Leathering is what I call it and idk the correct term. But after sharpening a blade you drag it along a leather strap on both sides and miraculously it becomes razor sharp. The seemingly subtle motion on a softer surface makes a night and day difference of the sharpness of the edge. WHY?!? Edit: the it
In: Engineering
So, what most people think is sharpening, isn’t all there is. The person grinding an axe on a grinding wheel… those are just rudimentary edges. If you look at them under a microscope, it’s gnarly as hell still.
Even sharpening stones, they have different roughness grades and to be really sharp with stones you not only need to use progressively finer and finer ones, but you even use sharpening paste on the stone to help.
When the knife is really sharp, one way or another, you can look at the edge under a microscope again and it’ll be smooth and fine. But any use, really, will ding it.
There are pictures of injection needles used on soft, human skin just once and the tip is curled under a microscope.
Facial razors, the same deal.
So to keep it fine, while it’s still easily done, you ‘hone’ it. Several methods exist to do so, like the leather strap, as well as a honing steel — a circular, steel rod with an abrasive surface that chefs frequently use on their knives throughout the day. Soft things have a surprising way of influencing harder things, when they’re so finely tipped.
They’re not sharpening it, as the edge stays there for the most part, but gets straightened out more than ground away by soft materials.
Every now and again, for example, people give the advice of dragging a facial razor backwards up a rough material like denim jeans, or even your arm a few times, after shaving, to make it last longer.
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