Field sharpening stones

A coarse/fine DMT Diafold is the perfect field sharpener its small, lightweight, and can sharpen any steel.
 
The DMT is fantastic especially if you try to sharpen very dull knives.
I carry the Fallkniven Dc4 because the ceramic and a little 3" long strop allow me to get a more refined edge, specially for whittling.
Besides a coarse stone is easier to improvise or to find around.
 
IMO field sharpening really means applying a mircobevel unless you are actually living in the field. So any reliable abrasive in a small package will do the job. Since diamonds do not need any lubricant, no flattening and will last "forever" if treated well, I would go for any type of small diamond abrasive, whether it is a DMT diafold, a Smith diamond rod, DC4 from Fallkniven, you name it. If you do edge leading strokes only with the right pressure, you also unlikely have to worry about a strop either.

Here is where IMO a well designed blade geometry comes in handy, a thin primary grind/back bevel with a Microbevel that can be maintained so easily.
 
The WS Field Sharpener should work fine but it's sorta bulky. If it doesn't fit in a small pocket, it's not portable IMO. Consider a coarse/fine DMT folding Diafold or a Spyderco Double Stuff. Or both.

Also consider a knife with steel that's not difficult to sharpen.
 
Lee48 said:
The WS Field Sharpener should work fine but it's sorta bulky. If it doesn't fit in a small pocket, it's not portable IMO. Consider a coarse/fine DMT folding Diafold or a Spyderco Double Stuff. Or both.

Also consider a knife with steel that's not difficult to sharpen.
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To me this is a big concern. If the tool is for all around use away from support, having a steel type that's easy to sharpen almost means you can leave your sharpening gear at home. When camping I now do nearly all of my cutting/bushcrafting (such that I'm capable of) with a hatchet. I carry a small puck shaped silt stone that has a depression drilled into one side. The stone works dry, or with a bit of water and makes its own stropping compound, the depression on the back side works for a socket for a bow drill. I've also used smooth stones I found and stropped with ash from the fire pit applied to smooth bark or a piece of wood I've flattened. It is very easy to put an armhair shaving edge on it. If it were some high carbide stainless none of these methods would work well. Yes the steel might hold an initial edge longer but for some applications it is more important the steel be easy to work on - they all go dull, and a single unfortunate pass can wreck the edge on the toughest of them.
 
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