Thread: USB Microscope: Worth a closer look?

The problem with using a microscope is that it can quickly become an obsession, finding minute fault with edges that are otherwise very comfortable and shave ready. IMO it is more important to learn how to hone and shave by FEEL rather than relying on visual cues.

Originally Posted by Ryan82

The problem with using a microscope is that it can quickly become an obsession, finding minute fault with edges that are otherwise very comfortable and shave ready. IMO it is more important to learn how to hone and shave by FEEL rather than relying on visual cues.

So true. I wouldn't advise the use of a microscope for a beginner, before he learns how to hone using sharpness tests. I had a few blades sent to me that looked so nice under the microscope that I was really surprised, and it didn't cut a hair. He was so addicted to the microscope, that if he saw some small chips on the edge, he lightly bredknifed the edge every time to get them out. So in the end he had a very straight edge, with a very polished bevel, but the bevel wasn't set, because he didn't learn to properly use even the TNT. I told him that he shouldn't care what the edge looks like if the test passes nicely, but he kept on using it.