You know the best way to keep a knife sharp?

[kbaknife]

Don't let it get dull.    

I'm just sayin'.

[Lin Rhea]

Gettin bored Karl?  

[kbaknife]

No, but I had this conversation yesterday with a new client and I really had to drive that point home to him.
I also had a hunting buddy at my house yesterday with a knife that needed to be sharpened.
He had literally taken it to the point where you could MEASURE the flat cutting edge. And he was cussing the blade.
So, I had to educate him as well.
I took that knife to my "machines" in the shop and only brought it to about 95% completion.
Then, had him imagine the situation where he was away from home, and had no sharpening "tools" and his knife was now in the current condition - dull.
I had him roll his truck window down and I finished sharpening the knife on the top edge of the window to where it shaved hair off his arm.
I took one of my shop knives and sharpened it on the bottom of my coffee cup!! It shaved hair when I was done.
A river rock, anything!!!
It's not difficult to sharpen any knife if the owner just doesn't go too far letting it get flat, dead dull.
It's just been on my mind today and happened to be - again - when I posted that.
There are things all around us to keep our knives sharp!! Just keep 'em sharp.
It only takes a few strokes when it's needed, but once a knife edge is destroyed, there's a LOT of work to do, and the guy then starts cussing either the maker/manufacturer, or the steel type, or the knife itself, and ultimately, he's the one responsible.
I try to tell my customers that when they no longer FEAR their knife, sharpen it.
And using the methods I described above, it's really simple to keep a knife ready for any task.

[2treks]

Right on Karl,I hear ya.

[Bladepeek]

Think you hit the nail (or knife owner) squarely on the head. I get the same thing. Someone says "Oh your a knife maker? Maybe you can touch this one up for me". It's a real struggle sometimes to tell the spine from the edge. Now I've used a knife that won't quite shave anymore. But if won't at slice newspaper cleanly, you've let it get way too dull.

[Lin Rhea]

Good point Karl.

[huntmaster80]

i think you just described what I must be doing, because I just struggle with sharpening. broadheads, and knives especially!!!

[Cyclic-Rivers]

I could use a lesson.

Guilty!  although I know its me and not the knife or maker.

[4est trekker]

What a "cutting edge" idea!  (Pun intended.)  That's a great point, Karl, and one worth repeating ad nauseum.  

I was fortunate to have a grandpap from southern Missouri/northern Arkansas that could sharpen a blade with the best of 'em.  He was frequently found at the local coffee shop with his whetstone in tote and would sharpen the knifes of just about anybody in present company.  He would alternate between the stone, the bottom of his empty coffee cup, and the side of his leather boot.  He taught me at a pretty early age that if I wasn't a bit afraid of the edge, it wasn't sharp enough.  He is also the reason I have no hair left on my arms!

[DANA HOLMAN]

Karl, I've never heard of that, not that I didn't think it was true,  so I had to try this, I did it on my pickup window, the knife was almost razor sharp that I carry in my truck, it only took 6-8 strokes and it was cutting hair again. You can learn something here everyday, I know I do.

[jpsowers]

Karl,
do you pull the blade perpendicular to the top of the window while you sharpen that way? Would you mind posting a pic?
Thanks so much for taking time to teach us stuff.

[4est trekker]

Like you, Dana, I hadn't heard of the car window trick before either.  I grabbed a blade and headed out to the driveway...gadzooks, it works!     That's a trick I don't mind having up my sleeve.  Thanks for the tip, Karl!

[kbaknife]

Originally posted by jpsowers:
Karl,
do you pull the blade perpendicular to the top of the window while you sharpen that way? Would you mind posting a pic?
Thanks so much for taking time to teach us stuff.

Umm, yes, I think.
Just sort of use the edge like you would a sharpening stone. Try to shave the top of the window off.

Now please keep in mind that you are not going to re-sharpen a dead, dull knife on your window.
That is in reference to my thread title and  "Don't let it get dull".
The window trick is a simple way to   KEEP
the knife shaving sharp.
NOT! to sharpen it from dull.
The river rock and coffee cup, etc., are other ways to always keep your knives sharp.
It's amazing what simply stropping them back and forth on your blue jeans will do!
Carharts work great!

[Roughcountry]

Really good stuff Karl.

I guided hunters for 14 years, It used to amaze me how many packed really dull knives. This leads to really bad knife handling skills, and I would not let them touch my blades for fear they'd lose a finger or three.

I keep bandaid's on my leather bench for dummys that just have to test a round knife with thier thumb.

[jpsowers]

Thanks Karl.

[bretto]

I get laughed at all the time at work for sharpening My knife on My coffee cup. Then I hand it to them and they go " WOW "

[tippit]

I tried it on one of mine...but hit the up window button.  Now forging a new one  :eek:  tippit

[Lin Rhea]

Jeff          

You'd have to forge a new window

[wtpops]

Very good advice. I have always kept my hunting knife sharp and carry a sharpening stone in my pack and touch it up while its doing its job so i never had a problem with that knife. But i would always have to grab all my kitchen knifes every 6 months or so and spend a lot of time putting a edge back on them. For the life of me i dont know why i did this. Finily i started grabing the steel out of the knife block and give them 2 or 3 passes every time i take one out to use it a what do you know i havent had to work on them ever sence i started doing that  

[Kevin Evans]

Hey Karl good job on the kill last week!
On your sharpknife post
I like it best when our fellow hunters bring there knives to the knifemakers shop and cleverly say
you think you could sharpen this old hunting knife for me    
Then like Robin said you gotta badage them all up and send'em home.