and the last time I was any good at it was in the 60-70's. Do I just get the edgepro and go from there? I have searched a little, but would like a compromise between hand and stone and hand with power tool. Seems like it's an angle thing..I hope you know what I mean, and I hope i'm not a freshman in a nine year course lol. Thanks. For those following, I chose my Buxton fighter to be my meat cuttin, knife fondling, throwing companion. It needs to be sharp!

Hi,
What kind of sharp? Razor sharp? Good sharp? All knives do not need the same edge.
I mean, a model 23 is razor sharp as soon as u get it but u don't need such an edge on a 18.
Is it stainless or O1?
About "throwing" a Buxton fighter, I will think twice (to be honest I will always think twice about throwing any randall, model 9 exepted).
A good edge that last long is better than a razor sharp that will u loos quick. On stainless, I prefer diamond sharpeners.
Have u thought about ending the sharping with a leather belt? Personnaly, I will say that the most difficult to do is to keep the same angle on all the edge and on both sides.
What kind of stone/sharpener do u use?

For my O1 Model 5, I use a Spyderco Sharpmaker which keeps the edge at the correct angle on both sides. It will take the edge from sharp to razor sharp depending on your preference.

I second not throwing your Buxton.

I can sharpen a knife no probs. With that being said it is like a punishment to do perfectly so I use a strop block with white and green compound to get it razor sharp and then strop it regularly to avoid sharpening stones.

I agree with Kirko bought a Stropman a few years ago and hardly ever use a stone anymore!

Tom Flynn

I have used the Ken Onion work sharp for years. Angle adjust from 0 to 30 degrees. I use the 6000 grit on 22 1/2 degree for the Randall.

I was crap at sharpening to start with, I could get a knife sharp but it was ugly and as uneven as all hell, went to a lansky and it got better but still a tad wobbly then the spyderco sharpmaker, works ok but still easy to make mistakes, and that one mistake leaves a big ugly scratch in your blade, then tried Japanese water stones, found these are good for a scandi edge (and chisels) but not for a hollow ground blade, tried a scary sharp and this works well but it’s a tad toothy, which some people like.
Finally I bought a wicked edge, I go from 200 grit diamond to 60000 grit diamond, slowly working through the different grits. When I finish I have a mirror edge, that literally splits hairs.
Once there I try to maintain it by stropping.
I find the guided system best for me, I wobble too much without it, I know some guys claim they can do it freehand, but I can’t.
Since getting this system I now charge to sharpen knives.
All depends on what you want and how much effort you want to put into it.

Thanks Shelley. I know I'm a noob but to answer Lytridis's questions I'd have to dig deep. I was thinking all knives needed to be hair splitting sharp! For the price of a couple of knives I might just go with the edge pro (their video was pretty good) and sharpen every piece of steel I can. Honestly, it's either learn that or learn doing something with an old Toyota sewing machine as I head towards the sixties..! Thanks all for your input.

No, not all knives have to be "hair splitting sharp" (love the image ) It depend of what u are going to do with. And razor sharp will not stay long! To be honest, even when I was using a straight razor for shaving it wasn't rare that I have to re-sharp it in the middle of the work. I will say it depend of the precision needed. If the blade is to be used to prepare meat, game, skinning, Ok. If the blade is to be used for hard task like a machete or a hatchet: NO. It can even be very dangerous. To give u an idea, I have a billhook that I have never sharpen and that I use a lot in the garden or with the wood. It works perfectly. The best test for a correct edge is (for me) the paper page cutting test. If The blade cut 2 or 3 pages without problem, it's excellent. To reach such an edge, I look at the steel. If it is stainless, I use a diamond sharpener ( DMT ). If it is O1 or high carbon, I like the white arkansas water stone. In the field, I use a small xtra fine diamond sharpener. The secret is: Always the same angle and slowly done. The capt is using a pencil sharpener on the stanaback special, I have never used but if the capt is using it, I'm sure it is an excellent way.
Regards

Jed, I have had both and Edge Pro and a Wicked Edge system. Like Shelly, I sucked at sharpening knives......

The Wicked Edge is a much better system. Bullet and fool proof. Google it.