sharpening knives

@OUTDOORS55 on YouTube

He is a serious treasure-trove of knowledge. I haven't found anyone who comes close to the level of detail that he provides.

• VERY impressive information about stropping (this guy is serious!)
  • methods for checking for a burr
  • how to minimize a burr
  • you can strop a very long time, if you avoid rounding over the apex
  • demonstration of using one stone and one strop compound to achieve hair-whittling sharpness
  • instructions for making your own high-quality strop
  • recommendation for a stropping compound

Beginner-oriented tips (search):

• How to sharpen a knife in about 5 minutes with one stone — Start here
• Three tips for sharpening at a good angle, really good advice here
• Three stropping tips
• The biggest beginner knife sharpening mistake (one of his older videos)
• Three sharpening tips beginners must know (one of his older videos)

Product reviews:

• Sharpening Stone Buying Gift Guide Christmas 2023 For Every Budget
  • He keeps praising these Shapton stones. [1] [2] (though they've gone up in price since then)
• Don't Waste Your Money On The Wrong First Sharpening Stone, 2024

everyone else

• CarterCutlery
  • playlists   [1]   [2]
  • "Blade Sharpening Fundamentals"   [2hr 50min]
• a very accessible and beginner-friendly video by Vincent Kazuhiro Lau
• Work Sharp Cuts
  • The Most Important Thing for Knife Sharpening - Raising a Burr
• by David Moon Forge, I like this one!!
• intensive testing that demonstrates sharpening direction doesn't matter
• the perspective of chefs (i.e. people who aren't necessarily specialists with blade sharpening):
  • recorded by The Hungry Cuban Adventures

tests / rubrics

Some tests to go by, when determining how sharp a knife is.

Cutting paper or paper towel:

• completely dull, but it can still cut food
• the cardboard test
• able to shave hairs
• the paper test
  • the paper test after cutting pine wood — This proves that it's not the burr that's cutting, it proves that it has a strong apex.
• the paper test, hands-free and standing up ("push cut")   [2]
• the thin glossy paper test
• the paper towel test
  • paper towel with swirls

Cutting hair or fingernails:

• the fingernail or sharpie test
• hair-whittling sharp — be able to cut a hair in half lengthwise
• double hair-whittling sharp — be able to cut a hair in two lengthwise, and then cut that in two again

By feel:

• the three-finger test