Finding knife angle

[can sharp]

Hello, new to the forum and to knife sharpening. Just got a Tormek T8 and want to venture out into the world of being a knife sharpener. My problem is I have searched everywhere and I am not able to find how to determine a knife blade angle. I have tried the maker approach it works ok. Is there a gauge, tool,formula something I can use to help know what a random knife blade angle is ?
Any advise would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you in advance.

[cbwx34]

Hello, new to the forum and to knife sharpening. Just got a Tormek T8 and want to venture out into the world of being a knife sharpener. My problem is I have searched everywhere and I am not able to find how to determine a knife blade angle. I have tried the maker approach it works ok. Is there a gauge, tool,formula something I can use to help know what a random knife blade angle is ?
Any advise would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you in advance.

I'll give you an alternative answer.... don't worry about what angle is on the blade, but instead, decide what angle you want to put on it.

Most knives don't come with optimum angles, many are sharpened at different angles on each side, etc.

Starting out sharpening, you might stick to some basics.   For example 15-18 deg. for a kitchen knife, 20 deg. for an EDC, etc.  Get a few "beater" knives to practice on, and see how it works for you.

For setting that angle, there's a few alternatives, for example the links in my signature.  (My other advice, don't use Tormek's Anglemaster to set the angle on a knife).

You'll find it's about as easy to reset a knife to a desired angle, vs. just sharpening it at the angle it's at, (and dealing with the aforementioned issues).

So, anyway, don't worry about what angle's on the knife, but what you would like it to be.

[brute]

can sharp-Get yourself a Goniometer from Gritomatic, and learn how to use it well. Lots of luck.

[Dutchman]

...or use the notches in the anglemaster. See which angle fits best

[Drilon]

I started using laser goniometer with the DIY version DILAGON 2.0 described by Cyrano in http://bessex.com/forum/showthread.php?tid=338&page=2. Very easy to build as you don't need a curved screen. The angle scale is calculated for a flat area. To hold the small laser I used a pipe clamp. Cost is less than 10 $.

Regards,
Drilon