical angle guide. That way, you don't have to freehand it. It holds the consistent angle itself.

quote:

Originally posted by joel9507:
^^^
I got the Ken Onion model some years ago after seeing sharpening threads here, and it's worked great.

Agreed. I make custom kitchen knives on 2x72 belt grinder.

I can use water stones when I want to take a lot of time and go all zen

If I’m cooking and I need sharp knives now or for a quick weekend session, it’s always the worksharp.

Honestly if you just go watch a YouTube video of what an edge is and how it’s formed…

That information will take you a long ways and you’ll be able to sharpen w just a cinderblock and a piece of cardboard box (like the Japanese knife maker dude down in Oregon. Shaves a full beard that way!)

Someone else said it but I’ll reinforce it… Don’t use a buffing wheel on a knife! Darwin Award material.

Looked at the edge pro page, one thing that stood out was the link to "Sharpening Tips"

https://www.edgeproinc.com/sharpening-tips/

They have downloadable PDF and online links to tip on sharpening knives..

Whatever system you get, edjamukashun helps..

Before sharpening knives on a belt sander or a tool similar to a belt sander, take a read at what A.G. Russell has to say about it.

https://agrussell.com/knifesha...s-sharpening-devices

BELT GRINDERS
Belt Grinder
Belt Grinders are big belts of sandpaper and other abrasives and buffs that are attached to large motor driven spinning wheels. 95% of all professional knife makers use belt grinders. They are fast, efficient, expensive, dangerous, and require skill to use.

The Worksharp has been introduced as a compact consumer model belt grinder for sharpening knives. It does its job, but there are things to consider. First, even with guided angles, it still takes a lot of practice. There are things to know. A good example is belt grinders take steel off so quickly that your blade needs to be moving before it ever touches the belt or you will take off too much metal at the heel.

Another point of consideration is the heat generated from friction. Friction from the fast moving belt will heat up your knife quickly, and the thin steel blade edge can only heat up so much before the heat treatment is ruined and your knife will no longer hold its edge, no matter how sharp you get it.

Pros

The fastest and most efficient way to sharpen or shape knives

Achieves fantastic results

Cons

Can quickly ruin a blade

Requires a lot of practice and expertise

Dangerous

Expensive

Conclusion
Unless you intend to get into knife sharpening or making as a hobby or for employment, I do not recommend using a belt grinder. I have met quite a few customers who have ruined their knife using belt grinders. When you are first learning, you can typically expect to ruin at least 5-10 knives before you get the hang of it, and even after that you still have to be very careful. If you decide this is something you want to pursue, I suggest gathering a bunch of inexpensive kitchen knives. Check your local thrift store to find some practice knives for cheap.

quote:

Originally posted by Flash-LB:
Before sharpening knives on a belt sander or a tool similar to a belt sander, take a read at what A.G. Russell has to say about it.

https://agrussell.com/knifesha...s-sharpening-devices

BELT GRINDERS
Belt Grinder
Belt Grinders are big belts of sandpaper and other abrasives and buffs that are attached to large motor driven spinning wheels. 95% of all professional knife makers use belt grinders. They are fast, efficient, expensive, dangerous, and require skill to use.

The Worksharp has been introduced as a compact consumer model belt grinder for sharpening knives. It does its job, but there are things to consider. First, even with guided angles, it still takes a lot of practice. There are things to know. A good example is belt grinders take steel off so quickly that your blade needs to be moving before it ever touches the belt or you will take off too much metal at the heel.

Another point of consideration is the heat generated from friction. Friction from the fast moving belt will heat up your knife quickly, and the thin steel blade edge can only heat up so much before the heat treatment is ruined and your knife will no longer hold its edge, no matter how sharp you get it.

Pros

The fastest and most efficient way to sharpen or shape knives

Achieves fantastic results

Cons

Can quickly ruin a blade

Requires a lot of practice and expertise

Dangerous

Expensive

Conclusion
Unless you intend to get into knife sharpening or making as a hobby or for employment, I do not recommend using a belt grinder. I have met quite a few customers who have ruined their knife using belt grinders. When you are first learning, you can typically expect to ruin at least 5-10 knives before you get the hang of it, and even after that you still have to be very careful. If you decide this is something you want to pursue, I suggest gathering a bunch of inexpensive kitchen knives. Check your local thrift store to find some practice knives for cheap.

Everything you said would be true if you were using traditional 2 x 72 belt grinder. Every knife maker I’ve ever met only knocks the edges off the blade with that tool prior to going to sharpening. A couple of swipes so you don’t wreck your sharpener.

After that, I’ve seen all kind of clever powered tool tricks for getting knives arm-hair popping sharp.


A Worksharp (KO version has an angle guide) with progressive grits is no problem whatsoever. Not dangerous! Jeepers. Yes, don’t blow the temper. Not difficult.

Like all tools, use as intended.

Thanks folks. I’ll drop the belt sander idea and look at the systems named above. Much appreciated.
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quote:

Originally posted by joel9507:
^^^
I got the Ken Onion model some years ago after seeing sharpening threads here, and it's worked great.

Yep, excellent option for people who don't want to spend a ton of time screwing around with sharpening knives. It does a good job is won't break the bank.

OP I use the same setup same exact sander. I only use the fine grit belts and use very little pressure. Keep the edge moving and you can get a great edge to then hone. Practice on cheap knives until you get the hang of it.

I use Ken Onion with the Blade Grinder Attachment. It uses sanding belts. You set the angle on the belt and hold the blade parallel to the ground. You use the slightest pressure and let the belt do all the work.

The advantage to this set up is that you just have to hold the blade parallel to the ground at all times for all degrees.

FYI

The finer the grit/mesh, the higher the heat on a power tool. Higher surface contact/friction coefficient. Like “boom”!

We use progressive grits for a reason.

I use a TSProf Kadet.
I have been sharpening knives for $$$ for a short while & it’s almost idiot proof.
Not the cheapest option but an amazingly simple way to sharpen knives to an amazing degree.