Page 107 - American Survival Guide - October 2017

go back to using the Sharpie, making
corrections as you work on perfecting
this skill. Remember that this will not be
“magic” the first time … or maybe even
the tenth time. These are skills that take
time to learn and perfect, so be patient
with yourself as you learn.
After about 20 swipes on both sides, you
should be ready to move on to the final
abrasive—a 600 grit. In this stage, you
will repeat everything you just did with
the 300 grit. Find the burr, ever so slight
as it might be, and make another 20 or so
strokes to both sides, trying to keep the
edge even on both sides.
If all this worked just the way I wrote it,
your knife is now sharp, and you should be
able to cut pretty well with it. I would not
attempt to trim my beard with this edge,
but if you feel confident (and have a good
supply of bandages), go for it.
Now, I am going to move on to my
trusty dog bone sharpener. You can
also use an old knob-and-tube ceramic
insulator or any small, round piece of
ceramic or similar high-grit abrasive. My
dog bone is 1,200 to 1,400 grit. While
this is technically a manmade stone, it
is not going to hollow out as a flat stone
would and will maintain its grit after

‹ Above: While not
the only standard
for judging sharp-
ness, it is a fairly
good test of your
knife’s edge if you
can slice a piece of
paper. See if your
knife can cut from
end to end without
snagging the
paper. Sometimes,
the edge will hang
on a piece of pa-
per. This indicates
that you need to
pay a little more
attention to that
area of the edge.

‹ Left: Barber
doesn’t think
these “once-and-
done” sharpeners
are worth your
money. They are
not practical, and
typically, you
will only dull
your edge. He has
owned this partic-
ular sharpener for
14 years.
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