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Razor Sharp, How To Hone An Edge
Whether you need to sharpen a stick, cut a bit of twine, slice open a Zombie, or perform an emergency appendectomy, you’ll need a well honed blade to do it… and sometimes those can be hard to come by… especially during a Zombie outbreak or attack.
The ability to hone an edge is a skill that every survivor should have, if they truly want to outlive the undead. From an axe head to a pocket knife and everything in between, this guide can help you get a good edge on your hackers, slashers, slicers, and stabbers.
Although there are hundreds of whetstones and sharpening devices available on the market today, they aren’t necessary for getting a good edge on your blade. In fact, there are plenty of alternatives out there that can use when honing a blade.
Alternatives To Whetstones and Sharpening Tools:
Red Brick - Smooth the surface of a red brick by rubbing it against a concrete surface to remove rough spots and debris.
Cinder Block – Brush away loose material and debris to ensure a smooth surface.
Sandpaper – Attach or wrap around an object with a firm flat surface, such as a piece of 2×4 or the arm of a chair.
Rough Ceramics – Found in most homes, the unfinished underside of ceramic dishes and fixtures works really well for fine tuning an edge to razor sharp.
Smooth Stone - Cleaned of debris, a smooth stone can remove burs, smooth chips, and fine tune an edge just as well as anything else can.
Leather – Attach or wrap leather around a firm flat surface, and use for fine tuning.
The smoother the surface and finer the grain of a sharpening tool, the better it will work for fine tuning the edge of a blade. But if your blade is damaged or extremely dull, you’ll need to start with rougher material like, course grit sandpaper or even a metal file, to re-establish a basic edge first.
Honing The Blade: Honing a blade isn’t just about dragging it across a whetstone or a grinder till you think you’ve got a good edge, it’s about patience, consistency, and skill.
1. Carefully wipe the blade clean with a soft cloth, and a bit of mineral oil if it’s available.
If you are working with folding knife, make sure to fully open it and clean the body inside and out as well.
2. Select a material to hone the blade on, and a stable surface to work on.Mark the edge of the blade with a colored marker (we prefer black for the contrast). The marked edge will act as a guide to help you keep a consistent angle while sharpening.
3. Hold the blade at an angle that allows full contact of the marked area with the surface of the honing material. Using a slow and steady stroke, gently drag the blade across the surface of the honing material. Check the grind on the marked area and adjust the angle of grind accordingly.
4. Once you’ve got the angle down it’s time to get to the real work. Hone the blade one side at a time, using 10-15 strokes (or more as needed) of gentle pressure against the honing material.
Fine tune the edge by repeating the process, alternating sides of the blade between each stroke. (tip: adding a bit of mineral oil to the sharpening surface can help achieve a finer edge and assist in cleaning the blade clean.)
5. Test the edge. There are many ways to test the edge of a blade. You can hold a sheet of paper in one hand and carefully slice it with the other, or shave a small amount of hair from your arm or the back of your hand. Test it against a soft wood like a pencil, or try it out in the kitchen. Just make sure to test the blade before calling it good and packing it away, because you’ll never know how sharp it really is until you see it for yourself.
For sharpening larger blades like hatchets, axes, machetes, and swords, hold the honing surface in your hand rather than the blade, but be extra careful while working the edge. With time and practice you can become an expert at honing an edge, and that will make you one step closer to surviving a Zombie outbreak or attack.
For more Zombease DIY projects, check out DIY Or Die Trying.
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Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Komrad Venessa Wicked☭ on
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I technique always needed when you are in survival mode.
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Permalink Reply by KOMRAD RHINO☭ on
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i never worry about stones because i dont use them. i use razor straps and ceramic sharpening sticks in my bug out bag. less to carry and less weight.
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Permalink Reply by saint.357 on
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i like a diamond sharpening rod my self but it's good to know these tricks in case you ever lose your sharpener or it gets broken.
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Permalink Reply by Jessie W. Garrett III on
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Hey, you holding out on me I see Bro...Do you know how hard it is to find a damn razor strap around here?? (LOL)
Been looking for one ever since I started prepping....Figured I could actually attach it to on side or the other of my BOB...Even went to flea markets around here, they are nuts over the prices for even the old rustic looking ones...
As for sharpening, I have to have something that is quick...Something like the one Cold Steel has on their site. Three or four swipes from it and the blade is back to damn near surgical readiness...Which is something I'm going to have to invest in here in a month or so....Plan on working the hell out of myself trying to get good with my blades.... ;)
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the razor strap was something my dad had. it kinda serves as a reminder of him in case i lose the picture of him. i can look and see if any of my sources have any though. never had a call for them before. just stuff like sharpening stones, ceramic sticks and diamond hones.
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well i found some in the 20 dollar range if your interest jess.
http://www.sworddemon.com/p-8319-razor-renew-short.aspx
http://www.sworddemon.com/p-8318-razor-renew-long.aspx
http://www.sworddemon.com/p-5852-jemico-18-single-sided-leather-str...
and here's a few in the 40 to 60 dollar range if you want top quality.
http://www.sworddemon.com/p-5869-jemico-18-leather-strop.aspx
http://www.sworddemon.com/p-5875-jemico-23-leather-strop.aspx
http://www.sworddemon.com/p-8316-jemico-23-red-russian-strop.aspx
but you know am old leather belt works just as good and...
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Sword Demon is a hell of a good site. one of my favorites.
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my first internet blade purchase was through Smokey Mountain Knife Works. then i found BudK and then Sword Demon. been with the last two since. SMKW is good dont get me wrong. its just over the years they got hard to deal with and very expensive plus the products got more narrowed to the high dollar collector. so i stay with my last two choices. also what one does not have, the other one tends to have. and i love BudK does demo videos. you get to see a lot of their stuff in action.
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yeah and they do the comments which give you a good idea if the item is worth getting. I've bought a few things from SD that looked awesome but turned out to be way smaller then i thought. both times they were ridge runner products so I'm just starting to think that company sucks.
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A lot of these can be placed into the Do It Yourself Thread that I had started my friend...That's why I started it...That way we all have one place to go to find the DIY projects....Unless we can talk Our Queen Komrad Venessa into making a special forum for the DIY projects...I think that would be cool...It would give you a place to post up your projects, just like it would give others a place to put their project videos...I say we all try and sweet talk her in placing a Forum strictly for DIY projects...What do you say???
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