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Field Knife Sharpener

12K views 57 replies 25 participants last post by  Don Fischer 
#1 ·
Ok folks, I'm looking for a field knife sharpener I can use to keep the blades on my game cleaning knifes touched up while in use out in the field. I guess what I'm looking for is something like a 2 or 3 stage pull thru type. Don't want to carry stones, rods (they tend to break if abused) or some kind of kit (to many pieces). There're so many pull thru type sharpeners out there I was just wondering if any knife gurus on here had any experience with them good or bad, and what to look for and stay away from. Thanks in advance.
 
#2 ·
I don't own one of those things, and I never will. I use stones, steels, and ceramic rods. And have been known to strop a knife, or a razor, every now and then. Can't help you at all! Sorry.
 
#4 ·
#6 ·
Lean to use a stone. They are portable, and they are quick. They have been in use since man first discovered metals, and they still work today. Nothing to assemble, no parts to loose, nothing to adjust!
 
#8 ·
That's the part you got to learn!:D Can you tie your shoes in the dark? If you can do that, you can learn to sharpen a knife with a stone.
 
#13 ·
#15 ·
My grandfather was a millwright and taught me to sharpen on a stone. I use a small block of wood cut at the sharpening bevel on both ends as a guide. I place the wood guide near my stone so that I can see the angle and hold my blade accordingly. There's plenty of debate about the perfect angle, but remember that the lower the number of degrees, the sharper, and less durable the edge will be. 20 degrees is about as shallow as I would go, personally I sharpen my my hunting knife at 25-28 degrees. It takes more work to sharpen at the steeper angle but the edge holds longer and you won't damage the edge on bone as easily.
 
#16 ·
I saw a YouTube vid recently about bushcraft. This guy glued a piece of leather on each side of an altoid tin, put green compound on one side and white on the other. He said it works great to strope a knife blade to restore its edge as long as it's not chipped. almost no weight and will not break.
 
#19 ·
Well I recently bought myself one of those 5 hone Lansky kits from Academy for around $40.00 and I put a good 20° blade on my skinning knife with the kit. This weekend I skinned 2 deer and 3 squirrels with the knife and I can still shave with it. What kind of critters are you planning on skinning? I'm pretty positive that you won't need to re-sharpen your blade in the field as long as your skinning deer sized game and smaller. My biggest worry with those is screwing up my degree I put on my blade.
Streetbob, that edge may last on small /clean deer and squirrels, but on a big, dried mud covered bull elk you wouldn't get a foot without a touch-up. I tried about everything I could get my hands on to get the edge back.
The best one I've found is the "OutDoor Edge" hand held knife sharpener. A couple 3-4 swipes gets me back in business. When I get back home I just go over it to get it shavingsharp on my wet stone.
 
#22 ·
#26 ·
For field touch-up, use a steel. If your knife is sharp to begin with, I can't imagine you getting it dull enough that a steel won't get the edge back.

Unless you're cutting up concrete or something similar.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Schrade-Old-Timer-Honesteel-7-1-8-x-1-Sharpening-Steel-CHISEL-Leather-Sheath/321648109839?_trksid=p2047675.c100009.m1982&_trkparms=aid=777000&algo=ABA.MBE&ao=1&asc=27673&meid=5cee3822182a41279b4ef284b3a4aa05&pid=100009&rk=1&rkt=1&sd=221670720503
I've used one for a number of years. Bought my first one back in the early 80's. They take a little getting used to but after that they work just fine.
 
#27 ·
#29 ·
My father always carried a small pocket folding knife, he was never without it. He sharpened it with an oil stone & stropped it on the palm of his hand. It was so sharp that he could shave the hair on the back of his hand. He sharpened plane irons, chisels & anything with a blade. He tried to show me how to do it many times. But for the life of me, I could never get the edge as sharp as he could. I understand the concept of hollow grinding & using a whetstone but try as I might, for more than 60 yrs, I have yet to be able to get an edge as sharp as even a cheap folding knife comes with. I have drawers full of folding knives. Some cheap & some expensive, but they all have the same thing in common. Once they lost the edge they originally came with, & I tried to sharpen them, they end up in the drawer. My present knife is a Automat Kalashnikov 74 that I bought at a gun show. It was rather expensive. But now it's losing its edge. Looks like another one goes in the drawer.
 
#31 ·
What did men carry before the firearm? A blade of some sort. And any of them could shave you, if you wanted it to. So how is it that some folks just plain ole have trouble sharpening a blade with a stone? And send me some of those knives you've retired to the drawer.
 
#32 ·
For those that for whatever reason can't or don't like to use a whetstone, and have a dull knife, invest in one of those 5$ pull thru v-guide sharpeners. Get the 2 step carbide and ceramic. The guide plastic keeps your angle good, and keeps you from stripping metal.

I use a cheap 5$ folder, it might as well be a razor blade. I was using it today to cut carpet panels at work, can still shave hair with it. I'll probably drag it thru the ceramic to refresh the wire edge. That 5$ sharpener will revive a bunch O dulled blades.
 
#34 ·
I glued a piece of old rubber mat used on tool drawers to a piece of 1/2" plywood 3"X6" long and use 200,400,and 800 grit sanding paper held on by two pieces of rubber bands to touch up my knives. The rubber bands makes it easy to change the sanding paper. It works fine on my 110 buckmark knives. For my custom knives I use whetstones of 2000,8000, and 12000 to maintain their edge.
 
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#38 · (Edited)
400 grit wet paper on a solid flat block works to put the bevel on, but then polish on a fine Arkansas stone or a fine ceramic hone.

The real key isn't the honing material, lots of abrasive surfaces work. The important part is getting the bevel correct. Greater angles last longer, lesser angles are sharper but dull faster. Go with about 22° for field knives, 2 to 4 degrees less for kitchen knives or filet knives. I have some small blocks of hardwood I cut to use as blade guides, I place them at the end of my stone and then hone at the angle I have selected.

But in the field I use an Outdoor Edge hone, the type with 2 crossed hones that you pull the blade through.
 
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