Trying to sharpen Montecs, please help....
 

I have the diamond stone for sharpening Montecs, and just can't seem to put agood edge on them. Don't get me wrong, they are sharp, but aren't shaving sharp. Is there anything I can do, or am I being too critical to want them scary sharp?

RE: Trying to sharpen Montecs, please help....
 

I use a belt sander. 2 minutes and they are scary sharp.

RE: Trying to sharpen Montecs, please help....
 

What is a good paper grain to use on the sander?

RE: Trying to sharpen Montecs, please help....
 

After the diamond stone strop them on a piece of leather;)

RE: Trying to sharpen Montecs, please help....
 

unfortunately in my experience I was never able to get them shaving (scary) sharp, don't get me wrong I was able to get them sharp enough to kill a deer but just not that last little bit to qualify them as "scary". I used a diamond stone to get them close and a true whetstone to finish them, but never quite good enough. I've been told it's due the the metal they use to make them, it's just not able to be sharpened to that good of an edge. They are a good head, just not as sharp as some others out there. You may want to check out the new NAP Hellrazors....similar design and scary sharp right out of the package!

RE: Trying to sharpen Montecs, please help....
 

With the proper sharpening technique, the Montec can be brought to a frightening level of sharpness.Not easy, but worth it when you consider the long term durability of this head.

RE: Trying to sharpen Montecs, please help....
 

I 've useda Smith'sdiamondflat sharpners going from heavy to the fine grit side and then usthe sportsman sharpner from G5 to put a great edge. And it's not the metal they use but the angle of the blade and thickness of it that makes them seem hard to feel shaving sharp.

RE: Trying to sharpen Montecs, please help....
 

Do yourself a favor and swith to rage 2 blade:D

RE: Trying to sharpen Montecs, please help....
 

You have to take them to an appropriate grit of stone. A 750 grit will get them sharp, a 1200 will get them to shave and a 2000 or better will get them surgically scary sharp. G5 is now making a two sided stone (750/1200) just for sharpening the Montecs (or any other 3 blade monolithic head). Cabelas is carrying it.

RE: Trying to sharpen Montecs, please help....
 

Ive used G5's diamond stone, a regular 1200 wet stone with success. It takes a little work but you can get them sharp enough to shave with. I just recently tried something new with good success also. Its called the quick edge sharpener made by Rada cutlery. Just a few swipes per blade and you can shave with it easy. For those who are sharpening challenged or just want to make it quick and easy Id check it out. I used it one montecs and hellrazors with great success. Only cost like $6.50 to!

RE: Trying to sharpen Montecs, please help....
 

I'll second what KodiakArcher and passthru said. They can get scary sharp, with a little patience and the right stone combination. Stick with it, and they will get to the point you can split hair with them.

RE: Trying to sharpen Montecs, please help....
 

I have 220 grit belts that are used. Not much left on them. Literally you hold the head and lightly place it on the running belt back edge first until you set in down fully and lightly. Counting to 5 is almost to long. Lift it and spin it to the next side. Do it a couple times if you have to, but it will get them razor sharp easier than it is for me to type this. Almost as fast. (I'm a 2 finger typer now! yippy. I even know where most of the keys are too.:D)

Requires little to no skill (no patience, and you don't have to stick to it)just caution. You don't want the belt to grab the head while your holding it. Mine is variable speed and a good thing to have. More speed means more heat and that's not a good thing.

They make belts to polish glass with. I'm sure you can get them in a 1000 grit if you care to. The 220 I use are close to 400 I'd say.

RE: Trying to sharpen Montecs, please help....
 

I don't remember the rpm's of a belt sander, but it's at least 1700. Aint nobody out there that can put 1700 stokes on a head in a minute. Thats 28 per second. And that's the total length of the belt. Most are 21". Stones are maybe 6". Even if you use the whole stone the belt is stoking that head about 100 times per second.

It's more like 3400 andwhy it's so fast and easy. All you have to do is hold it steady.

RE: Trying to sharpen Montecs, please help....
 

I'd be scared of taking too much off one side and unbalancing the head. By hand I know that I'm taking exactly the same amount off of each facet but if it's working for you I can't nock it.

RE: Trying to sharpen Montecs, please help....
 

Are these easier to sharpen?
Brian

RE: Trying to sharpen Montecs, please help....
 

If your seeking a deep penetrating and durable head that all you have to do is touch up after you shoot a deer then stick with montecs. Im sure the rage cant hold a candle to the montec when it comes to durablity. From what I have heard rage are great heads for 1 shot. With aluminum furells and long blades your going to end up replacing most of them unlike the montecs.

RE: Trying to sharpen Montecs, please help....
 

Thanks for some great info. My Montecs right now aren't shaving sharp, but they can effortlessly slip through an empty plastic water bottle or aluminum canlike butter. Do you think they are sharp enough as they are?

RE: Trying to sharpen Montecs, please help....
 

Enough? Maybe. I can do the same with a stick. Too many people like Chuck Adams highly recommend using razor sharp heads. Chuck attributes some of his kills to that alone since the hits were poor. I'm thinking the myriad of threads that are started here and other boards of deer hit and lost are in part the result of heads that aren't razor sharp.

Take your 2 fingers and push a butter knife between the 2. Now try it with a razor sharp one. Which one causes the most blood lose? Blood lose is our number one ally.

I'm not spending all that time and money to loose what I'm after for a dull head.

RE: Trying to sharpen Montecs, please help....
 

The best test to see if they'll cut blood vessels rather than push them aside is to take several sturdy rubber bands and lightly stretch them between a couple nails (or your finger and thumb if you've got long fingers) and then try to lightly slip the broadhead between the rubber bands as if it were being shot through them. The bands should effortlessly cut and not be pushed out of the way.

RE: Trying to sharpen Montecs, please help....
 

if you call G5 they will send you a dvd on how to sharpen there heads,, they sent me one and my montecs are now sharp its all in how you hold it and stroke it across the stone

RE: Trying to sharpen Montecs, please help....
 

i work at a hospital (maintenance, shop welder) and every other friday of the month a guy in a box truck comes that uses some SICK equipment to re-sharpen the surgerys stainless untencills ( scaples etc etc) i brought in a few knives the one day and threw him 10 bux and wiped them up in 20 mins..

having a 16 inch KA-Bar that is as sharp as a razor blade is something im still getting used to..

i know this information doesnt help you.. but its a cool story

anyway.. i sharpen my knives and such at home here by using a combo flat stone.. 1200/2000.. mainly using it on the smaller...thinner metal knives.. takes mroe work and longer.. but i can shave with them when im finished..

RE: Trying to sharpen Montecs, please help....
 

Thanks again. I will see what I can do with them, and use my Muzzies next month if they aren't up to par.

RE: Trying to sharpen Montecs, please help....
 

The steel they use is soft. Easy to curl the edge. They also sharpen them pushing the head though, perpendiculr to the sharpener.

You can see what I'm talking about looking at a new one through a micro scope or magnifying glass.

RE: Trying to sharpen Montecs, please help....
 

Last night I took a hellrazor that went in the dirt and just worked it very lightly across a fine(2000)stone and it is now back to shaving hair off my arm. Just one pass and flip to the next side. Took me about half an hour, but when they cost $10 apiece.....it was worth it. Looking at it like that, I'll buy more of these heads and resharpen them. It wasn't nearly as hard as I thought it would be.
Brian

RE: Trying to sharpen Montecs, please help....
 

A guy I know shot at an elk last month drinking from a heavy duty stock tank in New Mexico. Underestimated the distance and shot low, striking the tank - which was made of 3/8" mild steel. Although the impact destroyed his CE arrow, the Montec was not damaged to the degree that it could not be sharpened and re-used. A dozen of these could last you the rest of your life . . . .