Overview
Our sharpening service will provide a good serviceable edge on the blade. The result is typically “very sharp” with a small secondary bevel and a bit of an “apple seed” profile. The resulting edge is somewhat dependent on the particular blade. Some blades will take and hold sharper edges than others and the thickness of the blade will determine how wide the bevel will need to be. We adjust the angle of the edge to suit the specific blade and attempt to get as close to a bevel-less edge as possible without marring the surface of the blade.
The Sharpening Process
The sharpening service is done with a belt sander. The process involves many passes with sanding belts of various grits. The blades are rested between passes to prevent them from becoming hot and damaging their temper. By default we will sharpen as much of the blade as possible including any false edges if appropriate. If you have a different preference, feel free to make that request in the special instructions at check out. We can sharpen only the last half or third of an edge, for example. Our sword sharpening expert has personally sharpened several thousand swords at this point, so will provide you with a professional service.
What the Service is Not
The resulting edge will be “sword sharp” not razor sharp. Our goal is to provide you with a usable edge for cutting practice that will hold up to some use and not require constant re-sharpening. In other words, we intend to provide you with a serviceable weapon, not a personal grooming implement. The service will not provide a completely bevel-less edge. To create that type of edge will necessarily scratch up the blade surface and we lack the machinery and time to provide a full re-polishing of a blade’s surface. A service of that nature would be significantly more expensive as a great deal more time would be required. We do not offer this type of service at this time.
Disclaimer
We make no guarantee that the resulting edge will meet with your expectations. Every blade is different and some will take and hold a sharper edge than others, due to the blade material, heat treatment or geometry. Some customers can also have incorrect assumptions about sword sharpness and improper expectations as a result. All we can say for sure is that the resulting edge will be sharper than the default edge, in most cases, significantly so. We can not provide any refunds for the service once it has been completed, so consider it to be provided “as is”. That being said, if you are unhappy with the product for any reason, we do still allow you to return the item for a full refund, including the sharpening costs under our normal return policy. This does not apply to special sharpening requests, for example if we sharpen something specially for you that does not normally list that option on our site. The vast majority of our customers are happy with the results of the service, so as long as you keep the above mentioned in mind, we are confident you will be pleased with the results as well.
Dave –
Excellent Quality I just received this knife in the mail and it is huge! The pictures don’t do it justice, you really have to hold it to understand. The quality is outstanding, nice thick full tang, beautiful brass and hard wood making up the handle. It also came relatively sharp, more then I anticipated it would be. It has a great price I’d say it’s worth a little more then what you pay. The only thing keeping me from giving 5 stars is it came with some black stuff on the blade and I can’t seem to get it off, all I have right now is some 90% rubbing alcohol and after 10 minutes of scrubbing it with a towel I got most of it off but there is still some crap left on it. All in all its a great knife well worth the price, I’d recommend this to anyone looking to add a serious Bowie knife to their collection.
Scott –
Great quality for the price. Fit and finish for the price is great. Keen edge, had no problem slicing a piece of paper in a push or draw cut. A couple passes with the leather strip and I could shave my arm with it. I paid for a sharpening service on the false edge, KoA did it justice and I am pleased with the edge it took. The blade is heavy but well balanced enough to be quick in the strike (a little slower in the return due to weight). I haven’t used it for work yet, so can’t speak to the ultimate durability of the blade, but expect it to hold up due to the robust design and suspected hardness. The pictures don’t do it justice. Has my recommendation.
Scott –
Follow up review I’ve now used the blade extensively on my farm. It outcuts my gerber machete by far (with far less effort due to balance). The edge geometry is great for splitting wood. I’ve managed to take a few 1.5″ thick limbs down in a single blow while pruning my fruit trees. Maintains an edge well enough. After use I bring out the leather strap and get it shaving sharp before re-oiling for storage. Great bowie, I am very happy with it as a tool or for self defense. Devil’s Edge did a great job when they designed this knife, it’s a heavy duty working blade that could, if necessary, be used for fighting off bears or tweakers. 5 stars.
boxeater5 (verified owner) –
Overally really fast shipping and good quality. There was a little bit of damage on the wood part of the grip and a scratch on the blade. It came plenty sharp so no need to worry about that. All in all it was still worth the price, just a little bummed about the damage so had to take away a star.
MyPanache (verified owner) –
There is a quote about the defining features of Bowie knives “It must be long enough to be a sword, sharp enough to use as a razor, wide enough to use as a paddle, and heavy enough to use as a hatchet.”
The Boar’s Tusk comes pretty close to this (For the record it is very sharp, but not razor sharp. It could be made razor sharp but then chopping kindling and such would destroy that edge so why bother?) It is a hefty blade but the fit and finish is very good. I didn’t hesitate trying it immediately after opening the box from KoA and splitting a two inch piece of kindling down its length. I then used it on a log to see how it might chop (very well). The edge held up beautifully. I plan on using this as a camp knife and it exceeded my expectations. This is the second Devil’s Edge product I have purchased from KoA (the other was their Bollock Dagger) and I am very impressed with Kult of Athena’s house brand. I would but another Devil’s Edge product without hesitation
Bart Martin –
She took her time getting her, but she was worth the wait. Absolute massive knife and well made as far as I can tell. Bought it for a friend with larger hands than me and I think I nailed it.
Ethan Veillion (verified owner) –
Good knife for the price holds an edge fairly well. Had a few cosmetic issues like a large pit in the wood scales. Would like if it came sharper out of the box