How to Sharpen Felco Pruners

Pruners can trim plants from rose bushes to hedges.

Felco pruners require routine maintenance to keep the blades sharp. Sharp blades will cut through thicker branches and limbs without tearing the bark and will cut with only one squeeze of the pruning shears. A sharpening whetstone sharpens blades of all kinds including pruners and a ceramic sharpening stone fine-tunes the edge for cutting ease.

Things You'll Need

• Sharpening stone-whetstone
• Ceramic sharpening stone

Instructions

1. Grasp the pruning shears in one hand with four fingers in between the handles and the thumb on the side of the shears. The cutting portion of the shears should point towards the body with the spring mechanism on the underside in the hand.

2. Apply a sharpening stone at a 23-degree angle to the larger of the two blades. Pull the sharpening stone over the blade from the cutting side to the non-cutting side. Use slow, determined strokes with the sharpening stone. Sharpen the larger blade starting at the base near the handles and continue to the tip of the blade.

3. Sharpen the smaller curved blade with a sharpening stone in the same manner.

4. Turn the pruning shears over in one hand so that the opposite side faces up and the handles point towards the body. Hold with four fingers supporting the cutting blades from underneath the pruners and the thumb on top of one of the handles. The spring mechanism will be face up.

5. Turn the ceramic sharpening stone at a 5-degree angle to the blade and draw it across the larger blade first. Start this step near the handle and work outward to the blade tip. Repeat this process on the smaller curved blade.

Tips & Warnings

• Use slow long strokes of a sharpening stone to develop a fine cutting edge on the pruners.

• Sharpen each blade so that it is the same thickness on the cutting edge all along each blade.

• The ceramic sharpening stone removes burrs from the pruners, which occurs as the metal wears away with the sharpening stone. Burrs are tiny metal edges that protrude from the blade. Removal of burrs ensures a clean cutting edge.

• Heavy usage or hard and thick branches and limbs will cause pruner to dull so that they need sharpening.

• Hold the pruners firmly in hand while sharpening so that they do not slip and cut fingers.

References

• Felco Store: General Maintenance Tips