Paper towel test

[KOA]

So I’m having trouble getting all my knives to cleanly cut through paper towel. Some do smoothly while others there is a snag during the cutting resulting in a jagged tear.
I use a 1k shapton pro followed by a 3k chosera.
I’m assuming this is due to a residual burr causing it to snag at particular spot(s) along the edge. I usually burr/deburr on the 1k till reasonably smooth cutting then proceed to progress to the 3k. My skd and blue 1 knives then cut the paper towel smoothly, but I can’t seem to do it with my blue 2 knives. They are still sharp but just a jagged result. Should I drop down to a lower grit? Or just focus more on the 1 k before progressing to 3k?
I.E. should I work with the 1k shapton until a smooth paper towel cut along the entire blade before progressing to the 3k or do I need to start on a lower grit first?

 

[stringer]

So I’m having trouble getting all my knives to cleanly cut through paper towel. Some do smoothly while others there is a snag during the cutting resulting in a jagged tear.
I use a 1k shapton pro followed by a 3k chosera.
I’m assuming this is due to a residual burr causing it to snag at particular spot(s) along the edge. I usually burr/deburr on the 1k till reasonably smooth cutting then proceed to progress to the 3k. My skd and blue 1 knives then cut the paper towel smoothly, but I can’t seem to do it with my blue 2 knives. They are still sharp but just a jagged result. Should I drop down to a lower grit? Or just focus more on the 1 k before progressing to 3k?
I.E. should I work with the 1k shapton until a smooth paper towel cut along the entire blade before progressing to the 3k or do I need to start on a lower grit first?

You are probably overthinking it. Most of my knives have bits that aren't perfect through a paper towel. If I worried about chasing paper towel perfection it would waste a lot of time and metal. Are you experiencing any difficulties with using your knives with food?

 

[KOA]

You are probably overthinking it. Most of my knives have bits that aren't perfect through a paper towel. If I worried about chasing paper towel perfection it would waste a lot of time and metal. Are you experiencing any difficulties with using your knives with food?

The blue 2 knives in question seem to need a touch up sooner then the others. Maybe after 1 week of daily home cooking use, in order to cut tomatoes smoothly. Not terrible, but higher maintenance than skd and blue 1. I suppose it’s just the nature of the steel?

 

[stringer]

The blue 2 knives in question seem to need a touch up sooner then the others. Maybe after 1 week of daily home cooking use, in order to cut tomatoes smoothly. Not terrible, but higher maintenance than skd and blue 1. I suppose it’s just the nature of the steel?

There will always be improvements to be made. Just don't get too caught up on paper towel tests. Minute damage that snags on paper towel is not what is preventing the knife from cutting tomato skin. It probably actually helps a bit. Like mini-serrations. And I can sharpen a knife on a 60 grit SiC rubbing stone that cleanly goes through paper towel. Coarse finishes work best for that test. After about 1000 grit you start doing yourself a disservice.

 

[stringer]

There will always be improvements to be made. Just don't get too caught up on paper towel tests. Minute damage that snags on paper towel is not what is preventing the knife from cutting tomato skin. It probably actually helps a bit. Like mini-serrations. And I can sharpen a knife on a 60 grit SiC rubbing stone that cleanly goes through paper towel. Coarse finishes work best for that test. After about 1000 grit you start doing yourself a disservice.

Doesn't have a whole lot of relationship to what feels good going through food.

 

[HumbleHomeCook]

You are probably overthinking it. Most of my knives have bits that aren't perfect through a paper towel. If I worried about chasing paper towel perfection it would waste a lot of time and metal. Are you experiencing any difficulties with using your knives with food?

I 1000% agree with @stringer. Paper towel tests are fun but are absolutely not necessary for actual kitchen use. I get much cleaner paper towel cuts off polished edges but I don't like polished edges in the kitchen.

Use your real world experiences to guide you.

 

[cotedupy]

What they said ^

I think it's less likely to be a deburring issue issue tbh, Blue 2 is quite easy to deburr ime, what it sounds like is a couple of tiny chips on the edge. The kind that you probably couldn't even see without a loupe, will be completely unnoticeable in normal use, and will go away after a couple of sharpening sessions anyway.

Paper tests are highly sensitive to this kind of thing and show up minute imperfections very accurately, but it's not something to fret about.

 

[Ruso]

I think you are not hitting the apex 100%. Perhaps, going slightly lower grit and reset the bevel will help.
Al contrary to the posters above, I think paper towel test should be passed clean. While it does not mean your knife will cut a tomato much better, it tells you that you’ve done a good and consistent job across the entire edge.
Do not get hung up on it, but try to get there.
GL

 

[noj]

I observe that a paper towel test will detect very small defects of all sorts. For example, both excess material (burrs) and missing material (micro-chips). Nearly invisible micro-chips can be felt in paper tests. Fixing the "problem" may require finding out what's going on. I found it instructional to find out what is happening, to improve sharpening or cutting technique. But only once in a long while, when it's worth the time and metal as others have pointed out.

 

[Lezza]

Finish off with a leather strop loaded with CrOx or diamond. Diamonds will be toothier than CrOx.