Being able to carry a high-quality knife sharpening kit in your bug out bag is an excellent addition. Unfortunately, a lot of these kits are expensive and are quite heavy. What if you could make your own that was half the weight while having more grits available for your use? For that, you should follow the instructions below.
Materials and Tools:
Container of acetone
Adhesive spray
5 variety packs of high grit sandpaper (800-2,000 grit)
Scissors
Cotton cloths
Rubber bumpers (optional)
5 smooth bathroom tiles
Wax paper
With sandpaper, the higher the grit number, the finer the sanding. You’ll want to use 800, 1,000 or 2,000 grit sand paper (at the very least). The Process
First, make sure you are in a relatively clean, well-ventilated area. You do not want to be in a non-ventilated area while using the acetone.
Step 1: Clean the Tile
Pour some acetone on a cloth or rag. Wipe the acetone on the tiles to clean them and remove any residue.
Step 2: Attach Sandpaper
In a well-ventilated area, spray the bathroom tile and the back of the sandpaper sheet with the spray adhesive. Let them sit for as long as the adhesive suggests, then attach them together.
Step 3: Compress and Cure
Lay a sheet of wax paper on top of the sharpening tile. Then you want to place a large flat weight on top to compress the sandpaper sheet onto the tile, and let it sit and cure.
Cut pieces of wax paper that will cover each tile. The wax paper will go over the sandpaper. Place books or another heavy object on top of the wax paper and then allow the adhesive to set for at least an hour.
Step 4: Repeat for Each Grit
Creating this kit is great because not only are you able to provide yourself with several grits to add to your bug out bag, but you can also do it at a fraction of the weight and for and even smaller fraction of the cost.
You could even reduce the weight further by using a thin and light strip of wood, rather than a flooring tile, on which to attach the sandpaper.
Stocking up on the sandpaper will allow you the ability to keep replacing the grit and ensure you are using a quality surface every time. Using sandpaper will also eliminate the “bowling” that sometimes occurs with older whetstones.
This is an awesome project that everyone should undertake. If you want to see the original article, check out diy ready.
terrible idea for a bug out bag!, not only are the tiles likely to get broken, now you have to carry along acetone,sandpaper and spray glue to “re up” these things…… just more crap to carry. in my personal opinion i would a whole lot rather carry something like a worksharp field sharpener and call it good. just my opinion here.