The Best Way to Sharpen Your Axe: The Kent of Inglewood Axe Stone!
A sharp axe is a safe axe. It goes where you tell it to, and it travels cleanly through wood with little effort. The opposite is true of a dull axe; they’re much more likely to bounce or glance and end up somewhere you don’t want them to. They’re harder to control, and require way more effort to swing, increasing the chance of injury or back strain.
The axes we sell are forged from hard steels that keep their edge longer than a standard axe and take a sharper edge. While they require a lighter swing and take a little time to get used to, they’re far more fun (and safer) to use. But even the best blades go dull, and as is the case with all high-quality tools, regular maintenance is the best way to keep your axe in top form.
Enter: the new Kent of Inglewood Axe Sharpening Stone! This guy is a handy sharpening stone to use on axes (and even knives) at home, around the fire, or out in the field! We spent the better part of a year testing different grits, stone densities, and sizes until we found the perfect match that sharpens your axe quickly and efficiently while fitting in any size of hand.
Our axe sharpening stone is the perfect tool for keeping your axes in tip-top shape!
The axe stone features a coarse 120 grit side for grinding dull edges and removing small chips, paired with a smoother 360 grit to upkeep and polish your edges. It leaves the smooth and sharp but not fine enough to dull quickly. Both sides used water as a lubricant because it’s easily accessible, free, and not messy! As I mentioned, this stone can also be used for quick tune-ups in the field if your knife has gone dull during a bushcraft or hunting expedition. The 360 grit side leaves your blades smooth enough to shave kindling or field-dress a deer but less likely to dull again.
The axe stone also comes in a lightweight tin for easy transportation! It’s packed with foam, but I pulled the foam out of mine and packed it with fire-starting material - It still cushions the stone but does double-duty on camping trips. The stone itself is harder than most we’ve encountered, meaning it lasts longer! But how do you use this stone?
Axe sharpening isn't hard, it just takes a little time and patience!
We have a handy axe-sharpening guide that goes in-depth in the technique, which I highly recommend reading. If you’re looking for the quick and dirty version, here goes!
- Flip the lid on your stone tin, and throw a little water in there. Let the coarse side soak for a few minutes if you have time. If not, just dip and go!
- Use the 120 grit side to grind the first side of your axe. Allow it to overhang the edge slightly, in line with the previous sharpening angle. I make sure my hand holding the stone is behind the edge so I don’t slice myself. Make sure to follow the curvature of the edge and the curvature of the bevel. Dip your stone in the water regularly to keep it well lubricated.
- Raise a rough burr along the entire edge; it’ll feel like a rough bit of velcro and appear on the side of the edge opposite the stone. If you don’t raise a burr in some areas, keep working until you do.
- Flip the axe over, and repeat the process on the opposite side of the axe.
- Now switch sides of the axe and sides of the stone. Do it all over again, this time with a finer burr.
- Once you’ve sharpened both sides, go back and forth from side to side, scraping off the burr with the finer stone.
- Pack up your stone and get to chopping!
If you or someone you love has a dull axe, you can acquire one of these stones for only $32 at your nearest Kent of Inglewood or Knifewear store, or you can order them here. Happy sharpening!
