Sharpening advice....

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By hand it's really only about 45 minutes of work. Not a big deal.
 
My logic tells me i would put the blade on a page and continue the original lines to find out the place of the original tip. I would then mark the place of the new tip on the blade keeping it at the same height as the original one.
I would then blend the lines from the new tip to the blade. (both on the height and the width of the blade).

Whichever way you choose to do it - good luck.
 
Someone might have said it allready, but use the side of your coarsest stone so it doesn't ruin the sharpening surface. This obviously won't work if you're using a diamond plate. I use an old "peacock" stone flattener for tip repairs to get the shape 95% and then smooth it out on the side of regular stones.
 
Use your sidewalk or piece of cement curb. As others have mentioned, it would be murder on your stones or plate and painfully slow.

Not only is the sidewalk coarser, but the extra real estate allows for longer strokes and much faster progress.
-draw the new shape out on the blade w/ sharpie and color in the metal you plan to remove
-dont press too hard when grinding
-move parallel to the blade, this makes getting a smooth curve easier and is less prone to chipping
-you can generate a surprising amount of heat: check the temp and use water if needed.
-after the coarse grinding is done, clamp the blade spine-up. If using a metal camp or vise, use wood or a few layers of cardboard on either side of the blade to protect it
-use sandpaper perpendicular to the spine in a "shoe shine" motion to even out the grinding and round the spine. Tape on the back of the sandpaper helps to extend its life before ripping. They a little more $, but you can also use belt-sander belts and cut them
 
I wld look for the cheapest belt sander as it may cost more if your stones adn plates becomes really, really uneven.

besides.. its a new toy to play with. I believe that there are some available under USD 50.

After the session on belt sander, sandpaper say 600 grit wld be ideal for the clean up . Do be aware that teh real estate of the tip is so thin and tiny that it literally disappears and leaves a fresh blackened tip. Thus the last bit I wld prefer sandpaper..

whilst t it have fun..

d
 
Lots of good ideas, thanks guys!

I was thinking about using a cinder block to do a lot of the steel removal, and I have a few floating around...any reason that shouldn't work as well as concrete?
 
A cinder block should work well and will be more comfortable both interms of ergonomics and explanations to neighbors.

I vaguely remember some video of Carter from back when he was more interested in unorthodox grooming practices than flying helicopters where he sharpens an ax on a cinder block and then shaves with it.
 
Thanks! I'm planning to work this over the weekend...I'll take copious photos so you guys can make fun of me.
 
Oh, another couple of questions...do you try to keep the cinderblock wet? does that make any difference for this task + material? Also, assuming that grinding the spine down works, would it make sense to also use the cinderblock to remove most/all of the chipping?
 
It's a little grainy, lighting was tricky today, how does this line look to you guys?
8495224927_efb58e793a_z.jpg
 
Last time I did such heavy work, it was sidewalk and wet cinder block with brick slurry. I just walked backwards down the sidewalk dragging the spine, then used a sawing motion on the cinder block to remove chips, cut in a new bevel, then go to the water stones to polish everything out.
 
Thanks to everyone for the suggestions, observations, and ideas. Here is a side-by-side with my results:
8499155354_b6722122c3.jpg


I'm quite pleased with the outcome. It could be a little flatter along the spine...but this is not bad at all. And that damn chip in the edge almost gave me a fit. These things are damned chippy...I wasn't about to start back over at 400 just to get that out.

If anyone is interested in the complete photo set, it's here:

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10151494041779415.510469.144012669414&type=1

This petty was 1 of 3 shuns I did, along with a Calphalon Katana, and some mid-range wusthoff/henckel's knock off. The Katana has a fracture in it about 1" from the heel, about 3/4" long, is that typical for these knives? It took a pretty darn good edge, as did the shuns.
 
Oh, and kudos to ThEoRy, he guessed the time nearly exactly: guess=45 min, actual=40min.
 
Looking sharp!! Told ya it wasn't that bad. Nice job!
 
Nice work! I personally think that these kinda restorations are enjoyable... there's something about restoring function to a broken tool, even if it's "just" a humble shun, that's very satisfying.
And sharpening on a cinder block is just goofy fun.
 
Justin0505 said:
I personally think that these kinda restorations are enjoyable... there's something about restoring function to a broken tool, even if it's "just" a humble shun, that's very satisfying.
And sharpening on a cinder block is just goofy fun.
Click to expand...

Exactly! Both a good chance to learn something, and a good chance to confirm something I've learned. And yeah, the cinderblock was a bit of slapstick....rather effective slapstick mind you. I know the owner will be pleased, these were previously considered, "beyond help."
 
I fully restored one of those kalphalon katana vg1 blades last year for an employee. Tip was broken off and there was a HUGE overgrind about an inch up from the heel right through the sweet spot from improperly honing on a diamond rod for years. Told him I could fix it for him and he just laughed and was like "no way". Took it home and reprofiled it on the plate, fixed the overgrind, I even buffed it and etched the damascus just for fun. He was like, "I thought it was unfixable this is like a totally different knife!" Then I told him it was all done by hand... lololol It is a pretty satisfying experience.
 
Alright, this thread has inspired me guys. I'm going to attempt to grind down my old masahiro gyuto into something more suji/petty shaped. Ill probably use the concrete patio out back to reshape the blade. Any reason I shouldn't use the concrete to do the initial thinning as well? And will it be worth the time to go pick up a cinderblock vs just using the patio or a curb?

Zweifel,
Nice work, the new spine looks nicely shaped.
 
Chefdog said:
Alright, this thread has inspired me guys. I'm going to attempt to grind down my old masahiro gyuto into something more suji/petty shaped. Ill probably use the concrete patio out back to reshape the blade. Any reason I shouldn't use the concrete to do the initial thinning as well? And will it be worth the time to go pick up a cinderblock vs just using the patio or a curb?

Zweifel,
Nice work, the new spine looks nicely shaped.
Click to expand...

Glad to have inspired something other than laughter! Very pleased with my second tip repair. Good luck with your repairs/fixes.
 
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