Thread: 90 degree angle?

I'm not sure how important this is but the barber texts always show the transverse component of the shaving stroke to be in a direction towards the toe of the blade. They also always show all honing and stropping action away from the toe. One text says that this honing action intentionally causes the striations creating the sharp edge to aim towards the toe. Now if you look at a saw blade, the cutting stroke is always into the teeth of the blade. A shaving stroke towards the toe mimics this.

EDIT: I took a 2nd look at honing and the directions of the striations. The recommended X-pattern actually makes the striations point AWAY from the toe so the above makes less sense.

Also, I wouldn't call that a scything action since that term can confuse two aspects of a scythe: the arc of the swing and the angle of the blade with respect to its motion -- two different aspects of the action of a scythe. Think of it this way: The arcing action of swinging an ax or hatchet does not result in any slicing action of the blade. The blade still hits the target "head on". So an arcing action in itself does not provide any slicing.

Edit: relating a saw blade to your picture: Even pulling a saw "backwards" cuts better then trying to push the saw into the wood.