Does anyone use a file to sharpen their knives?

hell no! with all the new sharpening systems these days,like edge pro and sharpmaker,why go stone-age!:barf:
 
As a complete novice to sharpening, I'd only do more damage than good if I tried that. Might as well use a river rock and hope for the best...
 
I use a file to sharpen my Marine Raider Bowie. It's a heavy duty camp knife for chopping firewood and busting up old pallets. It don't have to be razor sharp and a file works just fine.
 
I use one on my lawnmower blades, my knives get softly caressed on hard Arkansas, lubed with whale oil. A file? rukdngme?
 
Roughing the edge with a file then beating it on a steel then again on a ceramic surely is an interesting way to sharpen.

Might as well be selling you a pull through sharpener...
 
Using a file is the normal way farmers in S.E. Asia all sharpen their farm tools; machetes, scythes, axes, sickles, and knives. When they swing a sickle to harvest rice or vegetables, the toothy edge of their curved tools acts like a cross-cut saw and takes them down with very little effort. Their tools are all made of carbon steel, often taken from leaf springs of old cars, a large machete costs them about $4, and a twenty seconds with a file gives them an excellent working edge. They don't have time to sit down for an hour to sharpen on a stone. They have work to do.

Living in northern Thailand, I often see road-side stands set up selling new tools, usually 100-200 different items leaning against bamboo racks. The stands might remain for 3-4 days, then move to a different busy road for the next few days. On the weekends, the vendors set up in the local street markets. These aren't 'Microtecs' or 'Sebenzas,' but for $4-$6 USD, you can buy some good working tools!
 
If the Rockwell C is in the mid/low 50s or lower it can do a good job. They are not good at removing the burr. Once the RC climbs into the mid/upper 50s the file rapidly drops off as a useful tool.
 
HeavyHanded said:
If the Rockwell C is in the mid/low 50s or lower it can do a good job. They are not good at removing the burr. Once the RC climbs into the mid/upper 50s the file rapidly drops off as a useful tool.
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Yep. I use files to set initial bevels on my unsharpened swords (Windlass @ 45-50HRC and Universal Swords @ upper 30s to low 40s HRC). They're great for soft carbon steels like these, but they just skate right off harder stuff, in my experience.
 
I use a file on my machetes. For most yard work the toothy edge works great. When we did the Costa Rica rain forest trip, all the guides used a small flat file carried in the machete sheath to touch up the small machetes they wore and used for camp chores.

Aroudn the house I just use a coffee mug.
 
jackknife said:
I use a file on my machetes. For most yard work the toothy edge works great. When we did the Costa Rica rain forest trip, all the guides used a small flat file carried in the machete sheath to touch up the small machetes they wore and used for camp chores.

Aroudn the house I just use a coffee mug.
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I always did use a file on axes, hatchets, machetes, and such. You can progressively go with a lighter touch to leave less file marks, just like with a stone. Then you can finish with a stone if you like.



Also... back in the youthful, dumb days of carrying a Paki Buck110 clone I would sharpen with a file, at least daily. Pot metal responds well to a file as well. ☺
 
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I think a lot of my interest in sharpening was spurred, a long time ago, in watching my Dad sharpen a yellow-handled fish knife (w/clip blade and scaler/hook remover) he used on our fishing trips. It wasn't anything special, just a Japanese-made 'Sabre' brand in stainless steel (no idea what grade or type). He used a small triangular file to resharpen it after he'd cleaned the fish we caught (rainbow & brown trout, sometimes crappies as well). The file was the only thing he used for that; no additional steeling or stropping or honing needed. That knife was always nicely toothy-sharp after he'd finished with the file, and zipped through those fish with ease. :)

In the right hands, and with the 'right' steels that can respond to it, it can work pretty well.


David
 
Obsessed with Edges said:
I think a lot of my interest in sharpening was spurred, a long time ago, in watching my Dad sharpen a yellow-handled fish knife (w/clip blade and scaler/hook remover) he used on our fishing trips. It wasn't anything special, just a Japanese-made 'Sabre' brand in stainless steel (no idea what grade or type). He used a small triangular file to resharpen it after he'd cleaned the fish we caught (rainbow & brown trout, sometimes crappies as well). The file was the only thing he used for that; no additional steeling or stropping or honing needed. That knife was always nicely toothy-sharp after he'd finished with the file, and zipped through those fish with ease. :)

In the right hands, and with the 'right' steels that can respond to it, it can work pretty well.


David
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I had the same knife your dad had and was one of my first. I used a norton combo stone w/oil and it cost less then the video tools. I'm sure I had a better edge.
 
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