How to sharpen HI Kerambit

[Shann]

I just got a beautiful chandan handled kerambit. I've had success with the bilton and kagas katne sharpening on my sharpmaker, will it work with the karambit? I haven't had sucess sharpening my larger HI blades and I don't have a belt sander, but I do have the sharpmaker, a couple of stones and a bunch of sandpaper.

 

[Yvsa]

It's a knife, just sharpen it.

 

[Dave Rishar]

Shann - going through the same thing myself...I grabbed the horn handle one off the same deal.

What I did was use a bastard file to get the bevel close to where I wanted it (and the Sharpmaker would work on it) and went to work. The belly was incredibly hard and the Sharpmaker was going too slowly; I got impatient and wound up "cheating" with a diamond bench stone for a bit, then going back to the Sharpmaker. The curve directly ahead of the choil is too steep to get the flats of the Sharpmaker hones in there; freehand it with a small stone or else just use the corners of the Sharpmaker hones in there. It's soft and sharpens very quickly.

For the false edge, I decided not to even bother with the Sharpmaker. I'd have to remove way too much metal. Instead, I established the bevel I wanted with the file and cleaned it up with a diamond bench stone. I left it as a very obtuse semi-sharp "utility" edge and will not sharpen it any further until I get more comfortable handling this style of knife.

 

[Shann]

Thanks. Good advice. I remember taking a chance on the chandan handle when I saw you said you wanted the horn handle. Its really a nice looking knife. The handle is a bit small for me, but thats not uncommon.

 

[Nasty]

I think it's the perfect size for a mousepad job. Sandpaper until you get an even burr along one side, flip it over and sandpaper until the edges are even. Repeat with higher grades and you should end up with a nice convex razor.