>>1331948Yes, a very good system to get very consistent and easy results once dialed in and practiced. As mentioned, my free hand is far from perfect, but is good enough for about 75% of the customers I had back when I was sharpening on the side. That being said, no way in hell would I have been able to sit down, put on an Audio book or music, and sharpen a full knife block in an evening free hand like I can on a set angle system, some people can, I don't have that skill.
Set angles do have their place, very much so when it comes to sharpening a large quantity of knives and having the same quality from first knife to last knife. Although I feel anyone who is into sharpening, should practice free hand, trying multiple methods is a good way to learn.
>>1331951Practice practice practice. Free hand is all about practice. Not just sharpening a lot, but looking at your work closely and trying to see where you can improve, and then working to that improvement.
I took this picture about 3 years ago... I agreed to sharpen a draw full of beat up chisels for a friend. I could have charged twice as much and it still would have not been worth the time and effort. But I did learn a lot about sharpening chisels by the end.
