Best way for first sharpening?

[CreekRunner]

I have a case CV humpback whittler that cuts great right out of the box. Starting to get a little dull now and I shall attempt to sharpen it as suggested by people on this site by lengthening the bevel or flattening the bevel out. Question is, do I approach this a little at a time each time the knife needs sharpening with a whet stone for instance or go for the gold and do it all at once with a file or grinder?

[FRJ]

Hi, Creekrunner,
I would recommend NOT using a grinder or a file. A course whetstone will do the job if you are persistant. It will take a bit of work, but you will have a more controlled effort. There are threads that you can research about sharpening blades if you take the time to do so.

[knives-are-quiet]

I have a case CV humpback whittler that cuts great right out of the box. Starting to get a little dull now and I shall attempt to sharpen it as suggested by people on this site by lengthening the bevel or flattening the bevel out. Question is, do I approach this a little at a time each time the knife needs sharpening with a whet stone for instance or go for the gold and do it all at once with a file or grinder?

01 to 15 % is in the surgical scalpels class of an edge.
I wouldn't go any further than 15 % as the edge of the knife will just break off when carving wood.
I'd personally sharpen by hand with a file first then the whetstone (a diamond infused one) keeping a consistent angle. Finish with a leather strop or knife steel.
Stay away from a grinder unless yours familiar with them or it's cooled with water.
Too hot and the steels temper will be gone.

http://knife-guide.com/sharpening_skills.html

J W

[CreekRunner]

Thanks guys. I was leaning toward the slow steady method but you know ...instant gratification... I will stay on course though.

[ziggy925]

I realize this is an older post, but I just got here. As another poster said, do not use a grinder, and starting slow is always the best approach. Rather than hit a stone right away you might try a steel on the knife and see if that does the trick.

If you want to change the bevel you will have to do it all at once and I would use a stone moving from med/course to fine. A nice touch at the end is to use a leather strop with some compound like Flitz.

BTW, there are tons of videos on sharpening knives on YouTube.