another great AG Russell bit of instruction

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hso

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https://agrussell.com/KnifeSharpeni...th4yjoWPheHK6IO8VKTZLQeHgRQ4K1L5Lnnhe6-xw93jM

When it comes to knife sharpening, there are a lot of different techniques and opinions. Various techniques have different purposes, and are better for different problems and blade types. For simplicity’s sake I will tell you what the average user needs to know in order to sharpen an ordinary dull knife.

Let me start by saying that for the average knife user, the best way to sharpen your knife is to get it professionally sharpened, then skip to Step 6 and focus on edge maintenance. But for those of you who want to learn to do it yourself, here is my guide on how to sharpen your blades using stones.
 
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Excellent tutorial!

The is only one thing I would add in step one, is clean even if you don't see anything to clean. Tape and glue residue may not be seen, but it is there. I find hand sanitizer is good for removing tape/glue fowling.
Sometimes that plus a good stropping is all that is needed.
 
Mineral spirits on a soft cloth (usually labeled "paint thinner" in hardware stores...) will remove any tape residue on just about anything... The only caution is whether it might dull the finish on some painted or plastic surfaces... I've been using if or years as a rodcrafter and a guy who occasionally does a bit of fiberglass work where taped off surfaces are part of the deal....
 
Pretty much what I do. I like the wording on finding the angle as that is precisely what I do. The DMT people also showed me this approach.

Added: Sharpening knives by hand on stones is a learned skill. It is not particularly hard, but it can be very frustrating especially if you lack patience. The AG Russell sharpening summary is about all a person needs to develop sharpening skills. I also use DMT bench stones. I am not particularly anal about how sharp a knife is, but I like them sharp.
 
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In the FAQ section, it mentions removing nicks. Most of the time, I recommend leaving the nick alone. Getting rid of the nick will require removing metal uniformly, all along the edge of the knife, until the nick is gone. That metal is the life of the knife; as it is removed, the knife's remaining working lifetime is reduced. Also, if enough metal is removed, the blade may need to be reprofiled to compensate for the metal removal. In a folding knife, the kick* may also need to be adjusted to keep the tip of the blade below the handle edge when closed.

In some cases, it may be really important to a user to remove a nick, or perhaps the knife is used for very fine work and the nick can't be tolerated. In that case, I guess you remove the nick and just live with the consequences.

*Kick - The portion of a pocket knife blade tang that provides a stop when the blade is closed to prevent the sharpened edge from hitting or "rapping" on the front of the spring or the bottom of the blade channel. In an old knife that has been sharpened many times, the kick may need to be adjusted to let the blade close enough so that the blade tip is below the scales/cover so it doesn’t snag. Adjusting the size of the kick to allow the knife to close properly is called "Letting in the kick".
 
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