Blades Around the Home and Farm

If we were to take count of all the different blades we use around the small home farm, no doubt the number of edged tools would be in the dozens, if not hundreds.  For everything from food preparation to wood working to yard maintenance to daily farm operations such as cutting fire wood, we use cutting tools constantly on the farm. However, most of us- and I am just as guilty as the next person- sometimes use tools that are just not as sharp as they should be.  Using dull blades wastes energy, uses up power tool motors, and in fact is the number one cause of cutting tool accidents resulting in injury.  There’s just no excuse for suffering though dull edges when it’s really not that hard to spend a little time and effort putting a proper edge on a blade. 

Let’s look at some common tools and how to sharpen them. Terry Hartley, a professional saw sharpener who has operated his shop in beautiful and picturesque Stockton, Alabama, since 1969 gives us some great advice about making blades sharp. A word of caution first: When using or sharpening any edged tool, be sure to use eye protection.  Bits of filed or ground metal can do some serious damage to eyes.

Knives

It could be argued that knives are the first tools made and used by humans. Most of us on the farm have a pocket knife with us at all times to cut baling twine, remove insulation from electric wires, trim a piece of wood, and any of a million other jobs on the farm.  Kitchens, of course, rely on good knives.  When butchering animals for food, sharp knives are absolutely essential.  Knives are simply necessary for happy farm life.  However, many people are injured each year by knives, and the primary cause of the accidents is a dull blade.  If a knife is to be used, it must be sharp.

At this point, we need to know that knife blades are not all made of the same material.  When it comes to knife blades, steel is not always steel.  Many blades are made of some variety of stainless steel.  These blades look very nice, but some of them are very hard to sharpen well.  I’ve had a number of stainless steel knives which simply would not take a good edge, no matter what kind of sharpening technique was used. If your stainless steel bladed knife won’t sharpen, it might not be your fault.

For the best and sharpest edge on a knife, it is hard to beat a high-carbon steel blade.  This steel is not shiny like stainless, but wonderfully sharp edges can be created by nearly any sharpener.  High-carbon blades will dull after use, but they are easy to re-sharpen.  I like my high-carbon steel knives.

Hartley says, “You can use a belt sander on a really dull knife to bring the edge out, but that’s the only power tool to use on a knife.”

Many try to sharpen knives on power grindstones, but many good knives are ruined from this.  Power tools build up heat on a tool quickly, and blades can be destroyed.  Professionals use power tools on knives, and that’s fine, but I can’t recommend them for most folks.

Let’s look at the basic steps in sharpening a knife on a whetstone.  By the way- some say the stone should be wet-others say it should be dry. I like a little moisture, but I think it’s up to the individual sharpener.  Here we go:

First, put the stone flat on the table before you.  Put the blade on the stone at about a 40-50 degree angle.  Next, lift the back edge of the blade up off the stone to create a 20 degree angle with the cutting edge of the blade still in contact with the stone.  Next, take the knife by the handle and draw the blade down the stone towards you- don’t stop the gentle drawing motion until the entire length of the blade has been in contact with the stone. Turn the knife over and repeat the process on the other side.  The process is much easier to do than to explain. 

“Using a whetstone, always move the blade against the grain, and then go with the grain. Push the steel of the blade edge up on one side; this brings up the burrs,” says Hartley.  “Then work the other side.  This pulls off the burr. Go the whole length of the blade in one stroke. Don’t put much pressure on the blade when whetstoning it.  Too much pressure pulls the steel.”

We sometimes have specialty blades- especially in the kitchen- and they may require special attention.  “Serrated knives need special grinders to sharpen them,” advises Hartley, “Don’t try to sharpen them yourself.”

Generally, go up to 600 grit whetstones - coarse- at the start of a sharpening and then go to finer grit as the blade becomes sharper.  A 1200 grit stone is medium grit, and it works fine for most knives.

Axes

Axes are ancient cutting tools just like knives, but unlike knives it’s absolutely acceptable to do the sharpening on a power tool.  A bench grinder is the most common way to put a better edge on an axe. If a grinder is not on hand, a regular flat bastard file will work just fine on an axe blade.  Just secure the axe head in a vice to stabilize the edge for filing.

Terry Hartley says,” An axe just needs to be ‘good and sharp.’  If it’s too sharp, it will stick in the wood when being used.” He further says, “Don’t get too much bevel on the edge.”

Hatchets are sharpened in a similar way to axes, but they can be given a slightly longer bevel than axes.

Lawnmower Blades

Before we sharpen a lawnmower blade, we have to get it off the mower.  This is extremely important, so listen!  When working under a lawnmower, make sure it won’t start.  When the blade of a circular lawnmower moves, it will start the motor just as effectively as the pull cord.  If your hands are under the mower when this happens, you won’t have to worry about sharpening the blade by hand ever again.  To make sure the mower can’t start, pull the wire off the spark plug and remove the spark plug.  This is a good time to get a new plug for more efficient operation.  Then with a block of wood, jam the mower blade against the mower housing and with a wrench or socket, remove the bolt or bolts which hold the blade on the shaft. Now we’re ready to sharpen the blade.  Please don’t poo-poo this caution.  People are maimed every year because they didn’t properly incapacitate a lawnmower when trying to sharpen the blade.

Sharpening the mower blade is not too hard.  “Just follow the bevel on the blade,” says Hartley, “Put the blade in a vice and use a flat file to bring the damaged parts of the blade back to edge.”  Remember to sharpen only the beveled edge on the top of the blade.  If the bottom edge is sharpened too, the blade won’t cut the grass but will just roll it up in a wad.

Lawnmower blades are another type of blade that’s OK to sharpen with power tools.  A bench grinder is perfect to remove dings and rock damage from the edge.  Now, here’s an important point that many sharpeners overlook.  When finished with renewing the lawnmower blade, hang the blade horizontally from a nail driven into a post or workshop wall.  Let the blade hang.  If it stays horizontally level, it’s fine to put back on the mower shaft.  Chances are one end of the blade will dip and the blade will rotate to a vertical position.  This means one end has more metal than the other.  The heavy end of the blade needs to be sharpened a bit more so that the blade is balanced in weight on both ends.  An imbalanced mower blade can stress the engine and supports of a mower.

Chainsaws

Most small farm owners have a chainsaw, and most use them more or less successfully to clean storm damage, work up firewood, prepare fence posts for fence construction, and many other jobs around the farm.  However, a dull chainsaw chain can cause accidents with terrible injuries to people.  I’ve been cut by a chainsaw, and I don’t want that to happen to anyone else.  The best way to prevent such chainsaw accidents is to keep the chain sharp.

Let’s start by saying that new chainsaw blades are very sharp, and they will stay sharp for a very long time IF wood is the only thing being cut.  Most of us manage to let the blade hit the ground while running or maybe the wood is covered with mud or dirt- there are many ways to get a chainsaw blade in the dirt.  This dulls the blade rapidly. 

There are signs to look for that will tell us when the chain needs to be sharpened.  If the chain doesn’t pull itself into and through the wood, it is getting dull.  If the operator has to push the saw to get it to cut, then the chain is dull and needs attention.  Another sign which means it’s time to stop cutting and start sharpening is when the wood chips from the cut wood start changing into dust.  Sharp chains produce chips, not fine particles of sawdust.   A dull chain is not efficient, and it also stresses the saw motor and blade, which wears the chainsaw out quickly.  It’s not a bad idea to remove the plug wire from the spark plug when sharpening the blade. A pair of heavy leather gloves can prevent nicks and cuts when working on a chainsaw.  We also have to remember that chainsaw chains have cutting teeth on both sides.  If we don’t sharpen the chain evenly, the saw will not cut straight. 

The basic steps to sharpening the chain are simple.  First, make sure the saw is secure and balanced on a work surface.  Then make sure the correct size round file is used.  Check the owner’s manual or contact the dealer to determine the correct size file.  Use a file guide which drops over the chain blade to make sure the correct angle of filing to sharpen the cutters is followed.  Some veteran sawyers can “eyeball” the angle and get it right, but I never can. Don’t bear down too hard when stroking the cutter with the file- light pressure is good.  File all the cutters on one side before switching to the other.  Use a crayon to mark your starting place on the chain.  File the other side in a similar manner.

Unless you are a full-time woodcutter, it might just be easier and much faster to have a spare chain on hand and change out the old, dull chain rather than sharpening it.  New chains are not that expensive.

Circular Saw Blades

When it comes to circular saw blades, we are in a different situation from the other edged tools we’ve examined.  Many circular saw blades today are carbide-tipped on the cutting points, and carbide is very hard to re-sharpen.  Carbide stays sharp a long time, but it will get dull after a certain amount of use.  A new circular saw blade will cost less than ten dollars in most cases, and a new blade will have a much sharper blade than most folks can obtain from re-sharpening.

Basically what we are saying is this: Unless you really love to sit at a work bench and sharpen an edge, you will be time and money ahead to run down to the hardware store and buy a new circular saw blade to fit the tool.  Hang the old blade up on a nail in the shop somewhere, and get busy cutting with the new blade.

A Final Word

Small farm people really need to look around to find a professional sharpener who operates in the home area. There are times when professional help is needed to properly maintain a sharp edge on a tool.  It’s no shame to have a professional make a cutting tool right.  The most dangerous cutting tool is one that is not sharpened correctly- not done right, a blade is very dangerous.  As Terry Hartley says, “A sharp blade is worth every penny it costs to have it professionally sharpened.”

For more information or to have a special blade brought back to life by a professional sharpener, contact Terry Hartley at Hartley Saw Repair (251) 937-7726- he’s a really “sharp” guy.