knife sharpeners

[wareagle69]

what is everyones favorite or most effective way to sharpen their knives?

[Sarge47]

what is everyones favorite or most effective way to sharpen their knives?

Wow! This is really "cutting edge". I use a sharpening kit with differant types of stones and oil if the blade is really dull. I use a steel to realign the microscopic teeth. Out in the field I use a "butterfly". Mors Kochanski shows a cool way by making a sharpening board from wood and gluing sandpaper.

[wareagle69]

i like a whet stone.

[FVR]

Diamond bar and a piece of leather for the initial. Then leather unless I get a bad spot, on my metal bladed knives.

On the rock knives, a little deer tine does the trick.

[trax]

Usually a diamond bar, I like those Arkansas stone kits too, with the two grades of stone and a bit of oil. For axes I just use a file. My friends usually bring me their knives, axes, lawnmower blades etc for sharpening.

[trax]

Pretty sharp response sarge

[spiritman]

I use an Arkansas stone for my really fine sharpening. I tried a diamond sharpener, but the one I have isn't fine enough for it.

[ryaninmichigan]

I send mine to Chuck Norris to rub against his face. Come back sharper tehn the day I bought them............

[Fog_Harbor]

Different grades of whetstone

[Sarge47]

First off you have to know what kind of steel your knife is made of, next you should know the grind, Finally you need to know the degree of the cutting edge's angle. Vol West says he has Ontario's RAT-&; a fine knife to be sure, but which RAT-7? The one that's made up of the 1095 carbon steel, or the one that is made out of D2? Is it "Flat grind" or "Hollow grind"? Is the angle of the blade 20 or 25 degrees. And one last thing, is the blade dull, or do you need to simply realign the microscopic teeth? When you know all this you'll know how to keep your knife really sharp.

[wareagle69]

i have a kukri that i picked up in nepal what do you suggest?

[Sarge47]

i have a kukri that i picked up in nepal what do you suggest?

You probably know more about keeping that sharp than anyone else, WE, however, I'm looking into Ka-bar's Kukri machete & if I buy it these are the facts: 1085 carbon steel blade because the machete(not a knife) is made in China and that's the best they can get over there. I know that it's a hollow ground blade which means it will be sharpened for finer cutting and the blade's cutting edge is 20 degrees, which is what I'd set my sharpener guide for. Click on this link and scroll down a bit and you'll see where my facts come from. I know beans about your machete WE http://www.tomarskabars.com/Machetes.html

[sam30248]

a wet stone that was my grandpaws or a 2 sided sharpening tool i found at a hardware store

[wareagle69]

the kukri is made from steel suspension bars hand made and the handle is made from water buffalo horn, the scabbard also comes with a small utility knife and a sharpening blade called a korda(if memory serves me right) but is labor intensive, you come off as very experienced in this area(also fvr's input would be good) to me other than this knife which has sentimental value to me a knife is a knife(gasp) if it cuts i keep if not it goes in a drawer with the other hundred or so.

[Sarge47]

the kukri is made from steel suspension bars hand made and the handle is made from water buffalo horn, the scabbard also comes with a small utility knife and a sharpening blade called a korda(if memory serves me right) but is labor intensive, you come off as very experienced in this area(also fvr's input would be good) to me other than this knife which has sentimental value to me a knife is a knife(gasp) if it cuts i keep if not it goes in a drawer with the other hundred or so.

...what you're doin'. If it ain't broke, don't fix it. My post was more for those who might not know the complexities of blades. I learned a lot of this working as a cook at a Holiday Inn. No, Bear Grylls never stayed there, but Bob Hope did once. I got so good at it that when I later cooked at a "Sambos" (man I hate that name!) my boss paid me extra to keep all their knives sharp. Leather works like a steel, it doesn't actually sharpen the blade, it just re-aligns the microscopic teeth. Ceramic's the same thing. They're mis-labled as "sharpeners". You sharpen a knife by literally grinding minute bits of steel off the blade by rubbing it against a "honing stone" of some sort, then you align the teeth with a steel or it's equivilant. As for VW's RAT-7, 1095 Carbon is good steel but just a bit softer than D-2 which makes his knife easier to sharpen in the field. The D-2 is harder to sharpen but will resist rust better than the 1095 so He'll need to keep his blade dry with maybe a light coat of oil when not in use. The Rockwell Hardness test is another good way to tell how hard the steel is. You want it around 58-60, no more or the steel becomes brittle, too much less and it's too soft. A trip to your local butcher can also be a help with info if they've been properly trained. Hope this helps.

[owl_girl]

...what you're doin'. If it ain't broke, don't fix it. My post was more for those who might not know the complexities of blades. I learned a lot of this working as a cook at a Holiday Inn. No, Bear Grylls never stayed there, but Bob Hope did once. I got so good at it that when I later cooked at a "Sambos" (man I hate that name!) my boss paid me extra to keep all their knives sharp. Leather works like a steel, it doesn't actually sharpen the blade, it just re-aligns the microscopic teeth. Ceramic's the same thing. They're mis-labled as "sharpeners". You sharpen a knife by literally grinding minute bits of steel off the blade by rubbing it against a "honing stone" of some sort, then you align the teeth with a steel or it's equivilant. As for VW's RAT-7, 1095 Carbon is good steel but just a bit softer than D-2 which makes his knife easier to sharpen in the field. The D-2 is harder to sharpen but will resist rust better than the 1095 so He'll need to keep his blade dry with maybe a light coat of oil when not in use. The Rockwell Hardness test is another good way to tell how hard the steel is. You want it around 58-60, no more or the steel becomes brittle, too much less and it's too soft. A trip to your local butcher can also be a help with info if they've been properly trained. Hope this helps.

Sarge do you know any good websites where I can learn more about different types of steel?

[Sarge47]

Sarge do you know any good websites where I can learn more about different types of steel?

I was going to include the following links but forgot, my bad!

http://www.buckknives.com/care.php

http://www.agrussell.com/knife_infor.../articles.html

https://www.kabar.com/knifeknow.jsp

A final note, I also called Ontario, Buck, and Ka-bar and spoke to knowledgeable customer service people who were more than happy to help. That's where I learned about D-2 vs. 1095 steel, for example. As I said in my intro I'm working on a book, and that requires tons of research! If these links don't work let me know, but you can also browse these sites a bit to gain all kinds of valuable knife info. Here's something I found out about Buck knives. Normally 420 steel is considered inferior because of it's softness, however Buck uses 420"HC", which stands for "high carbon", which makes the steel stronger. Add to that their heat-treating process and that's part of the secret. Very interesting, Buck has a lifetime guaranty on their knives.

[owl_girl]

Thanks Sarge those are good sites

[Sarge47]

Thanks Sarge those are good sites

You're welcome, ya can't have too much info!

[FVR]

Kabar knife care.

Never ever put the knife back in the sheath, bloody. Makes a nasty mess.