Caring for your new knife
Keeping your P.M.Lewis knife performing for a lifetime is a simple task. First, learn to properly sharpen your knife. I will resharpen any knife I have made for no cost other than shipping however.. There are sharpening kits that include a jig to keep your angle of the stone to the blade even. If you are new to sharpening, use this type of sharpening system. NEVER use crotch sticks or any type of sharpener where you drag your knife through a V shaped, hand held sharpener. These sharpeners remove lots of material and will destroy your edge quickly. Diamond stones are my choice to make a knife sharp. Use a light tough and let the stone do the work. After I have worked the blade through the stones, I finish up with a leather strap to remove any burrs left.
A knife should never be stored in its sheath. This is especially true of a carbon steel knife. Leather sheaths will keep the blade from "breathing" and will allow rust to form. I keep my personal knives in display cabinet and the sheaths in a seperate drawer underneath. The sheaths should get a leather treatment once in a while to keep it flexible and to keep it from drying out.. The blade should be cleaned after use and dried well. You can also put a light coat of oil if it will be a while before you use the knife next. I use a food grade mineral oil for this.
I try to make sure my knives can handle tough duty and there are several ways to get the performance you are looking for out of a knife. There are different steels that can be used and they all have different properties. Some hold an edge very well while others can handle more abuse. If you are unsure of the style or metal that might best handle the type of work you plan to do, send an e-mail and we will figure it out together. I want you to be happy with your purchase.
One final note: A knife is not a pry bar! I dont make my knives for this job. I will use different steels for different styles to assure they perform very well for what you need them to do. Some blades will have more flex to them than others but none are designed to pry.
A knife should never be stored in its sheath. This is especially true of a carbon steel knife. Leather sheaths will keep the blade from "breathing" and will allow rust to form. I keep my personal knives in display cabinet and the sheaths in a seperate drawer underneath. The sheaths should get a leather treatment once in a while to keep it flexible and to keep it from drying out.. The blade should be cleaned after use and dried well. You can also put a light coat of oil if it will be a while before you use the knife next. I use a food grade mineral oil for this.
I try to make sure my knives can handle tough duty and there are several ways to get the performance you are looking for out of a knife. There are different steels that can be used and they all have different properties. Some hold an edge very well while others can handle more abuse. If you are unsure of the style or metal that might best handle the type of work you plan to do, send an e-mail and we will figure it out together. I want you to be happy with your purchase.
One final note: A knife is not a pry bar! I dont make my knives for this job. I will use different steels for different styles to assure they perform very well for what you need them to do. Some blades will have more flex to them than others but none are designed to pry.