Sharpenin' a brick trowel ain't hard, but you gotta do it right-mess it up, and your trowel'll be useless. First, grab the right tools: a medium-grit sanding block (120-grit) and a fine-grit one (240-grit), plus a damp rag. Start by cleaning the blade-wipe off all mortar, 'cause dry mortar'll scratch the blade when you sand.
Hold the trowel at a 20-degree angle-like you're sharpening a knife, but not as steep. Run the sanding block along the blade edge, slow and steady, always going in the same direction (don't back-and-forth). Do this 10-15 times on each side-you wanna see a slight shine, but not a razor-sharp edge (trowels don't need to be sharp enough to cut, just smooth enough to spread mortar).
Then switch to the fine-grit block-same angle, same direction-another 10 times on each side. This smooths out the scratches from the medium grit. Wipe the blade with a damp rag to get rid of sanding dust, then test it: spread a little mortar. If it glides off easy, you're good. If not, do a few more fine-grit passes.
Pro tip: don't over-sharpen! If you sand too much, you'll thin the blade, and it'll bend easier. I made that mistake once-sanded my trowel till the edge was paper-thin, and it bent the first time I pressed a brick. So take it slow, don't rush, and stop when it feels smooth. That's it!
brick trowel from hanke tools
