# Burr on 3k



## matc (Jan 10, 2016)

Hello,

I'm starting to learn free hand sharpening and I was wondering if it's possible to feel the burr created by a 3k wetstone using a japanses carbon steel blade ? 

Also, I'm something poking the tip of the blade into the stone, which dent the stone. I've seen many videos on sharpening and they say you need to raise the blade a little bit then doing the tip. When I raise the tip, I often scratch the stone. What am I doing wrong ?


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## Pensacola Tiger (Jan 10, 2016)

Feeling a 3k burr depends on the sensitivity of your fingertips. Some people can feel a 5-6k burr; others can't feel a 1k.

Cutting into the stone is a combination of too high an angle and excessive pressure. Don't be discouraged, it takes practice.


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## Matus (Jan 10, 2016)

The size of the burr does not only depend on the stone grit or sensitivity of ones fingertips, but also on the sharpening technique and of course steel. But in general I would expect a 3k grit to be relatively easily noticeable (it gets tricky for me at 6k)


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## chiffonodd (Jan 10, 2016)

matc said:


> Also, I'm something poking the tip of the blade into the stone, which dent the stone. I've seen many videos on sharpening and they say you need to raise the blade a little bit then doing the tip. When I raise the tip, I often scratch the stone. What am I doing wrong ?



Gotta move the blade more parallel to the stone, lift the blade _and_ rotate the spine - check out this video:

[video=youtube_share;tmBTO0cA_qw]http://youtu.be/tmBTO0cA_qw[/video]


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## mark76 (Jan 10, 2016)

Rick (Pensacola) is right. I have a hard time feeling a burr at 1000 grit.


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## Benuser (Jan 10, 2016)

Make sure you have an obvious burr on a 500 or 1k stone
So you're sure both sides of the bevel have met. From that point on, any irregularity is a burr. Check with your fingernail along each side.
P.S. when one side feels sharper there is some burr on it.


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## gic (Jan 10, 2016)

I use a blue shop towel to feel the burr, pull it towards the edge and the fibers should catch. I'm told cheesecloth also works

my fingertps are useless


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## Kippington (Jan 10, 2016)

It would be worth learning to use other sharpness tests on top of feeling for a burr (which is essentially one of the tests). After you stop being able to feel a burr you can transition into a combination of nail and two/three finger tests to gauge your progress.

Similarly, later down the sharpening road if you attempt to create _extremely_ polished edges you'll find they become difficult to judge progress with finger tests alone, and other tests become more appropriate.


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## psfred (Jan 10, 2016)

To keep the tip from digging into the stone, you need to imagine how much you need to lift and rotate the handle to keep the grinding angle the same as the edge "lifts" toward the tip. This isn't all that dramatic for a typical Japanese knife since they don't generally have extreme upsweep at the tip, unlike German style knives.

If you are digging in, you are lifting the handle too far or rotating the handle too far.

It takes dome practice, but it's not impossible to get there. At the very least, you should not be gouging the stone.

Peter


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## GeneH (Jan 11, 2016)

Pensacola Tiger said:


> Feeling a 3k burr depends on the sensitivity of your fingertips. Some people can feel a 5-6k burr; others can't feel a 1k.



Yes to feeling the burr, it can be very significant. I gently run my thumb, going to the edge (at 90 deg away from the back of the blade), kinda going over the edge so I can feel it drag on my thumb. I use the left thumb on one side, and then right thumb on the other side. That also tells me a lot about how even the bevel is in that particular spot.

I have to have dry hands to do it; a wet thumb and I cannot feel much at all. My wife can feel differences between each side of the edge that I cannot feel at all.


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## Danieru (Jan 13, 2016)

Um well I can feel burrs even from my 8k Junpaku :O:IMOK:. Personally I find that on the left side of the blade (that is when sharpening the right side) I can feel the burr best with my ring finger and doing diagonal strokes. On the right side of the blade (so when sharpening the left side) it seems easier with my index finger or my thumb going in a straight downward motion (basically from spine to edge). It's important in my experience to clean the edge area and your fingertips of any (or at least most) stone slurry. If there's significant amounts of slurry on your fingers and/or the edge area of the blade, detecting a burr is much more difficult, particulary with finer grits.


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## Marcelo Amaral (Jan 14, 2016)

Another test to realize a burr is formed is to look at the edge using a black background when the sun is reflecting at the knife. Changing the angles is possible to get the burr reflecting the light.


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