Sometimes INGO can be very frustrating. I just spent an hour looking up Mick Strider and Lynn Thompson because of an argument in a thread about a fake Benchmade, which I found on the third page of The Cutting Edge forum while browsing for an answer to this question. Please do me the favor of keeping this thread on track; I'm not sure I can handle another hour of research on things I couldn't care less about.
So I've recently become the proud owner of a Spyderco PM2. This is by far the highest quality knife I've ever owned. Up until now I've carried anything from gas station knives to a few of the sub-$40 Chinese Kershaws. They were decent but, the more I learned about what makes a quality knife, the more I realized that they weren't the greatest.
Now that I have a nice knife, I want to be able to keep it sharp and in good condition. I am horrible at judging angles and even worse at holding an angle once I've found it. Me and whetstones don't work well together so I figure life would be easier if I were to get a sharpening system that can make up for the finesse that I lack. My ultimate goal is to get that mirror edge, hair popping sharp. I've been looking at two different systems: the Lansky and the Sharpmaker. No matter which one I get, I will most likely also get this strop to finish the edge.
These two are close in price and similar in options. What I would get with each:
Lansky: Deluxe 5 Stone kit plus Super Sapphire stone
Sharpmaker: Sharpmaker plus Ultra Fine stones
This was touched on in another thread of mine but I'd like to dedicate a thread to finding what would be the best option for a beginner.
Also, I won't ruin my good knife; rest assured that I'll practice on cheaper blades and hone my technique before moving on to my good blade.
So I've recently become the proud owner of a Spyderco PM2. This is by far the highest quality knife I've ever owned. Up until now I've carried anything from gas station knives to a few of the sub-$40 Chinese Kershaws. They were decent but, the more I learned about what makes a quality knife, the more I realized that they weren't the greatest.
Now that I have a nice knife, I want to be able to keep it sharp and in good condition. I am horrible at judging angles and even worse at holding an angle once I've found it. Me and whetstones don't work well together so I figure life would be easier if I were to get a sharpening system that can make up for the finesse that I lack. My ultimate goal is to get that mirror edge, hair popping sharp. I've been looking at two different systems: the Lansky and the Sharpmaker. No matter which one I get, I will most likely also get this strop to finish the edge.
These two are close in price and similar in options. What I would get with each:
Lansky: Deluxe 5 Stone kit plus Super Sapphire stone
Sharpmaker: Sharpmaker plus Ultra Fine stones
This was touched on in another thread of mine but I'd like to dedicate a thread to finding what would be the best option for a beginner.
Also, I won't ruin my good knife; rest assured that I'll practice on cheaper blades and hone my technique before moving on to my good blade.