I hate sharpening knives. I don’t know why, but it irritates me, I just want it sharp without the work. This had led me to try out a variety of different means to sharpen knives and one of my favorites is my pull through sharpener I use for my kitchen knives. Unfortunately, it’s a bit big for carrying in the pocket, and even the pack really. The good news is the Pocket Pal is not. It’s a particular tool designed for a particular purpose. It’s for quick field sharpenings, not for your kitchen knives. You would use an 80 lower jig designed for an AR on a 1911 would you? When I’m going on a hunt, going fishing, or camping I like to have a good way to sharpen my knife and the Pocket Pal from Smith’s is a great little tool for these events.
It’s Small
The Pocket Pal lives up to its name and is easy to fit inside your pocket. It’s smaller than most of my folding knives and is super lightweight. I honestly wish it had a pocket clip and I might just carry it everywhere. It does have a lanyard loop which is invaluable for a tool this small. It makes sure it doesn’t get lost when traveling and when the tool isn’t in use.
Inside the Pocket Pal
While it is small it does pack three different sharpening tools. The two pull through sharpeners are a fine and coarse option. Additionally, the tool has a folding rod to sharpen serrated edges and blades. The fine option is for maintaining a blade, the coarse is for establishing a new blade.
The Pocket Pal is pretty simple to use. Determine which sharpener you need, place the blade in that sharpener and pull it through with a little downward pressure applied. When pulling through the sharpener you need to set the Pocket Pal on a flat surface and hold it in place as you pull the blade through.
The bottom surface of the Pocket Pal is flat and rests on the table easily enough. A small indention guides you on where to safely hold the sharpener as you work. The sharpeners inside the tool are replaceable and will wear out. However, the tool costs 8 bucks on Amazon so it’s easy and affordable to just purchase a new one and keep going.
My Thoughts on the Pocket Pal
I find it very easy to use and can keep the edge on my knives with ease. Dragging it through a few times at the start of the day or right before I help dress an animal out is all it takes for a solid edge. Some steels like 154CM are pretty tough and require a few more swipes than something like a VG 10 blade. My Covert Auto rocks a S30V blade and it takes a little more patience for that one, but damn can I get a fine edge.
Overall it does work and is comfortable and easy to use in the field to keep things running. For less than 10 bucks this thing is hard to beat.
Available on Amazon for around $9
