Burr which side?

R

realitycheck

Joined
Nov 24, 2007
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Hey guys I have a question for you. A while back you guys taught me that while i'm sharpening the knife I stop sahrpening and check the sharpness of the blade by how it shaves my arm hair on each side of the blade. Now if i remember correctly you guys said that if it shaves on one side and then not on the other side then it has a burr. So if this is correct heres my question.

Lets say the blade shaves my arm hair by laying the left side of the blade on my left arm and using right hand pushing it across my arm it shaves the hair off. But on the right side of the blade on my right arm it doesnt shave.
Which side of the blade is the burr on, and which side should I concentrate more on getting sharp?
 
If you're careful and gently pull your fingertips away from the edge (as seen in this image from ameritech.net), you can feel the wire edge or burr. It may be easier to take a fingernail and do the same thing. It will "catch" on the burr. You need to remove the burr to get the knife truly sharp.

14.jpg
 
I'll have to try the fingernail. I tried fingertips but couldnt figure out which side felt any different. I think was really small cause i've done this before and found the burr. But have never tried using my nails.
Does anyone else know what i'm talking about in my first post?
 
if you can't feel it on your finger nails or with your finger pads, try a fine tipped sewing needle or pin. do the same thing, but the very fine tip will catch on most burrs that will be large enough to give you this trouble.

i would suggest using a strop and removing the burr. you can use colorful magazine covers (i understand it is because of the clay used in the printing) or you can use the soft side of a piece of leather. just take many strokes, as these won't work as efficiently as a strop loaded with compound.
 
I have found that lightly dragging the edge over a ceramic cup or bowl does a nice job on burrs as well. The shinny paper does work very well.
 
Alright guys I have a strop and compound. I havent used it in a while though. So let me just make sure I am doing this right on the strop. When you strop your blade, you strop at the same angle you sharpened at? Is this correct?
 
Using your finger tips will only allow you to feel the burr to a certian point. Using the top of your finger nail you can feel the burr at a much higher level. With the same type of motion (stropping) at the proper edge angle drag the edge on your finger nail, if there is a burr it will scrape the nail. I have found this to be one of very few ways to check for a burr past a 4000 grit finish.
 
knifenut, thats the way i have always done it when i sharpened by hand. kind of foolproof too when you can see scrapings on your nail from the burr.
 
To answer your original question--you can sometimes shave with a burr if it is on the side of the blade closest to your skin.

You can also have a burr that is alligned with your edge and shaves on either side. You can get this by lightly stropping or using a smooth steel after you hone. Since this burr material is very thin it shaves well, but is weak and breaks down if you cut something tougher than meat.
 
richard j said:
knifenut, thats the way i have always done it when i sharpened by hand. kind of foolproof too when you can see scrapings on your nail from the burr.
Click to expand...

Yep foolproof is about the word for it, Now if we could only get more to test this way we would probably see a decrease in "sharpened for hours and my knife's not sharp" threads.
 
:thumbup: knifenut look for the white powder left behind by the burr or scrape marks on the nail. this might sound funny to some of you guys but lightly buffing your fingernail in a small spot can help considerably when checking for a burr if the steel has a tendency to not work up a large burr.
 
Is the burr something that can't really be seen with the naked eye then? As far as I know, I have never seen a burr...so I either haven't worked long enough to get one, or it is invisible to the naked eye. The term "burr" is pretty mysterious to me. :o
 
reality check, i typically strop at 2-3 degrees higher than i finished with the stone to make sure i am really working on the burr. i also often do some passes at the same stone angle though to polish out the bevel some.
 
knifenut1013 said:
Using your finger tips will only allow you to feel the burr to a certian point. Using the top of your finger nail you can feel the burr at a much higher level. With the same type of motion (stropping) at the proper edge angle drag the edge on your finger nail, if there is a burr it will scrape the nail. I have found this to be one of very few ways to check for a burr past a 4000 grit finish.
Click to expand...

Yes! Start at the same angle and then raise the back of the knife a bit and switch to the other side. A couple of passes should do it.
 
richard j said:
:thumbup: knifenut look for the white powder left behind by the burr or scrape marks on the nail. this might sound funny to some of you guys but lightly buffing your fingernail in a small spot can help considerably when checking for a burr if the steel has a tendency to not work up a large burr.
Click to expand...

Funny you say that, I usually take my other thumb and rub hard on the nail surface to polish and remove the scrapes for a better feel. If I ever happen to be in your neck of the woods we will have to get together and share some secrets:cool:
 
i'm in ohio so anytime you want to stop down let me know. i have more sharpening secrets that i dont share too often.
 
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