You must know how to sharpen a pocket knife by yourself. Pocket knives are tools that are meant to be used daily, which means that they will require constant sharpening. Expensive kitchen knives and special tools require complicated sharpening processes, so many people who are not so knife savvy will take these things to be professionally sharpened.
The amount of use that a pocket knife will see will make it much more convenient to do the sharpening yourself.
The best way to sharpen a pocket knife depends on the type of pocket knife you have. Each knife is different, and many of them come with multiple blades or accessories that are meant to be used for a variety of tasks.
These cannot all be sharpened in the same way, and attempting to do so can actually destroy the blade. Look closely at the handmade damascus pocket knives you want to sharpen, and develop a strategy for each different blade.
Sharp a straight blade
The majority of pocket knives have at least one straight blade. A straight blade is one with no saw back, no serrated edges, and a traditional drop tip. These blades are the easiest to sharpen, and they only require a few prints through a decent two-phase sharpening system.
If your sharpening system requires a lubricant, apply it first. With most sharpeners, the first slot has coarse edges that sharpen the blade of the knife.
Run it right through several times, starting with the back of the knife and going up to the tip. If the tip is raised, tilt the knife to sharpen it to the edge of the tip. After five or two pulls, test the sharpness on a piece of cardboard. If it's still dull, give him two more draws and test again.
Once you are comfortable with the level of sharpness, the second slot of the sharpener is usually made of a smooth ceramic. This ceramic sharpens the blade, polishing the unfinished edges and making the cutting surface brighter and newer.
Sharpen a serrated blade
You can not pass the serrated edges through an ordinary sharpener. This is especially true with electric sharpeners. These systems will completely complete a serrated edge, rendering it useless. It can even break or chip the blade, effectively ruining the whole knife.
The serrated edges must be sharpened individually. Learning to sharpen a pocket knife with serrated edges is a little more difficult.
Most compact or portable pencil sharpeners have a diamond rod. This stem starts thick and narrows to a thin point. This is so that at least part of the rod fits into the serrations of your pocketknife.
The serrations must be sharpened on both sides. Thread the rod through the serrations until you find the right place, tilting the knife as you go. Stop just before the stem is too tight and repeat on the other side.
There is not really an effective way to sharpen the serrated edges so you can choose to polish them carefully with a soft cloth to remove any residue, such as steel or carbon chips, that come off when you sharpen the serrations.
Be careful not to slice the polishing cloth - it's the easiest way to cut your fingers.
Sharpening tools on a multifunction pocket knife
Some pocket knives, such as Swiss army knives, have a host of accessories that must be sharpened individually. Many of them are not knives and do not have the shape of knives.
This means that you have to manage them all differently. The best way to sharpen a pocket knife with accessories is to use a host of sharpening tools and take your time.
The scissors
Some pocket knives have small scissors. They are great for opening wrapped bundles of string or cutting rope lengths, but they are meant to become dull with frequent use.
Fold the scissors on the knife until they are locked, and open them completely. You will have to refine each side individually. Since the blades of these scissors are very small and delicate, patience is the key.
They are better sharpened with something like a small portable two-step pencil sharpener. Do not push the blades very hard into the sharpening slot. Instead, touch them gently and have them go very quickly.
Scissor blades also require the use of a ceramic honing slot to finish the edges.
Be very gentle with small scissors. It is better to take a long time to get a perfect advantage than sharpening in a hurry and ruining your scissors. If you destroy the attachment, you will not be able to replace it.
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