Page 104 - American Survival Guide - October 2017

piece of ceramic and quickly tighten › The author
is careful not
up an edge on almost any knife whose to get cut,
edge is not in horrible shape. especially when
sharpening
Finally, if you would like to tidy up the knives. The
Chef’s Choice
sharpening job, you can use any piece of Edge Crafter has
leather to strop the edge. The leather a magnetic base
and comes with
removes minor imperfections in the edge three diamond
abrasives. It
and gives it a modicum of polish, which protects your
will reduce some friction and improve support hand
and is packable.
performance. While this is probably not Barber considers
your goal in a sharpening emergency, it is it a safe product
something that, given the time, I would to start with.
do. It also tends to liven up the edge just
a little more than ending the process with
the use of the last hard abrasive.
WHAT TO DO FIRST
We have the tools down, so let’s move
on to the nuts and bolts behind “the inten-
tional and purposeful removing of metal.”
First, we need to establish some kind
of angle on the edge. This is not always
as easy as it sounds, but there are some
techniques that will help. One is using › Barber uses
an angle guide. the most
I have a clinometer app on my iPhone aggressive
(roughest)
that helps me establish an edge at a abrasive to
“locate the
specific angle. While you might not burr,” which,
always be able to use your phone for in his opinion,
is the most
this, it will give you an idea of where important and
often the most
to start and might allow you to set up missed element
visual markers on your abrasive. I tend to of achieving a
cutting edge.
sharpen my edges at a 20- to 23-degree You can use a
angle. This is a good utilitarian edge that back-and-forth
works fairly well for most pocket knives, sawing motion
from hilt to tip
hunting knives and the like. or a circular
You might find that using the “Sharpie motion.
technique” works better. Using a Sharpie
pen, color your sharpened edge. As you
begin to grind the edge, notice if the
marker ink has been removed from the

WITH THE
METHOD I USE
NOW, I CAN TURN
THE DULLEST
KNIFE INTO A edge. Adjust the angle of contact of the edge with the stone as needed until you have
removed all the marker ink. You can reapply the marker between abrasives until you’re ready
STRAIGHT RAZOR to use the strop. Leather will eventually remove the remaining ink, but it takes awhile.
Now that we have two ways of establishing the edge’s angle, we need to start looking for
IN ABOUT 45 the burr. You should be using your most-aggressive abrasive—somewhere between 50 and
MINUTES WITH 100 grit. This is very aggressive, but it is needed for the operation. This step is rarely talked
EASE, AND I DO about, but it could be the most important step and the best indicator of sharpness.
The technique I use to find or establish the burr I call “scrubbing.” This is either a back-and-
THAT FOR MANY forth grinding of the blade—almost as if you are trying to shave a sliver of the abrasive—or
PEOPLE ON A grinding in a circular motion.
My suggestion is to make 15 to 20 passes on one side of the blade and then turn the blade
REGULAR BASIS. over, repeating this on the other side. I do this in a sawing motion: back and forth. If you like
the circular motion, I suggest doing it for about 10 to 15 seconds on one side and then again

104 AMERICAN SURVIVAL GUIDE [OCTOBER 2017]

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