What do you use for a quick touchup?

For quick touch-ups, I use a leather strop with buffing compound on it.

If a little more abrasion is needed, I use the Sharpmaker or a fine Arkansas or an India fine, depending on the knife, my mood, and what's handy.

By the way, you guys that have all your sharpening stuff in a tackle box all neatly organized make me feel terribly inferior and slipshod.:p
 
For sharpening touchups, use the Spyderco Profile set and the side of my boot for stropping...at work.

Also have a glass tube from a street lamp, very abrasive and acts as a medium stone, handy for quick touchups, mostly fellows at work need their knives sharpened.
G2
 
I always steel first with a carbide steel, then strop on cardboard or leather loaded with a good polishing compound.
 
Please tell my more about this 6"x12" ceramic flange (sounds like my kind of prized possession!) What is it? Where would a guy in, say, Colorado find one? Got a pic?

Oh, yeah ... for most touch-ups, I use a fine ceramic rod in a fully-adjustable custom jig I made. And about once a week, I use 'Just for Men'. :)
 
Very funny CD, :rolleyes: what is it you touch up with "Just for Men", never mind I really don't want to know.

As for the flange, it came from a specialized machine used to make computer chips for Smart Cards.

I don't think yuo can find one this one was custom made for the RD department where I worked and cost about $5,000.

I happened to aquire it when the first one they sent to use had a small chip in it basically making it useless,(except for me:D :cool: )

I'll try to post a pic later.
 
Figured it was something like that. Would that flange ever be sweet for sharpening chisels and planes, I'm thinking.

Interesting, they market products like 'Just for Men' to us, ummm ... mature guys, when really, the only reason we do it is for the women.

Thx! -Dave

"Knives, guns, cars, fishing and beer ... a man's refuge from thinking about sex all the time."
 
T. Erdelyi,

I do most touch ups with a black surgical stone (top left in photo). Great for the touch up after use or after sharpening.
Textured leather strop loaded with silicon carbide grit, I have been using 800 grit lately.
Smooth leather loaded with green chromium oxide.
Tanned leather for a finial stropping.
Each of the stones at the top of the photo have a leather strop glued to the stone box lid, each of the leathers are suited to a particular honing or polishing medium.
The steels are half groove and smooth. Of course the obligatory ceramic rod is there, but I don’t use it much.
The hone at lower (left in the photo) loaded with wet/dry paper is used for reprofiling or sharpening an asymmetrical edge like Busse's, or if an edge is really dinged up I’ll use a heavy grit wet/dry paper to clean it up.

I have enjoyed the art of free hand sharpening for many years; as such I don't use jig-mounted sharpeners. I also do not use a diamond hone much. I have a fine DMT and carry it fishing or hunting, but that is about all the use it sees.

Gary Graley: The forth item from the bottom on the left side is an element from a light bulb, is this what you have?

:D
 
I use an about 8" ( plus the handle length ) EZ Lap diamond steel.
 
Originally posted by .45acp
T. Erdelyi,...Each of the stones at the top of the photo have a leather strop glued to the stone box lid, each of the leathers are suited to a particular honing or polishing medium.
...:D
Click to expand...

You know that's a great idea I gotta do that. I have a lot of stones in boxes much like you, and I'm always picking up scraps of leather from the local farmers, a match made in knife heaven:cool: .
 
My wife was just pouring me a cup when I clicked on T Erdeliy's post and she says that looks like your junk.I keep my stuff in or around a craftsmen 3 drawer box.I have a grey box like T.'s I throw stuff in to go.I usually take a norton,cheap s/c stone &cermic stone w/ homeade guides ,sharpmaker204, 2 sided strop charged w/ green stuff,folding steel,& ass. drivers, oil, markers etc...
 
Originally posted by .45acp
Gary Graley: The forth item from the bottom on the left side is an element from a light bulb, is this what you have?
:D
Click to expand...

Not quite like it, mine is almost like those round ceramic rods that were so popular a while back, except that the surface of the rod is rough texture, like orange peel feeling that while not sharp abrasive it does cut metal fairly quickly, it's a milky white colour opaque with two holes in each end and hollow on the inside, either for a filament or gas for the light to work, got it from our HR manager who got it from his son, he never used it and noticed that I was into knives just a little :) I use that first and then a round ceramic, if need be I'll pull the Spyderco Profiles out as well, although my grey one from the set has some very rough spots along about midway now that won't go away, maybe I'm wearing it through? anyone else have there Profile become too coarse in one spot? it's almost like a build up or bumps, makes sharpening difficult, I'll email Mr. Glesser and see what he says about it.
G2
 
Originally posted by T. Erdelyi
You know that's a great idea I gotta do that. I have a lot of stones in boxes much like you, and I'm always picking up scraps of leather from the local farmers, a match made in knife heaven:cool: . ]
Click to expand...


T. Erdelyi,

It is one hell of a good idea:D; but it was not mine. I bought the stones from Handamerican with the leather attached. I was Keith DeGrau's the owner of Handamerican idea as far as I know. But it works well.
 
For just a touch up, I usually start with a smooth steel just trying to align the edge. If that won't handle it, I go to a loaded strop. If that won't get it sharp, I go to the white rods on the sharpmaker. For a touch up, that's about as abrasive as I'll go. (I try to take off as little metal as possible so I work from the least abrasive method on down to the most abrasive) If it needs anything more than the fine ceramic rods, I'll start with a med. diamond hone, then the sharpmaker, then the strop.

I got my smooth steel and my strop for handamerican.com. They are both excellent products for touch ups.
 
Touch ups?
I like cardboard. At my job we have 30x40x6" corrugated boxes, they make a great strop, better than the back of a pad.
After I'll use a scrap of leather, or my belt, sometimes.

Then again I like a toothier edge...a little 'bite' if you will.

Break down some boxes, strop on the pieces and I'm good for next time.
 
And don't ever throw away your old mouse pads! Get 400 to 1500 grit sand paper and use the mouse pad underneath if you want a convex edge. 1500 grit on a flat surface will nearly give you an edge like a straight razor.
 
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