How-To Sharpen Your Axe With A Stone
Safety First!
A sharp axe is a safe axe. Like any knife, a well-sharpened axe will go where you tell it, without putting up a fight or shooting off in the wrong direction. A dull axe, by comparison, is an accident waiting to happen. Blunt axes can bounce or glance off their target, ending up somewhere you don’t want them to. They also require more force to use, increasing the opportunity for an accident or back injury.
Of course, proper technique is also required; you can undoubtedly injure yourself with a sharp axe, but with the appropriate technique and a little practice, a sharp axe is the way to go. Here we’ll discuss the basic methods of hand-sharpening so that you can get a fantastic edge on your favourite tool!
What you'll need to sharpen your axe:
We recommend using our Camp Kent of Inglewood Axe Sharpening Stone, & water. Water helps speeds things up by naturally mixing itself with the metal axe shavings you'll be creating to form something referred to as a 'slurry', which is just a fancy word for the paste-like mixture that will form along your edge as you sharpen it with the stone.
What is an axe sharpening stone?
Our Axe sharpening stone is what's more commonly referred to as a whetstone; which is a stone that grinds away steel with abrasion and water. Our's is also a handy two-sided stone: it has one rough side (120 grit) for establishing your edge and repairing chips, and one fine side (360 grit) for finishing your axe's edge. Whetstone sharpening is classic and romantic and is the easiest way to sharpen a tool properly and consistently without needing anything more than your own two hands.
Power tools can provide an excellent edge and speed advantage but can quickly damage your axe without the correct technique. Whetstone sharpening is also something you can do when you’re out in the field. A belt sander is not terribly portable, but one or two whetstones can tuck away nicely in your backpack when camping.
If you maintain your axes properly, you’ll only need a double-sided puck stone like ours. If you ever go down the long road of restoration, you’ll likely want to invest in some files or take the time to learn how to use a belt sander properly.
Maintaining your Axe profile
Most axes are sharpened on both sides of the blade, known as a 50/50 grind (the same amount of grind on either side). Most modern axes either have a flat or convex grind on their bevel. Generally, the factory edge of an axe will be suited to the task it is designed for. Most axe sharpening follows the existing bevel style, but you can change this if you choose to repair a poorly sharpened axe by reshaping the bevel.
Axes with a prominent flat grind excel at fine work, such as carving, feather sticking, light kindling and even carpentry. A subtle convex grind is the most multipurpose and can be used for delicate tasks such as kindling, feather sticking, etc., but is equally as good at actual chopping and moderate splitting.
Axes with a pronounced convex grind will excel at chopping and more significant splitting. While processing kindling is possible, be aware that aggressively convex ground axes tend to dull quickly and can become dangerous to use for delicate work. Axes ground similar to wedges are for splitting logs. You can use them to chop smaller firewood, but you can also use a bike tire pump to fill the air in your car tires. Don’t do that. Choose the right axe for the job.
Axes will also have a certain amount of curvature to the edge, or they may be completely straight. Unless you’re repairing or restoring an axe, it’s essential to maintain this curvature or lack thereof. Together the curvature and the grind form the axe “profile” or “geometry”, and one of the main goals while sharpening is to maintain a good profile.
Raising a burr
As you grind steel, you’ll eventually form a ‘burr’. A burr is what happens to the blade when it gets so thin that the steel starts to deform and curl away from the stone. It forms on the side of the blade opposite the stone and is something you can physically feel along the cutting edge of your axe.
When you have raised a burr along the whole edge, you are ready to move on to the other side of your axe. While finding a burr is good when you’re honing, it can also get in the way of the cutting edge, so burrs should regularly be polished off your blade between sharpenings.
Check out Nathan's quick axe sharpening breakdown :
Step by step: how to sharpen your axe
These instructions are for right-handed folk. If you are left-handed, reverse them.
Hold your axe with the haft over your left shoulder, cutting edge pointing skyward. When positioned like this, you will be sharpening the left face of the axe, but it will be pointing towards your right. Lay your coarse (120 Grit) side against the bevel.
If your axe is flat ground, lay the stone flat against the axe’s surface. If your axe is Convex ground, take a moment or two to find the angle near the cutting edge. To do this, move the stone around near the cutting edge until you find the sweet spot where the stone rests flat, hanging past the cutting edge.
Make small circular strokes and work along the entire length of your cutting edge. Ensure that part of your stone passes beyond the cutting edge with each motion; otherwise, you will be thinning the bevel but not sharpening the cutting edge.
Alternatively, you can work in long sweeping strokes with the length of the edge. Most importantly, keep your fingers behind the cutting edge to avoid getting cut. Adjust your angle as you go to ensure you grind the whole bevel, not just the edge. This will help you maintain the axe’s profile.
Keep water for your stone nearby to keep it lubricated. The lid of your axe tin is a handy place to dunk your stone when it dries out. Re-wet frequently when you hear a dry scraping sound. If your stone is designed to use oil, you will need less to lubricate it. Be careful to never to use oil on water stones.
Every so often, stop and check the other side of the axe for a burr. If you’ve raised a burr along the entire cutting edge, it’s time to flip the axe around. It will feel rough, a bit like sandpaper. If you find the burr is only raised on a portion of the axe, concentrate your efforts on the section that still needs a burr raised. Remember: If you’re working on the left side of the axe, the burr will form on the right side and vice versa.
Once you’ve raised a burr along the entire cutting edge, you can reposition the axe so that the bottom of the haft is on the ground and the cutting edge is facing away from you. Now you will be working on the right side of the axe. Repeat the previous steps until you feel a burr along the entire cutting edge, opposite the stone.
Removing the burr:
Now that you’ve completed the coarse stone work, you will need to strip off the excess burr before moving to your fine grit stone. To do this, run your rough stone from Toe to Heel on one side of the axe, then make this same motion on the other side of the bit, Toe to Heel. Be sure to keep the stone along the cutting edge throughout the stroke. If you have a curved axe edge, you can use your wrist to arc the stone along the edge. Repeat this process until the burr has mostly been removed.
Position your axe as you did when you first started sharpening, with the haft over your shoulder. Do all of the same steps as before, but now use the finer 360 grit side of the stone. The burr you raise with the finer grit stone will be less substantial than on the coarse stone.
Finishing Touches
Now that you’ve sharpened the cutting edge of your axe, you may wish to improve the look of the bevel. That’s cool; we do too. Hold your axe with the haft over your shoulder and cutting edge skyward, as before. Now, take your fine side (360 grit) of the stone and make repeated strokes along the whole edge of your axe, the same as removing the burr. After achieving the desired polish, flip the axe around and repeat the motion.
The ultimate way to finish your axe is with a Leather Strop. Stropping with suede that has been treated with Chromium Oxide improves not only the physical polish of your cutting edge but will also help improve the shine on your axe. For best results, use a suede strop that has been coated in chromium oxide, followed by plain leather. Strop in a spreading motion along and away from the edge, to avoid damaging the leather.
Maintain your axe for the future
Now that your axe is sharp, you’d be wise to keep it that way. Upkeep sharpening can be done regularly with just the fine stone and will take substantially less time and energy. Remember: a sharp axe is a safe axe. It is less likely to glance off what you’re cutting and will go where you tell it. It will also split with less force, preventing undue fatigue and potential injury. Regular tune-ups with your fine stone and strop will ensure your axe stays in tip-top shape.
If you ever need help with your axe sharpening, don’t hesitate to get in touch with us or visit your local Kent of Inglewood and Knifewear shops for help. We even have classes regularly scheduled or you can request your own private class!
Book a private class with us:
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Bond with your team, friends, or family while learning new skills. Our classes can be tailored to your needs to create a unique experience.
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