Best method to sharpen BK21?

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May 10, 2013
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So I picked up a BK21 when they first came out, and I want to give it a nice sharpening this weekend. My only issue is I've never sharpened a kukri before (or any blade this long). Does anyone have any suggestions on the best method to sharpen it? I've been looking over YouTube vids, but a lot of them were questionable and they seemed to scratch the blade half the time.

I currently have a set of 3 DMT diamond stones, a Lansky puck, and a general whetstone. Would any of these be better to use? For my other BKs I generally use my DMT stones, but the 21 is a lot bigger and heavier. Would the puck give the needed edge? Do I sharpen it like I would an axe, to try to give it an edge like my knives?

Thanks to anyone who can pass on some of their Becker wisdom.
 
use tape to protect your coating while sharpening if you are worried.

and carefully free hand on a stone is my recommendation, just do your best to keep the angle consistent.

can't comment on the puck but dmt's or the stone should easily do the trick

I am realizing that I am not the most articulate gift to humanity.
 
I normally use a diamond rod and ceramic rod for my BK4.
The reasoning for using this over my DMT Diafolds, is that the inside edge of the recurve does not contact the flat rectangular DMT sharpener.
 
I just use a ceramic rod for the 4 and 21 . Keeps em hair popping sharp . If you ever need to work out a chip the diamond rod should do the trick. I hold the knives at about 20 degrees just slice the rod down turn the knife and slice the rod back with practice it works like a champ. Keeping the same angle is key. Make sure your rod has has a handle the slice back can get ugly without. Practice on smaller blades and get the hang of it first would be a good idea
 
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Thanks everyone, really appreciate. Just got back home with the wife and going to give this a shot.
 
Another option would be to grab a wooden dowel, some sandpaper, and the small light plastic spring clips and use them to hold the paper to the dowel (or use a spray adhesive).
Once you have these compiled, you can make any grit sharpening rod that you would like, all the way from 36 to 5k.

You will not need 36 grit, but that doesn't mean it is impossible to make.
 
Ahh, you can also use a casserole baking dish.
The ceramic in them tends to be of a slightly larger grit, so it will remove material faster than a coffee mug.
 
Damn, starting to miss my 21...
 
Thats a nice review so far Warrior still have more reading to do. Sometimes old threads like that need to be brought back up for fresh eyes to enjoy
 
I hold the blade and move the 'stone' on something this big. I actually think the fine side of your puck is a great option. I use a small or medium-sized diamond hone. For 'normal' sized blades I use a larger diamond stone on the bench and move the blade.
 
I hold the blade and move the 'stone' on something this big. I actually think the fine side of your puck is a great option. I use a small or medium-sized diamond hone. For 'normal' sized blades I use a larger diamond stone on the bench and move the blade.

Thanks for the tips. Going to take another pass with the puck. I tried moving the blade on the DMT first but it seemed like it was putting way too much weight on stone. I stopped when I became concerned it would damage the stone.

The 21 is so big it feels like I'm trying to sharpen a sword lol.
 
A fellow beckerhead CM_rick made a video awhile back on how he sharpens recurve blades. Its a pretty neat system. Maybe it will work for you're bk21.

 
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