Perfect the enemy of good enough?

[alongoria]

Hello all. What are your thoughts on keeping a fresh, keen edge or going longer with a good "working edge"?
I admit I love a really thin, keen, "hair popping" edge. But, in reality I don't need that level of "sharpness" for probably 95+% of my cutting usage.
Thanks for your thoughts and God bless. Regards, Adam

 

[Liquidm1980]

I go for the working edge. I am on the same page with 95% of my cutting not requiring a hair popping edge.

 

[soc_monki]

I'm all for the hair popping, but am not against a working edge. As long as it cuts, I'm good.

 

[unwisefool]

I never worry about a hair popping edge.

 

[shane45-1911]

A hair popping edge becomes a working edge very quickly, regardless of what you are cutting. I don't bother with or need a hair popping edge.

 

[eveled]

I like a toothy edge anything past that is a waste of my time.

 

[MolokaiRider]

I carry a Diafold with me to keep my edges maintained. I don’t obsess with a hair popping edge as much as I used to.

 

[Shorttime]

My sharpening skills suck, but I'm also stubborn and arrogant, so I refuse to get a system, so I'll take what I can get.

 

[Bob Denman]

I always take the edges to the point where shaving with them is easy...
But I'm lazy, and spend a lot of time with edges past their useful prime...

 

[000Robert]

My sharpening skills suck, but I'm also stubborn and arrogant, so I refuse to get a system, so I'll take what I can get.

Starting to get arthritis in my hands so I love my Wicked Edge 130!

 

[000Robert]

It just depends on what I need the blade for. But I like to have hair popping edges on the blade while it's waiting to get used.

 

[Bob Denman]

I agree. After all: you never know what you might need to use it for.

 

[rileybassman1]

I'm pretty obsessive/OCD with my edges... Every fixed blade in my bin and folder in my sleeve need to be able to shave. It actually kinda annoys me that I never get to really test long term working edge retention because I'm constantly stropping/sharpening any knife after I use it lol.

I'm trying to get better about not worrying about it... But it's a struggle

 

[Tx308]

For me the question is steel dependent but there are enough threads about steel. Whatever I'm carrying I like to be as keenly sharp as possible and I strop at the end of the day if used. If stropping won't bring a keen edge for the next day then I'll hone lightly then strop. When honing starts to be more of a working edge I can usually live with that for a little while before a sharpening session on the stones.

 

[Bob Denman]

Too much sharpness...

...is just enough!

 

[BD_01]

When I’m using my KME to re-bevel, it’s hard to stop without a near-mirror polish!

After that, I’m mostly just touching up. Sharp and a little bit toothy works well.

 

[Alberta Ed]

You never know when you're going to need a Vorpal edge.

 

[David Mary]

A hair popping edge becomes a working edge very quickly, regardless of what you are cutting.

Regardless of steel, also.

 

[jlydon]

Personally, I like my knives with a factory edge, and my guns with the single shot test by the manufactory company. If not, I for some reason, expect a decent discount. Call me old-skool.

 

[The Meat man]

I love having a super sharp, hair-popping edge. Unfortunately it never stays that way for long, so most of the time my EDC is somewhere between shaving sharp and paper-slicing sharp.