Improvised sharpening

[philaw]

I thought it might be interesting to make up a thread of everyday items that we have around us that can be used for sharpening. I bet some people here know of some good improvised things, as well as some traditional ones. After we read a few new ideas we'll all start to notice some of our own.

Here's number 1: Pendants! I got a viking whetstone pendant from ragweed forge that both looked cool, and being very smooth jasper, are useful for polishing a blade in addition to your usual kit. Unfortunately I dropped mine on a concrete floor and it broke in half. Now it's smaller and more comfortable to carry.

I got myself a jade buddha pendant yesterday, and got it blessed at the local temple at my wife's suggestion. A bit odd for an atheist, but temple's are some of the only non-commercial places left, and I like them. Anyhow, it ocurred to me that jade being both hard and composed of very fine crystals (it was used by 'stone age' chinese to make knives), it might be good for knife sharpening. If I find a nice rectangular pendant I could wear it it everyday and always have something handy. Anyone ever tried it or got any thoughts? What other cheap semi-precious stones, commonly used in pendants, etc, would be good?

[Andy]

car window
glass table matt (some think they are cutting boards :eek: )
unglazed part of ceramic pots (plates/mugs etc)
sandstone rubbed into a green stick
nail file

[philaw]

Good stuff Andy. Do you mean that you rub sand/ sandstone on to a green stick to embed grains in it, and use then use the stick to sharpen your knife? It sounds like it would scratch the blade. Glass is about as everyday as it gets, as is the unglazed-bottom-of-a-mug, and they're exactly what I was thinking of.

Let's keep it coming.

[Andrzej]

Will the glass place mats get damaged by the blade, I don't want to just try it on my girlfriends glass coasters, or else there will be trouble.

[addyb]

Yes, I'd suggest not sharpening on your girlfriend's glass coasters......

Otherwise you may end up sleeping on the couch for a while!

heheheh

A.

[Andrzej]

I could always try, we do have a sofa bed!!!

[Andy]

glass is a LOT harder then knife steel. You wont damage the glass trying to sharpen a knife on it.

[Moine]

Natural :
- very smooth and hard river stone (either flat or rounded for convex edges)

Transformed/non-natural :
- steel wire (it's a steel after all)
- the spine of another knife as a steel
- wet/dry sandpaper (that's what I use all the time)
- Any roundish rod made of something hard and soft (ok, now you've got your imagination going wild, I'm talking sharpening here : glass, ceramic, steel, etc.) :)

For an extreme hone : sheet of paper on the mouse pad. That's scary. You use it as a strop. Try it. Scalpel is an euphemism.

You don't need the thing to be harder than your steel if you don't cut into it and use a strop-like motion (spine first). So anything soft will do, actually. The palm of my hand or my pants are good strops.

Cheers,

David

[redcollective]

One of my wifes emery boards - quite a useful edge on my pocketknife with that. It is a bit flexible though - I think it would put a rounded edge on anything bigger.