Oldnretired
Well-Known Member
I have noticed that alot of folks obsess over "hair popping" sharpness. Going to extremes polishing the bevel with rouge on a strop etc.
That's all good if one intends to shave with it but otherwise ?
The only knives I own that I put that much effort into the edges are my fillet knives. I have several polishing compounds but find that progressing down to very fine grits (2,000) using wet-or-dry sandpaper on a glass plate then stropping lightly on the kind of cardboard from the inside of cereal boxes get those scary sharp. I find that even my favorite long knife for cutting my own steaks from rib roasts doesn't need that sort of edge. An old Englishtown that seems to be a softer stainless but very easy to sharpen to a very sharp edge. Not "hair popping" but sharp enough not to feel it when I acidently cut myself with it once.
Most of my knives I spend a couple of minutes on a Norton two sided stone with some 3-in-1 oil and if I pay attention to the angle they come off sharper than I actually need them to be. That's not with any of your harder steels mind you, just average 440c etc. types and a few others with mystery or average type steels. I actually tend to avoid using any knives with really hard steel once they dull due to the PITA of sharpening them again.
I also took the advice from the Arno Bernard knives team and hone them on a good steel first when I think they need sharpening. Doing that has no doubt saved me alot of time with the stones. Often the edge is just rolled a little or otherwise microscopally misaligned. Like microscopic little teeth that need straightening.
Just a few thoughts that aren't for everybody but work just fine for me.
That's all good if one intends to shave with it but otherwise ?
The only knives I own that I put that much effort into the edges are my fillet knives. I have several polishing compounds but find that progressing down to very fine grits (2,000) using wet-or-dry sandpaper on a glass plate then stropping lightly on the kind of cardboard from the inside of cereal boxes get those scary sharp. I find that even my favorite long knife for cutting my own steaks from rib roasts doesn't need that sort of edge. An old Englishtown that seems to be a softer stainless but very easy to sharpen to a very sharp edge. Not "hair popping" but sharp enough not to feel it when I acidently cut myself with it once.
Most of my knives I spend a couple of minutes on a Norton two sided stone with some 3-in-1 oil and if I pay attention to the angle they come off sharper than I actually need them to be. That's not with any of your harder steels mind you, just average 440c etc. types and a few others with mystery or average type steels. I actually tend to avoid using any knives with really hard steel once they dull due to the PITA of sharpening them again.
I also took the advice from the Arno Bernard knives team and hone them on a good steel first when I think they need sharpening. Doing that has no doubt saved me alot of time with the stones. Often the edge is just rolled a little or otherwise microscopally misaligned. Like microscopic little teeth that need straightening.
Just a few thoughts that aren't for everybody but work just fine for me.