Wet Stones

Any thoughts on the best sharpening stones for boys to get to keep their knives sharp that they can carry with them? Looking at Amazon and have found a few different options, but is there anything to look out for that makes one stone better than another? My two boys each have an SOG knife that they take on camp outs (yeah I know, not supposed to carry fixed blades, but we let them within reason. No Crocodile Dundee knives allowed...) that have a little sleeve for a sharpening stone on the sheath, so I'm looking for something no bigger than 4" x 1 1/2" x 3/4" in size.

We never had the restriction of only pocket knives? FCF we would all be kicked out. Just no knives with out sheeves being carried around. At pow wow I have 10 knives floating around with wooden batoons laying on the ground at ten work stations. I am thinking of a wooden box to fit the batton and knife in that would make it nice and safe. Not there yet.

I carry a sog backpacking if one has to batton wood into firewood..the sog will save your life. A pocket knife won't get one very far it will break using a batton on it. Sometimes I carry both when backpacking always carry a pocket knife with a metal match.

Ooo..ya. My son takes his knife up to Basspro and 5.00 later it will cut paper... I use the Walmart yellow handled knife sharpeners for Rangers and a small wet stone if I want it really sharp...but I did take mine to basspro and let them sharpen it..it was really dull.

At pow wow I sharpen 8 to 10 knives for boys and another 8 to 10 sharpen there own. We do cut n chop each year at pow wow and it 's a good time to remind and sharpen knives and minds.

Mark Jones

Howdy!

For my needs and wants in the woods (History dictates my kit), I carry two flat stones no bigger than a half dollar. One is coarser than the other. The difference is, the stone is moved on the blade, instead of vise versa. I know RR doesnt teach that way, but I think it can actually be safer. The blade is fixed and not moving, and it takes less effort to hold the bigger thing still while the smaller thing hones its edge. The stone is more controllable.

I sharpen dozens of gouges and chisels when in the gun shop, and have about 18 stones or so to choose from. It is a different type of sharpening. Most of the work is done at first with a coarse stone, then graduating down to finer stones until the last is a leather strop. Most times all that is needed in the woods is a semi-coarse stone to get one by until they get out of the woods. I have not been a big fan of the little stones that come inside sheaths, unless they have gotten better in quality.

Have you considered the sharpeners that have a "v" stones and a handle? You can get them for filet knives. They work really well for when "good enough" is needed. Plus they can be used safely in the middle of butchering a deer. They are much lighter than a stone too.

For larger tools like a hatchet or axe, I would seriously not carry a stone for those. I would use stones that are in the woods. You might find that will work for knives as well. I bet I have picked up a landscaping rock 30 times or more while standing somewhere (like a wedding or funeral) and sharpened my knife with it.

My $.02

S

Interesting points! Bigger isn't necessarily the thing to look at with a different method, but rather quality. Thanks for the insight.