Raising a burr

[Ed K]

Can anyone point me toward a thread that discusses the fine points of raising a burr. Pictures would be nice. For example, if I am sharpening on the left side of my blade, from which side should I be able to feel the burr? Thanks for the help.

Ed

 

[Nosmo]

A search should bring up quite allot of stuff, but most of it will be presuming the reader is familiar with what it is.

The burr is always on the side not being sharpened. It is far more visible with coarse hones. Many novices never see a burr as they stop too soon. No burr.....no sharp.

Sharpen one side of a knife and stay with it. Use your eyes and fingers. You can see a burr with good lighting and I personally find it allot easier to see than feel.
Others find it be feel.
It is a fine line or edge that is so thin it consists of steel that has flopped over.

Picture courtesy of some kind member, who's name escapes me.

 

[MeDoctor]

You can always stand outside in your Jockey shorts on a 20 degree day. Oh, wait... that's a brrrrrrrr, not a burr.

Shalom,
Mark

 

[Chief_Wiggum]

Somebody suggested using an LED flashlight to help see the burr, and that really works great. It will appear as a small bright and stand out clear as day.

 

[Joe Talmadge]

Can anyone point me toward a thread that discusses the fine points of raising a burr. Pictures would be nice. For example, if I am sharpening on the left side of my blade, from which side should I be able to feel the burr? Thanks for the help.

Ed

If you're sharpening the left side of your blade, you'll feel the burr on the right side. What's happened is that you've removed so much metal from the left side of the knife that the steel can no longer support the pressure from the stone, so it's flopping over in the other direction. Nosmo's picture displays it perfectly.

You are not done sharpening the left side of the knife until you can feel the burr along the entire length of the right side. I always go by feel rather than by sight, but it sounds like sight is working for some of the guys above, so you might try that eventually. I would suggest starting off by feel, just to get the hang of it.

 

[berettaman12000]

I was going to post a repy.....however, the above posts do a better job than I could have.

 

[Ed K]

Thanks for the very helpful information.

Ed

 

[metallicat]

Hi. Joe Talmadge has a really good FAQ on the forum about sharpening which I found really helpful. You might check that out. It discusses raising a bur and other aspects of sharpening knives.