DIY Guide: How To Sharpen A Pocket Knife At Home?

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By David Wills

You just love to carry those shiny little pocket knives, right? But you know what? You might need to pay much more attention to them than you thought.

Pocket knives lose their sharpness very quickly if you don’t maintain them properly. So, you need to learn how to keep it in its best shape.

There are tons of options to grab from. Starting from home remedies to professional solutions. It doesn’t matter in what way you are approaching as long as you are providing a constant sharpening to your knife.

So pay closer attention as I am going to guide you all through about how to sharpen a pocket knife at home.

Household tools for sharpening a pocket knife


Numerous possibilities are lying right next to you. You just need to know how to use them.

It can be a water stone, a leather belt, a nylon belt or even a ceramic cup. Newer options will emerge as you start experimenting with each of them.

Stick to basic rules while selecting your tools. The more you practice, the more accurate your results would likely be.

How to sharpen a pocket knife at home (4 easy ways)


Now that you have been introduced to so many household tools, the guidelines of sharpening a pocket knife using these tools are described here.

1. By a water stone

Any stone with a gritted surface can be used to sharpen up your knife. You also can grab a water stone and follow these easy steps.

Firstly, you need to have any sort of lubricant around you. These may come in a water form or even in an oil-based form.

Now take your stone and apply the lubricant onto it so that the heat is controlled and the blade remains safe.

You are all done with the preparations. Now, comes the main part. Take your knife and carefully set an optimum angle of ten to fifteen degrees with the stone.

After that, bring your blade right onto the stone just like carving it off. Keep on doing that sideways and soon your blade is all sharped and shiny again.

2. By a nylon belt

Using a nylon strap. Sounds pretty weird, right? But you will be amazed to see the results it can bring.

You can even use the nylon strap that attached to your backpack. Simply take it away by cutting that into pieces.

Now, take your knife and place the strap or belt right next to it. You can also place the strap onto a surface and stick that.

After that, carefully start scrubbing your knife against it. Be sure to maintain constant pressure while doing that.

Do the same for all the sides. After a while, you will notice that the edges are gradually starting to get sharpen.

3. Using a ceramic cup

Ceramic cups tan to have a rough edge at their bottom so that they can get a better grip.

These rough edges can be used to sharpen the pocket knife. Just be sure not to overdo things.

Place the cup upside down and take your pocket knife close to that. It is better to keep an angle of almost 45 degrees between them.

Now, you can start the rubbing process. Do not rub it in random directions. Rather than doing that, rub it in a back and forth manner.

Repeat the process for both of the directions of the blade. Be careful about not to cut yourself while doing all these.

4. By a leather belt

A leather belt might not seem to be capable of sharpening the blades. But, this technique is worth trying.

The sharpness of the blades of your pocket knife can be reduced due to the imperfections lying all over the blade.

The uneven surface is the primary reason in such cases. Is these imperfections are taken away, your blade would regain its sharpness.

Like most other cases, this technique also includes rubbing. Starting from the smooth side carefully hone the pocket knife by rubbing it across the leather belt.

Keep on doing it until the results satisfy you. If it does, then you are all good to go.


Final Thought

There is no point in carrying a dull pocket knife. That is why these ways can work like miracles to get you rid of a situation like that.

As you learned, there is no definite way to do it. Which means there can be tons of ways for you.

So, whenever you think that your pocket knife needs a bit of a touch-up, look closely around you.

Who knows, the thing right next to you might be handy. And you might find your unique way to sharpen your pocket knife like never before.

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