Messages

Good morning everyone,
I thought this might be an interesting topic maybe for people who are deciding between T-4 and T-8. Has anyone ever sharpened two identical knives, one on T-4 and one on T-8 and compared BESS sharpness scores? I'm just wondering if there is a significant difference between scores. I don't have a sharpness tester so maybe someone out there has either done this test or has some insight into the topic.

Thanks,
Antz

For some reason I seem to have a lot of Farberware knives. I only bought one for about 10$ US, the rest have been given to me or bought at garage sales. After I sharpen them on the T-8 followed by paper wheels at 15dps they are ridiculously sharp although they seem to not hold the edge as long as I'd like. Probably due to my cutting board (bamboo) which I just learned is one of the worst to be cutting on. Other than that I have Friedr Herder high carbon knives that get sharper than anything I've come across so far. Some were my grandfathers knives and have seen over 70+ years of use. Also where I live Friedr Herder knives are very popular with hunters.

Big island of Hawaii. Our population is about 190,000 on the island.

Antz

A very well established sharpener may be able to command premium prices for premium knives, however, few customers appreciate the extra time and skill involved in top shelf sharpening, nor are most customers willing to pay enough to justify a lot of special sharpening equipment.

I believe the percentage of sharpening with high tech will increase over the years. I do not see it replacing the standard technique or gear.

Ken

I just wanted to chime in on what Ken said. Where I live at least it seems like most people aren't appreciative of a premium edge. Maybe its due to their lack of knowledge on the subject, but they seem to rather pay someone 5 bucks to sharpen and polish their knives on a belt sander with subpar results rather than paying a small premium for a tormek finished knife. So far I'm the only one on our island offering this service so perhaps word will spread and people will come around to the idea of better quality knife sharpening.

Wow thanks Ken and Jan, those responses were perfectly worded and answered all of my questions. Very much appreciated, now I have the info I need to make a good choice for my next wheel. I'll probably hold off like you said Ken and develop my skills more before purchasing one but I'll take both of your advice when I finally get around to buying one. Hope those responses also help others wondering the same things as well.

Thanks
Antz

Ok so just experienced a weird sound with my tormek t-8 as well. It may be my fault. Let me explain what happened. First I was using the leather wheel on a long knife so I decided to remove the grinding wheel. I removed the wheel but didn't have the plastic spacer that came on the shaft when it was new out of the box, so I also removed the ezlock and washer and set them on the side. I finished stropping on the leather wheel and reinstalled the grinding wheel. Very next knife I did had an extra thick handle where the leather wheel was in the way, so I removed the leather wheel. Now when I ran the machine and put any pressure on the grind wheel it made a knocking sound. I was trying to figure it out and found it was coming from the rubber contact wheel. Just to inspect it I removed the contact wheel. That's when I noticed that once the contact wheel was off the shaft that connects the grind wheel and rubber contact wheel, the shaft can freely slide back and fourth. So I put the contact wheel back on, tightened the nut and turned the machine on. Now the contact wheel had a MAJOR wobble. I had to loosen the nut so the contact wheel is no longer tight against the washer between the contact wheel and the shaft bearing. Now it runs with no wobble and once I put the leather wheel back on the contact wheel it no longer makes the knocking sound. So for now I won't be removing either the grind wheel or leather wheel until I figure out what was going on.

My question is do any of you think I messed something up by running the machine without the spacer and ezlock? And is the shaft suppose to have so much play back and fourth? For example I could push the shaft right out one way or the other depending which wheel I take off. And is the contact wheel suppose to be tightened down with the nut or just tight enough to where it runs well. As of now there's about a 1/8" gap between the contact wheel and the shaft bearing. Any help much appreciated.

Thanks
Antz

I'm not nearly as knowledgeable on this subject as a lot of other forum members are but from all the reading I've been doing I think I have a decent understanding. There are many different media's you can use to do a final polish on a knife such as felt, paper wheels, leather, strop pads, wood, etc. the goal of stropping as I've come to understand it is to cleanly remove what's left of the burr or burr root/wire edge. As long as that is accomplished I don't think the media you're using is that critical, example; leather smooth side or  "inside out". As long as it's fully deburred. Now I know from reading Wootz book that different media at different speeds does have an affect on lasting edge retention if you want to be that critical about it, and for that matter the angle of which you strop/deburr at also has an affect as well as the type of burr which in turn depends on the type of steel. Different burrs require different deburring processes to accomplish the finest edges. I recommend reading the book "Knife Deburring: Science Behind The Lasting Razor Edge" by Dr. Vadim Kraichuk. That book really opened my eyes to what it means to deburr/strop. His method is what I am currently trying to emulate. Best book and system I've ever read on the topic of knife sharpening.

Antz

Sorry for all my newbie Tormek questions but is there a noticeable difference between CBN wheels vs diamond wheels? Does one preform better than the other? I'm asking because the CBN wheels from wood turners wonders are considerably cheaper. Another thing is I read the CBN should be used only dry, so will using it with water affect the grind? I'm primarily going to use them for knife sharpening when I run into super steels and I also have someone asking me to do their planer and jointer blades which I know would take a very long time on the aluminum oxide wheel.

Thanks
Antz

I believe on the knife grinders website you can purchase a stripped down version of the FVB and attach your own separately purchased XB100. I guess they are waiting on parts from tormek but the stripped down version is available upon request. Correct me if I'm wrong.

I loved the idea of the jig and bought an aluminum one and works well, but then I found a plastic version that I like even more since it is more self lubricating or slick since it is the plastic and works well. I bought mine from Amazon here in the U.S. Maybe these can be found elsewhere also?
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0063KKTR0/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1#feature-bullets-btf

Those look good Dastagg. I think I'll have to try them. And thanks to Wootz for coming up with the initial idea, I been watching his YouTube channel and noticed he was using those collars. I also just finished reading his book, Knife Deburring: Science Behind The Lasting Razor Edge. If anyone hasn't read it you really need too. Oh and by the way thanks for the physics refresher Jan and Herman! 

Thank you all for your words of encouragement. I'll continue to try and find logical solutions to everyday challenges and share my findings in hopes it can help others.

John, that's exactly the type of situation I think a laser could be useful. It could even be used when doing guided jig sharpening with a pivot collar and not necessarily just for freehand. Or like some YouTube vids I watched last night it can be used with a tool rest for just some added guidance.

Thanks
Antz

Well it seems like it will be easier for me to just purchase some precision flanges. Anyone have any experience with these?
https://www.woodturnerscatalog.com/p/97/6198/Raptor-Grinding-Wheel-Washers-2-Pack
Do you guys think these would be worth purchasing? I know they are "washers" and not "flanges" but do you think they will serve the purpose better than the stock flimsy flanges? After Al pointed this out to me I noticed mine were not flat at all causing slight wobble. I was able to semi fix the problem by loosening the nut and turning the flanges 1/8 turn at a time and retightening the nut until I got it where it had "the least" amount of wobble.

Thanks
Antz

Update: Upon further research I realized I need "recessed" flanges and not washers.

Just wanted to say I wasn't trying to pass someone else's idea off as my own. I really did think of it at home in my garage. But apparently I was far from the first person to think of it. I'm new to tormek's. Great links and thanks for everyone's input.

Thanks
Antz

Thanks. Sorry I didn't know there was a thread going on this topic. 

Sorry I meant laser line marker not market