You know Mr. Rupert, you have been sharpening for much longer that I. I’ve only been at it for 10-15 years or so. Just goes to show that, at least in my case, experience does not necessarily equal wisdom.
What truly amazes me is that, in all that time, until you suggested it, I never thought to finish an edge at 120 grit. I know why, but I won’t bother to explain it here. What happened is that even though I could get edges very sharp I was never satisfied. My freshly sharpened blades would cut a tomato just fine, but soon would just ride on the skin. The smooth edges were hopeless for anything other than push cutting. It would show up with things like nylon rope, etc., as well as tomatoes, broccoli stems and a variety of other stuff.
I honestly thought finer grit = better edges, but I was so dissatisfied I started playing with coarser grinds. I got really daring and went to 600 grit. Still not happy. Then 400 grit. Still no happiness. Then 220. Better but… Then 180, and now, thanks to you 120 grit. Now I’m even tempted to do 80 grit. How gnarly dare I go?
I had been so convinced that 120 grit would make a totally junk edge that I never even bothered to try. Weird, eh?
I completely understand that there is a place for a smooth edge, but for general use and kitchen blades a bit of tooth seems to work best and be the most versatile most of the time.
You would think that 120 grit would produce basically a saw edge. To my surprise and total enjoyment microscopy has proven that false. What 120 grit provides is just a bit of toothy uneven surface with some bite. Anything less coarse just gets smoother and smoother. I was even under the impression that a 120 grit edge could not be sharp. Wow! That assumption was like, completely and totally wrong. I was like a fool walking around with a sign on my forehead saying Me = Idiot.
The other cool thing is that there is evidence that toothy edges remain useful longer than smooth edges. For instance, Max the Knife recently posted that some 150 grit blades were much more useable after 3 weeks than 600 grit edges were. But that’s not all. I’ve been reading that stuff from various sources for some time now.
Now, once again your experience shows… A swivel chair!!! Doh! My chair does not swivel.
Now I know your secret.
Always something to learn or in my case unlearn I guess. Thank you again for helping me to unlearn! I’m always more than happy to unlearn something!
What truly amazes me is that, in all that time, until you suggested it, I never thought to finish an edge at 120 grit. I know why, but I won’t bother to explain it here. What happened is that even though I could get edges very sharp I was never satisfied. My freshly sharpened blades would cut a tomato just fine, but soon would just ride on the skin. The smooth edges were hopeless for anything other than push cutting. It would show up with things like nylon rope, etc., as well as tomatoes, broccoli stems and a variety of other stuff.
I honestly thought finer grit = better edges, but I was so dissatisfied I started playing with coarser grinds. I got really daring and went to 600 grit. Still not happy. Then 400 grit. Still no happiness. Then 220. Better but… Then 180, and now, thanks to you 120 grit. Now I’m even tempted to do 80 grit. How gnarly dare I go?
I had been so convinced that 120 grit would make a totally junk edge that I never even bothered to try. Weird, eh?
I completely understand that there is a place for a smooth edge, but for general use and kitchen blades a bit of tooth seems to work best and be the most versatile most of the time.
You would think that 120 grit would produce basically a saw edge. To my surprise and total enjoyment microscopy has proven that false. What 120 grit provides is just a bit of toothy uneven surface with some bite. Anything less coarse just gets smoother and smoother. I was even under the impression that a 120 grit edge could not be sharp. Wow! That assumption was like, completely and totally wrong. I was like a fool walking around with a sign on my forehead saying Me = Idiot.
The other cool thing is that there is evidence that toothy edges remain useful longer than smooth edges. For instance, Max the Knife recently posted that some 150 grit blades were much more useable after 3 weeks than 600 grit edges were. But that’s not all. I’ve been reading that stuff from various sources for some time now.
Now, once again your experience shows… A swivel chair!!! Doh! My chair does not swivel.
Now I know your secret.Always something to learn or in my case unlearn I guess. Thank you again for helping me to unlearn! I’m always more than happy to unlearn something!