Is Bald Beautiful???

[Jason Tuinstra]

Well, the more I work with hand tools, the more I have to sharpen. The more I have to sharpen, the balder my wrist is becoming (see photo)

Fortunately I have a 44mm watch that covers it up, but as with most bald spots, I'm afraid it's going to start developing into something more noticeable

So am I the only one who tests their blades for sharpness this way? Should this be a badge of pride that I'm officially in the Neanderthal rank and file? Can you notice a Neanderer in the super market line by the bald wrist?

So what do you do when you're done sharpening to check your work? Do you?

Question: Is bald beautiful?

Okay, I just thought I'd have some fun at my own expense. It just dawned on me today when I was sharpening, "Jason, you're shaving your wrist!!! You have a bald wrist! Get a hold of yourself, man!" I figured I'd share my laughter with you.

Have a great Sunday everyone!

Photo 1: Full Pride
Photo 2: Undercover

[Terek Johnson]

Works for me.
I remember being a little kid and watching my grandfather sharpen his pocket knife and then test it by shaving his arm hair... "That's the trick there boy. Gotta be able ta shave hair. Then you know it's sharp."
I have a couple bald patches here and there. They always grow back.
Happy sharpening.

[Ken Bryant]

My wrist looks just like yours (and I don't wear a watch). My wife hates it, complains everytime she sees me test a blade. Tries to convince me to shave my shin instead. I tell her it's not ergonomic.

Anyway, for my wife, bald is not beautiful (my head, while balding, still has more hair than my wrist).

[Jason Tuinstra]

patches here and there.

LOL... Just kind of randomly placed, eh? Keeps people guessing "Hmmm... skin disorder or woodworker?"

[Jason Tuinstra]

I tell her it's not ergonomic.

Anyway, for my wife, bald is not beautiful (my head, while balding, still has more hair than my wrist).

That's one vote for no. Got it.

And a "no" vote for the shin. Got that too.

[John Schreiber]

I grow hair thick enough and fast enough that taking an occasional patch off doesn't seem to show much. I usually shave a bit off the back of my fingers, then I look almost normal on one side.

I'm growing hair in more places nowadays. I might be able to use my ears soon.

[Dave Anderson NH]

Jason, What you have described is a medical condition and it has, like most medical ailments, a technical name...... Woodworker's Pattern Baldness.

[Andy Hoyt]

Back when I was actively timberframing the smallest chisels we used were two inches wide and were in our hands virtually all day long. You can always tell who we were by looking at our forearms with their ever present racing stripe from the wrist to just below the elbow.

[Michael Fross]

Now, if I could only get to that hair on the back of my shoulders I could kill two birds with one stone.....



Michael

[Ernie Hobbs]

I usually shave a sliver off of my thumbnail to see how sharp it is.

This reminds me of a funny story from when I was a teenager- My brothers and I spent a lot of time as teenagers playing basketball on the dirt court behind my Dad's shop. Sometimes he would take a break from building furniture and show us how the "old man" could shoot. Anyway, we learned quickly to be careful guarding Dad because he often would have a chisel in his back pocket and my brother Calvin still has a crescent-shaped scar on his forearm from an unfortunate foul on a carving chisel.

[Charles McKinley]

Great story Ernie!

Michael how much do yu trust SWMBO????

Where long sleeves and this balding condition won't be noticed or proudly where it a a membership of the Order of Sharp Tools.

[Jason Tuinstra]

Glad to see I'm not the only one laughing. I like Dave's suggestion - that's classic. I hope everyone had a great weekend.

[Andrew Homan]

So what do you do when you're done sharpening to check your work? Do you?

I examine the edge under a very bright light (a compact fluorescent bulb) and I gently and carefully use the side of a finger to check if any wire edge remains. I find that this is usually an adequate way to see whether my sharpening work is done. I don't find that shaving hair gives me a picture of how sharp the blade has become -- usually when I find that a blade is too dull for my preference while working wood, I could remove it from the plane and it would still shave. So I certainly don't shave hairs _after_ sharpening as a test.
I have to admit that I'm squinting quite a bit when I check visually, and a magnifier/lamp combo is on my Christmas list!
-Andy

[Michael Fross]

Great story Ernie!

Michael how much do yu trust SWMBO????

Well, there's trust and then their is "borrow your tools" trust....



Michael

[Steve Wargo]

Yep, I know what you're talking about. If I'm just sharpening one or two items I usually use my wrist. But sadly, I usually procrastinate on sharpening, and have a mother load sharpening session about once every month. I bust out all of my plane irons (except for moulding planes) and chisels and sharpen them all. When I do this I usually use the end grain of a scrap of maple to see if it's sharp or not.