Sometimes you just have to go back to fundamental

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EdipisReks

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I was thinning a knife tonight, and after getting it sharpened the damn thing would just not cut. It looked great, and had a nice geometry, but it bounced off of tomato skins half the time. I couldn't feel a burr, which is the usual culprit for me when things won't cut, though a few passes on .5 CrO/balso helped things a little. I decided to break out the ol' black marker to see if i was actually grinding what i thought i was grinding, and low and behold, I hadn't blended the bevels quite flat enough, and I was just barely, barely missing the edge at the angle I was going for. I hadn't used a marker on a knife in a long time, but I sure was glad that I had learned a reliable fundamental when I first started sharpening.
 
Every time I make a blade I use a sharpie when grinding,it is an effective tool.
 
I do this all the time, everytime, but just by looking at the scratches and finish level instead of marker ink. I'm leaning on my keen eyesight, but its exactly the same as the marker trick.
 
I do this all the time, everytime, but just by looking at the scratches and finish level instead of marker ink. I'm leaning on my keen eyesight, but its exactly the same as the marker trick.

that's what i usually do, but the gap was just so small that it looked correct, which stymied me.
 
Yup. I use the marker fairly often, mostly for fixing large bevels. Once I grind the entire face of the bevel on a coarse stone, I will reflatten and check for high spots with a marker.
 
I just went so far as finding a marker, clipping it into my shirt, then forgetting to use it when I started sharpening.
 
this kind of stuff happens to me every few months. i think even though we develop bad habits, realize them, and fix them, others always seem to come up.

bad habits to me are not regularly checking your work, not being honest with yourself and lack of humility.

anyway, i find that the magic marker trick is not as much for beginners as it is for veterans. observing is usually one of the last things everyone wants to learn but really it should be one of the first realizations
 
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