On Feb 1, 3:06 pm, David Scheidt > wrote:
> Jennyanniedots > wrote:
>
> :The striations run the long way and are very visible, even with the
> :naked eye. I'm confused about the difference between sharpening the
> :blade and realigning the edge. Is that what causes the blade to dull -
> :misalignment? I'm envisioning the edge of the blade getting bent over
> :slightly in one direction or the other. Am I visualizing this
> :correctly? It sounds like I should buy a better knife sharpener.
> :Recommendations?
>
> A knife edge is formed by the intersection of the two two edges of the
> knife. In general, the thinner edge, the sharper the knife. The
> metal at and just behind the ege is very thin, and so it can be bent
> over fairly easily. If you put the fingers of your hand together so
> they form a fairly acute angle, you can visualize the edge. You can
> visualize what happens when the edge gets misaligned by pushing your
> fingers to one side. When the knife actually dulls, the metal at the
> edge wears away, as well as be pushed out of the way. Yo ucan
> visualize that by bending your first knuckles a bit so that finger
> tips don't meet in good sharp angle, but in an edge that's a tad
> blunt.
>
> A misaligned edge can bent back into shape using a harder steel rod.
> A dull edge needs to have metal ground away to reform the edge.
> (Unless it's really dull, the amount removed is very small.) The steel
> that came with your set is basically a file. It will, if it's hard
> enough, realign the edge. It'll also remove metal from the edge.
>
> --
> sig 34

Thanks David
An excellent explaination
John Kane, Kingston ON Canada