Swivel Knife

[chuck123wapati]

19 hours ago, Squid61 said:

A bit of a rant:  Knife sharpening in general seems to carry a lot of anxiety for beginners, odd knives like a swivel knife seem the most intimidating.  Sites like this and more general knife forums do, or should, provide a boost both technically and emotionally to those beginners.  Doesn't help a bit to say do whatever works best for you to a beginner.  Back in the middle fifties when I first started sharpening a gas station grade pocket knife I had no advice to lean on, it took a long time to overcome mistakes that wouldn't have existed with a bit of advance knowledge.

My lil rant I would bet there isn't a house on this planet that doesn't have a cutting tool in it. why so many don't know how to sharpen them even at the basic level is beyond my comprehension. i do my best to help those who ask and have spent a lot of my time and posted many times on sharpening questions. 

Please don't get me wrong  i agree with you comment  about the net being an awesome place to learn but then you still  have to apply it by your self. Myself my family taught me back in the day from my dad to my grandmother all knew how to sharpen their tools. but in the end i still had to lay steel on stone. 

22 hours ago, oltoot said:

S K's and horses: Take the time it takes; don't rush

absolutely!

[fredk]

1 hour ago, chuck123wapati said:

My lil rant . . .  why so many don't know how to sharpen them even at the basic level is beyond my comprehension.. . . 

I'll give you one reason - they aren't taught how to do it

In the US, iirc, you have 'shop' in school where you learn woodwork and metal work. It is a rather intensive learning. Here in the UK we had 'wood work' classes which was no more than playtime with some pieces of wood. Nothing was taught, it was just a bit of school time in which time was wasted until the next class.

[Squid61]

No one taught me how to sharpen a knife.  I spent money I earned sweeping a barbershop floor to buy a cheap pocket knife and when it wouldn't cut I figured out how to sharpen it.  I don't remember the details but wrong as they might have been, that knife would finally cut.  Over the years I perfected my technique and adapted it to specialty knives as needed.  I have no doubt that a similar story fits many, if not most, over the age of 60.

[chuck123wapati]

25 minutes ago, Squid61 said:

No one taught me how to sharpen a knife.  I spent money I earned sweeping a barbershop floor to buy a cheap pocket knife and when it wouldn't cut I figured out how to sharpen it.  I don't remember the details but wrong as they might have been, that knife would finally cut.  Over the years I perfected my technique and adapted it to specialty knives as needed.  I have no doubt that a similar story fits many, if not most, over the age of 60.

i'm sure the story does and that is sad indeed.  You should have asked the barber lol. I'm over 60 my dad taught me to sharpen knives my granddad taught me to sharpen everything from a hoe to an axe. I guess i was lucky i came from a poor family that were alive back when people learned from each other, that's how it was here back in the day just like learning to cook or sew it was part of growing up.

[Squid61]

To get back to the OP question; it does help to color the bevel of any knife with a marker pen before you start to sharpen.  As you sharpen you will wear away the ink and get immediate feedback on how much of the blade edge you are actually sharpening.  Adjust the blade angle until you get even coverage, if it's a typical secondary bevel you want even grinding from the blade edge to the top of the secondary bevel.  Try to avoid creating a convex edge for leather or wood knives.  The ink method works well for honing and stropping as well.

[Squid61]

43 minutes ago, chuck123wapati said:

i'm sure the story does and that is sad indeed.  You should have asked the barber lol. I'm over 60 my dad taught me to sharpen knives my granddad taught me to sharpen everything from a hoe to an axe. I guess i was lucky i came from a poor family that were alive back when people learned from each other, that's how it was here back in the day just like learning to cook or sew it was part of growing up.

I grew up in the city, if I asked for help sharpening a knife I would have been asked what I needed a knife for but no help.  I'm not sure I even made the connection between a barber's straight razor and a pocket knife back then, too bad he might have been very helpful.

[chuck123wapati]

10 minutes ago, Squid61 said:

To get back to the OP question; it does help to color the bevel of any knife with a marker pen before you start to sharpen.  As you sharpen you will wear away the ink and get immediate feedback on how much of the blade edge you are actually sharpening.  Adjust the blade angle until you get even coverage, if it's a typical secondary bevel you want even grinding from the blade edge to the top of the secondary bevel.  Try to avoid creating a convex edge for leather or wood knives.  The ink method works well for honing and stropping as well.

great info friend i use that method a lot. you brought up another fuzzy part of the problem beginners have how about explaining that blade angle for those unaware why a swivel knife has such a flat angle but other knives don't? also I don't think a swivel knife has a secondary bevel so that info could be confusing to some.

[Squid61]

True, it's a very obtuse flat grind but it should be obvious as soon as the ink starts to wear away.

[YinTx]

On 9/18/2021 at 5:58 PM, Squid61 said:

No intent to single anyone out, just a personal comment that applies to all crafts be it leather, wood, welding or whatever.  I would have loved to have had the internet back in the 50's, what a great resource for learning.

Understand, and agree 100%.

YinTx

[Klara]

But back in the day before the internet we had so much more time... I used some of that to read a magazine article about sharpening which is how I learned, more or less. I only encountered stropping when I got into leatherwork, and it's incredible what a difference it makes.

Still waitingfor the swivel knife to arrive, I'm curious what state it'll be in (got a cheap one).

I agree with @chuck123wapati on his rant, I can't understand either why so many people just accept that cutting instruments become dull and unuseable. Even if nobody taught them - the information is easy enough to find nowadays. But I've heard there's people who don't know how to sew on a button...