01-30-2018, 09:12 PM
Mr. Jan, what you've done with the Tormek is Amazing! I've never seen anything like that. Indeed, that would be an ideal tool for studying burr formation, and standardizing edges to be compared with the new EOU edge folding machine. I'm definitely going to have to do that to my Tormek. I like it much better than the Tormek jig.
Do you ever use a layer of electrical tape on the spine, to give just enough added angle to make sure you're only hitting the EOTE for finishing?
I sharpen all of my personal knives on stones. Doesn't matter if it's a folder, kitchen knife, or knives I make. If you have the best stones, and know how to use them, it simply boils down to the best way to manage burrs IMHO.
Edge leading (EL) vs. edge trailing (ET) makes a big difference to me. The resultant burr is much different.
I don't use Edge Following strokes ("A" direction), very much, since it produces no scratch pattern, but there is a legitimate use for EF strokes on stones. Some folks use EF to remove large burrs.
I admit it's easier to sharpen a sword edge following, but I don't use my sword much anymore. Edges that held up to chopping through bone were more practical than toothy edges in my gladiator days.
Axes don't benefit from tooth either, which is why ax stones are round. They are meant to be held in hand, and used with circular (scrubbing) motion for forming the edge or removing damage, and edge following strokes for finishing
For long kitchen knives, scrubbing EL-ET at about 90° to the stone, working from heel to toe is preferable for sharpening in traditional Japanese fashion, then diagonal ET to finish. This is due to the perception that if you are ET, the edge would more or less ride over a larger grit particle, where if you were EL, a grit particle could more or less dent the fine edge.
I tend to favor ET when I want a refined edge, but I go EL when finishing for maximum tooth.
Finishing ET diagonally is enhanced by honing from heel to toe, then toe to heel, for a "perfect" "X" scratch pattern. Especially with straight razors, because straight razors are special, and the more complication the better.
I would describe the difference between an ET and El burr like this;
An ET burr Tapers, from the edge of the blade outward. If you over sharpen, you get tinsel, but there is a more significant burr at the base of the burr, and you will discover it if you cut the burr off with an EL stroke on a stone. All the tinsel will come off immediately, and you will have a small "shiny line" at the Edge Of The Edge (EOTE), but it's small and super easy to flip because it's so flimsy.
An EL burr is much more substantial. The burr "piles up" on the burr side. It actually doesn't flip. When you try to flip it, something different happens. What happens is basically like a "double burr". You will get a new burr off the piled up burr, going back to the other side of the edge. You can feel the burr on the other side long before you've eliminated the base of the piled up burr.
I know this is true, because I have been studying this with significant determination, and hard stainless steel, which magnifies burr properties.
Do you ever use a layer of electrical tape on the spine, to give just enough added angle to make sure you're only hitting the EOTE for finishing?
I sharpen all of my personal knives on stones. Doesn't matter if it's a folder, kitchen knife, or knives I make. If you have the best stones, and know how to use them, it simply boils down to the best way to manage burrs IMHO.
Edge leading (EL) vs. edge trailing (ET) makes a big difference to me. The resultant burr is much different.
I don't use Edge Following strokes ("A" direction), very much, since it produces no scratch pattern, but there is a legitimate use for EF strokes on stones. Some folks use EF to remove large burrs.
I admit it's easier to sharpen a sword edge following, but I don't use my sword much anymore. Edges that held up to chopping through bone were more practical than toothy edges in my gladiator days.
Axes don't benefit from tooth either, which is why ax stones are round. They are meant to be held in hand, and used with circular (scrubbing) motion for forming the edge or removing damage, and edge following strokes for finishing
For long kitchen knives, scrubbing EL-ET at about 90° to the stone, working from heel to toe is preferable for sharpening in traditional Japanese fashion, then diagonal ET to finish. This is due to the perception that if you are ET, the edge would more or less ride over a larger grit particle, where if you were EL, a grit particle could more or less dent the fine edge.
I tend to favor ET when I want a refined edge, but I go EL when finishing for maximum tooth.
Finishing ET diagonally is enhanced by honing from heel to toe, then toe to heel, for a "perfect" "X" scratch pattern. Especially with straight razors, because straight razors are special, and the more complication the better.
I would describe the difference between an ET and El burr like this;
An ET burr Tapers, from the edge of the blade outward. If you over sharpen, you get tinsel, but there is a more significant burr at the base of the burr, and you will discover it if you cut the burr off with an EL stroke on a stone. All the tinsel will come off immediately, and you will have a small "shiny line" at the Edge Of The Edge (EOTE), but it's small and super easy to flip because it's so flimsy.
An EL burr is much more substantial. The burr "piles up" on the burr side. It actually doesn't flip. When you try to flip it, something different happens. What happens is basically like a "double burr". You will get a new burr off the piled up burr, going back to the other side of the edge. You can feel the burr on the other side long before you've eliminated the base of the piled up burr.
I know this is true, because I have been studying this with significant determination, and hard stainless steel, which magnifies burr properties.
![[Image: 2d7g0sh.jpg]](http://i68.tinypic.com/2d7g0sh.jpg)