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features articles I have published over the years in various
trapping magazines. The articles have been updated with "Fast
Forward" information as different perspectives
have emerged since the material was published. Articles previously
published here may be viewed in the Rewind
Archives -- Hal
           
GETTING YOUR KNIFE STONED
By Hal Sullivan
(This article first appeared in Trapper and
Predator Caller April 1995)
 The average
citizen in today's society has little or no appreciation for a sharp knife.
I fondly remember my father being asked to slice a canned ham and politely
refusing to do so when he found that the host's sharpest carving knife
wouldn't touch it. Of all the people I know, sportsmen are the ones most
likely to have a sharp knife on hand. And of that group, I would say that
trappers are most likely to recognize the need for a sharp knife.
Pelting an animal
is not exactly a precision operation, but it must be done with some care.
You can't just hack away at a pelt with a dull knife and expect good
results. A sharp knife makes this work faster, easier, and usually results
in a better looking pelt. Knives naturally get dull with use, but this will
be of little consequence if you are prepared to bring back the edge by
resharpening it.
There have been a
number of new sharpening tools introduced in the last ten or twenty years.
Predominant among these are the ceramic sticks and the hard "carbide" type
sharpeners that are drawn down the length of the blade while the V-shaped
groove cuts a new edge. These tools do work okay for sharpening a knife.
Personally, I don't think they give the best edge, but they are certainly
preferable to having nothing at all with which to sharpen a knife.
My preference for
sharpening knives, is a bench stone. These stones come in different sizes
although they are all rectangular shaped. There are also many different
grades of these stones separated as to their abrasive qualities, and as to
the general quality of the stone itself. If you are looking for a bench
stone, you can generally gauge its quality by its price.
The traditional
bench stones are made of blocks of abrasive material. The average stone is
about three-quarters of an inch thick and two inches by five or six inches
is a standard size. Combination stones are available that have a coarse grit
on one side, for working on extremely dull knives, and a fine grit on the
other side, which will see the most use. If you are selecting a single grit
stone, get one with a medium fine or a fine grit.
Before you can successfully use a traditional bench stone, you should have
some idea of how they work. Like a file or a grinding stone, a bench stone
cuts away at the metal through abrasion, or scraping away at the surface of
the metal. But unlike a file or grinding wheel, a bench stone is not
designed to work dry. On a bench stone oil, or sometimes water, is applied
to the surface of the stone. As you drag your knife across the stone, the
abrasive materials are scraped up and mixed with the oil to make a grinding
compound. This abrasive slurry is a major factor in getting continued good
results sharpening on a bench stone.
If you sharpen on
a dry stone, you will pack the pours of the stone full of worn out
abrasives, and soon the stone will plug up and not cut properly. The liquid
holds these worn out abrasives in suspension, and they can be removed from
the surface of the stone to expose new, fresh abrasives. One hint I would
offer, is to daub off the stone with a clean rag or paper towel after each
session of use. Even an oiled stone can get plugged up if the old abrasives
are not removed periodically, or don't run off the side with the excess oil.
For the last few
years, I have been using a new type of "stone" manufactured by Diamond
Machine Technology. Although it has the same shape as a traditional bench
stone, it is not a stone at all, in fact, the body is made from a block of
plastic! The cutting surface on the stone consists of steel plate covered
with nickel and impregnated with diamond dust. In case you didn't know,
diamond is one of the hardest materials on earth.
This thing
sharpens like crazy. There are other flat diamond sharpeners on the market,
but this one has a unique surface. The plate has a polka-dot pattern of
holes in it. These holes catch the metal particles that are scraped off the
knife, and help keep the cutting surface clean.
Since it doesn't
have any pours, you can even use it dry, although I do find a little water
splashed on the surface helps it cut better. It can get gummed up with crud
and metal particles after a while, but that's easy to remedy. I just take it
to the sink and scrub it up with soap and water. Since it all plastic and
nickeled steel, you can't hurt it.
As for the
abrasive surface itself, after several years of use, I can determine no wear
whatsoever, the hone cuts as good as when it was new. Diamond is tough
stuff. Traditional stones show some cupping on the surface after a period of
time, but with a plate of steel, and a diamond surface, it can't happen
here.
There is one
mitigating factor. These hones are priced in the $35 to $40 range. That's a
lot for a sharpening stone. However, it will outperform and outlast a
traditional stone hands down. Consider it a lifetime investment. These
stones come graded as extra fine, fine, coarse, and extra coarse. Despite
its designation, get the coarse model. The finer grades are more for
finishing up the edges on an already sharp knife.
Some folks
believe there is no wrong way to hone a knife, as long as it comes out sharp
when you're done with it. It is true that having any kind of a sharp knife
is better than having a dull one, but how you sharpen your knife has an
influence on how good an edge you will get, and how long it will last.
The angle at
which you hold your knife to the stone will determine what kind of edge you
get. The proper angle for most knives is about fifteen degrees. If you hold
your knife flatter than this, you will get a very fine "razor" edge. This
edge may be very sharp, but because it is so thin, it will dull rapidly and
may be subject to nicks and chips in the weakened metal. Going the other
way, holding the knife more straight up, will result in a flat heavy edge
that will not get exceedingly sharp. However, such an edge will hold up a
long time and, I put this kind of semi-sharp but tough edge on knives I use
for rough service.
Another thing
that will have an influence on your finished edge is the direction that you
take the knife across the stone. If you rub your knife across the stone with
the back of the blade leading and the sharp edge dragging behind, you are
going backwards. With this type of stroke, you will roll a micro-fine wire
edge of metal from the underside of the blade, and it curls around the edge
to the upper side. When you turn the knife over, this wire edge curls back,
eventually it breaks off leaving a rather jagged edge, although this may not
be apparent to the human eye.
While it may not
seem quite logical to run the sharp edge of your knife forward on the stone;
that is exactly how you should do it. This way, the abrasives strike the
dull edge first, and your stroke pushes the metal back towards the heavy
part of the blade. You will remove less metal from the blade, and the edge
will be smooth and clean with no wires or burs to break off and dull the
knife.
Start with the
hilt of the knife at one end of the stone, and holding your fifteen to
twenty degree angle, pretend you are slicing the surface off the stone. Draw
the knife forward, and swing in downward in an arc so the tip of the knife
is finishing the stroke at the other end of the stone. Then turn the blade
over, and do the same on the other side.
Take an equal
number of strokes on both sides to keep the edge on center.
It is sometimes hard to get this stroke down right, and it may be helpful
for the beginner to use both hands. Grip the handle of the knife in one
hand, and use the fingers of your other hand on the back of the blade to
guide it. Work slowly until you get the feel of it. Sometimes, the stones
have a tendency to slip with the knife. To alleviate this try putting some
kind of pad under the stone. Felt would be good, or an old piece of rubber
innertube will help keep the stone from sliding. One definite word of
caution: DO NOT attempt to hold the stone in place with one hand while you
sharpen with the other.
Here is one final
little tidbit that doesn't actually have to do with sharpening a knife, but
can help you to prolong your edge. Try to avoid hitting bones and especially
teeth with your knife. Teeth have enamel which is super hard, much harder
than knife steel, and bones are not very good for the edge of a knife
either. If you exercise a little caution, especially in the head area of an
animal, you may save yourself time at the sharpening stone, and the
aggravation of dulling your knife.
Usually, when I
start a skinning session, I lay my bench stone on the worktable where it is
handy. If I lose the edge on my knife, a few strokes across the stone will
bring it back. This way, I avoid lengthy sessions at the stone trying to
revive an extremely dull knife, and I avoid having to work with a knife that
is in bad condition. There are other ways to sharpen a knife, but they are
not much handier, and won't do any better job than a good bench stone.
###
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