[at-l] Scout knife.

[stephensadams at hotmail.com (Steve Adams)]

Weary,

Reference your post, dated 01-04-04, especially to ?Some (knives) hold an 
edge even when ... sawing open ... tin cans ...?

You?re going to make me cry.

Please invest in a military style can opener (the P-38); they last forever 
and weigh almost nothing.  When I was in the Army, we often stayed in the 
field for extended periods of time and food was difficult to find.  Almost 
everyone had a P-38 on his dog tag chain.  One unit distinguished itself; 
each man wore a spoon on his dog tag chain.  When you found food, you ate it 
on the spot.

Reference Brian?s email, this same date, recommending ?Sharpening stones 
loaded with industrial diamonds ...?

The cross section of a sharp knife blade, to simplify, is triangular.  Metal 
is removed, when a knife is used, making the blade less triangular and more 
rounded.  Sharpening removes more metal, the rounded shoulders, making the 
blade once again triangular.  Diamond knife sharpeners work.  You need to be 
careful, however, not to overwork them.  Sharpening usually entails pressing 
the knife blade firmly against the sharpening medium at the same angle you 
would use to whittle a wooden stake.  (The problem with diamond sharpeners 
is, you can sharpen the metal bumper of a car with one.)  I would take care, 
when pressing the blade against a diamond sharpener, to press very lightly, 
to avoid removing too much metal too quickly.

If weight and size weren?t in the equation, I would prefer to carry an 
Arkansas Stone, or Japanese Water Stone (although I have yet to find a small 
Japanese Water Stone).   I disassembled one of those kitchen knife 
sharpeners, which you just drag across the upturned blade, and carry one of 
the two small carbide blades.  The weight doesn?t register on my kitchen 
scales.  You can also use a carbide tip on a walking stick, if the tip is 
long enough.

Stropping a freshly sharpened blade against the leather of your boot (the 
opposite direction of the cutting angle) will finish the blade nicely.  A 
rifle sling keeper substitutes for a boot, and also weighs next to nothing.

Steve

P.s., Yahoo has 2,060 listings for P-38 can openers.  They, and their big 
brother the P-51, are available online, complete with detailed instructions 
and diagrams, at:    http://www.georgia-outfitters.com/page52.shtml

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