Matt,
Looks good. As to the small scratches in the edge area, as long as they are not too deep, they will come out later in final sanding after HT. As you suspected, the ricasso scratches are a quick fix when the bevels are done. But, aren't you glad you put the tape there....or there would be a million of them.
Sometimes you have a small scratch that really bugs you, and can't seem to get it to go away without messing everything else up. If you have worked the scratch to the limit, you may need to let it go and try to remove it after HT. It will take more work then, but you will be looking at the finished surface, so you will know when to quit. After HT I'll talk more about trade-offs in finishing ( deciding what to leave and what to pursue).
In some cases, especially at the plunge line, using a piece of flat metal as a backing stick can help, but he bocote block I sent should do just fine.
EDM stones are a real champ at cleaning up the plunge area, but careful attention with sandpaper will get it done,too.
A trick for cleaning up the very corners of the plunge ( where you are having the problem) is to fold a 4X4" piece of sandpaper twice, making a 2X2" pad. Flatten it well, and place a square of 1/4" thick hard material ( Micarta or hardwood) on it, with the folded edge aligned (The pad and backing block are separate, not folded around each other). Wet the pad and place the folded edge in the plunge corner. Carefully sand the plunge, applying slightly more pressure within the edge of the backing block at the plunge. Use a few up and down strokes along the plunge, and then several lengthwise strokes down the blade. Don't over do it, or you may make a dip, but this will usually take care of those last little buggers before you do the final grit on the bevels.After getting everything flat and smooth at 120, I try to get the plunge clean at 220 grit before sanding the bevels ( at 220). Then at 400 the problem is usually gone.
Photos only show so much, and I can't hold the knife, turning it in the light, but it looks like it is near ready for HT.
More general notes:
When using a belt sander to clean up the plunge, new makers often have the same problem....only the sandpaper is moving a lot more SFM. This creates what Burt Foster likes to call "two inch lines , which are the dip marks exactly two inches away from the plunge - caused bu moving the blade up and down along the ricasso and not drawing it in a continued motion toward the tip. The way to avoid this is to not start at the plunge, and not sit still there when sanding. Place the blade just barely into contact with the belt starting at the tip, slowly move it into the plunge and then move it back toward the tip all the way off the belt. This will avoid removing too much metal in any area than the others.
On filing - the deep scratches left in filing are from two sources...galling and gouging.
Galling is caused by pieces of metal filings getting lodged in the file teeth, and then becoming hard by friction. They then are little cutting teeth sticking out and making deep grooves in your steel. You should brush off the file every few strokes with a file card, which is a stiff wire brush with 1/4" bristles. Chalking the file with plain drawing chalk will help keep the filings from getting lodges tightly, and aid in allowing the card to remove them.Re-chalk as needed.
Gouging is caused bu getting rambunctious with your file ( usually up and down strokes) which allows the edge or end to cut deeply into the metal surface, making a deep cut. Filing slowly in down strokes, and using a file handle will help eliminate these marks.
In both cases, a file is not a power tool. Let it do its work with normal hand pressure. Don't bear down on it to make the metal come off faster, as this will make more work ,not less.
File only as much as is needed on the coarse bastard. Then move to a smoother double cut, then a single cut. Also, files come in fineness numbers. A #00 is a lot rougher than a #2,and leaves much deeper scratches, so having the right teeth sizes is a real help.
Stacy
still there. Repeat that process about 12 times and that was where all my time went 
. I think, THINK I got all the file marks out of one side. I got started on the other side for a bit before I stopped and tomorrow I'll look at it again with a fresh eye. Here's a pic 
sooner or later you will get it.
