how sharp of an edge for wilderness blade?

[Thanatophagous]

I use scandi grind, and I sharpen my knives only on my DC4 (only stone I own right now) and a crappy stropping paddle I made my self from a peace of leather some scrap wood and metal polishing paste ( there are no stropping goods sold here, no strops , no stropping leather, no compounds) and I have my blades shaving sharp all the time.
And while in woods, using leather belt impregnated with polishing paste is as good as the stopping paddle.
So in short words, How sharp? Shaving sharp all the time.

 

[Calebklyne]

i keep my edges just less than shaving sharp, i find that sharpness holds its edge the longest and is still sharp enough for anything but shaving

 

[wildmike]

Insanely blazing sharp!!

On most every knife I own the edges are convexed. I field sharpen with my DC4 and maintain with diamond loaded strops down to .25 micron. They all wipe hair.

My axes are generaly taken only to 1 micron. Unless I'm bored and want some thing to do.

 

[Gossman Knives]

This is actually a pretty deep and profound issue worthy of much study among knifees such as us

Keep in mind that cutting is an act of force not an act of sharpness.
Consider these points to ponder:
* A 1/4" thick blade with a 60 degree inclusive edge that is shaving sharp simply won't be a good slicer. A fairly dull super thin blade will slice with ease.
* A shaving sharp polished edge will pop hairs on your arm but it lacks the micro serrations to easily grip and slice fiberous materials like vegetation, meat, paper and cardboard.

First and foremost, you must consider blade thickness, edge geometry and bevel thickness. As these will greatly affect performance. Next, your knife should always be "sharp" meaning two bevels that come to together to form an edge (think the top of an isosceles triangle with no metal rolled over). The next question becomes how rough or smooth that edge should be.
* To shave your arm, push cut open plastic packages or push cut string to make it pop you should polish the edge as much as possible (less resistence when pushing through the material).
* To carve a turkey or cut steak (slicing), polish less and leave some micro serrations to grab the meat as it's being sliced.
* To slice thick fiber like rope or cardboard, leave the edge even rougher. Meaning it should be sharp but not polished.

I sharpen with an Edge Pro. When I first got it, I used the nifty polish tapes on every edge to make them shine. I soon realized that there was more to sharpening. These days, I sharpen down to the 600 grit stone to leave a little "bite" to edge. I can still shave arm hair and shave wood but it makes slicing an easier task.

This is one of the best posts on sharpening/sharpness I have read in a long time.
Scott