sharpening knife without fancy kit???

[timtom1]

ok how do you sharpen a knife without japanese waterstones for example your in a survival situtation and you've left everything but your knife at home?

Another question what is the best way to clean your blade if it gets marked or dirty?

[Bardster]

Various methods spring to mind... Depends really on how much it needs sharpening and where you are. In a birch forect for example you may well find razor strop fungus. The edge of a stone or broken glass can put an edge back on a knife. cardboard can be used as a strop - as can your leather belt or even your jeans. It really does depend on how blunt it is :) :)

[spamel]

find two relatively flat stones, try sandstone, arub them together so that you flatten a side. Then use it like a normal sharpening stone. You can use a rounded stone from a river aswell, and quartz supposedly does the job too.

Try it out and see how you get on.

[Shing]

Any relatively flat and smooth stone particularly sandstone could be used to sharpen a knife.

[timtom1]

thanks for that :) whats the best way to clean the blade if it gets marked or dirty?

[Kepis]

thanks for that :) whats the best way to clean the blade if it gets marked or dirty?

I use the sludge that's generated when i sharpen the blade on my waterstones, just rub over the blade with your index finger, i find that gets rid of most marks and stains, if's it's real bad i use the finest grade of wet & dry i can find ( http://www.axminster.co.uk/product.asp?pf_id=19877&recno=5 ) and gently rub it over the blade with a block, i find this also works, i started a post a while ago that you might find of interest, you can find it here http://www.bushcraftuk.com/community/showthread.php?t=7509

Hope it helps

[Tantalus]

Use the unglazed ring on the bottom of a plate or other piece of pottery

easy :)

your very own ceramic sharpener, you already own dozens of them

Tant