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bushwackerscott
Guest
One of these days im gonna seriously blunt my knife so i need to know how to sharpen a knife effectively and quickly whilst in the field! Gimme some advice:!:
What kind of knife are you using? Different styles of blades require different kinds of sharpening techniques. In general though, to start out the best way is to sharpen one side until you get a burr that you can feel by running your finger along the edge on the opposite side. Once you get that burr along the entire length of the blade, you sharpen the other side until you again get a burr on the opposite side. Start with coarse stones and finish with fine. Remove the final burr by stropping the knife on a piece of leather. You do this by laying the knife edge nearly flat on a piece of leather that has been glued to a board, say maybe 4 cm wide. Draw the knife in the direction opposite the edge itself. Don't hold the knife at too high of an angle or you will roll the burr over and blunt the edge. It's sort of like taking a thin piece of metal and wiggling it back and forth until you break it in half. This is what you are doing. Strop both sides, back and forth, until the burr is gone. If you want to polish the edge for push cutting, put some polishing compound on the leather and you will get a smooth edge that works great for woodcarving.
If you search the internet, there are all kinds of tutorials on knifesharpening.
If you search the internet, there are all kinds of tutorials on knifesharpening.
Well,
I love my spyderco sharpmaker, it dosn't take up that much space in my pack for the complete set and dosn't weigh too much either.
Cheers
David
I love my spyderco sharpmaker, it dosn't take up that much space in my pack for the complete set and dosn't weigh too much either.
Cheers
David
Hoodoo said:
I'd like to correct this.
Please don't run your fingers "along the edge" as that can result in a nasty cut. You should run your fingers across the edge to feel the burr.
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bushwackerscott
Guest
At the moment im just using a simple mora training knife. Made of high carbon steel, a half tang with a directly moulded handle. Blade is about 10 cm long.
Looking into getting the woodlore knife which is basically the same kind of design (god help me) so i don't want to damage any knife in the future.
Also what kind of stones would you recommend? Looking for cheap but effective! aren't we all...
Looking into getting the woodlore knife which is basically the same kind of design (god help me) so i don't want to damage any knife in the future.
Also what kind of stones would you recommend? Looking for cheap but effective! aren't we all...
The best way to sharpen your mora is to lay the entire bevel on the stone to sharpen. Mears describes this really well in his book Bushcraft. If you have a tiny secondary bevel on your mora like the knife shown below, this can take a long time but it might be worth it, depending on how you plan to use your knife. If you get rid of the secondary bevel, you will have a better woodcarver. If you leave it, you will have a stronger edge.
The cheapest way to go is to buy sandpaper. You can make a wooden hone to hold the paper by cutting a slot in each end of a wooden block. Slip the ends of a sheet of paper cut to fit in the slots. If you glue a piece of leather on the other side, you have a hone.
The cheapest way to go is to buy sandpaper. You can make a wooden hone to hold the paper by cutting a slot in each end of a wooden block. Slip the ends of a sheet of paper cut to fit in the slots. If you glue a piece of leather on the other side, you have a hone.
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bushwackerscott
Guest
Ok sandpaper, but what would be the best sharpening stone suited to the job regardless of the cost, for the moment???!!
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bushwackerscott
Guest
the correct term for the device described is a "hoodoo hone" or "hoohone" for short.
some people are really too modest. :shock: :roll: :-D
cheers, and.
:biggthump
[/quote]Adi007 said:
Ya know, I really don't know the answer to that. Most commercial strops are made of pretty firm leather mounted smooth side out. I suppose it gives you the most control so that you are less likely to roll the edge (the blade doesn't sink into the leather as far) but I really haven't a clue. I do like the way I can charge a piece of rough-side-out leather with polishing compound but I don't know if that's really better or not.
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bushwackerscott
Guest
Seems like everyone is split between traditional stones, ceramic or diamond.
Traditional stones can wear out of being flat and need to be re-dressed while ceramic stones can, well, break and become lots of useless ceramic stones but they don't wear out. Diamond is strong and tough and works well but it is expensive and some find it has too much bite.
Best option ... get all three! :-D
Traditional stones can wear out of being flat and need to be re-dressed while ceramic stones can, well, break and become lots of useless ceramic stones but they don't wear out. Diamond is strong and tough and works well but it is expensive and some find it has too much bite.
Best option ... get all three! :-D
bushwackerscott said:
Would a section from an old belt work as a strop? Although the outside probably wouldn't be any good as they're shiny, the inside isn't finished so thought this might work?
