knife sharpening

[Duane]

Howdy,I need some tips on sharpening a knife with a file..D

[lrb]

To be able to do that, your blade will have to be soft enough for the file to cut it without quickly wearing out the file. Less than ideal hardness by modern standards, but not uncommon for some early blades. The file will leave a bit of a ragged edge that will not last long, and will shorten the useful life of your blade, but if you insist on doing that, the process is simple. Just file the edge to about 20° each side. A soft to medium hard Arkansas stone will serve you much better, or even a flat river rock if you can find one that works for you.

[librarian]

How d' ye!

My tip.... don't.

I file removes metal fast, and leaves a coarse edge on "softer' knife edges.

IMHO, a fine file is best for creating a cutting edge on some of the cheaper modern commercial knives tha thave no real cutitgn edge- so to get a cutitng bevel to a "blunt" edge, a file is a could start. Better yet for an axe blade.
Then go to stones to create the fine bevel of the cutting edge.

Knives can have different bevels or cuting edges based upon chore or use. Obviously a cleaver can be different than a razor.

In any event, I am a poor knife, tool chisel sharpener, and there were many early yers wher eI could sharpen a blade and end up with it duller than when I started. Then I learned a few things, and while mine are not straight razors, I do get compliments (I don;t know why) for how shapr my belt knives are.

IF I had to say one thing... it is the key to sharpening is developing, learning, and practicing the ability to work the bevels of the cutting edge uniformly and consistently to the same angle.
When one "wobbles" and loses the angle, the blade suffers.

On a properly made knife, where the cutitgn edge is drawn harder than the spine say, once a blade is "sharpened" properly, more times than not unless abuse or chopping trees and cutitng rocks...

one only needs a fine stone to kiss the micropscopic/macroscopic fne edge to restore it to optimum sharpness. One really does need a "file" to sand down an edge.

But I would add, tha there are fine knife sharpening files/steels then as now, that are used to kiss an edge back to prime with an angled stroke or three.

And one does see, as with blister steel type blades, that once the hardened steel outer layer or "M & M candy coating" is used, worn, or sharpened away, that the softer mild steel or iron inside no longer holds its edge requiring more and more sharpening until the blade becomes arced or "rainbow" shaped and starts to look like a fish filet knife.

And the same is true for mass produced table type stamped cheap blades that lack a knifesmith's eye and hand or skill in differential hardening and tempering, etc., etc.,.



Mick