Expediant Knife Sharpener

Moosez45

Moosez45

Custom Antlers, Factory Knives...
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Ok, so I was digging around this morning looking for something, when I stumbled on to a Gerber "Kwik Sharp". A little hand held (fingers really) swipe sharpener I bought like 5yrs ago, threw on a shelf and forgot about. Thinking I might just play with it a while todayl, I threw it in my pocket.

I got this $.02 ASK knife (hacksaw blade) I made a couple of years ago I keep on my desk for opening mail, striking firesteels on the carpet, yada, yada, yada. To say the least, this thing needed an edge bad, but hey, its a plaything, right? So, I take it will me into the field today, just swiping this hacknife on this Gerber device, and to my suprise, it actually sharpened it. Not like my at home, hair poppin', razor edges, but enough to drag hair and whittle with.

I never really put much stock in those little swipe sharpeners, mainly because they go against everything I've learned about sharpening in the last 20yrs, but I got to thinking, this little guy could be thrown in a pack, or stuffed in a pocket, and would make for a quick "field" edge should the need arise. Now, I do want to say this, I keep a DMT folding diamond (coarse) in my pack for quick touchups and for my heavy hitters ('chete) and a couple of other small diamond hones as well in there. I can do an alright freehand edge, but I prefer guides. Just me.

SO, what do you guys and gals think about a swipe sharpener for an expediant field edge?

I see some "survival kits" that comes with a knife have these little guys, but like I said, never put much stock in them. Yes, there is always the ferral rock, but I'm talking down and dirty, 30sec sharpener.

Thanks to all. Moose
 
I think that it is a great idea. I carry a lighter because I might need a flame NOW, why not carry a sharpener that can give you an instant usable edge? I've never used one, but I might have to pick one up and see what it can do to a beater blade.
 
I'm not a fan of those pull through devices.

This is more my style, used with spit as a lubricant:
http://www.ukoutdoorstore.co.uk/acatalog/Whitby_sharpening_stone.html

I keep one in my toolbox, along with a strop. These two will put a razor edge on almost anything.

For that 30 second, decent working edge you mentioned, simply raising the angle a couple of degrees with a few heavy strokes on the stone does the trick. Then, when I have time, I can go back and grind away that microbevel and polish it out on the strop a little.

I invested quite a bit of time in learning to do a wicked free hand edge, and it has paid off a lot in the long run. It is great to be able to sharpen anything, on almost anything, anywhere, anytime. Also, being a tool and knife enthusiast, I consider it an essential ability, nevermind incredibly handy.
 
siguy said:
I'm not a fan of those pull through devices.

This is more my style, used with spit as a lubricant:
http://www.ukoutdoorstore.co.uk/acatalog/Whitby_sharpening_stone.html

I keep one in my toolbox, along with a strop. These two will put a razor edge on almost anything.

For that 30 second, decent working edge you mentioned, simply raising the angle a couple of degrees with a few heavy strokes on the stone does the trick. Then, when I have time, I can go back and grind away that microbevel and polish it out on the strop a little.

I invested quite a bit of time in learning to do a wicked free hand edge, and it has paid off a lot in the long run. It is great to be able to sharpen anything, on almost anything, anywhere, anytime. Also, being a tool and knife enthusiast, I consider it an essential ability, nevermind incredibly handy.
Click to expand...

Man after my own heart, I could have wrote that myself.

However the pull throughs do have a place. Whenever I would go home to visit, my mom would meet me at the door with her kitchen knives, I actually tried to teach her how to sharpen with a stone, with no luck. A couple of years ago I bought her one of the nicer pull throughs made by henckels, she still brags about how great it is to be able to sharpen her own knives and how wonderful to have sharp knives.

I agree, they will never replace my stone but they will put a usable edge on a knife and are much quicker and easier to use than some other sharpening gimmicks. Chris
 
Pull throughs are fine for expedient field sharpening. Sure they scrape the edge and remove steel, but so does every other sharpener.

I don't use them very much, but I do have a couple that I take out in the field with me. If I need to sharpen my blade out in the field, that means I need it WORKING sharp NOW. Pull it though a couple of times and keep on trucking. I can re-hone/profile when I get home.

In the field, I don't care if the edge is concave, convex, v'd, what ever. I do care about it being able to cut something. The something I'm cutting doesn't care what shape the edge is either.

I view my user knives as tools. Sometimes tools need to be replaced. If I wear it out from sharpening of any kind, then I know I used that tool got used.

People rag on the pull through carbide sharpeners as abusing blades, then they brag about how they hammered their knife through a piece of angle iron, slam it through sheet metal, etc, just to see if it could do it. :rolleyes:

Which one is really abuse?
 
cramsey3006 said:
Pull throughs are fine for expedient field sharpening. Sure they scrape the edge and remove steel, but so does every other sharpener.

I don't use them very much, but I do have a couple that I take out in the field with me. If I need to sharpen my blade out in the field, that means I need it WORKING sharp NOW. Pull it though a couple of times and keep on trucking. I can re-hone/profile when I get home.

In the field, I don't care if the edge is concave, convex, v'd, what ever. I do care about it being able to cut something. The something I'm cutting doesn't care what shape the edge is either.

I view my user knives as tools. Sometimes tools need to be replaced. If I wear it out from sharpening of any kind, then I know I used that tool got used.

People rag on the pull through carbide sharpeners as abusing blades, then they brag about how they hammered their knife through a piece of angle iron, slam it through sheet metal, etc, just to see if it could do it. :rolleyes:

Which one is really abuse?
Click to expand...

That was what I was thinking when I found this thing, sharp, now. I have my ritual when it comes to sharpening, but this is the W&SS, in a "survival" situation, it would come in handy I think. Moose
 
I carry a hunter honer in my PSK. Works great for me. Only found em on their website, but a good choice for those of us not as skilled. Run around $20
 
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