# Polishing finish definitions+photo examples thread



## labor of love (Jan 3, 2017)

Even though I've been a jknife dork for several years now I've never been able to grasp a basic 101 of polishing. About 3 years ago I picked up a king 800 and have found it to be a great starting point(and super easy to use).... But if I'm being honest I'm not quite sure what people mean when they say things like "frosted","hazy" or even "Kasumi"finish. Maybe this would be a good sticky maybe not. Either way, I wanted to ask fellow members with polishing experience if they could post examples of different polishing finishes(photos to demonstrate) so I could visually understand the terminology better. 
Thanks guys!


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## cncrouting (Jan 3, 2017)

I have found different stones or sharpening methods give a different visual finish.


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## labor of love (Jan 3, 2017)

cncrouting said:


> I have found different stones or sharpening methods give a different visual finish.



Yes. Please demonstrate.


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## cncrouting (Jan 3, 2017)

I will show you what a shapton 12k stone does on o-1 when I get home.


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## panda (Jan 3, 2017)

what i want to know is, what finish offers the LEAST amount of stiction? as in i want my food to fall off the blade after each cut.


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## labor of love (Jan 3, 2017)

panda said:


> what i want to know is, what finish offers the LEAST amount of stiction? as in i want my food to fall off the blade after each cut.



Yes. There's some dispute about this I think.


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## cncrouting (Jan 3, 2017)

this is as good as I can find. shapton 12k stone 0-1 tool steel.


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## chinacats (Jan 4, 2017)

LOLOL

We need Xoomg to contribute to this thread...

here's a 320 Cerax finish, sticks a bit to food...







This feels much nicer...blue aoto (not shown) with about 5 minutes work:


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## Badgertooth (Jan 4, 2017)

Yeah, I feel a bit inadequate posting when I know Xoomg is both a better photographer and polisher than I am. But in the spirit of things and the post above. A good foundation is key, this is part way through thinning refinishing a syousin Chiku migaki. Naniwa superstone 220 leaves a remarkably nice finish and quite an edge too:





https://youtu.be/imzEtnTzaCY

Here is where it ended up as a first draft before I knocked off the handle to finish is properly

Naniwa 220 > bester 400 > King 800 > Chosera 1k > Chosera 3k > Aoto > Takenoko > mizukihara

















Wet & dry to blend and I'll update once I've put the finishing touches on


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## Badgertooth (Jan 4, 2017)

Also, I'd see if @nutmeg has some photos to hand. And @matus is doing amazing finishes and @cheflivengood


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## Kingkor (Jan 4, 2017)

I don't want to hijack the tread but I have a more genral question about polishing knives, when you go through the stone progression you just lay the knife flat and start working on it on the stone just like sharpening? Do you change directions of the blade to change the direction of the scratch marks? When and why in the process do you use finger stones?


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## XooMG (Jan 4, 2017)

Kingkor said:


> I don't want to hijack the tread but I have a more genral question about polishing knives, when you go through the stone progression you just lay the knife flat and start working on it on the stone just like sharpening? Do you change directions of the blade to change the direction of the scratch marks? When and why in the process do you use finger stones?


Ideally, with the compound geometry knives with a distinct bevel and flat, yes you lie the blade flat on the stone. Alternating directions is a good idea, but I don't do it all the time and the contortion it can force might be counterproductive sometimes. Fingerstones are best used when the effective geometry is set and most of the scratches are gone. Depending on the kind of stones, you may want to have the edge steel at a high finish before jumping to fingerstones. They will, by virtue of their small surface area, conform more easily to the bevel surface and produce a finish with generally fewer streaks and sometimes a stronger contrast between cladding and core.


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## zetieum (Jan 4, 2017)

*Disclaimer*: I am in no way an expert, I just want to share because I find the discussion interesting.

Here are some pic of a TF nakiri that I thinned some time ago. I did more or less the following:
400 atoma + thai natural coarse (~600?) + 1000 JNS + natural Binsu + Khao Men + Unknown Suita + kitta finger stones (from JNS).

I did not alternate the direction on the of the scratches: they were always at 45 deg. Knife was flat on the bevel and I tried to convex a bit.


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## XooMG (Jan 4, 2017)

Sorry for my earlier grammar mistakes (lie/lay, &c.).


labor of love said:


> Even though I've been a jknife dork for several years now I've never been able to grasp a basic 101 of polishing. About 3 years ago I picked up a king 800 and have found it to be a great starting point(and super easy to use).... But if I'm being honest I'm not quite sure what people mean when they say things like "frosted","hazy" or even "Kasumi"finish. Maybe this would be a good sticky maybe not. Either way, I wanted to ask fellow members with polishing experience if they could post examples of different polishing finishes(photos to demonstrate) so I could visually understand the terminology better.
> Thanks guys!


I think other guys have the photos down as well as anything I can show, but to waste a few words and repost a couple pics...

The idea behind kasumi (&#38686; _mist_) is that the linear base scratch pattern is obscured by a finer layer of shallow, short random scratches or other textures (such as pitting or dimples) that scatter light.

The vernacular just describes the visual impression relative to perhaps effects on glass.
For example, some finishes have a coarse crystalline appearance reminiscent of frost. This is more likely to be attributed to cheaper finishes like coarse blasting. It is especially obvious in its strong contrast with the semi-mirror edge.





"Misty", to me, is pretty general for anything in this class of finish, but I would probably use it in English to describe a lighter, lower-contrast finish without a very mirrored edge:




Or like the nakiri I posted in another thread:





Hazy _seems_ to suggest a lighter, maybe semi-mirror finish, but then it is just my impression from the word.

In my opinion, these words do not focus on the darker contrasty finish produced by the King 800 or similar.




_(sorry old pic)_

Which is almost certainly included in the broad descriptions like misty or kasumi.


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## Badgertooth (Jan 4, 2017)

Could we get some more shots of the Carter you refinished please Xoomg?


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## XooMG (Jan 4, 2017)

Badgertooth said:


> Could we get some more shots of the Carter you refinished please Xoomg?


The finish that was in the above pic was an early test and the knife went through a few more varied polishes with coticule, synthetics, and other stuff before I sold it. When I sold it, I only took a few pics and it was in only a decent working polish, so probably not worth sharing here when you guys have more interesting knives in more interesting polishes.


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## labor of love (Jan 4, 2017)

XooMG said:


> Sorry for my earlier grammar mistakes (lie/lay, &c.).
> 
> I think other guys have the photos down as well as anything I can show, but to waste a few words and repost a couple pics...
> 
> ...



Thank you very much for the input.


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## TheCaptain (Jan 4, 2017)

XooMG said:


> The finish that was in the above pic was an early test and the knife went through a few more varied polishes with coticule, synthetics, and other stuff before I sold it. When I sold it, I only took a few pics and it was in only a decent working polish, so probably not worth sharing here when you guys have more interesting knives in more interesting polishes.



I think anything which shows different progressions, especially if incomplete, has value. We're learning...

(In other words, nope - I disagree - more pictures please!)


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## bryan03 (Jan 4, 2017)

after hakka and finger stones


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## XooMG (Jan 4, 2017)

I believe this was after a coticule:





This was my first effort on white suita:




(some reflections and finger smudges visible)

And an earlier one with JNS 300:





So not very interesting, sorry.


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## labor of love (Jan 4, 2017)

I love the finish on that(itinomonn?) Nakiri.


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## chinacats (Jan 4, 2017)

Took a page to get going but all beautiful pics/work on last page. Love to hear more impressions/opinions of what finish yields best performance.


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## ThEoRy (Jan 4, 2017)

Here's a couple I've posted before. 

Gesshin Hide blue steel 210mm kamagata usuba.






Itonomon 210mm wa petty.







Both knives were polished on a king 800 then gesshin jinzo aoto.


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## labor of love (Jan 4, 2017)

Thanks theory.


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## foody518 (Jan 4, 2017)

This is quite helpful. I think one of my pitfalls was/is whether there was a general understanding of the aesthetic to be applied to the core steel


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## dwalker (Jan 4, 2017)

T-F stainless clad white #1 finished on Tsushima Nagura 


Iron clad Aogami super finished on same


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## chinacats (Jan 4, 2017)

dwalker said:


> T-F stainless clad white #1 finished on Tsushima Nagura View attachment 34119
> 
> 
> Iron clad Aogami super finished on sameView attachment 34120



Nice finish--fat arse rock


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## dwalker (Jan 4, 2017)

It leaves a much more uniform finish on iron cladding. Produces a pretty nice edge as well.


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## panda (Jan 4, 2017)

Xoom, so king 800 produces a dark contrasty finish? Labor of love gives me crap cause I don't polish any of my bevels, but if I can get a dark finish i may have to pick one up (king800)


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## Badgertooth (Jan 5, 2017)

King 800
Monzento
Maruoyama


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## labor of love (Jan 5, 2017)

dwalker said:


> It leaves a much more uniform finish on iron cladding. Produces a pretty nice edge as well.



Lookin pretty tight. Nice even finish.


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## XooMG (Jan 5, 2017)

panda said:


> Xoom, so king 800 produces a dark contrasty finish? Labor of love gives me crap cause I don't polish any of my bevels, but if I can get a dark finish i may have to pick one up (king800)


I would personally call it a dark contrasty finish, but don't trust my opinions too much.

I decided to just do a really quick and dirty lineup to give a reasonable impression of the finish contrasts of a few stones, but my lighting was a bit too gentle so it did not highlight all the details, and I didn't even maintain good focus or wipe dust. Bah. Even so, maybe some of these pics will demonstrate.

_Note: these are not thoroughly worked finishes and are done in sequence, so obviously there is a big midgrit (post-800) gap and there will be stray scratches peeking out in certain light, which I failed to capture effectively_

*King 800*





_I am not the biggest fan of the finish because it feels draggy, like thousands of tiny suction cups going through tougher stuff. If I am leaving something close to that level, I usually try two things to make it more smooth:_

*King 800 and some autosol (or flitz or mothers or whatever):*




_It reveals some of the scratches, reduces the contrast a tiny bit, and makes the core a little shinier. Some oily smudges in the photo, sorry._

*King 800 and some sponge abrasives (3m microfine), followed by autosol:*




_This actually can reveal more scratches and reduces the contrast, but gives the whole bevel a softer glow and a silkier feeling when cutting._

*Baby Hakka:*




_Fine muddy stone that gets me a bit more contrast and a lighter edge, and when done well can be pretty consistent._

*Uchigumori fingerstone:*




_Gets me in the same neighborhood as the hakka but is easier to get a more consistent finish when working with more convexed or uneven bevels. I was a bit rushed and inconsistent. These particular fingerstones I have also scratch the core less, so if the edge is brought up to a mirror, these will allow you to mostly maintain that, unlike my hakka._

*Shiro suita, sponge abrasives (microfine and trizact), and autosol:*




_This is what I like as a working polish for things that benefit from a smooth finish, but it is not the highest contrast._

Sorry I didn't include a bunch more rocks, but hopefully someone finds some of this useful.

As for finishes and cutting...a convex bevel (not full height) used for harder ingredients like potatoes, carrots, and the like is best served by a semi-mirror finish. I think for spongy mushrooms, such a finish may be less ideal than a coarser one, though I think a linear scratch pattern like a belt finish with a quick buff across the peaks may be better than an etched/blasted finish or a random-scratch coarse kasumi. For full-height finishes or very flat, thin bevels, I am still uncertain what I like, but the benefits of a glossy mirror polish are undermined when the bevel faces form a more acute (less separation) angle, and when the edge is thicker.

Hopefully I am not arrogating to myself unqualified authority.


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## zetieum (Jan 5, 2017)

XooMG said:


> I would personally call it a dark contrasty finish, but don't trust my opinions too much.
> 
> I decided to just do a really quick and dirty lineup to give a reasonable impression of the finish contrasts of a few stones, but my lighting was a bit too gentle so it did not highlight all the details, and I didn't even maintain good focus or wipe dust. Bah. Even so, maybe some of these pics will demonstrate.
> 
> ...



Fantastic post!!! Extremely informative and with beautiful example. Thanks for this great contribution! :goodpost:


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## XooMG (Jan 5, 2017)

Apologies for spamming the thread, but I was not totally comfortable with the photos I posted earlier and wanted to retake a few with harder light, to show the differences in much greater detail. Sadly I didn't have much time to redo all the finishes I did above, but I did retake a few.

Old "working finish", as above:




A bit more scratch detail, also with a bit more information about reflectivity.

King 800:




A lot more detail, showing how dark and matte the finish is, along with the stray scratches that generally come with the coarse stones (can be reduced but hard to eliminate)

King 800, 3M microfine sponge, and autosol:




Also more detail where it counts, showing the reduced contrast but smoother and shinier finish.

And I mentioned the fingerstones I have not really affecting the core steel, so I took the core steel up to a rough mirror (obviously not removing lower grit scratches completely), and quickly gave it another go.

Uchigumori fingerstone:





Hope those are more useful than the pics I showed earlier. Sorry I did not include more diverse stones as well...time does not really permit at the moment.


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## foody518 (Jan 5, 2017)

@XooMG looks fantastic


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## labor of love (Jan 5, 2017)

Big thanks to xoomg for breathing life into this thread.


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## panda (Jan 5, 2017)

ditto, thanks for addressing the performance aspect not just the looks. people seem to completely ignore that part which is the only function i care about.


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## Krassi (Jan 5, 2017)

@XooMG 
Very cool! thats the reason why we are here ) !
Also i love linear scratch patterns with Medium Grain Jnat slurry polishing (with a microfiber cloth and lots of preasure).. Works good on 210mm+ Gyutos.
Thanks for sharing those nice pictures, seeya, daniel!


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## XooMG (Jan 6, 2017)

zetieum said:


> Fantastic post!!! Extremely informative and with beautiful example. Thanks for this great contribution! :goodpost:





foody518 said:


> @XooMG looks fantastic





labor of love said:


> Big thanks to xoomg for breathing life into this thread.


Thanks for the kind words. I get nervous posting even these admittedly rushed examples.


panda said:


> ditto, thanks for addressing the performance aspect not just the looks. people seem to completely ignore that part which is the only function i care about.


I think it's a worthwhile discussion. I recall at one time thinking the JNS 800 would provide me all the polishing I need for practical cutters, and then disliking the cutting feel in a bunch of stuff. I would like to try some more linear coarse finishes with a bit of burnishing, to see how they behave.


Krassi said:


> @XooMG
> Very cool! thats the reason why we are here ) !
> Also i love linear scratch patterns with Medium Grain Jnat slurry polishing (with a microfiber cloth and lots of preasure).. Works good on 210mm+ Gyutos.
> Thanks for sharing those nice pictures, seeya, daniel!


Thanks. I will probably take some slurry from uchigumori, white suita, or hakka, and try to do a wipe down on the last finish I posted, to see if it can smooth the cladding finish a little. Synthetic abrasives will do the trick, but may also undo the core steel polish. What do you use midgrit slurry after?


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## XooMG (Jan 6, 2017)

Uchigumori slurry wipedown revealed a few more scratches, and reduced the darkness of the cladding a little, and my photo is not exactly the same position and lighting as before, but it should give a nice idea about the kind of finish. As mentioned before, coarser scratches are to be expected since I didn't polish thoroughly after the 800 grit.


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## Marek07 (Jan 6, 2017)

XooMG - thanks for all your posts. Great work, descriptions & photos. I need a lot more experience and I may attempt _some_ of that polishing.


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## labor of love (Jan 6, 2017)

Marek07 said:


> XooMG - thanks for all your posts. Great work, descriptions & photos. I need a lot more experience and I may attempt _some_ of that polishing.



I'm definitely going to play around w king 800 finish+micro pads.


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## foody518 (Jan 6, 2017)

Aoto slurry on glazed over white Thai Binsui (really worked down mud). Overcast day flatters this a bit, smooths out the scratches XD
Can't comment on progression this time around since the knife was actually at a higher grit finish before this...
Wide bevel is sharpened without convexing (beta-togi?)
Cladding is smooth to touch; finish is neither super dark like it seems the King 800 gives, nor a more muted white-ish like some of my higher grit stones make it
Very small scratches visible on the cladding, slightly more visible scratch pattern on the core steel. Core steel is a (subjectively) pretty foggy/hazy mirror (reflection of finger on edge looks as if behind a thick fog)
Edge (need to use it more) feels fairly crisp and a bit grabby.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1YMwd9dBQ6cha8J-XVQNUxiByI1PZzflhPA/view?usp=sharing
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1-EUzJMXQ93SSklj_H4T9xGVk8GUfViwdGA/view?usp=sharing
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ul8IkLHUNTkIUixGWxvhghqcEcwUoskedw/view?usp=sharing
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1ZfkZnV_ccQUSgjsdjd60w3aXDbwVj6DIXQ/view?usp=sharing


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## XooMG (Jan 6, 2017)

foody518 said:


> Aoto slurry on glazed over white Thai Binsui (really worked down mud). Overcast day flatters this a bit, smooths out the scratches XD
> Can't comment on progression this time around since the knife was actually at a higher grit finish before this...
> Wide bevel is sharpened without convexing (beta-togi?)
> Cladding is smooth to touch; finish is neither super dark like it seems the King 800 gives, nor a more muted white-ish like some of my higher grit stones make it
> ...


Those pics look great. I should really try to squeeze in a binsui finish sometime. In fact, I may take my knife back to binsui to clean up some of the coarse scratches...hmm...


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## Badgertooth (Jan 7, 2017)

foody518 said:


> Aoto slurry on glazed over white Thai Binsui (really worked down mud). Overcast day flatters this a bit, smooths out the scratches XD
> Can't comment on progression this time around since the knife was actually at a higher grit finish before this...
> Wide bevel is sharpened without convexing (beta-togi?)
> Cladding is smooth to touch; finish is neither super dark like it seems the King 800 gives, nor a more muted white-ish like some of my higher grit stones make it
> ...



Awesome. What knife is that?


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## Badgertooth (Jan 7, 2017)

My tshirt reflected on stainless TF Maboroshi cladding with a combination of Tsushima slurry on a very fine and smooth shou Honyama 





Ignore the the patchy grind issues to the left of the shiny bits!


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## foody518 (Jan 7, 2017)

@Badgertooth nice! Wow, that makes me want to pull out my Tsushima again, experiment with different mixes. Dunno if I have a J-nat that will mirror finish without crazy streaking though, hmmm 

Mine was a Moritaka ordered direct from them. I suppose by the time I work my way up the knife a bit more I'll know whether the low spots at the heel and tip are overgrinds . Yesterday's session was actually a pleasant surprise for me. The geometry of my previous practice knife is so bad that through all the curves and faceting, couldn't tell the aoto on binsui finish could actually look so good. But this being a flat(?) grind through wide bevel eliminates a lot of that. Then you have that neat quality the binsui seems to impart on the edge


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## aboynamedsuita (Jan 7, 2017)

@foodie that's the AS moritaka, correct? Yours has much nicer and even KU than mine (got a few years ago in Canada) which has some bare spots from hammer marks grind seems okay so far though.


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## v647c (Jan 7, 2017)

Hey guys, I posted this pic in another thread and Badgertooth suggested I post it here. http://imgur.com/a/hU8UA
This yanagiba was sharped on an old Nakayama I inherited. Usually don't have time for this stone because it's super slow.. There isn't much of it left too. http://imgur.com/a/fhnG8

As a polisher I'm not on the level of some people I've seen on here. There are some imperfections which fortunately can't be felt during use. Although I've been sharpening and polising for some time now, I pretty much only go for Kasumi finish on yanagiba. I've never used finger stones (not even sure how). 

In terms of performance, there will be a definitely be a noticeable effect between say, a 4000 grit finish and a reflective kasumi finish when using a yanagiba. However, for a gyuto that gets smashed daily I don't think it matters too much. Many people have said to me that a finish with a fine visible scratch pattern is best for separation. Though in my experience, while there might be marginally less of a sticky feeling, the friction is noticable when slicing. So I would still choose a finer polish for delicate work and slicing, if I had the time for it.


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## foody518 (Jan 8, 2017)

@aboynamedsuita yep! Received around Dec 2015 Any bare spots are my accidental abrading. And I'm watching one tiny part of the edge near a tip to make sure it continues to be part of the bevel XD

@v647c nice work!


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## nepastovus (Jan 15, 2017)

Here's another T-F with sandpaper finish


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## slobound (Jun 27, 2017)

Great info on this post


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## Choppin (Jun 28, 2017)

Since this was brought back to life - if my main goal is to darken the cladding, what would be a good progression/method based on what you guys have tried? I was thinking King 800 or JNS 800 but what stones following up? Or just sandpaper after that?


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## dwalker (Jun 28, 2017)

Sand paper will not give you a lot of contrast. As progression goes, i did a reasonable progression up to a Kitayama 8k and then finished on a Renge Suita for this particular knife. I find going up to a fine grit synthetic really lets you see exactly what your finisher is doing.


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## Choppin (Jun 28, 2017)

@dwalker Thank's. What did you use before the 8k and Suita? Sorry if this was already mentioned


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## geoff_nocon (Jun 28, 2017)

Polishing this kato i didnt use sandpaper. I used stones on the whole blade face. Starting with shapton 1k then straight to 8k. Then fingerstones to even things out. Then used an ohira suita just on the hagane to mellow the mirror finish a bit the 8k was too mirror for my liking


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## GorillaGrunt (Jun 28, 2017)

XooMG said:


> _(sorry old pic)_



What is this Zakuri?


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## Choppin (Jun 28, 2017)

geoff_nocon said:


> Polishing this kato i didnt use sandpaper. I used stones on the whole blade face. Starting with shapton 1k then straight to 8k. Then fingerstones to even things out. Then used an ohira suita just on the hagane to mellow the mirror finish a bit the 8k was too mirror for my liking



Interesting. Great results you got there. 

@XooMG - what did you use on that Zakuri? That's the kind of dark polish on the cladding I'm after


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## dwalker (Jun 28, 2017)

Choppin said:


> @dwalker Thank's. What did you use before the 8k and Suita? Sorry if this was already mentioned



It went something like atoma 140, shapton glass 500, king deluxe 1k, white binsui, blue aoto, Uchi, Kitayama 8k, Aka renege suita.


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## dwalker (Jun 28, 2017)

These are same progression except finishing on the aoto.


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## Badgertooth (Jun 28, 2017)

dwalker said:


> These are same progression except finishing on the aoto.



Stunning! Love a good aoto finish.


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## TheLimpWhisk (Jun 28, 2017)

Anyone got examples of these kind of polishing finishes on none wide bevel knives, thats what i've never really wrapped my head around.


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## Badgertooth (Jun 28, 2017)

Option one, do the whole blade face 





Option 2

Ride up a little and see what the knifemaker has given you ito grind


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## dwalker (Jun 28, 2017)

Here is my first attempt with questionable quality uchi fingerstones. I had two different pieces to chose from and tried each on opposite sides. I definately need more practice and perhaps better quality stones. Progression was a sandpaper polish up to 1500 and then the fingerstones.


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## Badgertooth (Jun 28, 2017)

Loving the profile on that, is it from Tsubaya? Try the uchi mud on the finest micromesh pad. You'll lose some contrast but gain a bit of uniformity.


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## dwalker (Jun 28, 2017)

Badgertooth said:


> Loving the profile on that, is it from Tsubaya? Try the uchi mud on the finest micromesh pad. You'll lose some contrast but gain a bit of uniformity.



It is a Takumi Ikeda. Very thin, KS profile. Thanks for the tip with the micromesh, I will give it a go. Where do you source your uchi fingerstones?


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## Badgertooth (Jun 28, 2017)

I'm still chipping away at one little block gifted to me by Watanabe. I also made some from a stone that broke on me.. they do a job before I hit the uchi


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## Choppin (Jun 28, 2017)

Badgertooth said:


> Option one, do the whole blade face
> 
> 
> 
> ...



In Option 2, when sharpening a knife with convex grind - like I believe is the case with the Toyama - how exactly do you manage to polish the whole bevel on the stones? Do you start on a low-grit stone and try to completely flatten the bevel, or just lower the angle to ride it up a bit and see what happens? I imagine the later would result in low spots and an unevel polish... most of my knives are convex and I'm kinda lost here...


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## geoff_nocon (Jun 28, 2017)

What i did with my kato in the last page i layed it flat on the stone on a 1k to remove flat spots and the vertical grind marks. The low spots took a bit of time but disnt want to go any lower with the grit so that i remove minimal metal as possible and that i maintain the geometry.


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## TheLimpWhisk (Jun 29, 2017)

Badgertooth said:


> Option one, do the whole blade face
> 
> 
> 
> ...



With option 1 are you doing the whole blade with stones? Also does this differ with knives that have a concave grind?


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## Badgertooth (Jun 29, 2017)

TheLimpWhisk said:


> With option 1 are you doing the whole blade with stones? Also does this differ with knives that have a concave grind?



No, I'm actually deeply impressed that Geoff has managed that with stones. I laid a Kato flat on the stones and it didn't end so well. I use sandpaper, and fingerstones. A fairly long, maddening process that will make you hate scratches. The Shigefusa has am S grind and you risk losing that if you lay it flat on a stone 



Choppin said:


> or just lower the angle to ride it up a bit and see what happens? I imagine the later would result in low spots and an unevel polish... most of my knives are convex and I'm kinda lost here...



Exactly this. You can see the polish is a little bit all over the show on that Toyama,but there's a certain honest charm to it. I could spend the time and sand back to crisper delineation between the polished blade face and bevel and I could hit the lows with finger stones on the bevel.


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## geoff_nocon (Jun 29, 2017)

BTW only removed low spots on the core steel. It is essential to get a completely flat bevel on the core steel area to get a mirror polish on the 8k. On the cladding i didnt want to to remove any unnecessary metal. I just i applied pressure on areas i wanted to hit and remove the vertical grindmarks which was surprisingly easy on a 1k compared to using sandpapper which i tried on the otherside and was getting no where on a 400 grit sandpaper.. It soesnt have to be completely uniform. Ill be using fingerstones anyway and that will even out the finish on the cladding


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## Choppin (Jun 29, 2017)

Badgertooth said:


> Exactly this. You can see the polish is a little bit all over the show on that Toyama,but there's a certain honest charm to it. I could spend the time and sand back to crisper delineation between the polished blade face and bevel and I could hit the lows with finger stones on the bevel.



Thank's, I love the effect you got there. Do you remember what progression of stones you used?

Also, do you feel the geometry is altered in that process (i.e. you lose some of the convexity)? Or is the metal removed so little that it doesn't have that effect?


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## Yoni Lang (Jun 30, 2017)

Thought I'd throw one on here :doublethumbsup:
Gesshin Hide Kensaki Yanagiba polished with a Naniwa Snow White 8k. I'm not too crazy with how it sharpens on this stone. Stone definitely cuts better and doesn't get "hung up" if I soak it but I'm not too fond of soaking higher grit stones as it definitely has led to some small hairline cracks. I also have gotten more even of a finish with lower grit stones. That being said, the stone definitely does it's job as far as polishing away any previous stones scratches and works wonders if I'm putting a koba on a knife.





Here's a Masamoto KS Gyuto reference for a knife with no set bevel/shinogi


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## Doug8066 (Jun 30, 2017)

Finish with a Naniwa 10,000 superstone (the soft green one). 
This gives an amazing shiny metallic polish.


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