sharpening a swiss army knife

[Scott_Servais]

which method works better, a ceramic pull through sharpener or using the bottom of a mug?  which one will do less damage to the blade?  When sharpening freehand, how can you tell the difference between holding the blade at 20 degrees vs holding it at 18 degrees?

[SAK Guy]

The ceramic pull through is ok...it's the carbide ones that can damage your blade. Any sharpening stone will require instruction or study and practice to get the angle/edge right much less not scratch up the blade.

Light pressure with the pull through.

[leathermon]

Does it matter if you pull the knife starting at the base toward you, or the opposite where you push away starting with the tip?

[magentus]

which method works better, a ceramic pull through sharpener or using the bottom of a mug?  which one will do less damage to the blade?  When sharpening freehand, how can you tell the difference between holding the blade at 20 degrees vs holding it at 18 degrees?

Learning to sharpen free hand is a real skill and requires practise, but is very doable. If I have any advice it's to not sweat the small stuff. I used to obsess about getting the right angle, but unless you're sharpening for surgery how sharp does a SAK blade need to be?

I set my blade at a 45 degree angle, then halve it and then a touch more and it'll be roughly 20 degrees.
Then, holding the rod/steel/stone in my left hand I sharpen from the base to the tip away from me on the left hand side of the blade and towards me on the right hand side.

I can get it sharp enough to shave my arm hair and slice paper from a chefs steel (that my dad taught me on) or a tiny ceramic rod I got from a recycling store. I also use a DC4 sharpener.

Do you have a beater SAK that you can practise on? practise makes perfect and you'll feel more relaxed if you're not wrecking/sharpening your best blade.

[pfrsantos]

which method works better, a ceramic pull through sharpener or using the bottom of a mug?  which one will do less damage to the blade?  When sharpening freehand, how can you tell the difference between holding the blade at 20 degrees vs holding it at 18 degrees?

Learning to sharpen free hand is a real skill and requires practise, but is very doable. If I have any advice it's to not sweat the small stuff. I used to obsess about getting the right angle, but unless you're sharpening for surgery how sharp does a SAK blade need to be?

I set my blade at a 45 degree angle, then halve it and then a touch more and it'll be roughly 20 degrees.
Then, holding the rod/steel/stone in my left hand I sharpen from the base to the tip away from me on the left hand side of the blade and towards me on the right hand side.

I can get it sharp enough to shave my arm hair and slice paper from a chefs steel (that my dad taught me on) or a tiny ceramic rod I got from a recycling store. I also use a DC4 sharpener.

Do you have a beater SAK that you can practise on? practise makes perfect and you'll feel more relaxed if you're not wrecking/sharpening your best blade.

That and that.

Get some old/inexpensive kitchen knife for practice. Sharpen it, get it dull by cutting some hard wood or cardboard and start all over again until you feel confortable doing it.

 

[skidoosh]

Get a Spyderco sharpmaker, it will help you sharpen anything. After that get a strop. Pull throughs if they are carbide will rip up the blade. Ceramic ones eventually get clogged.

[cbl51]

Too many people over think knife sharpening. It's a simple thing to do, and you need no fancy tools to get a shaving sharp knife. Especially a SAK.

The bottom of a coffee mug will do, if it's a 'good' coffee mug. Not all coffee mugs are equal. Some have a very narrow little ring, others have a much wider ring. I've got a few favorites.

As to angle, don't obsess over it. The material you are cutting will not know of the blade is sharpened at 18 degrees, or 20 degrees, or even 23 degrees. If you don't over think, and just relax, you will find it more instinctive than not.

Take the coffee mug or stone, and lay the knife on it like you are going to slice it in half. Like you are going to saw down through it. That's about 90 degrees. Now lay the knife blade over so you cut that angle in half. That should put you about 45 degrees. Now cut that angle in half, and you're actually in the neighborhood. Starting at the base of the blade, the kick, slowly draw the edge down the unglazed ring on the bottom of the mug.

Now do that about five times then switch to the other side of the blade. SAK's don't take a lot of effort to get sharp. A few times on each side and you will see a difference. After a few ties, try it on a pice of paper to see if it slices easy. When you get it sharp enough to catch on your finger print, strop it on the back of a belt and you're ready to go. Use a dry erase marker to keep track of how ell you're holding the contact with the mug. Some variation is normal, so don't worry. The knife is not going to know the difference of 2 or 3 degrees. After stropping it will be sharp.

Biggest thing people do is, tense up. Relax, take it easy and don't think about it. Just feel the edge on the ceramic. Once you get the feel, you're home free.

Google 'Instinctive knife sharpening', and also using a stone from a parking lot.

[magentus]

Too many people over think knife sharpening. It's a simple thing to do, and you need no fancy tools to get a shaving sharp knife. Especially a SAK.

The bottom of a coffee mug will do, if it's a 'good' coffee mug. Not all coffee mugs are equal. Some have a very narrow little ring, others have a much wider ring. I've got a few favorites.

As to angle, don't obsess over it. The material you are cutting will not know of the blade is sharpened at 18 degrees, or 20 degrees, or even 23 degrees. If you don't over think, and just relax, you will find it more instinctive than not.

Take the coffee mug or stone, and lay the knife on it like you are going to slice it in half. Like you are going to saw down through it. That's about 90 degrees. Now lay the knife blade over so you cut that angle in half. That should put you about 45 degrees. Now cut that angle in half, and you're actually in the neighborhood. Starting at the base of the blade, the kick, slowly draw the edge down the unglazed ring on the bottom of the mug.

Now do that about five times then switch to the other side of the blade. SAK's don't take a lot of effort to get sharp. A few times on each side and you will see a difference. After a few ties, try it on a pice of paper to see if it slices easy. When you get it sharp enough to catch on your finger print, strop it on the back of a belt and you're ready to go. Use a dry erase marker to keep track of how ell you're holding the contact with the mug. Some variation is normal, so don't worry. The knife is not going to know the difference of 2 or 3 degrees. After stropping it will be sharp.

Biggest thing people do is, tense up. Relax, take it easy and don't think about it. Just feel the edge on the ceramic. Once you get the feel, you're home free.

Google 'Instinctive knife sharpening', and also using a stone from a parking lot.

What he said 

[SAK Guy]

Does it matter if you pull the knife starting at the base toward you, or the opposite where you push away starting with the tip?

Pull it...more control and you work through the complete radius of the tip.

[Scott_Servais]

do you sharpen the reamer using the same angle as the main blade?

[magentus]

do you sharpen the reamer using the same angle as the main blade?

No, the reamer has a definite angle to it. Rest it on your stone until you find angle and pull it towards you.

[cbl51]

Again, I will use a dry erase marker to color the edge, and rock it back and forth until I find the right angle, then either draw it towards me, or use the small circle method to hone the edge for a good sharp cutting edge.

[wjruth]

I took a few pics of what I was doing this morning.
http://imgur.com/gallery/Yr3vE

[cbl51]

I took a few pics of what I was doing this morning.
http://imgur.com/gallery/Yr3vE

Yep, that's pretty much it!

[wjruth]

I took a few pics of what I was doing this morning.
http://imgur.com/gallery/Yr3vE

Yep, that's pretty much it!

Your description of the draw and such is better than my little blurb. 

[GoatDragon]

I took a few pics of what I was doing this morning.
http://imgur.com/gallery/Yr3vE

Judging by the use of Imgur and the character of the comments contained therein, I am going to assume you cross posted these pictures on reddit. 

Out of curiosity, may I see the link to the reddit thread?

[powernoodle]

I never knew that you could sharpen a SAK blade.  I've just been throwing mine away when they get dull.  This is great news!

[GoatDragon]

I never knew that you could sharpen a SAK blade.  I've just been throwing mine away when they get dull.  This is great news!

Wait, really? I can't tell if your joking or not.

[zoidberg]

I never knew that you could sharpen a SAK blade.  I've just been throwing mine away when they get dull.  This is great news!

Wait, really? I can't tell if your joking or not.

He is serious. We don't allow joking here.

[mrynnr]

I never knew that you could sharpen a SAK blade.  I've just been throwing mine away when they get dull.  This is great news!

Wait, really? I can't tell if your joking or not.

He is serious. We don't allow joking here.

O...M...G... for realzys???

[zoidberg]

I never knew that you could sharpen a SAK blade.  I've just been throwing mine away when they get dull.  This is great news!

Wait, really? I can't tell if your joking or not.

He is serious. We don't allow joking here.

O...M...G... for realzys???

[captain spaulding]

Hi-Point. Might as well be a paper weight. 

[SAK Guy]

I never knew that you could sharpen a SAK blade.  I've just been throwing mine away when they get dull.  This is great news!

Wait, really? I can't tell if your joking or not.

He is serious. We don't allow joking here.

O...M...G... for realzys???

Oh yeah! You see, Powernoodle is a big Victorinox stockholder so every time he buys a new SAK...he makes money.   

[GoatDragon]

I never knew that you could sharpen a SAK blade.  I've just been throwing mine away when they get dull.  This is great news!

Wait, really? I can't tell if your joking or not.

He is serious. We don't allow joking here.

O...M...G... for realzys???

Oh yeah! You see, Powernoodle is a big Victorinox stockholder so every time he buys a new SAK...he makes money.   

That would explain a lot of this forum, would it not?

[wjruth]

I took a few pics of what I was doing this morning.
http://imgur.com/gallery/Yr3vE

Judging by the use of Imgur and the character of the comments contained therein, I am going to assume you cross posted these pictures on reddit. 

Out of curiosity, may I see the link to the reddit thread?

This was my first album post on imgur and not posted to reddit. I'm betting it would be some fun comments though.

[Don Pablo]

I never knew that you could sharpen a SAK blade.  I've just been throwing mine away when they get dull.  This is great news!

Wait, really? I can't tell if your joking or not.

He is serious. We don't allow joking here.

O...M...G... for realzys???

(Image removed from quote.)

You had me in stitches.
powernoodle, we were joking about this sharpening stuff. You cannot sharpen a SAK blade. 



P.S Can I have your old knives? Since they are useless, you might as well give them to me. 

[VoetSak]

Hahaha sharpening. That's absurd. That would suggest you used the knife. Meaning you unlocked the cabinet......opened the box.....read the instructions........Seriously though if you do edc one carry a cheaper sharp knife with it. That way your sak will always be sharp. I edc a Swiss Champ and a full tool box to prevent any wear to the sak tools. I know this method works because I have never had to ask for sharpening advice.

[VoetSak]

On a serious note I have had good results with a lansky sharpening system. If used carefully it maintains a nice looking edge very similar to the factory one.

[cbl51]

One of the best qualities of the SAK steel is, it's soooo easy to sharpen anywhere you happen to be. It's easy to find natural materials to use, like a smooth rock from a stream or river, a piece of pottery, coffee mug, top edge of a car window, back of a belt, boot top. cardboard back of a note pad, corner of a brick wall.

I have in the past taken a very smooth stone from a creek, and using a edge trailing stropping motion, got a dull SAK back to where it would slice open a package of Mountain House freeze dried beef stroganoff.

I guess I'm one of those rare knife people that really don't want the latest greatest wonder steel of the month that goes through 25 deer without needing to sharpen. When they do need sharpening, it's gonna be a real job if you're out in the middle of nowhere.

[SAK Guy]

Me too....the old ways are best least we forget the lessons we learned from them.