best way to sharpen a sword?

C

CyrusArdain

Joined
Nov 23, 2006
Messages
18
As the title says,

what is a good way to sharpen a sword?

ive read about the altoids can and mousepad method thats been discussed recently, but i cant see that working to well with a large blade.

so..any suggestions or secrets you want to share?


cyrus-
 
Any blade length can be done with a mousepad, leather on wood block or even an EZ Hone.

The difference of course, it that for large blade you move the sharpener against the edge v. the other way around.
 
If the blade has never been sharpened you may need to use a file or a belt sander to establish your bevels. After that I like to use a 12 inch long bench hone. A fine diamond hone is pretty handy.
 
I own no swords but to sharpen my longer knives, I find a leather weightlifter's belt makes honing easier because of its much larger surface. Might need a few belts to accomodate the different compounds you use.
 
I use various grits of sanding sponges and then finer grits of wet/dry sandpaper duct-taped to the sponge. Works great. As Nasty pointed out, move the sponge over the blade, not the blade over the sponge. You can tell by the sound and feel when you're on the edge. Also, be sure to allow plenty of time when hand sharpening a big blade. It'll take a while.
 
actually, japanese polishers hold the blade and go over the stone, not the other way round. I think it's just a matter of whichever suits you best.
 
I think the professional polishers may have just a touch more training and practice than I do...doing it my way is much easier for me.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top