How To Which side needs sharpening?

[ErikMB]

When I slide my thumb along the flat of the blade, upward toward the edge, one side feels very sharp and the other slightly less sharp. I suspect there is a tiny bit of foil tilted to one side or the other.

For the life of me, I cannot figure out which side needs another strop or slide across the ceramic pole.

Can someone explain how this works and what to do to get the blade evenly sharpened?

 

[Obsessed with Edges]

The side feeling 'sharp' is the side toward which the foil / burr is leaning, and it's catching your skin as you slide your finger over it. To clean that up, sharpen on that side to scrub most of that weakened steel away and/or align the edge straight. Then check again as before, to see if it feels equally 'sharp' from both sides - meaning the burr is aligned straight OR you've cleanly removed it and left a strong, stable & sharp edge behind.

To test for strength & stability of the edge, cut into some heavy cardboard or wood a little bit, and feel the edge again. If you notice it's back to feeling 'sharp' on only one side, that's a clue the burr/foil is still there, and is just moving around with use. It'll need some more refinement at the edge, as described above, if that's the case. But if it still feels sharp and cuts well repeatedly, then that's a good sign the edge is stable and strong.