Building a burr

Edge found! The first step in the sharpening process is building a burr.

This closeup view shows the burr being formed along the edge of the blade. In order to create the new edge, you have to grind away some material in order to form the new apex. This is metal being folded over after a couple of passes on a 120 belt.

If you have the right lighting, with your naked eye it would show up as a white line along the edge as the burr is reflecting the light.

I keep making passes until the line is continuous, from tip to heel, guaranteeing that I’ve ground pass all the nicks and gouges.

Once this is done, I move on to the finer belts, repeating the process and refining the edge.