- 1). Place the sword on a flat, stable surface like a table. Use a block of wood at each end of the sword to raise it off the table.
- 2). Hold the metal file perpendicular to the way the sword blade is oriented. Lower the forward edge of the file and raise the back edge, gripped in your hand, until it's at a 30-degree angle to the edge of the blade.
- 3). Shape a rough edge onto the sword by pulling the metal file back and forth, from front to back perpendicular to the blade, in even, controlled strokes with moderate pressure. File only the side of the blade that's meant to have an edge.
- 4). Turn the sword over periodically as you work so that both sides receive the same number of strokes over the entire length of the sword. You should now have a rough edge shaped out.
- 5). Apply a thin film of oil to the surface of your whetstone. Place one hand at either end of the sword blade and work it back and forth on the whetstone at a 30-degree angle. Make sure to turn the blade over and make the same number of passes on the other side.
- 6). Run a postage-stamp sized piece of 400 grit sandpaper along both sides of the new blade edge, holding the sandpaper at the same 30-degree angle you've been using to remove metal and reveal the edge. Be very careful as you do this; if you slip, you could cut your fingers.
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