How to sharpen a Victorinox?

I always take a Victorinox pocket knife with me, Spartan model - but the knife blade isn't as sharp as it once was. What do you use for sharpening pocket knifes? Can you recommend me something that will keep a good angle on the edge and isn't more expensive than the knife?

I have seen this small Gerber pocket sharpener cheap:

Is it any good?

I have a sharpening water stone (1000/5000) that is used to keep my Frosts Mora knife sharp - but I don't think it's good for such a small blade as on the Victorinox... It's difficult to hold a good angle on such a small blade.

I use a water stone similar to yours and it has kept all my blades in good repair.
It produces a fine edge but you have to go the extra mile to get top notch results.

Redouble your sharpening efforts and you will be rewarded with a blade a surgeon could use.
That wet stone can produce great results.

Walmart(aka WallyWorld) sells a little diamond hone from EzLap for about $6. Works great; leaves a nice toothy edge and never wears out. Some use their diamond hones with water, but I have no problems using mine dry. Using diamond stones is sort of different from using the old washita or hard arkansas stones in that you actually use light pressure with the diamonds and let them do the work.

I've found that those pocket sharpener things mess up the edge after a while.

I use a sheet of fine grit sandpaper taped to a glass plate. 400 grit, 600 grit, sometimes 1200 if I have time on my hands. These will give you an edge that'll shave the beard off your face.

ABTOMAT said:

I've found that those pocket sharpener things mess up the edge after a while.

I use a sheet of fine grit sandpaper taped to a glass plate. 400 grit, 600 grit, sometimes 1200 if I have time on my hands. These will give you an edge that'll shave the beard off your face.

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I too start with 600 grit wet or dry 'sandpaper' [or 400 if the edge is really dull] then I use two arkansas stones & finish with a leather strop w buffing compound on it. Leaves a GREAT edge. I love using really sharp edges - it's a joy.

I use a sharpening stone on mine, it's cheap and it works pretty good.

Thanks for the responses so far :thumbsup:. I guess I'll stay with the water stone, though I don't have that confidence in my sharpening skills - especially on the victorinox, the edge is rather "flat" (in shape of a "V") and it looks difficult to me to keep the same edge angle. I think I need more practice on this.

Don't worry too much. Just do your best, keep a clean stone and the knife will be better for the sharpening.

For field sharpening, I too use the little ballpoint pen like diamond EZ hone from the Wal-Mart fishing section that Danbo reccomends, but beware, it's very coarse. I keep it in my EDC organizer in case a blade or tool gets really, really, dull or if the edge gets severely bent out of whack.

What I also carry is a Lansky triangular pocket stone. It's a fine grit, but not so fine it takes forever to get a good edge either. http://www.nashvilleknifeshop.com/lanspydcerkn.html

The flats are good on straight edges, and the corners of the triangle are perfect for serrations. The groove is for fishooks and tools with awl-like points.

At home I have a selection of Norton Abrasive stones, some dating back to the 1940's that were amongst my deceased grandfather's things.

Lansky also makes a Turn Box ceramic knife sharpener (I'd suggest the one with both the medium and fine rods -- not that big a price difference than the one with only the medium rods). It's more expensive than a Victorinox Spartan but not by more than a just few pennies. There are two sets of holes on either end of the wooden box, one end at 20 degrees and the other at 25. The box opens and closes with a wooden end that turns -- gee, I wonder how they came up with the name? -- to let you get at the slots that hold the rods. Start with the medium rods at the 20 degree angle and then use the 25 degree angle. Repeat with the fine rods and you're good to go. It's a little larger than a pack of cigarettes so it's very portable. Won't replace bench stones or sharpening rigs like the Apex or a Lansky multi-hone kit, but does the job just fine and cheap by comparison.

This might sound silly but I put my small knives in a padded vise and move the stone instead of the other way around. Wear gloves! I also like the diamond sharpeners.

I have a fine ceramic rod about 12" long that I use for sharpening mine, I hold it at a very shallow angle and sharpen it like I'm using a steel. I can shave arm hairs with mine after I sharpen it, and the edge last for a long time if I keep from doing stupid stuff with it.

I sharp all my Vics using a Spyderco Sharpmaker to factory edge flawlessly.