Survival Sharpening??

J

JD Spydo

Joined
Nov 20, 2004
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Well I have been studying survival techniques ever since I got my first issue of the old and now defunct "American Survival Guide">> great old magazine and I very much miss getting it.

This is a question that I never ever seen addressed in any of the Survival publications or websites. The question is this: If you really are literally living in the woods, timber, swamps or whatever situation you are in and trying to survive we all know how terribly important a good sharp, high quality knife will be in that situation. And what if you either lost your sharpening stones/device or just ended up with a knife ( fixed or folder) and no way to sharpen it?

But let's say you might have to be a fugitive or maybe we might end up in a situation of a societal breakdown, economic depression or whatever criteria might make a man or woman have to go live in the wild. How would you sharpen your knife? What kind of rocks, minerals or types of materials could you use to sharpen your knife in the event of a dire survival situation. I know you Arkansas Guys have a lot of Novaculite in your neck of the woods but what about other places throughout the USA. What could you literally use to sharpen your knife in the wild if the situation got that desperate?
 
Just head down to the creek and pick up a nice little river rock.
Done that many a time.
try and throw away till you find one that you like.
 
1whitefoot said:
Just head down to the creek and pick up a nice little river rock.
Done that many a time.
try and throw away till you find one that you like.
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Say Whitefoot I see you are from Oregon. What type of rock do you all have up there that is capable of sharpening knives? I was kind of wanting to know what type of rocks are ideal for sharpening.
 
I agree with Whitefoot, any number of stone types smoothed by the water will work fine. Look for a fine grained smooth and flat rock whatever size it most comfortable. I've had good luck with normal old black shale(sp?), but nondescript other "skipping stones" have worked well too. A nice flat peice of shale though, after being smoothed for a while, makes a nice fine grained(by comparison to other common river stones) sharpening stone.

Good question by the way

Syn
 
Granite if available is a great coarse stone in an emergency. Depending on the rockwell of the blade at hand, even soft mud stones may be used. I have observed natives in Malaysia sharpening their machettes with a brick sized squarish riverstone, crude, but workable. Hopefully the knife you have in hand is not one of those super duper wonder steel that requires days of grinding with the stone !
 
If in a somewhat more urban area, concrete will work as a coarse sharpening stone, and the unglazed ring of material you find on the bottom of just about every ceramic mug or plate will work as a fine hone
 
Bill DeShivs said:
As will bricks.
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Bill that is really interesting that you would bring up bricks. Because I have a friend who is a bricklayer that I have worked for and I have worked with him on weekends to help him catch up a couple of times. I soon learned most bricks are not created equal at all.

For instance I have come across a couple of truck loads of "PAVER" bricks. And they come in all kinds of porosity, smoothness, density and size. Some of these glazed Pavers I have come across I can easily see how that they would work. I also did some work recently with a classic Paver known as "Triple Vs". They have a nice surface that would abrade metal.

I also wonder about refractory type fire bricks like they line molten steel laddles with. Great point Bill. I am going to do some checking for the next 3 days. The neat thing about bricks is that there are so many old abandoned buildings, outhouses, root cellars, walkways and various other old structures. In other words there are no shortage of bricks of all types.
 
Refractory (firebricks) are generally very porous and soft. There is a version that is more like tile.
 
What about the deal where you split a branch and rub fine sand and water into the interior (flat) surface, then use it to sharpen?
 
rhino said:
What about the deal where you split a branch and rub fine sand and water into the interior (flat) surface, then use it to sharpen?
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Sounds like a waste of time to me , unless you are lost and have nothing better to do. Personally if in such a situation I would find a smooth , flat little rock.
 
Here's some using stuff you can find in the field:

-Animal bones can be used like a butchers steel.

-Various pebbles and rocks can be used like benchstones.


Here's some solutions you can bring along:

-Use the back of another knife or piece of steel like a butchers steel to realign the edge.

-Strop on your clothes. Certain materials work better than others, but doing 20 swipes per side on your jeans leg will help bring the edge back to scary sharp.

-Various grits of sandpaper can be stashed in a wallet or knife sheath easily.
 
Sandpaper in the wallet - what a simple but absolutely terrific idea! That is why I enjoy this forum so much, there is a great suggestion or idea around every corner!
 
Vivi said:
Here's some using stuff you can find in the field:

-Animal bones can be used like a butchers steel.

-Various pebbles and rocks can be used like benchstones.


Here's some solutions you can bring along:

-Use the back of another knife or piece of steel like a butchers steel to realign the edge.

-Strop on your clothes. Certain materials work better than others, but doing 20 swipes per side on your jeans leg will help bring the edge back to scary sharp.

-Various grits of sandpaper can be stashed in a wallet or knife sheath easily.
Click to expand...

Great suggestions VIVI :thumbup: I have accidentally discovered that using the shaft of a high quality Phillips screwdrived ( either Craftsman or Snap On) makes an excellent STEEL. I had a mechanic show me that trick about a year ago and the steel on high quality Phillips screwdrivers is great for STEELING.

The suggestion of keeping sandpaper in your wallet is not a bad idea. I was given a video on Sharpening with Sandpaper for my last birthday and I have not got around to watching it yet. But I am sure that there are a myriad of chores you can accomplish with sandpaper. I am also wondering if something like high quality Swiss made files wouldn't at least be good for like Re-Profiling.

Being Bill mentioned Bricks I am also wondering about un-finished Marble? Keep the suggestions coming guys. This thread is more interesting that I thought it would be.
 
I would look for a flat rock that looks like a sharpening stone. I would mostly be looking for a porous and somewhat fine grained rock. If the area is somewhat civilized, you could use cinder blocks, concrete, broken pottery/ceramics.
 
One method I've seen is to breaks up a piece of quartz or quartz like rock and rub the dust and water into a smooth stick. It even made the discovery channel on an episode of Man vs. Wild.
 
...because we should be watching man vs. wild for survival tips. This is the same man who squeezed water from feces and drank it, then wondered why he got sick later.
 
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