In the sharpening craft, in addition to the abrasives, sharpeners, or stone holders, there is a fairly extensive list of various useful auxiliary items that you can find in hardware stores, and purchase others in more specialized stores.
The list of sharpening supplies presented below certainly has an emphasis on work with modern sharpeners, however, much of the list can be used in traditional hand sharpening on full-size sharpening bars.
This group of tools is one of the foundations of sharpening and the most common products for sharpening knives and you can find many different manufacturers and very different solutions, such as sharpening stones of natural origin, synthetic stones, and others.
Picture 1. Sharpening stones
Apart from the origin, all sharpening bars are divided into two groups. The first are used with oil as a coolant and the second are used with water and considered traditional sharpening stones.
Picture 1.1. Wooden stropping bar
Stropping bars are a separate category of sharpening supplies. These bars are similar in shape to sharpening stones but serve exclusively the purpose of finishing the blade's secondary bevels. Their use is directly related to polishing pastes. They can be made of various materials, including wood and leather.
Picture 1.2. Leather stropping bar
The main two tools for conditioning most sharpening stones are silicon carbide powders of various grits, for conditioning different grit stones, and a large round or rectangular glass. The size of the glass can be approximately 50 by 50 centimeters, with a thickness of 6 mm or more. It is best to use tempered glass that can withstand the effects of powder and does not quickly dish out. If you have the opportunity to purchase tempered glass, the greater its thickness before quenching, the higher the chance that its surface will not deform during quenching. This is very similar to the hardening of a knife blade, which can bend when overheated.
Picture 2. Stone conditioning supplies
Among all the powders, black silicon carbide stands out for conditioning stones. Ceramic powders are occasionally used to create a slurry on very thin natural bars.
Diamond and CBN copper-tin bonded abrasives can be conditioned with a Bodrid stone made of aluminum oxide.It allows to remove residual sludge (grease) from the stone surface and expose new abrasive grits, both on the already used and new diamond and CBN bars. Use with water.
In sharpening, they are used most often for finishing secondary bevels. Among the most commonly used are diamond and elbor pastes. They contribute to the biting effect of the cutting edge. It is possible to use aluminum oxide-based pastes, which give an even thinner cutting edge. They are most often used in combination with various types of stropping bars.
Picture 3. Diamond Paste
Diamond pastes are used for stropping and conditioning diamond bars to a very thin state of 3 microns and more.
In most cases, angle finders designed for building purposes can be used for monitoring the sharpening angle and used in combination with sharpening devices. Among such devices, in addition to angle finders, there are also more complex so-called inclinometers with different levels of accuracy. With the help of a device called an angle finder, you can measure the already existing angle of secondary bevels of the knife blade.
Picture 4. Axicube
Some people use smartphone apps for this purpose. However, there is a limitation on the physical size of the smartphone and its compatibility with the sharpening device. Compatibility is expressed in the presence of a platform of sufficient size to accommodate a smartphone.
An hourglass is a handy tool for monitoring the time spent on sharpening one area or side of the knife to control the width of secondary bevels.
Picture 5. Hourglass
You can use a microscope to quickly check the condition of the secondary bevels and the cutting edge and see all the tiny details. The microscope can be used not only to check the condition of the cutting edge but also to examine the surface of the abrasive stones for cavities and to assess their overall quality.
Picture 6. Magnifier
For sharpening purposes, one should use a magnifying glass with a high magnification factor of 20-30 or more, and with a backlight. This is because at high magnification, the glass must be held very close to the face and the object, and without an auxiliary light source, there will not be enough light in the area.
In addition, the larger the magnification, the greater the chance of not missing some small flaws on the cutting edge.
If you by chance have a lens from an old analog camera, you can try it as a magnifying tool.
The common sharpening coolants are oil and water. In the case of water, some bars need to be soaked, and some only need to be moistened. Some do not need any coolant at all, likethese diamond coated stones. Here you need to follow the manufacturer's instructions. There is one issue here – the bars need to be constantly moistened and they produce quite a lot of sludge during sharpening and require constant grit renewal, surface cleaning, and additional sharpening ponds if it is not possible to use running water.
Picture 7. Cooling liquids - Honing oil
In the case of oil or, to put it correctly, oily liquids, everything is a little more complicated here, since there are quite a large number of them. The most suitable in this area will be mineral oil, petroleum jelly oil, or some natural oils, for example, chamomile oil. Although these things are more expensive, they are natural.
Honing oils can be found at some knife brands as well as carpentry tool manufacturers, such products are specifically created for sharpening purposes. Most importantly, make sure that industrial oil is not toxic if you use it frequently.
Compared to water and sludge removal, the oil does not roll off the stones, it happens in a slightly different way. In general, the whole process is easier to control, and it is more hygienic.
You will likely get different sharpening results when using the same stones with oil or water.
Surface cleaning agents such as alcohol or solvents are used to remove markers and other contamination. Similar technical means based on gasoline or paint thinner are used to clean glue from adhesive tapes.
Various specialized liquids can be used to prevent corrosion of metal parts of the tool, as well as to clean knife blades during sharpening. These products are available in the form of aerosol or paste.
Picture 8. Corrosion protection spray
Paper napkins or towels are one of the main consumables for getting rid of sludge, therefore it is worth choosing high-quality ones. Denser ones are used to remove sludge from the stone, and softer ones are used to remove sludge from the blade. Even washing it off in a non-contact way, that is, under running water, you can still put an unwanted scratch on the blade and spoil the overall look of the knife.
Cotton pads can be used to check the burr. That is if you have doubts whether there is a burr or not. If it is there, then a thin layer of cotton wool will catch on and it will become visible.
As for the quality of napkins – if you need wet wipes, then first of all you should choose napkins that do not contain alcohol, antibacterial agents, and aromatic additives because such wipes dry out quickly. You should buy dense napkins, of good size and with the addition of natural oils and the like. Such wipes are frequently used for pediatric hygiene.
Some sharpeners also use latex gloves at their discretion.
Permanent markers. A permanent marker is used to match the existing angle of the edge and is removed during sharpening. It works with all knives.
Picture 9. Marker
Masking tape is a fairly common material used for blade protection against scratches, when one is using sharpeners with clamps. The tape is usually applied to the clamp jaws, the blade, or the knife handle, if the handle is impossible to remove or if the sharpener just does not want to remove it.
Good quality masking tape can be used as a layer for applying polishing pastes to some types of stropping bars.
Sharpening supplies also include various accessories and parts for sharpeners, the list of which can be a very long one, and specific for each type of sharpening system, sharpening job, and blade that you are about to sharpen.
It is possible that you already have most of the mentioned products in your household toolbox, and some that you need or ought to buy if you decide to sharpen knives because they are from the category of must-have
This list covers only the basic tools and may be different depending on your specific sharpening needs. As you begin to sharpen more, you will discover exactly which tools work best for you — there is no universal recipe, only the one you create through practice. You will find the perfect tools as you go because nothing beats the wisdom gained from your own hands-on experience.
You can get sharpening supplies, such as knife sharpeners, stones, and other necessary items to make your knives sharp in our online store, from our dealers, or our Amazon shop.
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