When people talk about knife sharpening, most of the advice sounds confusing or contradictory. Some say push the blade into the stone. Others say pull it away. Then someone else claims direction does not matter at all. Meanwhile, pull through sharpeners promise quick results with no skill required and seem to work at first.

The truth sits in the middle, but it requires understanding one simple idea. The direction of sharpening does not matter much when steel is removed along the blade. It matters a great deal when steel is scraped across the edge.

Once you understand that difference, sharpening becomes much easier to understand and much harder to mess up.

Hopefully this blog explains sharpening direction in plain language, shows why edge leading and edge trailing both work, and explains why pull through sharpeners damage knife edges even when they feel sharp.

What Edge Leading and Edge Trailing Actually Mean

Most people hear the terms edge leading and edge trailing and tune out immediately. They sound technical, but the idea is simple.

Edge leading means the sharp edge goes first into the abrasive. Imagine pushing the blade forward across a stone the same way you would slice something.

Edge trailing means the spine goes first and the edge follows. Imagine pulling the blade backward across the stone as if you are wiping it off.

Both methods are commonly used in knife sharpening. Both are used by professionals. Both can produce extremely sharp and durable edges.

What matters is not which one you choose. What matters is where the abrasive force is applied in relation to the edge.

Why Edge Leading and Edge Trailing Both Work

When sharpening on a whetstone, belt grinder, or guided sharpening system, the abrasive moves along the bevel of the knife. The bevel is the sloped surface that leads down to the cutting edge.

Whether you push or pull, the abrasive is doing the same thing mechanically:

• Removing steel gradually
• Thinning the blade behind the edge
• Supporting the edge with steel underneath
• Creating a controlled burr

This is why experienced sharpeners argue endlessly about edge leading versus edge trailing yet still all get sharp knives. The steel is being removed in a stable way either way.

From a knife sharpening mechanics standpoint, the steel is loaded mostly in compression, which steel handles very well. The edge is shaped while being supported by the rest of the blade.

This is why stone sharpening works.
This is why belt sharpening works.
This is why guided systems work.

The scratch pattern may look different, but the structure of the edge is sound.

Where Sharpening Direction Actually Becomes a Problem

The real issue is not edge leading versus edge trailing. The real issue is horizontal abrasion versus vertical abrasion.

Horizontal abrasion means the abrasive moves along the blade and parallel to the edge.

Vertical abrasion means the abrasive crosses the edge directly.

This difference is the reason pull through sharpeners fail.

How Pull Through Sharpeners Damage Knife Edges

Pull through sharpeners remove steel by scraping straight across the cutting edge. Instead of shaping the bevel and letting the edge form naturally, they hook the edge and drag steel backward.

From a materials standpoint, this is a problem.

Steel is strong when compressed.
Steel is weak when pulled apart.

Pull through sharpeners put the thinnest part of the blade under tension. The edge is unsupported, bent, and torn before it is shaped.

Instead of cutting steel away cleanly, the sharpener rips it.

This creates a very specific type of damage.

Why Pull Through Sharpeners Feel Sharp at First

This is where most people get confused.

Pull through sharpeners do make knives feel sharp initially. That sharpness is not imaginary. It just does not last.

Vertical scraping creates tiny jagged teeth along the edge. Those teeth grab aggressively, which is why the knife suddenly bites into paper or food.

The problem is that those teeth are not supported by solid steel behind them.

As soon as the knife is used, especially on harder materials, those teeth snap off. When they break away, the edge rounds over quickly and the knife goes dull again.

This is why pull through sharpeners feel sharp but fail fast.

It is not that sharpening direction does not matter. It is that edge damage can masquerade as sharpness.

Why You Never See Anyone Sharpening Side to Side on a Stone

Here is a simple observation that supports all of this.

If you have ever watched someone sharpen a knife on a stone, you will notice something immediately. No one sharpens side to side across the edge.

Every proper sharpening method moves back and forth along the blade.

That includes:

• Whetstones
• Belt grinders
• Guided sharpening systems
• Files used correctly

This is not tradition. It is mechanics.

Moving along the blade keeps the edge supported as steel is removed. Scraping across the edge does the opposite.

If side to side sharpening produced durable edges, professional sharpeners would be doing it. They are not.

Burr Formation Explains the Difference

Another way to see the problem is through burr behavior.

A burr is a thin flap of steel that forms when the edge is apexed. Burrs are normal and necessary during sharpening.

Horizontal abrasion creates:

• Smaller controlled burrs
• Predictable burr removal
• Cleaner apex formation

Vertical scraping creates:

• Long fatigued burrs
• Torn steel at the edge
• Weak grain structure

When those damaged burrs break off, they often take good steel with them. That leaves the knife duller than expected even though it just felt sharp.

This is why knives sharpened with pull through tools are often harder to resharpen properly later. You have to grind past the damaged steel to reach solid material again.

Why Hard Materials Reveal the Truth Immediately

Soft materials can hide edge problems for a while. Food often does not punish weak geometry right away.

Hard and abrasive materials do.

Ice, cardboard, rope, and bone load the edge immediately. There is no cushion.

Edges shaped with proper knife sharpening techniques distribute force along the bevel and resist microfractures.

Edges shaped by vertical scraping collapse quickly.

This is why tools like ice augers and outdoor knives expose sharpening flaws so fast. The steel either holds up or it does not.

The Practical Takeaway That Actually Holds Up

Here is the most accurate and defensible way to explain sharpening direction.

The direction of sharpening does not matter much when abrasion stays along the blade. It matters a lot when abrasion crosses the edge.

This explains:

• Why edge leading and edge trailing both work
• Why stones and belts produce durable edges
• Why pull through sharpeners fail quickly
• Why damaged edges are harder to fix later

No dogma. No tradition. Just mechanics.

Why Professional Knife Sharpening Works Better

Professional knife sharpening uses controlled abrasion along the bevel. Steel is removed gradually, the apex is supported, and the edge forms naturally.

This produces:

• Longer lasting sharpness
• Better edge stability
• Less steel loss over time
• Easier maintenance between sharpenings

Quick sharpening tools sacrifice durability for speed. They remove steel fast, damage the edge, and shorten the life of the knife.

What Actually Determines Edge Durability

Most people are not ruining their knives because they lack skill. They are ruining them because they were sold tools that work against the steel instead of with it.

Proper sharpening does not rely on speed or shortcuts. It relies on controlled abrasion that supports the edge as it is formed. That is why professional sharpening lasts longer, removes less steel over time, and produces edges that hold up under real use. When sharpening direction makes sense mechanically, the results.
If you need help, reach out to me for information on sharpening and how I can help you.