Like my name suggests, I'm really a newbie when it comes to knives. Sure, I've owned/used knives since I was in grade school, but my experience level seems to be fairly low compared to most on here and other knife boards. When my dad taught me how to sharpen knives when I was about 10, he taught me to do a flat grind on a soft Arkansas stone, and for the most part, my blades have always done what I've needed. Now that I've been reading posts here and on other boards, I'm learning about convex grind and Scandi grind (among others), and I'm not sure where I might go to learn about these.

After all that, here are my questions:
1) What online resources can you point me to, so I can learn about the different grinds and what pros/cons each have?
2) What is the best way to learn each sharpening method? I'd love to learn 1st hand from somebody that knows what they're doing, but I doubt whether anybody has "knife sharpening symposiums"!

Thanks for the input, gang. I'm just trying to learn...

Nick

I would like to know this as well...

Sharpening is not easy, my EZE Sharp helps alot(http://www.bronksknifeworks.com/vcom/index.php?cPath=16_25&osCsid=2cdaedaba9ba60f72834da5fb302ea4f)! Next I plan on a good belt sander though.

You already know how to sharpen. Those same techniques you use to produce a flat or bevel edge will produce a convex edge if you change to a leather strop on wood with compound (of course you must not use the edge leading on that). If your technigue has worked on other knives, it will work on any Busse made knife. Consider yourself skilled. Some folks can't sharpen at all. As for a Scandi grind, that is the easiest of all to sharpen. You just sharpen at the same angle as the bevel that is already there. If you use a stone, it will be flat, a strop it will be convex.

Just to clarify things for you a bit. The terms "Convex grind" and "Scandi grind" refer to how the blade was actually ground, and don't necessarily have anything to do with the edge. In other words, you could put a "Convex edge" on just about any knife whether it be Convex ground, Hollow ground, Scandi ground, Taper ground, or Flat ground. Convexing the edge means just that, convexing only the edge. Here is a diagram that might help you understand the different grinds Blade Grinds . The Taper grind isn't shown in this diagram, but it is just a lightly convexed wedge.

I appreciate the help in this thread. Would you all suggest buying a cheap knife to practice on when developing your technique?

If you have a powered sharpening system, hell yes, practice on a cheap knife first. I personally don't see the need for a "practice blade" when hand sharpening, unless your main knife is of such stern material that it takes a long time to sharpen. When you're practicing you want to see quick results. SR77 is a very tough steel, but it's not terribly hard, and it sharpens easily.

When you're sharpening by hand, you are removing incredibly small amounts of metal per time, and you can easily stop and check to see what's going on. A good knife will last decades of hard use; something massively overbuilt like a Busse family knife will outlive you, the way most of use them.

Anyway. Just work slowly and stop to check your work often. It's really hard to "ruin" a knife by hand sharpening, if you just pay attention to what's going on.

(Funny story. I have a friend who asked me to sharpen a knife that her father had given her when she was a young girl. She admitted that she often used her knife to dig into the ground. The edge was totally non-existant; duller than a butter knife. I brought it back to slicing paper in five minutes on a diamond stone... Really hard to "ruin" a knife. If it's still in one piece, it can be brought back.)

Momaw is right, you are not going to do major damage fast on a stone. Lol, I guess that is why I am not big on stones, they are s l o w.

Thanks for all the help, gang. I really do appreciate the feedback.

Generally, I just use the soft Arkansas stone to polish up the edge on my knives because I try not to let the blade go too long/far without a tune-up, but occasionally, I'll start with a medium diamond stone if there are nicks or if it's really dull. Actually, I used the medium diamond to remove the grinding marks on my SOD and DCDM, and I went to the soft Arkansas for the final touches.

I've heard of guys talking about "shaping" their edge into a convex edge, but what does that really mean? Is that where I use a strope or the sandpaper covered mouse to hone the very edge?

You can get the convex shape with the strop and compound or mouse pad and sandpaper, or you can get it reprofiled on a slack belt grinder. Generally, a good convex edge will start higher up on the blade than a V grind bevel, but not necessarily. If you are happy with the edge you are getting with your Arkansas stone, I wouldn't worry about it. Sharp is sharp. The curved convex shape is a bit stronger than a flat grind at the same average angle. To get the full benefit of the convex edge, it is a full or nearly full convex grind, where the edge curves from near the spine all the way to the final edge. This is not practical in most cases. Some knives are made that way, like the new Busse NMSFNO LE and the Bark River Golok. These knives tend to be outstanding choppers.

From this link, I guess that I'm actually using a Scandi edge on my knives because I don't put a secondary bevel on them. I just pick an angle for the edge and stick with it. Is there anything wrong with that?

Thanks, Horn Dog. That gives me a bit more confidence in what I'm doing. I never get my knives sharp enough to shave with, but I also tend to think that a knife that sharp has edge durability issues as well. The only other thing that I've considered is going to a hard Arkansas to better finish the blade.