Best way to sharpen a sword?

[Masked_Man]

Hello to all! I just purchased a Hanwei Dark Sentinel that came almost blunt..... How do you reccomend that I should sharpen it whithout damaging the blade? Thank you in advance.

[glenntherookie]

1000 grit stone wet w/ water then 400 grit wet/dry sandpaper soaked in bakingsoda water to remove the scratches from the blade, then 1000 grit wet/dry sandpaper soaked in bakingsoda water then 2000 grit wet/dry sandpaper soaked in bakingsoda water. go to youtube and type "sword sharpening w/ whet stones" for visual help. swordnarmory.com sells individual stones and stones sets for very cheap, but do the job great. hope this helps some.
best regards,
Rook

[garbarian]

I think learning to sharpen a sword is almost as difficult as learning to use it but well worth the effort. Rook is right, there is a lot of good tutorial stuff out there.

[crazycolerogers]

i would suggest this
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gaDEXuFpeac

just on a larger scale

[TomK]

sorry about double post, please see next post for info.

[TomK]

I mostly sharpen my swords on my trusty belt sander these days but I do still do some work by hand so first my videos on hand sharpening/polishing. I still do this mostly inbetween the 1200 belt sanding and stropping to remove unsightly belt marks and help refine the polish and edge. If I started with the belt sander I only use the 1000 - 2000 grit paper; 1000 between the 500 and 1200 grit belts, and again with the 2000 paper between the 1200 and leather belts.

I also have begun to clamp down the blade and move the paper over the secured blade. less chances of accidentally taking off a finger and works the same way with the same motions.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ojG_4jz-_wU


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-hqFYaLQcxg

here's my most recent update vid:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=entJSjPzv5U

here's a link to where to buy the belt sander I use. it works really well:
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=2485

Use these belts:
http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.aspx?c=2&cat=1,43072&p=48040

you can do everything up to the leather belt with the belt series:
D. Aluminum Oxide Grinding Belts
the 500 and 1200 grits are all you really need unless you are sharpening blunt swords or removing heavy secondary bevels

I also like the A. 15µ (Micron) Silicon Carbide Sharpening Belts as an in-between for the 500 and 1200 (the 500 grits are marked 20 micron and the 1200 are marked 9 micron putting the 15 micron between them in grit).

at the bottom of that page is: E. Leather Honing Belts and a link labled "ACC" which brings you to the page that has the honing compound. here: http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.aspx?c=2&p=32984&cat=1,43072

here's how to do it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zFfsAqXDPpg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mh6XthJCEuc

this machine works great for CONVEX edges such as lenticular or appleseed shaped edges but is not suitable for hollow ground blades; for these you need a fancier machine with the right kind of wheel. for flat ground blades there is a flat belt-guide that comes with the machine.

[glenntherookie]

thanks tom for the great info and hope this saves someone's sword from being blunt and useless.
glenn

[Jakeonthekob]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EFf7D_NMacM

Polishing job on my SBG katana. I whitened the hamon and left the ha side more or less mirror. It's like a reverse hadori type polish.

[O.T.]

Tom, I actually followed your tutorial a while back on an old Musashi I have and had some really great results. It takes a lot of time and patience, but if you have both of those, it is worth the effort.
Salute!

[TomK]

O.T. glad to hear you had good results. I have gotten faster with it recently and I have started clamping the blade down too, but it still can take a long time if your sword needs serious work at all. the whole time involvement is why I like the belt sander so much.