Sharpener(s)?

L

Lyndino

Joined
Feb 22, 2022
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Hello, I'm new here.
Couple of questions about sharpening knives. I don't have any special knives yet, just a couple of cheapie gifts I was given through the years.
1. What would be the ideal sharpener / grit level for a knife that is used for camp tasks and field dressing game?
2. Pull through or a small stone?

All the knives I have state "Stainless China" so I'm guessing not great steel to begin with.
 
A friend of mine has the work sharp precision adjust and he loves it for knives like you want to sharpen. Their only $50 or so. I would spend the extra $$ and get the elite package ( I think that's what is called)
 
LTurk said:
A friend of mine has the work sharp precision adjust and he loves it for knives like you want to sharpen. Their only $50 or so. I would spend the extra $$ and get the elite package ( I think that's what is called)
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Those sound great and probably work even better but I'm wondering if I'll need a more portable system to take camping / put in my hunting bag.
Buying a decent sharpener / sharpener system is one thing but a knife that's over $100 is ground for divorce in my house.
 
Hoping to keep this short but I have a tendency to be long winded so apologies ahead of time...

When thinking about sharpening it is most important to consider the material looking to be sharpened (what steel/alloy), the size of the material being sharpened (Blade thickness and length really matter here) your individual skill (how much skill you have now and how much you would be willing to learn) and finally where you are looking to sharpen primarily.

I say all of this because it is often easy to just google "best sharpener" and come up with a rather myopic opinion from someone that sharpens one type of knife (outdoors, kitchen, pocket knife etc) and there are some great sharpeners that cater to each of these.

The work sharp precision adjust is a great system for pocket knives especially if you are going to be working on some tougher alloys since it comes with diamonds. However, the clamp system is going to be limited in its use-fullness for very thick outdoors blades and longer blades since the guide rod is only so long and the extreme angle caused by having a tip several inches away from the clamp point.

If you are really looking for a do it all especially for larger outdoors blades with cheap steel, I would just go ahead and get some flat bench stones. They are portable and can be brought into the field with you rather than a clamp system which is bulky, needs a flat surface, and doesnt pack up all that well. Stones have a learning curve to be sure but for this specific application, getting ceramic spyderco medium and fine benchstones for well under 100$ would take care of all your outdoor sharpening needs while also being portable, not requiring water or oil to use, and being plenty aggressive to throw a microbevel back on an outdoors oriented blade before each use.
 
When it comes to portability, there are a few options.
To take camping could mean, you have a car nearby. Then it is not all about weight. Or in your hunting bag could mean: small and lightweight.
Popular stones for outdoor activities / backpacking etc. are Fällkniven DC4, Fällkniven CC4, Spyderco Double Stuff, Spyderco Double Stuff 2, Pocket stones from DMT (including DiaFold), EZE-LAP (EZE-FOLD), Pocket Arkansas Stones from Dan's or PREYDA ( for example). Smith's has pocket stones, portable diamond sharpeners as well as Lansky.
 
Yeah, any of the well-known diamond hones or diamond/ceramic combos from DMT (Dia-Fold, etc), Fallkniven (DC3/4), EZ-Lap and others would be about as universally useful as can be found. I wouldn't bother with pull-through sharpeners - they're too limited in what they can do, and edges often won't be durable after the fact, if the carbide-scraper inserts are utilized in them.

( Agree with Papilio above, about 'portability' being subject to one's frame of reference. Reminds me of when I was in the military, working as an electronics technician. We had an as-named 'portable field calibration unit' for part of our electronics gear. It was roughly the size of a very large metal beer cooler and weighed 100-150 lbs. or so. But, like a 'portable' beer cooler, it had handles on it - fold-away steel handles that did a nice job cutting off the circulation in your fingers, if carried very far. But because it's designation named it so, it was 'portable' and easily carried by two strong, young men. I laugh every time I think back about that. :) )
 
Obsessed with Edges said:
( Agree with Papilio above, about 'portability' being subject to one's frame of reference. Reminds me of when I was in the military, working as an electronics technician. We had an as-named 'portable field calibration unit' for part of our electronics gear. It was roughly the size of a very large metal beer cooler and weighed 100-150 lbs. or so. But, like a 'portable' beer cooler, it had handles on it - fold-away steel handles that did a nice job cutting off the circulation in your fingers, if carried very far. But because it's designation named it so, it was 'portable' and easily carried by two strong, young men. I laugh every time I think back about that. :) )
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:D. Nowadays you have memories making you laugh. But back then it doesn't sound as if it was fun.
 
Papilio said:
:D. Nowadays you have memories making you laugh. But back then it doesn't sound as if it was fun.
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That was about 35+ years ago. As a young man in my early 20s at the time, my military experience in peacetime, significantly, was all part of a big adventure for me. So, it was even fun back then, but maybe in a different way. The word 'portable' was actually stencilled on that big, heavy box. I laughed at that, even back then. :)
 
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Not for the first time I would recommend the Worksharp Field Sharpener. It's relatively small (about the size of a large folder), has course and fine diamond plates, ceramic rods for finishing or sharpening serrations, and a small leather strop preloaded with green compound. Importantly, since you're probably new to freehand sharpening, it has 20° angle guides for the diamond plates to help you keep your angle. That's also a pretty good sharpening angle for a camp knife, but you're not restricted to it.
 
000Robert said:
Wicked Edge all the way! They also have cases that you can carry them in. I recommend the Pro Pack 3.
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They’re great, but Overkill to sharpen what he’s talking about, and not exactly what I’d want to use at a campsite.

I’d just get a diafold and call it done.
 
AntDog said:
They’re great, but Overkill to sharpen what he’s talking about, and not exactly what I’d want to use at a campsite.

I’d just get a diafold and call it done.
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That's what I did for most of my life. But I can sit my WE130 in my lap and sharpen knives if I had to. He's here now - he'll be buying some nice knives...;)
 
lots of info to consider above for shapeners

for touchups, at home or on the go, something like a spyderco sharpmaker or lansky crock sticks work for me
 
I have been very happy with my old Spyderco Sharpmaker. It is not the most sophisticated sharpener design out there but it is easy to use and does a good job.
 
I use a Fallkniven DC4 stone with two grit levels on it. Also paired with a DMT duo fold (fine/course). Those are used for touch up. The other is a homemade strop. Use a Tandy leather 2 inch wide strip and glue it to a small piece of 1/4 " plywood using wood glue. One side smooth the other rough. That seems to be all I need when traveling or in the field. You can also make your own paddle strop using paint stir sticks and leather, then put sharpening compounds on them.
For home use I like the Spyderco sharpmaker. With additional dimond rods for it. Hope that gives you some ideas.
20220227_194940.jpg 20220227_194948.jpg
 
Grosse318 said:
I use a Fallkniven DC4 stone with two grit levels on it. Also paired with a DMT duo fold (fine/course). Those are used for touch up. The other is a homemade strop. Use a Tandy leather 2 inch wide strip and glue it to a small piece of 1/4 " plywood using wood glue. One side smooth the other rough. That seems to be all I need when traveling or in the field. You can also make your own paddle strop using paint stir sticks and leather, then put sharpening compounds on them.
For home use I like the Spyderco sharpmaker. With additional dimond rods for it. Hope that gives you some ideas.
View attachment 1754008 View attachment 1754009
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How well does wood glue hold the leather?

I used rubber cement when making a home made strop. You apply it to both surfaces and let it get tacky before sticking them together.
 
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