Sharp Stuff

I have always liked my knives to be sharp. Very sharp. I started collecting knives when I was a young boy and have most of them today. I usually found the factory edged to be lacking. So, I explored the art of sharpening knives. A common whetstone was my first tool for this. It was my fathers and using it I learned to get my knives shaving sharp. My dad gave me my first quality sharpening device, a Case Moon Stone. It's a slab of white fine grade ceramic that Case marketed back in the 70' and 80's. These are nearly impossible to find anymore.  Even on EBay.

 I kept using Arkansas whetstones for all my sharpening needs and found them quite satisfactory. After I got married, had a decent job and had a family started I invested in a triple stone oil bath stone set that I acquired at a gun show. It is in a plastic case that acts as the oil reservoir and has course, medium and fines stones. I have used it for over 20 years and is just now needing the stones turned over.

Then I discovered the Lansky sharpening system. WOW! I was astonished at the ease in which I could get a polished razor sharp edge in no time. I do need to replace some of the softer stones but the two final stones, ceramics, are as good as the first day I got the set. I gave sets to two of my friends and they love them.

Those items fill my every day sharpening needs. Until I started getting big knives. The Lansky does not work good for big blades and I have grown to depend on that one for most sharpening and lesser on the traditional stones.

 Now with big blades to sharpen I am returning to traditional stones. I am using the 3 stone with success and have ordered some others as well.
 I found this Case hard Arkansas at Smokey Mountain Knife Works. It's a tiny little thing but puts a really fine edge on my standard size pocket knives.

 

 

I also got from them these, a Washita  stone and a hard black Arkansas stone. The black one really did a job on a couple of my pocket knives.

 

 

This brings us to my latest system. In my tiny house I have lost my Chefs electric knife sharpener. Can't find it anywhere. So I looked around and had a system in mind (the EdgePro) and found it to be very expensive. Then I found someone who thought so too. They took that idea little further a created an alternative. The Gizmo sharpening system. It uses stones in a  similar manner to the Lansky but they are Japanese water stones but the whole system and process is different. And this device does get a knife extremely sharp if you follow the directions. (link to come)

 

 

 

I also ordered an India stone based on a Bill Bagwell video I watched that covered sharpening big bowies. I can't find the black India stone that bill and one of my grandfathers favored. This is what I found. And it seems to work pretty good on my Cold Steel Natchez bowie along with a leather strop

If you own a cutting tool of any sort you need to be able to sharpen it. Get a stone and try it. You'll be glad you did as a sharp knife is far superior to a dull one.