Sharpening Video Challenge!

shortwinger

shortwinger

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Apr 7, 2010
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Is it possible to get a video made of a kami sharpening a blade? I don't mean sharpening a new blade he is making, I mean taking a used kukri with some wear and some small chips and re-sharpening it the traditional way.

I would love to see how they roll the file to make the convex edge and watch their technique. Will all the videos out there I cannot find one that shows this. Several show how to touch up a kukri with sandpaper but this takes forever if you have real wear or nicks in the blade.

Maybe this is a question for Howard or Karda, but is it possible to tell them some of the issues people have about sharpening the kukri and have them make a video for us?

Another great video would be to show how to do some handle maintanence such as tightening the pins on a loose handle and snugging up the butt plate on the stick tangs.
 
I'd love to see this video as well.
Edit: I NEED to see this video. I'd even be grateful if someone could describe the process, I've never heard of it (using a file to develop a convex edge)... Just the sandpaper/mouse method.
 
here is what i dont understand; everything i read buy the other owners here are always saying / talking about sharpening convex edges but my 20 inch CAK sems more like a scandi grind - it comes down in a fine taper gradually to a fine edge maybe 15 degrees or less -- i am not complaining just trying to understand

maybe i am looking at it wrong

the Cherokee rose and the farm knife i have are convex; although the Cherokee Rose is only slightly so and i have put a hell of an edge on the rose, i could shave my beard with it - but the AK bowie, the CAK, the Falcata all have a very fine sharp edge.


when i think of convex i think of an axe's edge

ideas please
 
I use a fine single cut file on my machetes and axes and works great
 
i seen a pbs show once many years ago showing how they made khuks. they just ran the file down the bevel and roll it by lifting the handle to form the convex edge forming it from the tip back. the file was pushed forward to the tip while rolling the handle up. they would make shorter and shorter strokes as the edge formed. i think they did the heat treat before putting on the final edge.
 
Quiggifur said:
And you put a convex edge on them, with the file?
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sure just kinda get a feel for it - Ive been working with machinery and metal most my life i guess i dont think about it.

I Just look at what edge is there and think how you want it to be and start - file a little at a time and it will take shape.

An axe is what i think they call convex / apple seed edge - not sure - but on a large blade where i can see the edge well i just follow what is there and then shape when needed. its not trying to make the edge a certain way it is more like letting what is already there come into being the way it seems will be sharpest


i play guitar but I dont know how to play and never took lesson - if i put my fingers on the string it sounds good i try to remember to do that again - if i put my finger on a string and it sounds bad i try to remember not to do that again

I am not explaining this well because i have never really thought about it before - i will sit down with a blade and a file and try to think of a way to explain it

i am no great sharpening person but i keep most of mine pretty much hair poppin sharp
 
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I see Richard is here - i recently bought the "paper wheel" set up and am learning how to use it - i would like to visit Richard someday and watch how he does it - i always learn better watching someone than someone explaining ;)
 
Thanks BFH, that was a better description than you realize, I think. Good enough for me anyway.

I'd love to be able to have someone teach me, but I haven't had the drive to go out and find someone that does it the way I'd want to learn it.
 
I picked up a Harbor Frieght 1X30" belt sander on sale. My arm has been going down hill, but once it's fixed up, I'm going to work on my technique with cheap machetes. I can't wait to be able to put a good edge on my khuks with it. It seems like that's the way many folks on BF get a good convex edge. I would also like to see how the kamis do it, but the file technique is bound to take some time. Would be nice to see though. Take care.
 
BFH44 said:
here is what i dont understand; everything i read buy the other owners here are always saying / talking about sharpening convex edges but my 20 inch CAK sems more like a scandi grind - it comes down in a fine taper gradually to a fine edge maybe 15 degrees or less -- i am not complaining just trying to understand
Click to expand...

My 20" CAK is the same way, My KHHI McCurdy khuk has more of an axe edge. wide and round! but then again, it is nowhere near the level of chopper my CAK is. I split white oak with it...pretty good, lol. But the edge on it looks almost flat straight on, and when i look down the blade i see it has a slight convex, then sort of flattens out with the bevel and widens out towards the spine. Just using a lansky puck and butchers steel i have gotten it paper slicing sharp and ruined the finish in the process. I think it is just the nature of the blade with a gradual taper man, it works like a champ for chopping and i could slice through a zombies neck with one swipe. The axe edge on my McCurdy is...ok. its not super sharp and i have to work at it to get it to slice paper. I like what HI does with theirs. I guess its good to have another blade of the type from a different maker to compare to.
 
When I say "convex" I'm talking about the shape of the blade, not the bevel angle. I don't know if that's where the confusion is arising from, but that's how I see it, anyway. The khukri is convex on the sweet spot, then concave further back toward the handle. Trying to sharpen these with a stiff file or whatnot is difficult for many people, though I've not had issues yet.
 
I too would like to see a video of how to sharpen a concave edge with a stone, or by the "traditional" method.

It would be nice to know how to field sharpen them, since I have no intention of brining a mousepad, sandpaper, wheel's, or leather stropes on my backpacking trips.
 
Radrunner said:
I too would like to see a video of how to sharpen a concave edge with a stone, or by the "traditional" method.

It would be nice to know how to field sharpen them, since I have no intention of bringing a mousepad, sandpaper, wheels, or leather strops on my backpacking trips.
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My thoughts exactly.
 
It seems like people are talking about 2 different things. One is sharpening an edge so that it has a convex cross sectional profile. Many people do this with a slack belt on a grinder or sander, or with a mousepad. If you're sharpening freehand the cross-section is probably somewhat convex because it is difficult to maintain a uniform angle by hand if you're not using a jig. A convex profile is good for doing axe-type chopping both because it is very strong and also because it helps to pop wood chips out instead of wedging the blade into the wood. That's why it's used in axes. Most people who use axes sharpen them by hand, as they need frequent touch-ups. It may be easier to find a video on sharpening an axe with a convex profile than sharpening a khukuri. When I worked with axes a lot, I used to use a file to sharpen them, but it works the same with a diamond hone, stone, etc.

The other thing that people are asking about is how to sharpen an edge that has curves in it. Curves are not unique to the khukuri blade. Many blade styles have curves. It's really hard to go wrong if you pick up an abrasive tool and go for it. Remember Spiral's photo of a Gurkha sharpening his blade on a big smooth rock? I like to use a small diamond rod in the field. Like the previous posters, I also don't want to carry complex sharpening gear in the field. I don't worry much about cross-sectional profile in the field. If it's dull I sharpen it. Whatever I do in field sharpening is not going to make major changes in the profile. It usually takes a lot of work to reprofile an edge without power tools.

I think the shop video Red Flower took is the only video to come out of HI in Nepal so far. It may be a challenge to get another, but if someone is interested enough to pony up money for tickets to Nepal for Red Flower and myself ... ;)
 
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Radrunner said:
It would be nice to know how to field sharpen them, since I have no intention of brining a mousepad, sandpaper, wheel's, or leather stropes on my backpacking trips.
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A certain khuk enthusiast on another forum once mentioned that he packs strips of various grits of sandpaper which he then lays on the top of his leg, the flesh of which has the give necessary for convexing. I haven't tried this exact method (though I've found simply doing a final strop on denim in this fashion to be effective!) but it's an idea to try if you want to go without lugging a mouse pad, wheels, and strops.
 
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