I see the advantage of a paper wheel, but I would feel disconnected from my knife. Without sounding too existential, I like the feeling I get when I use my hands as much as possible.

There is no doubt that polishing your Weiner by hand is a great feeling that no machine can replicate.

Seriously, I prefer hand sharpening.

I've never tried to polish my weiner before. I seem to get the same results by just stroking it. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> Oh, on a stone. Let my mind wander for a moment. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

Hand sharpening helps me relax, puts me "In the zone". I just feel the steel slide across the hone and listen to the sound it makes and can tell it I have the angle right or not.

i had a guy tell me the wheels gave him more time to chase his old lady around the house <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />. that shounds like a lot more fun <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

I don't normally have a bench grinder with me at work. That's where I do my sharpening, in the wee hours of the morning as a way to stay awake.

Haha. I need to work on my freehand but I have a really crappy stone at the moment and I cant imagine that that will help me out at all.

i offer free sharpening for soldiers (and all the other public servants) and if the soldier has a dremel tool i send a small wheel along that they can put directly on the dremel to touch up the edge in the field. the guys that have tried it out said it works out great.

You can get mini paper wheels for a dremel tool?

steeley, get a piece of 1/4" glass plate and some wetordry sandpaper instead of a stone.

I like a knife to have a coarse edge toward the tip, and a fine edge near the bolster.

i have thought about trying that a few times and never did. it could turn out to be an interesting experiment.

steely, the mini buffing wheels are something that i make from some 1/4" thick scrap pieces from the same material the large wheels are made from. i make them using a 2" hole saw and they work ok out in the field. a humvee has a 110 power converter so they can use their dremel anywhere.