I think when he said that "he went to polish it" he was referring to moving up in higher grits on the hones, in order to polish his bevel.

As for your problem that you describe here.. I have experienced it before, twice, not sure if it is exactly what you have going on or not..

The first time It was on a razor near the point, about a 1/2" spot. I could see the edge, right at the very edge of the bevel, crumble after doing a thumb nail test on the edge - normally something that is safe at the 1k grit level. I continued to reset the bevel, it took around 3-4 times before I seemed to hit good steel, and I did eventually get this one shaving.

Second time, it was on a razor that I was almost 100% sure I had ruined the temper on. And sure enough, I could not get an edge on it to stick, it would just crumble. I binned the razor - an inexpensive learning experience. Too aggressive on the grinder.

So, I don't know if my first razor had tempering problems or not (it was not a razor I had done any buffing to), but, I assume it is possible..

just my 2c