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Improvised Sharpening Devices?
- Thread starter ColonelX
- Start date
- Joined
- Jul 23, 2008
- Messages
- 1,160
I've tried cement steps, bricks and clay pots :thumbdn: - the only improvised sharpener that ever worked for me was a piece of Wet n Dry when I was on a job site (I'd left the stone at home -50 miles away). Used it to sharpen a small handplane.
I've used the side of a sink (ceramic), Piece of a broken toilet tank, and the invariable coffee cup.
I make my own sharpening stones from bathroom tiles that have the grout grooves removed (an old 80 grit 4X36Does this beautifully).
Jim L.
- Joined
- Nov 28, 2006
- Messages
- 2
The ceramic rod in burned out street lights is a great one too.
BTW I heard that USAF pilot's "Survival Knives" are made of particularly soft steel; intentionally so that they can be sharpened on various rocks. Then again the sheath includes a stone, so this sounds like a rumor.
The way I remembered it worded was more like:
The USAF Survival Knife is not a good choice for hunting/camping; get one with better steel unless you plan to be away from civilization for weeks...
The way I remembered it worded was more like:
The USAF Survival Knife is not a good choice for hunting/camping; get one with better steel unless you plan to be away from civilization for weeks...
- Joined
- Jul 30, 2006
- Messages
- 42,366
The unglazed bottom rim of a coffee cup has worked for me. I was at my parent's house many years ago. They had no sharpener and the kitchen knife was flat-out dull. I didn't get it as sharp as I would have at home, but I got it sharp enough to do the job.
Ray Mears shows the window of a car for sharpening as a bonus on one of his DVD's. Haven't had the need to try that one yet...
I just got the two Carter Cutlery DVDs. As he points out, if it can remove metal, you can use it to sharpen. You can strop on newspaper. He actually puts a bit of newspaper print over his japanese water stones and proceeds to do a couple edge trailing strokes of it before using his neck knife to shave. Pretty cool stuff.
That being said, I think the best bet is to have some kit on ya for the occasion. Whether that's a EZE Lap pen style diamond sharpener, a diafold, or one of the diamond credit card size papers for the wallet, if you want really decent results in the field, take something with you.
Oh, and in the field, don't forget you can use broken glass, flint, etc, as a very effective cutting edge for some of your tasks to help keep your knife sharp by not using it (yeah, I know, blasphemy in blade forums...)
I just got the two Carter Cutlery DVDs. As he points out, if it can remove metal, you can use it to sharpen. You can strop on newspaper. He actually puts a bit of newspaper print over his japanese water stones and proceeds to do a couple edge trailing strokes of it before using his neck knife to shave. Pretty cool stuff.
That being said, I think the best bet is to have some kit on ya for the occasion. Whether that's a EZE Lap pen style diamond sharpener, a diafold, or one of the diamond credit card size papers for the wallet, if you want really decent results in the field, take something with you.
Oh, and in the field, don't forget you can use broken glass, flint, etc, as a very effective cutting edge for some of your tasks to help keep your knife sharp by not using it (yeah, I know, blasphemy in blade forums...)
The inner rim of large ceramic pickling jars. (THis one holds the angle perfectly as you go around it!) The rods from the electric quartz heaters. Any Pyrex glass dish, bowl, or pan. The porcelain insulators from old electric wires found in desert ghost towns. The unglazed bottom rim of ceramic plates and mugs. (If you see a black streak on the ceramic after rubbing, it IS removing metal and will work just fine!)
Stitchawl
Stitchawl
- Joined
- Nov 28, 2006
- Messages
- 2
I'd love to know how to get ahold of one... Shimmying up a (city) street light is knife-knuttier than I'm capable of.
Just find the city crews or other people changing them out. I been able to get about a dozen by just asking the city guys.
There is a kid (20-years-old) who comes by the house occasionally. Ever since he bought some croc sticks at a garage sale for five bucks, he has fancied himself as a master knife sharpener, so I turned him on to some natural stones, showed him how to use them and his life and his knives have never been the same. The problem is, at that point, he thought he knew everything...again. Kids today!
For a while after that, he openly coveted the razor sharp edges on some of my knives and tried in vain to duplicate them. I say some of my knives because I intentionally keep others less than hair-splitting sharp.
One day, I decided to break down and show this kid how to put that razor's edge on his knife without the aid of a leather strop or fancy, store bought gizmo. I took a four dollar, crudely stamped, Made in China, chrome-plated Play-doh, carnival-grade boot knife that wouldn't cut open an envelope and I put an edge on it that consistently sliced narrow curls of thin wrapping paper.
The kid is now a believer that old people know stuff...and he thinks he knows everything...again. [sigh]
Here is a little history before I spill the beans on my edge honing technique.
In the olden days, folks used to strop their knives on newspaper. The lead in the ink played an key role in this method. The newspaper method isn't as effective since the government made them remove lead from ink and paint because parents weren't smart enough to teach their kids not to eat paint, but there are still several methods as easy, effective and inexpensive as the old newspaper trick and I'll go over some of them for now.
For starters, you will need a piece of cardboard, but not from a corrugated box because that has waves and lumps in it that might cause a problem. You want a solid piece of cardboard like the kind you might get from the back of a tablet of paper or the inside of a cereal box. You will also need a dirty ashtray and a flat surface.
Yes, this really works. Yes, my knives are scary sharp...and shiny.
If you are skeptical and want proof that this method will really work before placing your knife in jeopardy, hold a spent cigarette butt between your thumb and forefinger. Press the ash end tightly against the side of your knife blade and rub it back and forth. If you run out of ashes, use another butt. If it polishes the blade, it will hone the edge...and it will polish the blade.
Apology accepted.
Limitations: If the edge of your knife is nicked or overly dull because you used it to dig a hole in the yard to bury your cat, the cardboard trick probably won't work for you. Grab your pocket stones or use the rim of a clay pot to restore a working edge first. Be sure to first wet the rim of the pot with spit, water, beer or whatever and don't glue it to your table...you know the drill.
Other options worth mentioning:
OK, now for the bit about why some of my knives are not kept hair-splitting sharp.
Take your finely honed, high-dollar arm shaver and try to slice a cigarette butt in half. I said slice, not saw. Not so proud of your knife now, are you? Wassup with that? You can shave with it and even shave the paper from the cigarette butt, but you can't cut the cigarette butt in half without applying undo pressure. Sometimes you can't even cut open a bag of potato chips with an edge like that and often, cutting a poly rope can be an embarrassing chore.
After you have used your Arkansas soft, hard and then your surgical black on your knife so that you can shave your arms and legs and between your toes, drag the blade of your knife across a piece of 400 grit wet or dry sand paper, or 320 if that's what you have. Yeah, I know it hurts to think about doing this, but bear with me. Now, strop your knife using the ashes and cardboard trick. When you are done, you will be able to shave your arm and also cut the cigarette butt in half.
We teach these and other methods to people who attend our preparedness and survival retreats.
Now watch some nimrod post this information on another site and try to take credit for it.
- Rod
The more you know, the less you need.
For a while after that, he openly coveted the razor sharp edges on some of my knives and tried in vain to duplicate them. I say some of my knives because I intentionally keep others less than hair-splitting sharp.
One day, I decided to break down and show this kid how to put that razor's edge on his knife without the aid of a leather strop or fancy, store bought gizmo. I took a four dollar, crudely stamped, Made in China, chrome-plated Play-doh, carnival-grade boot knife that wouldn't cut open an envelope and I put an edge on it that consistently sliced narrow curls of thin wrapping paper.
The kid is now a believer that old people know stuff...and he thinks he knows everything...again. [sigh]
Here is a little history before I spill the beans on my edge honing technique.
In the olden days, folks used to strop their knives on newspaper. The lead in the ink played an key role in this method. The newspaper method isn't as effective since the government made them remove lead from ink and paint because parents weren't smart enough to teach their kids not to eat paint, but there are still several methods as easy, effective and inexpensive as the old newspaper trick and I'll go over some of them for now.
For starters, you will need a piece of cardboard, but not from a corrugated box because that has waves and lumps in it that might cause a problem. You want a solid piece of cardboard like the kind you might get from the back of a tablet of paper or the inside of a cereal box. You will also need a dirty ashtray and a flat surface.
Step 1 - Lay the piece of cardboard on a firm, flat surface. You can tape it down if you want but don't glue it to the top of your dining table unless you like sleeping in the car. I stick mine to a piece of marble floor tile with a bit of spray adhesive.
Step 2 - Spit on the cardboard or dampen it from end to end with some water, coffee, beer or whatever.
Step 3 - Take a pinch or two of ashes from an ashtray and smear them across the dampened surface of the cardboard. Yes, it looks and smells icky, but you'll get over it.
Note: If you don't have a dirty ashtray for obvious reasons, borrow some ashes from your neighbor or you can also use ordinary household dust, but you'll need a lot more than a pinch or two. Scoop a thick dust bunny from under your dresser or the top of your television and rub it into the dampened cardboard. You will need enough dust to darken the cardboard.
Step 4 - At this point, it might be a good idea for you to wash your hands if you are prone to cutting yourself when you sharpen your knife. (Wanna see my Scooby Doo Bandaid?)
Step 5 - To put a scary edge on your knife, strop it across the cardboard laden with ashes or dust the same way you would a leather strop. I will not take the time to explain the proper method of stropping a knife. You can read about that elsewhere.
Step 2 - Spit on the cardboard or dampen it from end to end with some water, coffee, beer or whatever.
Step 3 - Take a pinch or two of ashes from an ashtray and smear them across the dampened surface of the cardboard. Yes, it looks and smells icky, but you'll get over it.
Note: If you don't have a dirty ashtray for obvious reasons, borrow some ashes from your neighbor or you can also use ordinary household dust, but you'll need a lot more than a pinch or two. Scoop a thick dust bunny from under your dresser or the top of your television and rub it into the dampened cardboard. You will need enough dust to darken the cardboard.
Step 4 - At this point, it might be a good idea for you to wash your hands if you are prone to cutting yourself when you sharpen your knife. (Wanna see my Scooby Doo Bandaid?)
Step 5 - To put a scary edge on your knife, strop it across the cardboard laden with ashes or dust the same way you would a leather strop. I will not take the time to explain the proper method of stropping a knife. You can read about that elsewhere.
Yes, this really works. Yes, my knives are scary sharp...and shiny.
If you are skeptical and want proof that this method will really work before placing your knife in jeopardy, hold a spent cigarette butt between your thumb and forefinger. Press the ash end tightly against the side of your knife blade and rub it back and forth. If you run out of ashes, use another butt. If it polishes the blade, it will hone the edge...and it will polish the blade.
Apology accepted.
Limitations: If the edge of your knife is nicked or overly dull because you used it to dig a hole in the yard to bury your cat, the cardboard trick probably won't work for you. Grab your pocket stones or use the rim of a clay pot to restore a working edge first. Be sure to first wet the rim of the pot with spit, water, beer or whatever and don't glue it to your table...you know the drill.
Other options worth mentioning:
- Use your imagination. Rather than taking home resources and methods with you into the field, try bringing a bit of the field home with you. Sticks, stones, mud and nuts may do a better job than uber-tech gizmos and gadgets.
- No cardboard? Be creative. You can use a dowel rod or closet rod. Just wet the rod and smear it with ashes. You can also use a 2x4 or a piece of linen or a patch of leather on the side of your boot and get close to the same results.
- Use water instead of oil when sharpening your knife on the rim of a clay pot or the bottom of your crock pot insert or the unglazed bottom edge of a china tea cup or coffee mug. (For the record, the waitress at Denny's was not amused.)
- Do not use dirt from your yard as a substitute for ashes as a honing compound because the grit will be too coarse and inconsistent. You can, however, use the clay that you got when digging the hole in your yard as long as it is rock free. For best results, use a very thin layer and strop while the clay is wet and slimy.
- You can use ashes from your fireplace, wood stove or campfire as long as they are fine and pure white. Ashes of other colors or differing shades of gray might have impurities or bits of coal that could produce unpredictable results. (and then you'd say bad words about me and my feelings would be hurt)
- On the other end of the spectrum, a piece of metal window screen wrapped tightly around a fat dowel rod or 2x4 can be used to put a working edge on your knife. You might not get a great edge, but it will be better than the one you had after you buried your cat. Strop the blade by pulling across instead of pushing the edge into the screen, but you'd discover that soon enough. The screen wire trick doesn't work well with blades made with super-duper hard steel. My San Mai CS Tanto is not a fan of this method, but the CS Bowie Machete and GI Tanto respond well, as does one of my Gerber pocket knives and an M6 bayonet. You can practice with a $1 Pakistani pocket knife from Harbor Freight to get a feel for what the screen will do for and to your knife. Using a knife from the block of cutlery in your kitchen might incur extensive legal fees in divorce court.
- You can use toothpaste instead of ashes on the cardboard.
- You can use Mother's Mag polish on the cardboard. (Works WELL!)
- You can use the charred end of a stick to put a working edge on a knife. This will not hone, but will sharpen to an certain extent.
- You can use silt from a pond, that slimy mud near the bank, but still under water. Smear the silt onto a green branch that has had the bark removed or onto some cardboard or the side of your boot.
- You can use a commercially available polishing compound instead of ashes on a piece of cardboard or linen cloth. Just color it on and strop away. My favorite is Dico's Stainless Steel Polishing Compound. Cut off a little nibble from the stick and toss it into your kit. You'll be able to use it on almost anything you find in the field including the tongue of that old leather boot you cut off and stuffed into your pack.
OK, now for the bit about why some of my knives are not kept hair-splitting sharp.
Take your finely honed, high-dollar arm shaver and try to slice a cigarette butt in half. I said slice, not saw. Not so proud of your knife now, are you? Wassup with that? You can shave with it and even shave the paper from the cigarette butt, but you can't cut the cigarette butt in half without applying undo pressure. Sometimes you can't even cut open a bag of potato chips with an edge like that and often, cutting a poly rope can be an embarrassing chore.
After you have used your Arkansas soft, hard and then your surgical black on your knife so that you can shave your arms and legs and between your toes, drag the blade of your knife across a piece of 400 grit wet or dry sand paper, or 320 if that's what you have. Yeah, I know it hurts to think about doing this, but bear with me. Now, strop your knife using the ashes and cardboard trick. When you are done, you will be able to shave your arm and also cut the cigarette butt in half.
We teach these and other methods to people who attend our preparedness and survival retreats.
Now watch some nimrod post this information on another site and try to take credit for it.
- Rod
The more you know, the less you need.
Here's a pic of the stropping setup I carry in my field pack, complete with cardboard and the tongue of an old leather boot. I prefer the cardboard because it gives a firmer platform. As you can see, both items are used. I periodically clean the leather tongue and replace the cardboard, which still has some life in it. My main home stropping cardboard is fastened to a marble floor tile.
In case you are wondering, that's a vintage Solingen knife with a stag handle. I also have the original sheath. Both are in impeccable condition. The edge is frighteningly sharp clear to the tip. Obviously, in the field, I prefer a heavier knife like my CS Trailmaster or Master Hunter, both of which are regularly stropped on the cardboard.(Yeah, I'm a CS fan)
In case you are wondering, that's a vintage Solingen knife with a stag handle. I also have the original sheath. Both are in impeccable condition. The edge is frighteningly sharp clear to the tip. Obviously, in the field, I prefer a heavier knife like my CS Trailmaster or Master Hunter, both of which are regularly stropped on the cardboard.(Yeah, I'm a CS fan)