In more ways than one, you need a knife sharpener to keep your folding knife in tip top shape. The blade of your knife needs to be at its best so that you will be able to use your knife in the event of an emergency.

Keeping a sharp knife applies to all kinds of knife – whether you are using a kitchen knife, a tactical knife or an all-around multi-purpose knife. For folding knives, you need to find the ideal knife sharpener so you can keep this kind of knife in optimum shape. So what is the best knife sharpener for a folding knife? There are so many kinds of sharpeners in the market but how do you know that you are buying the most suitable one?

There are manual knife sharpeners, manual sharpeners, manual pull through sharpeners and electric knife sharpeners. You should consider the advantages and the disadvantages of each so you will be able to keep your folding knife in the best possible shape.

• Manual knife sharpeners and sharpener systems – are simple and do not require power. There is a fixed blade which leads to a perfect sharpening angle all the time. This is considered the best sharpener since it is available in different ranges of grits and stones. It is low maintenance but may be labor extensive and expensive.

• Manual pull-throughs – this also requires no power to work, has a fixed angle, low maintenance and will easily sharpen a knife in a small amount of time. However, sharpener models may only have one stage making sharpening slower. Large knifes may never fit very small sharpeners.

• Electric sharpeners – easily and speedily sharpens knives, low maintenance but has some moving parts. The more expensive the model, the higher the quality of the sharpening stone.

You need to spend time sharpening your folding knife even when you have not used it recently. You must take time sharpening and get used to doing it since this is the best time to get to know your knife.

Aside from asking what is the best knife sharpener for a folding knife, you should also need to ask what angle should I sharpen my folding knife? The answer to this is that it depends on the blade material you have. According to experts, however, sporting knives which include pocket knives, survival knives and hunting knives should be sharpened to a 25 to 30-degree angle range.

So what is the best knife sharpener for a folding knife then? According to shopping sites and sporting outlets sites, the ideal sharpener for a folding knife and other survival knives should be something that does not require electricity and can effectively sharpen a knife to a razor sharp edge from 10 to 30 degrees in 2-degree increments. The best is Wicked Edge Field and Sport, a manual sharpener that costs around $275.

It is, therefore, important that you find the best knife sharpener to care for your folding knife. Check out more great knife sharpeners online to get the best deal.