KNIFE TALK: WHAT GRIT FOR WHAT STEEL WHEN KNIFE SHARPENING

[@XxskidudekidxX]

Wanted to be able to reference this so.. Here’s the time stamps! 6:30 8Cr 7:18 AUS-8 8:16 440C 9:18 9Cr 9:59 N690 10:39 14C28N and 12C27 11:40 Nitro-V 12:40 VG10 13:40 AEB-L 14:55 CPM-154 16:04 154CM (And ATS-134) 17:01 S30V and S35VN 19:19 CTS-XHP 20:46 D2 and CPM-D2 21:55 20CV, M390 and 204P 23:35 S90V 24:24 S110V and M4 and Maxamet Thanks so much for this video!

[@timwhite5562]

And thank you

[@havoc1zero]

Thank you so much. You’re the man.

[@mari0irvin]

This is gold thanks!❤

[@dl3691]

Thank you!

[@EZ_Case]

Thank you!

[@mikafoxx2717]

Enlightenment with sharpening is knowing that low grit is enough. It's the angle that really matters.

[@clavididk1236]

My husky 400 and 600 grit diamond stone does the trick for me. Plus a ceramic hand sharpener for burr removal. Than a leather belt for stropping

[@casper9256]

Thanks Jared. No one ever talks about this you just see hair whittling paper slicing, tomatoes, cardboard but what does it feel like. I look at my edges under magnification and can see where I go wrong or that they get a burr work it off. Progress polish getting a good sharp feeling knife then find the knife edge looks great but it feels like its dull and it would "slip" making me think I messed up and made it dull. Sure sometimes I definitely did but Im realizing trying to take every budget knife between 1k and 5k was the bigger problem. I can't wait to try dropping down and finishing 600 to 800 on certain steels to see how they perform. Thanks!

[@poncho151]

I used to do a lot more high grit finishes on certain steels. These days though it’s 600-1200 pretty much across the board with only a couple exceptions. For me and what I use them for, it’s all about having good bite, plus it saves me so much time not going all the way to a high polish or even mirrored edge. I’ve also got a few different strops loaded with lower grit diamond compounds.

[@NeevesKnives]

Yeah I will put polished edges on certain steels especially if I'm putting lower angles on them, but it depends on the heat treatment

[@weeral1]

I am definitely right in the thick of figuring this one out. My current philosophy (that may change with time), is to take a blade to the finest angle ..ish that the steel, blade shape, and use/user can handle before excessive chipping or rolling. Take that to a fine grit/polish.. BUT then do a micro edge at a lower grit... and I need to learn to strop less I think... and stop sucking at it. Also probably finer grit for others knives who will not be keeping up on sharpening. What micro edge grit for each blade is still very much in a learning phase. I am more confused than confident still haha. One of the biggest issues with figuring this out is as you TRY to start learning about knife steels, angles, grits. grinds.. mostly knife steels.. you find there is NOT a consensus on data! Go find all the graphs out there on toughness edge retention etc.. you will find they do not all agree (sometimes by a lot!) and it is maddening lol. And I still don't understand how hardness, edge retention, wear resistance, and (lack of) ease of sharpening.. are not the same damn thing. If it is easy to sharpen.. doesn't that mean it is soft and would not hold an edge? What alientech (or BS) is afoot?... There is another subject I found like this back in the day.. motor oil.. and I am starting to think some people... want us confused. ┻━┻ ︵ ¯\ (ツ)/¯ ︵ ┻━┻

[@mikafoxx2717]

Lot of people just don't know better and regurgitate. Just like using canola oil for quenching 1095.. retained austenite, anyone? Larrin is a gift to us knife steel nerds. Do be reminded that steels of the same mind do vary by manafacturer and even by batch. So identical heat treatments might vary a little. And mediocre heat treatments versus great ones obviously perform differently.

[@manchapico]

Thank you Jared for everything you do for the knife community.Nº1.the best communicator in the lives community.

[@revolvermaster4939]

Exactly the info I’ve been looking for! Until I watched and didn’t see k390 and maxamet, but still worthwhile!

[@NeevesKnives]

At the time i hadnt dealt with them but now i have and they do good at all grts basically any edge you want, they take a very aggressive low grt, and can both mirror polish with a ton of bite exactly what you want with a polished edge

[@rightclick55]

Thanks for the great info. I saved this video for future reference. Even took a few notes.

[@michaelsherman931]

Lol, maaaan if you could have seen me thinking of what to actually type in the search box to try and track this down. I figured it'd have no idea what I'm talking about yet none the less, brought me right where I wanted to be. Knew I remembered you did a vid on which grits work best for which steels 🎉🎉🎉. You're in my top two for sharpening tips, and seeing how old this vid is, looks like we going to be in this for the long run bid. Keep up the great work!!! 💪💪💪

[@samhenderson2947]

That's an interesting take. I'll give it a go

[@NeevesKnives]

I'm going to re due this video my opinions have changed on a few steels from this video

[@TheManic.5-OH]

I can vouch for S90V being dangerous AF to handle at a high grit sharpening/polishing. Super durable edge retention and ultra slicey, it's my steel of choice for caping deer. Even bumping into bones, my Benchmade saddle mountainskinner in the 1500-2 S90V is a deer hunters wet dream. All I've ever had to do is lightly run down some ceramic and strop it, and its good as new 👌🏽 but don't slip because it does no skating on skin, just cutting 🫠

[@NeevesKnives]

I've actually remade this video and the new one is much more accurate

[@snowhusk]

15:48 That was one of the biggest wtf moments when I started out being into knives, but not from polishing with stones, rather from having too many stroppings between sharpenings. It slices paper, it shaves hair off your arm, then you go to cut a tomato and the tomato is invincible 😂

[@natnat1975]

Can I recommend a video? I think a lot of people would benefit understanding the steps of sharpening and when to do what, and to what amount. For example.... If you're going for a toothy edge, how much does "honing" come into play? What about "stropping?" And what compounds should be used? Then, going into finer edges. Same questions. If you could make a video that shows all of these steps WITH images of results after each step, I bet a lot of viewers would be very happy! Just a suggestion.

[@timwhite5562]

The graphs are interesting, especially where the "ease of sharpening" has m390 vs CMP M4. I have a few in M390 and one M4 and find the M4 significantly harder to sharpen than the M390s.

[@mewithknives3481]

Very informative.

[@deadvikingtrolls]

My favorites are s90v snd s35vn both 600 grit.

[@vinnie_baggadonuts]

Thanks bro! Been waiting for this one!

[@biketech60]

IMO , the harder the steel the more it needs a diamond stone rather than natural . Natural ultrafine is good for the final polish .

[@andyhayward1261]

I just got a Civivi Hadros in 10cr15comov and I’ve had an experience that I’ve never had before. I sharpen on a workssharp fixed angle sharpening system, it’s basically the same concept as a Spyderco sharpmaker but with more flexibility in angles and 3 grades of stone instead of two. So I was trying to put an edge on the Hadros and I’d start off on the rough diamond and get it sharp on that fine, but as soon as I move onto the fine diamond it makes it much duller rather than refining the edge like it usually does before progressing onto the fine ceramic. I tried resharpening it again but the same thing happened , so this time I just got it sharp on the rough diamond and left it at that. Has anyone had this experience? Does 10cr just do better with a toothier/rougher grit edge? Is this a phenomena with some steels? I haven’t had this issue with any of the super steels I’ve sharpened or anything else

[@Tonympiotrowski]

I get my Spyderco sv30 sharp, I get my 154 cm steel sharp, also my m390 gets sharp, but when I sharpen my 8rc13mov, the sharpness is on a different level, it gets screaming sharp, I know the edge won’t last as long, so after sharpening it, I almost don’t want to use the knife, I hate seeing something that sharp degrade with use, I’m not sure why I get the cheaper steel sharper than the more expensive steel.

[@NeevesKnives]

It's probably just the ease of sharpening that's leading to that, heat treatment and hardness are the most important also.

[@brandonwayne6260]

Great video as always thanks 🤙

[@jeremyspaulding7735]

Excellent video 👍

[@SkunkPunch73]

I love it ! You don’t dance around you just make sense, not like some that love adding extra info that we don’t really need to know( we’re not making a knife from a blank) I thank you very kindly brother for the head full of knowledge u shared with the not so clued up and the ones that who now enough but can always have more knowledge as long as it’s not just babbling . And that’s one thing you don’t do 😉 have a beautiful day you and the wife, nothing beats a great woman right by your side ( I did say a good woman ) just before I get any stick from the chat 😂😂😘👍

[@NeevesKnives]

👊 👊

[@dongeiger4500]

I think if you are using a French chefs knife for chopping a polished edge is good. If you are going to use the knife for slicing or carving a course edge is better as it cuts better.

[@NeevesKnives]

Yeah depending on the steel some do better in edge retention with a higher grt, while some dont and lose bite

[@THEBLADEBUFFET]

Awesome video! Just the info I wanted… thanks!

[@NeevesKnives]

I'm goingvto make a new one, my opinions have changed on a few steels and my knowledge has grown massively since this video

[@THEBLADEBUFFET]

@@NeevesKnives appreciate all the detail. This is one of the better knife channels on YT as far as info goes.

[@rickkerans8485]

Great information. Do you have a graph on this or do I need to watch multiple times and do it myself?? If so that is fine. What about 4V say a Super Freek not to be confused with something that I would take camping and use for wood processing??

[@NeevesKnives]

I dont have a graph but im definitely going to make one and im not very knowledgeable about 4v but i would think a lower grt would be best 400 to 800 grt

[@hilltopknivesandgear8103]

Maxamet is best in the low low grits. 240-300 and strop. M4 is good for pretty much everything. But it loses a little bite when you up over 1500. Thats just what I've found in my use.

[@NeevesKnives]

Thanks man I appreciate that, im testing the M4 right now and im going to sharpen it this week in a live so thats great information thanks BJ

[@richardskeets6769]

For powdered steel: anything over 600-800 is just for looks. We all know this we just love wiggling our knives around for the light to hit. If your blade slides off what your cutting then all functionality has said goodbye to the blade. But on a marketing outlook: yea spend thousands on not needed sharpening systems and exotic blade steels. Carbon and well done 440c is all u could ever need facts. Save money people. And ur welcome. Magnacut and such is just a ploy people. Still like your videos nevves

[@ognjenvesic9515]

I keep hearing this and I dont agree. Powdered steel is just a way of manufacturing the steel. Steels with very fine grain without large carbides(SG2) that are used for bonless protein like fish in sushi can be taken to ultra fine polish. So it depends on the structure of steel, amount and size of carbides, intended use... Some PM steels used in folders and survival knives intended to use on fibrous and hard stuff mainly for slicing, I agree. 400-800(1000) will give best performance .

[@bill64gr]

What about ceramic stones,like Spyderco? I find them giving the best results for most steels sharpening although yoy have to clean them often.Stoping afterwards usually does bad than good for me.It takes down the .

[@NeevesKnives]

Yeah you definitely can do more damage than good if your not careful with stropping, I like ceramics they require pressure so if your good at listening and knowing the feel of the stone you can get great results, I do think that some steels do better on other stones but yeah they work on most steels as long as you use the right stones on your first progression.

[@ayldog]

I have a d2 knife I love but can’t figure it out. Low grit it does ok but as soon as I go to hi it goes dull. What am I doing wrong?

[@harveybeekerthegreysquirre8262]

Awesome video

[@chrissalazar3436]

Any advice on what grit I should have on my Spyderco Tasman Salt ( H1 steel & serrated), Spydie chef & Native salt (Lc200N), & Yojimbo 2 (CruWear)... thanks love your vids :)

[@blackarm3265]

I never had problem making knife razor sharp till i had gerber covert auto i have work sharp precision adjust but mabe since the blade geometry or maybe my diamond stones worn out any advice

[@PeeStick69]

Don’t buy gerber

[@KingJhones]

Great job! Thank you! I'm a newbie in knife sharpening and I'm searching for a diamond stone for sharpening my Civivi incite in D2 steel. I was thinking about DMT diamond stone fine (600 grit).What do you think about it? Thank you once more!

[@NeevesKnives]

Go in the description into my links for around 2×6 plates for 50$ theres 3 diamond plates ultra sharp, 300 600 and 1200 grt they are the best bang for your buck, better than dmt they also have a large version 3×8 for 100 for 3 plates

[@KingJhones]

@@NeevesKnives Thank you! I will check it out.

[@arjungandhi1242]

Would you put S45vn in the same category of S35 and S30?

[@nononsenseedc8662]

Great info bro!

[@jimmyross1672]

hello hello love the videos keep on keepin on

[@toecutter9112]

Just got the BM Adamas, CPM CRU-WEAR. What a beast. Very toothy. I think I’ll start at 600K and work up. Any thoughts on greater than 1200K?

[@paulyoder865]

If you’re going to use your knife a toothy edge is best but isn’t as good looking as a mirror edge. I’ve stropped the edge off my knives so I don’t recommend it except to deburr . Just my opinion.

[@NeevesKnives]

Depending on the steel, geometry and edge angle, and what your cutting a polished edge can be superior, however there's a lot of steels that toothy edges do the best; I personally think the best is usually 600 grit but not always

[@robwatumd]

Can you do a similar video to this using one of the $50 Amazon microscopes? Would be much easier to see grit patterns and understand the progression

[@SD-tr3du]

Cant thank you enough for this video, love your videos in general but i loved to be able to sit down listen to this and learn. Exactly what I needed, thank you.

[@NeevesKnives]

👊 remember heat treat will be most important at the end of the day

[@metalsage5135]

I recently sharpened a 14c28n knife and it was sharp as hell at 1000 grit but then I took it up to 3000 grit and it wasn’t cutting paper as well as when it was sharpened to 1000. I know you said it works well with high grit so now I’m wondering if I didn’t sharpen it right or if maybe that’s typical with the paper test.

[@jdisdetermined]

Most likely you just had a small issue in the 3k process.. left some wire edge/burr, rounded the edge a bit, overstropped or stropped at too high of an angle. Decent sharpness levels are more forgiving but it doesn’t take much of any of those to strongly effect ultra sharpness. 14c should just get better and better at cutting paper as you refine the edge. Did it push cut better than 1000 and just not slice as well, or did both get worse?

[@richardhopkins9493]

I’m still trying to figure out Cromax PM

[@ZpappiZ]

Buck 420HC similar to 440C?

[@NeevesKnives]

It's a lower tier but close to 440c

[@Kieran.Walsh.]

16:03 154CM 1200-1500

[@NeevesKnives]

I've changed my opinion on a couple of these steels after dealing with hundreds from all different companies 154cm I think is best between 600 and 1000 grt cpm 154 a very low grt I don't like it above 600grt

[@Kieran.Walsh.]

@@NeevesKnives Thank you

[@ger13nunyah56]

This is the way

[@odelldelong8401]

Polished edge for wood, toothy for plastic

[@makwaclaw6124]

What are your thoughts on Cruwear for grit?

[@garyfrombuffalo]

He says Cruwear takes the best high polished edge without becoming too skatey/glidey still has some bite

[@greypant7204]

Any tips for CRUWEAR?

[@NeevesKnives]

Cruwear does well at all grits, watch my new version of this I made some updated changes to a couple steels, but cruwear loves low angle finer edges, polished or medium grit, it has a great ability to hold a fine edge

[@greypant7204]

@@NeevesKnives i just put 17 degree 600 grit guess thats medium as u said at the start of the video. Another question is when it will get dull is it easy strop it back or not at all? I have 3k and 12k diamond paste on my leather strop.

[@NeevesKnives]

@@greypant7204 yes cruwear strops back well, the lower the angle the better as far as how responsive it is to stropping and honing, but yes its great for coming back again and again, also cruwear does really well with low angle edges, im guessing its a spyderco i would go 15 degrees next sharpening then you will see the beast come out of cruwear

[@greypant7204]

@@NeevesKnives yeah, its PM2 crucarta 😊 thanks!

[@benny1051]

Newbie here, what about stainless steel?

[@ashmerch2558]

I never knew Kizer made a mini Sheepdog in VG-10 ? Kizer sure does use alot of it... I thought the sheepdogs were 154cm? Or is that just the bigger ones? (Excluding the titanium - s35vn version) I had/have a full size beglieghter in VG-10 I absolutely mangled learning to sharpen on DMT plates... the x-corse & corse just chew on lower wear resistant steels, however with a handful of Spyderco's, I'm glad I have them. (Rex45 - K390 - Maxamet - S90V - S110V ect ect)

[@NeevesKnives]

I believe the new begleiter 2 with bearings are in n690, but they have had a few different sheepdogs in different steels rt now i have the 154cm version non flipper and a large one is coming soon

[@Mridgwell]

Anyone ever copped a neeves knives t shirt ? How’s the fit and quality considering the price ?

[@NeevesKnives]

It's decent and there's some usa made ones, there's also overseas made ones but I like them they have a good fit, but like I said there's different ones so the quality goes up

[@Metal_Matrix]

New sub to the channel, really dig the content

[@NeevesKnives]

Thank you thats awesome and we appreciate you

[@ldscm]

Great🤙

[@dombond6515]

So what I've found is high carbide steels with high vanadium perfrom best with coarse grit. Lower carbide steels does great with 400 or under or just go polished. Stones really matter. Carbide tear out. Or when the knife is skipping across the steels is bad. Creates fatigued steel on edge . Gotta use proper abrasives on super steels. Just because u can use a aluminum oxide stone doesn't mean your getting proper performance. But again if u can't sharpen then the best Stones in the world won't help. Also over stropping is a plague on this community. Stropping more than 5 to 10 passes per side is just to much. Stropping is removing final micro burrs and cleaning up apex. Don't use for anything else.

[@NeevesKnives]

Totally agree, but what I want to know is where were you before i made this video, damnit Dom I coulda read all this as if it came from me and sounded smart, and I agree with the right stones, some stones can sharpen the steel but not to the right performance or, the cutting of the stone just doesnt feel right, but when youve tried many different stones/steels you start to realize the feeling

[@dombond6515]

@@NeevesKnives sorry neeves brotha I love all these vids. Your killing it. Sharpeing stone talk we all learn together. But there is a diffeence when u deal with whetstones diamond plates resin bonded etc. 1 thing I've learned dealing with whetstones is surface texture. Some stones like a slurry built up by a diamond plate. Some just need a refresher after use. Run a plate over after using. Some release abrasives with pressure. So thats important. Also pressure when shapening. Someone told me half the pressure every progression. I like that 1. Also I dont really like arks because they are so slow. Stropping can be a great resource but man I've killed soooooo many edges by over stropping. Try do strop as little as possible. Form that apex on stones. And start at a lower grit. Sometimes u have to grind off more than you've thought. Factory edges are wonky. Huge fan I sit and watch your vids. I know what your saying. And your doing a great job. Stay up. See ya next vid.

[@NeevesKnives]

@@dombond6515 im testing the venev stones diamond infused stones rt now those you have to keep the surface prepped with another stone to keep the diamonds clean, im going to be doing a video soon, when sharpening then stropping I agree, you shouldnt need to do but a few passes theres times i dont even need to strop when done right, obviously when im sharpening off camera things go different than when im trying to sharpen on camera, with Arkansas I think they are great with certain steels and coupled with the right starting stone, Wet stones, I have the super stones and I do notice better results with a little pressure when im on the higher grts compared to the lower, esp if your really wanting a polished edge, and I clean them during the sharpening sometimes but always before and or after to prevent cracking and also to have a good surface, I know with water stones you want the slurry, I have one cheap one that I didnt like and haven't used in a long time maybe il give it another shot. And I think think theres right, and wrong ways to do things but then I think theres lots of variables that give different results and opinions, what one person might like another might not, whether its based from pressure or style of sharpening, kinda like stropping one person might strop a little more than another with better results because hes using very very light pressure then another person can make his edge even less sharp with only a few passes because hes using hella pressure and isnt good at holding their edge flat, its just an example, ive had some people love certain stones that i dont. But I do think we all have something to learn from each other and i never claim to know every thing I just try to have fun and share my experience. I also know times and methods change especially as time goes on because you get better or your strategy evolves

[@dombond6515]

@@NeevesKnives 🙏

[@mrblauer1]

I swear, the more I sharpen, the less I know. Type of steel, heat treat, edge angle, how the blade will be used and the materials it will cut, diamond, carbide, ceramic etc. type of stone used, blade design, if my dog is facing east or west (ok, maybe not that). How can such a simple thing be so complicated?

[@NeevesKnives]

Its not so complicated, in all reality pretty much any stone will sharpen your knife some take longer than others, thats why i reccomend diamond so much because they cut any steel fast, theres a couple steels that do better on other stones but it still works, Aluminum oxide is great to, when your crazy into sharpening then you get crazy into details but you dont have to just to have a sharp edge, im doing a live sharpening on Sunday if you want to join

[@mrblauer1]

@@NeevesKnives I will join if I can - I am online sporadically so tough to predict. I have taken a liking to diamond myself. Keeping my angle consistent gets tricky when my stones wear unevenly. I use an angle cube but it is tricky to use on my fixed systems.

[@NeevesKnives]

@@mrblauer1 that is one of the many reasons i reccomend them and they are easy to maintain, but I show many tricks on how to keep and hold your angle, if you are not able to make it if you would like you can always watch it later. I personally always watch or listen to another sharpening video just because it kind of feels like im joining someone or that i have company

[@harveybeekerthegreysquirre8262]

What would your recommendation for AUS10 be ?

[@NeevesKnives]

I just recently sharpened aus 10 at 5000 grt but i could have stopped at any time, so I think 1000 grt and up

[@harveybeekerthegreysquirre8262]

@@NeevesKnives I've got the Cold steel Voyager Tanto plain edge and Serrated AUS10. The plain edge that thing was scary sharp out of the box and it actually closed down on the end of my middle finger and cut very Deep .

[@NeevesKnives]

@@harveybeekerthegreysquirre8262 aus10 takes a nasty sharp edge, the one i recently sharpened got ridiculously sharp

[@theMeshtar]

Why did this vid pop up on my feed just now?

[@1130jawz]

I hate sharpening my knives! Being a perfectionist, it’s never good enough! It whittles hair but I still kinda see a grit pattern😱 Why when I sharpen my own knife it needs a perfect mirror edge and cut things before it touches it 😂!!!

[@NeevesKnives]

Id rather have a grit pattern myself that a mirror usually sometimes i like a mirror but i know what you mean about perfectionist, esp doing it freehand can sometimes get a little crazy, I love sharpening though but sometimes i drive myself crazy getting a jewelers loupe didnt help the crazy part.

[@1130jawz]

Neeves Knives yes! Agreed. That is also why I’ve stayed away from getting one all year!

[@NeevesKnives]

@@1130jawz I will say its a big help, but it can make you even more picky, when things go good the feelings great, when its going bad its going real bad 😆

[@Mr.pink_]

Gteat video

[@adilc8849]

Ok you know wAY too much about this shit lol

[@NeevesKnives]

😆

[@mike212916]

Why do you always mention your wife? lol. You make it seem like she makes videos with you.

[@NeevesKnives]

😆 she does actually, we started the channel together, and now she helps me run the channel, I don't mention her in the intro anymore but she's still there