How to maintain and sharpen knives?

A

A R E S

Joined
Dec 6, 2018
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Hello, I have a Ka-Bar Full Size USMC model and a CRKT Minimalist knife. I was wondering how to maintain and care for them.
I’m also looking for suggestions on a good sharpener for both of the knives, hopefully no more than $20.

Thank you!
 
There is nothing I can describe as good for $20 or less. Maybe a hardware store whetstone - you're going to have to supply the skill.
 
Find a Norton, India Stone. And use Simple Green Soap, the stuff in the squirt bottle . Not oil. That is about your only option at that price range. It will work fine for those knives and others if you put some time in learning how to sharpen..
 
A R E S said:
Hello, I have a Ka-Bar Full Size USMC model and a CRKT Minimalist knife. I was wondering how to maintain and care for them.
I’m also looking for suggestions on a good sharpener for both of the knives, hopefully no more than $20.

Thank you!
Click to expand...
Well,
maintain and care is easy
keep'em clean,
keep 'em dry,
buff on some paste wax occasionally (cheap like Kiwi neutral paste shoe polish)
....
Have you ever sharpened a knife before?
Where are you shopping, online?
$20 is plenty of dough to get you plenty sharp, shopping on ebay, or ace/lowes,
even $1 is plenty for sharpening gear,
just gotta decide to learn and practice and ask questions until you do,
doesn't take long,
you can get started today with a coffee cup and paring knife from your kitchen, try sharpening before you buy sharpening equipment
so what are you thinking? ask questions . what do you want to know?

http://www.bladeforums.com/threads/...teach-sharpening-class.1487187/#post-17104339
https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/diy-sharpening-vs-professional-services.1609837/#post-18389250
https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/sharpening-for-idiots.1466648/#post-16879062
 
First off, thank you all for the replies!
I’ve never sharpened a knife before so I have no experience, I do know that some knives are sharpened at a certain angle - in this case, the Ka-Bar should be 25 degrees if I’m correct, but I don’t know how to apply that, my biggest concern is messing up the factory angle due to inexperience, I’m thinking of getting a guided sharpening system but would rather take the time to learn the traditional way. My question is, what’s a good sharpening stone that’s not too pricey for the knives I have?

I’ve also just found out about honing oils and paste wax, so that’s new. I’ve read somewhere that lubricating your knives with gun oil specifically is also good for the knife. Any extra tips on knives maintenance and sharpening from experience would be greatly appreciated!
 
Get a sharpie/magic marker/felt tipped pen, and mark the edge of your knife. When you start sharpening with your stone, go lightly and slowly at first, and check to see where the marker is removed. This is how you can match the existing angle of your blade, and know when you've sharpened all the way to the apex.

Practice on a few cheap paring knives first before doing your favorites. Good luck.
 
Thank you!
As for the kind of stones to buy, what would everyone recommend for the knives that I have? Preferably a diamond stone.
 
I was going to recommend reading bgentry’s Seven Secrets of Sharpening but it seems the links are broken! That’s some of the best advice in one place. Should be a sticky. I have saved them in a document if interested contact me through my profile or maybe bgentry has them in a document he could send you.​
 
Congrats on deciding to learn to sharpen your knives. And super congrats on being smart and setting a price limit for yourself -- with this kind of fiscal discipline your bank account and personal relationships may well survive your burgeoning knife hobby!

Here's my suggestion:

This system has a 25° setting, which is what you ask for, but you might want to paint the secondary bevel with a marker and observe how exactly each pass is wearing down the edge. Use the marker method a lot when you're learning how to sharpen -- soon you won't need the marker as you'll be able to tell by feel or by observing how the grit pattern changes to confirm you're sharpening at the correct angle.

You don't need diamond for 1095, so I recommend the Ceramic/Ceramic version of the Lansky box which is available for well under $20. One day when you're rocking CPM S90V then you might want a diamond stone, but I wouldn't worry about that yet. Get really good at sharpening easy steels like 1095, and 5Cr15MoV (this one should give you lots of practice!) before you try tackling super steels. Once you learn the technique, you can sharpen on a brick:
 
Worksharp pocket sharpener, Lansky crock stick (diamond), Norton combination stone (crystolon aka SIC or India), Norton economy crystolon stone, Lansky coarse/fine diamond, benchstone angle guides, etc.

There is a lot that can be purchased for $20. For most people I think the Lansky crock sticks in the diamond varient would be the best if they don't deal with serrations. Works on the same principal as the Sharpmaker which so many of us love, just less versitility, less grit options, and more obtuse angles by default but you can drill in new holes at whatever angle you want (protractor helps) so that last point is moot.

How sharp something gets is 99% skill 1% what your using. Don't worry about grits as going higher won't make it sharper. A more coarse grit will leave a toothy edge that slices better. A finer grit leaves a more polished edge that push cuts better.
 
Thank you all for the knowledge you’ve provided! I really appreciate the time yall’ve taken to share your knowledge with me, I’ve learned a lot from the information y’all’ve provided and I feel comfortable with learning how to sharpen my own knives now.
:)
 
ecallahan said:
I was going to recommend reading bgentry’s Seven Secrets of Sharpening but it seems the links are broken! That’s some of the best advice in one place. Should be a sticky. I have saved them in a document if interested contact me through my profile or maybe bgentry has them in a document he could send you.​
Click to expand...

Because of this post (and because I had been planning on it) I reposted my Seven Secrets. It's now a sticky at the top of the forum. Thanks to Blues for that. :)

Brian.
 
bgentry said:
Because of this post (and because I had been planning on it) I reposted my Seven Secrets. It's now a sticky at the top of the forum. Thanks to Blues for that. :)

Brian.
Click to expand...
That’s good news for anyone interested in sharpening. Freehand or otherwise.
 
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