Sharpening a knife

What you need

• A whetstone, diamond plate or a puck
• Water or oil, whatever your stone takes
• A strop, or the back of a leather belt
• A rag

How

1. Wet the stone and set it on the rag so it does not travel on you.
2. Find the angle the blade was ground at, about 20 degrees for a camp knife, and hold it. A coin under the spine is a fair guide.
3. Push the edge across the stone as if you were slicing a thin layer off the top of it, heel to tip, the same count of passes each side.
4. Work until you feel a burr on the far side down the whole length, then switch sides and do the same.
5. Move to the fine side, lighten the pressure, then strop the burr off on leather, spine leading.
6. Test on paper. A sharp knife bites and cuts clean. A dull one tears or slides off.

Watch for

Notes

Touch it up for two minutes every night at camp and you never have to grind it.