12-14-2017, 09:28 AM
Funny you mention that. These onions are particularly strong. Normally I don't have issues cutting up even 2 full onions, but these I had to step outside to clear my eyes after just 1/2 of the first one.
I limited this issue to carbon steel blades, as I've not noticed it in the stainless blades I've tested. I normally sharpen the Bunka on water stones, but this time used the Sharpmaker for convenience. I haven't noticed excessive corrosion in the past, so that led to the question of whether sharpening method makes a difference. The 4k stone finish is more polished than the Sharmaker medium finish it had this time, which could make a difference, though I doubt it'd be significant on it's own. As noted above, these onions were particularly strong, which could be a factor as well.
My sharpness testing set up is not standardized, and so won't be translatable to the BESS scales, however it allows for detailed relative comparisons for knives on hand. I'll have to drag it back out to explore this further. IIRC, double edge razor blades are around 10 grams to cut the thread I'm using, while carefully sharpened knives start at around 15 off the standard fine white stones of the Sharpmaker or my best efforts with the 4k stone. I have some 1 micron and 0.3 micron honing films, but my supply is limited, and I'm reluctant to use them for normal sharpening. This might be the time to start.
I limited this issue to carbon steel blades, as I've not noticed it in the stainless blades I've tested. I normally sharpen the Bunka on water stones, but this time used the Sharpmaker for convenience. I haven't noticed excessive corrosion in the past, so that led to the question of whether sharpening method makes a difference. The 4k stone finish is more polished than the Sharmaker medium finish it had this time, which could make a difference, though I doubt it'd be significant on it's own. As noted above, these onions were particularly strong, which could be a factor as well.
My sharpness testing set up is not standardized, and so won't be translatable to the BESS scales, however it allows for detailed relative comparisons for knives on hand. I'll have to drag it back out to explore this further. IIRC, double edge razor blades are around 10 grams to cut the thread I'm using, while carefully sharpened knives start at around 15 off the standard fine white stones of the Sharpmaker or my best efforts with the 4k stone. I have some 1 micron and 0.3 micron honing films, but my supply is limited, and I'm reluctant to use them for normal sharpening. This might be the time to start.