Sharpening 154cm Emerson Tactical Tanto and Mora Carbon Classic No.2

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stereo.pete

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Hey Folks,

While I am no newbie at sharpening, I am still far from an expert at the craft. I have no problem putting edges on any of my kitchen knives, but I've been struggling with folding knives and certain fixed blades. There are two blades that I am struggling with as of late, a Mora Classic No.2 (Scandi Grind) in Carbon and an Emerson CQC-7 folding knife.

Here is a list of my stones that I use:
  • Gesshin 400
  • Gesshin 2k
  • Gesshin 4k
  • Felt and Leather Strop


Starting with the Mora Classic No. 2
1. How is it possible to put a perfect finish on the bevels of a Scandi grind, which is basically a single bevel on each side. The scratch pattern I get is insane and ugly. The knife gets shaving sharp and at the end of the day that is all that is important, but I would like to continue my development in sharpening. I feel the next step is an even finish along the blade road, how do you guys manage it? Do I need to bust out sand paper and a flat stick or finger stones? Since there is only one bevel on each side, how do I prevent damaging the edge with the sand paper/finger stones after the knife has been sharpened?

Here's a couple of pics, which will show you the uneven scratch patterns I am getting. Keep in mind I'm not talking about the flats, just the blade road on the bevel.
ANmSEG.jpg

fjHO5G.jpg


2. Why is it that I can never really feel where the burr is on my Mora when I am sharpening. When I am sharpening, I have a hard time detecting a burr and I typically feel it on both side of the blade, is this a Scandi thing or am I missing something obvious? I use sharpie to make sure I am hitting the entire bevel and use that as a guide when sharpening. This is only the second time I've sharpened it, but I had an issue just recently with what I think was the edge rolling. I first used the knife up in Michigan for 3 days straight batoning large amounts of wood for our fires by the lake along with general bushcraft-esque duties and the edge held up with no damage. I sharpened it when I got home and yesterday was the first day that I really used it hard and I battened one small 1' long slab of 2x4 into some kindling and I noticed then that the edge rolled. Was this because the 2x4 is hard or could this have been a wire edge?

I sharpened it again to remove the damage to the edge and she's shaving sharp again, even though I could never really feel the burr properly like I can with my kitchen knives. I put just the slightest micro bevel on it as one might ever so gently on a yanagiba. I will test it out tomorrow on 2x4's to see if that helps out.

Emerson CQC-7 Tanto in 154CM
1. A friend of mine at work after seeing a few knives that I had sharpened for our other coworkers handed me his Emerson to sharpen. There was no edge damage to the knife so I started with my Gesshin 2k stone, which cuts plenty fast and I could not raise a burr to save my life. I checked with sharpie and was astounded to see just how large of an angle I had to use to hit the edge. Is my failure to raise a burr a product of the steel they use or am I just failing at basic sharpening. Should I have started with the 400 grit when dealing with 154CM?

Lastly, free hand sharpening on small folding knives/fixed blades is incredibly more difficult to me than a 10" gyuto. I would have thought differently, but I guess it is because the majority of my sharpening happens on chef style knives.

Cheers and thanks in advance for any help,

Pete
 
Lastly, free hand sharpening on small folding knives/fixed blades is incredibly more difficult to me than a 10" gyuto. I would have thought differently, but I guess it is because the majority of my sharpening happens on chef style knives
I found this to be true for me as well.
 
I'm a pretty good freehand sharpener, but find I get much better results on small blades like folders with an EdgePro.
 
I find it a but harder to sharpen bush/ tactical knives. But I figured it was just becauae they all have quite thick edges compared to checks knives.
 
Guys, thanks again for taking the time to post. I'm glad I'm not alone with my experiences sharpening folding knives and small fixed blades.
 
What's your sharpening technique with the scandi now?

Have you tried sharpening in one smooth diagonal motion along the entire bevel? The belly and tip can be a bit tricky but it creates a uniform scratch pattern.

From the photos it looks like you're making lots of small facets as you work the entire bevel in separate motions.
 
What's your sharpening technique with the scandi now?

Have you tried sharpening in one smooth diagonal motion along the entire bevel? The belly and tip can be a bit tricky but it creates a uniform scratch pattern.

From the photos it looks like you're making lots of small facets as you work the entire bevel in separate motions.

When sharpening my Mora, I use the same methods as I would on the beveled side of a yanagiba. I follow the angle of the scandi grind down to the edge and sharpen in sections. I've tried to use long sweeping motions, but I never make good contact after inspecting where the sharpie has been rubbed off. Perhaps I need to continue to practice in order to refine my motor skills.
 

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