Off Center Edges: What It Looks Like and How to Fix It

This video has been requested a few times, so hopefully I answered the inquiries satisfactorily.

[@tristanmccaig4928]

Thank you for putting this info out. I'm working in a restaurant, so having a goodknife is important for both performance and safety. Trying to look it up, to fix my current knife, I was so confused. Having these visuals, and explaination is very helpful. Thank you so much. You may have saved a finger today!

[@multidimensionaltraveler806]

This advice really works. I screwed up my bowie and been working at it the past hour and now its back to like new condition. Thanks man, much appreciated. You have a new subscriber, you saved my knife. Now this is a knife again and not a blunt piece of metal

[@nr5035]

Thanks for the clear and straightforward explanation. Very helpful.

[@TheAbstracTSniper]

Just started sharpening and I've been having this issue. You showed exactly what I need to to do. thanks very much!

[@jyt8543]

Thanks for the explanation JDavis. Appreciate it. 9 years later and your video is still ticking.

[@arkansascatdaddy5188]

I just recently purchased the KME and have mistakenly done this to a few of my knives. I'm new to sharpening and just didn't realize this. Glad I saw your video. Thanks so much!

[@scottkoblitz1230]

It's quite possible that the knife was sharpened like that from the factory and it just shows now after you sharpened it. It's pretty common for factory knives to come messed up. Unless you spent a lot more time on one side you probably didn't cause the condition

[@perspicacity89]

Thank you very much. This is an incredibly important topic for knife owners.

[@TimBrooks2009]

Excellent video, thank you for sharing this information :)

[@jdavis882]

@TaonariX Thanks for the kind words man. I am learning all the time, but I greatly enjoy sharing the knowledge that I have acquired. Feels good to know that I've helped a few people. :)

[@tayloralbrecht8362]

jdavis882 thank you

[@joftongson4247]

Thank you so much for sharing this. I was able to fix the edge on my knife. Kudos to you!

[@jdavis882]

Great to hear!

[@SNAFU111999]

great description and method

[@multidimensionaltraveler806]

The spyderco edge is how mine looks. Thank you so much i chipped my blade and tried to fix it. I used a sharpening stone and got rid of the chip but my kife if more dull than when i started

[@knivesandstuff]

@knivesandstuff contd.. Ideally what you are referring to, and looking for is an edge perpendicular to the spine.. but of course a chisel grind doesn't work that way.. lol.. All in all though, I think your video covered the common case well.

[@XxDuhBirdsxX]

Thanks for the great explanation, i just finished sharpening my kitchen knife and noticed an off centre edge, but i would like to keep the shorter edge bevel, how would i fix this?? Thanks

[@1snowreaper]

I have a Strider that I sharpen one side on the 20degree setting and the other on the 25degree setting on my crock sticks. And you can tell an off centered edge really does affect cutting performance. Depending on the angle you come in while performing a cut it can seem kinda sharp or really dull.

[@tylerwhetstine8451]

Many knifes come with an asymmetrical bevel which is an uneven bevel. They grind them like that on purpose for performance. Japanese single bevel knifes have an "off center" bevel and perform beautifully.

[@jdavis882]

@knivesandstuff I'm trying to be as accurate as I can, but I have no illusions that I have a LOT to learn yet. If you ever find anything in my videos that is wildly inaccurate please let me know so I can spare myself some embarrassment. Haha :)

[@jdavis882]

@1snowreaper Yep it definitely has an affect. I can even the edge out if you ever want it done. :) If not, then honestly I don't think it'll hurt anything. We knife nuts just always want things to be perfect though. Haha

[@jdavis882]

@knivesandstuff I meant to say no illusions that I know it all, and that I have a lot to learn yet. I combined two different sentences. Haha

[@jbvap]

wow perfect, just the info Ive been wanting! that happens with most of your vids! lol

[@M1sterFancyPants]

I just bought a Spyderco Tenacious and noticed that about half an inch of the tip is off centered. Should I just fix that by sharpening the steep side more until they are even or do you think made in China knives are just not made super consistently? You think I should keep it or return it? The blade is centered perfectly when folded though so I'm afraid if I exchange it the bevel might again be not centered but I'll also get an off center blade.

[@Airik1111bibles]

This sucks on bigger knives, my Schrade schf51 came like this and its a beast to fix, I'm waiting on a rod system I ordered but I might have to get someone to fix it cause I suck. I couldn't cut a shoestring at the moment with my knife, thin pocket knives you won't notice it as much but survival blades like the Bk2 it makes them unusable.

[@mahcupyan4]

Literally have the exact problem with the same knife except one of my edges is sharp but the other is super dull, did you ever get yours fixed, any tips?

[@greg6162]

I just bought my first “budget” ... Kershaw Cryo actually elite as I own cheap Ozark and Tac-Force junk. I have this exact problem but I only have a Smith’s 4” diamond combination pocket stone. Should I use lower grit side which is 325? I don’t want to ruin this knife as it’s my most expensive at $35 and I know this is considered a beater knife but until I get better a sharpening I don’t want to spend the extra money. Any ideas or videos you can link? Thank you and advance for your cooperation👍

[@sour7786]

Really good vid man hope your doing well. Hope your still into knives.

[@bigboss1990]

Hey man, Good vid, my ZT 551 defiantly is off centered I just noticed. Side note: Do you mind telling me what grease/lubricant you use/do a vid on doing 1? My sage 2 is starting to really become gritty..iv taken it apart. Cleaned it with WD40 then sprayed some white lithium grease on it..but its still not smooth. Iv flicked it around 100 times but still no improvement. Thanks for the help!

[@kessler003]

My RAT 1 came new in box like that... off center, but still shaving sharp.

[@denverwynn4]

Thank you!

[@DJ.1001]

My buck vantage avid came from the factory way off center. sent it back and got a flawless replacement and a coupon code for the buck web store.

[@knivesandstuff]

@jdavis882 I actually think its a terminology issue regarding the use of the word centreing.. I'll email you a PDF and I think you'll understand my meaning.

[@tayloralbrecht8362]

knivesandstuff could you send me the pdf as well? [e-mail]

[@jdavis882]

@knivesandstuff Haha nah chisel doesn't work that way, but I was specifically talking about V edges as demonstrated in my horrific drawing. LOL

[@yannik246]

Really nice explanation. The only problem is that you lose a lot of blade. But honestly it is more of an aesthetic problem than a functionality problem

[@knivesandstuff]

Good video, but there are a few discrepancies that different grinds cover where your example wont always be accurate. For factory symmetric knives its correct. But you can have blades ground intentionally assymetric, but still be centred. a 12degree edge on side A, and 24Degree on Side B for example. There can also be a case where both bevels are exactly 12Degrees, but the primary bevel on 1 side has more metal making the bevel height uneven for a centred blade......

[@John-xk7uo]

Ok so if you have a guided system, the wider edge will have a different angle then the abtuse side. Which angle do you sharpen the abtuse side at??

[@kevinAuman1]

I know this is a very old video but the subject does not change, my question is what should you do if the primary grinds are uneven say you clamp you knife into a EdgePro and do an even 17dps edge and the bevel is half the size on one side as it is on the other yet you know they are both at exactly 17deg??? Do you lay the one side down further to make it look closer to the other or?!?!?

[@M4A1mystyle]

Hello from Cambodia, sir. I have been subcribing to your channel for quite some time, and I thoroughly enjoy those videos. Can you help me solve this one problem? I sharpen my knife with edge pro apex at exactly 21 degree but I cannot reach a sharp edge with this knife. Then I discover that on one side of the blade I was able to erase the marker till the edge with 21° while the other side I was not able to reach the edge of the knife with 21°. Then I remember your knife edge off center video but I cannot reach a clear conclusion in your video with my problem. I am willing to do as you say even if I have to remove a ton of metal of my blade, and I sincerely wish I am abled to send you my knife for edge restoration but due to some circumstances, so please give me some advice to fix this problem. Thank you and have a nice day.

[@cam00133]

I have seen this out of most of my cheap Kershaw knives, I was not expecting the lack of attention to detail out of the ZT line...

[@knivesandstuff]

@jdavis882 Its not inaccurate, but using bevel height as a measure could lead people to accidentally rectify a good edge and cause centring issues.. You'll see why in the PDF.. lol. in the case of factory folders however, your video makes perfect sense.

[@jdavis882]

@knivesandstuff Of course there will always be circumstances that don't fit what I've said, but I would have to say that it's the minority. Maybe a few percent of the overall production knives fit that category. :) As for the bevel height being off, that is fairly common in my experience - but it doesn't always mean an edge is off center.

[@greekveteran2715]

Yesterday I got in the mail a Lionsteel M4 that I had ordered 25 days ago .It has by far the worst off center edge of any knife I ever had. it seems like the picture you have drawn on paper and even a bit more off than that centering. I hate the procedure to send it back for a replacement for many reasons.One reason is that I had to wait to raise the money to buy it and then wait another 25 days for the shipping. I also hate the idea that,no matter how good I am at sharpening , I have to remove much steel to fix it and that means that I will raise an already thick behind the edge bevel, which means,that the result will be a thicker behind the edge bevel. Please come into my place and tell me,what would you do? Any advice will be much appreciated,thanks in advance.

[@JordanMac79]

would a carbide sharpener fix this

[@atol671]

What grit should I start with ?

[@talley1013]

cool. Thanks Man.

[@karimsonsafehold9233]

Good thing my musashi 1045, 1060, and sbg T10 katanas never had that issue. Sword users tend to be very particular about their edge alignments and blade geometries for cutting.

[@jdavis882]

I can imagine.

[@victorinoxfan]

My freehand reprofilings tend to be off center. Not usually that huge anymore, but still off center. It's not a real problem for EDC use. Informative vid though mate.

[@rezzgoatrising1829]

My ColdSteel AK47 has off center edge lol and I also started to sharpen more on one side. 98.9999 % on new high in blades are off center. Ask Lynn Thompson of ColdSteel why it’s like that

[@nicholashelms2395]

I have a tenacious and noticed the off center edge I have a 1000 grit stone and 6000 but I might just bring it to a guy who does cnc sharpening becuase I'm sure he could center it perfectly

[@myxboxcnq]

The edge doesn’t need to be center. It doesn’t affect cutting performance. The only benefit of center edge with symmetrical angles is to cut big pieces of hard stuff like splitting a melon cutting perpendicular without steering. I purposely put the center of the edge to one side to improve cutting performance.

[@jdavis882]

It absolutely does matter after repeated sharpenings. If you don’t correct the edge you will soon have one side so obtuse (despite being the same angle) and one side so acute that you can’t even reach the apex.

[@JankarloCangrejo]

Hello i just watched your video just want to ask is there any knife that has a design of off center edge or is it every knife is need to be centered?

[@jdavis882]

It’s not about the design, but more about the skill of the person doing the initial sharpening. Some extremely cheap knives have perfect edges, and some very expensive knives have off center edges. It’s just the luck of the draw.

[@newtyauger5458]

Does this apply to Scandinavia ground knives also?

[@yannik246]

also works, but will take much longer if it is a zero ground knife

[@multidimensionaltraveler806]

I live in Boston Massachusetts. who can i pay to fix my knife? Somebody respond

[@John-xk7uo]

Me

[@user-pm7pw1tl3t]

Left face of knife is always the bad one in my findings. If you look at the tip straight at your face and edge up you will see it is always slanted to left. Some knifes entire blades are at 11 o clock instead of 12. Wich make A HUGE difference. But people never seem to talk about how fucked knives are like that making even expensive knives a hassle to remove huge amounts of metal to fix their shit.

[@jbart0130]

Exactly. Hand ground/sharpened doesn't automatically make them good. Just like made it North America doesn't make them good

[@jdavis882]

@bigboss1990 Haha I literally just did a video yesterday on my favorite lubricant. Go look at my channel it should be like 3 videos down from this one. :)

[@bananaassasin7514]

i got a really expensive knife and it came like this i know this might be only my problem but im dissapointed

[@jdavis882]

It happens. Unfortunately!

[@1mataleo1]

Same here man, I feel your pain. I just bought a knife that cost me over $200 and now I have to try and fix this on my water stones. I can sharpen on them fine, but I never did this kind of re profiling before. I’m not sure if I have the skill. Hopefully I don’t screw it up. I’m pretty pissed. On a cheap knife, fine. But for a knife over $150 this is inexcusable.

[@BT2SS]

You’re not, not centered because one angle is more obtuse than the other….your angles can be exactly the same, there’s just more material on one side of center than the other. If one angle was more obtuse than the other, you would need to change your angle on one side. Like you said though, you just need to take off more material on the small side (while maintaining the same angle)

[@Slippindisc]

I thought you were back man...

[@jdavis882]

I’m here! Just don’t have much to make a video about. Unless people want to see other-than-knife content? Hopefully I will have some knife stuff soon though.

[@knivesandstuff]

@jdavis882 email sent.

[@DAVIDMILLER-nc9vo]

What's really going on here? I have lectured but not like this. All of my drawing, charts, visual aids were either completed or in my mind is such a manner that I could draw it perfectly when lecture time came. A little homework by many KZbin host could go a long way in educating their audience. This is not the way to conduct a tutorial. It's sloppy to say the least. He might have great in-site of his topic but it doesn't not come off that way to this viewer.

[@jdavis882]

lol. I’m not a lecturer. Just some dude sharing knowledge for free. No obligation to watch it. 👍🏻

[@DAVIDMILLER-nc9vo]

You have experience, knowledge, and a willingness to share. Others can benefit from your videos. So, don't shortchange your videos by being so casual. You know you can present good videos so get to it. Do a little prep and you will even feel better about expending that time in something worthwhile for all of us! Just put yourself as being an audience. What do you like and expect?@@jdavis882