Okay, so it's not like sharpening a straight razor, but I like to put as keen an edge on it as I can. Usually I work my way up through grits, depending on blade condition. Yesterday I discovered the clip blade on my stockman knife was dull, and did the following:
A quick edge with an E-Z Lap diamond coated hone.
Moved up to a finer grade Smith synthetic stone. This is about the grit of the "fine" knife hones common in the mid through late 20th Century. In other words, it's not course, but it's not fine, either.
Next I went to an Arkansas soft stone.
Finally, I went to an Arkansas hard stone.
Used 3-in-1 (tm) machine oil for the stones.
The spay and sheepsfoot blade were slightly off, so I just touched up the edge on the hard Arkansas stone.
In my teens I used to take it further. My father had my grandfather's razor hone and strop, and that's how I used to finish. Wondering about going back to that.
So, how do you sharpen your knives?
A quick edge with an E-Z Lap diamond coated hone.
Moved up to a finer grade Smith synthetic stone. This is about the grit of the "fine" knife hones common in the mid through late 20th Century. In other words, it's not course, but it's not fine, either.
Next I went to an Arkansas soft stone.
Finally, I went to an Arkansas hard stone.
Used 3-in-1 (tm) machine oil for the stones.
The spay and sheepsfoot blade were slightly off, so I just touched up the edge on the hard Arkansas stone.
In my teens I used to take it further. My father had my grandfather's razor hone and strop, and that's how I used to finish. Wondering about going back to that.
So, how do you sharpen your knives?