What's the trick with a True wedge. Help!

I have a "Full Wedge" razor. Both sides of the blade are mirror finish and get refreshed to shiny brand new each time the razor visits a hone. The problem is I can not get the edge silky sharp.

I've gone back to a 1200 grit to ensure there are no lumps or bumps on the surfaces and then progressed up to a 12000 grit hone. Each time I move up a grit, the edge feels smoother but looses its bite. I can even get super smooth with a diamond paste on a leather flat bed strop, but the shave is only passable and the bite/hanging hair test is poor. The finer the honing medium, the more the biting edge disappears. I hone at 45 degrees as recommended but it makes no difference.

Am I missing a trick, or expecting too much from the wedge. Any ideas?

How about taping the spine to allow you to put a more conventional bevel on it?

Electrical tape
You will love the results as soon as you put a piece of plastic electrical tape along the spine !!!!!!
It increases the angle just enough to keep the BITE!!!!

Thanks guys I thought that would be cheating. But I've been cutting so much metal I thought there had to be an answer. Hey ho.:bow :bow :bow

Unless the edge is in poor shape I would skip the 1200 hone. Before using the tape trick just make sure you are allowing for the extended honing times for a true wedge. They really do take alot longer to hone and you need to have patience with it. If you are used to dealing with hollow grinds wedges are very different.

An additional hint with a wedge is to use at least an 8K stone and put 5-10 strokes on the edge. Then look to make sure the entire edge is shiney. When you are doing your actual honing a 45 degree angle works best.

Have fun,

Lynn

I've never honed a true, honest-to-goodness wedge like you're describing. However, even on a wedge-like quarter hollow with a wide bevel, it seems to take a lot of polishing strokes to have much effect.

If you just want to shave with it, a pasted hanging strop might be the way to go. These have a way of getting even really stubborn edges to cooperate. It's sort of cheating, though. :)

Josh

The taped edge did the trick. the Blade is only 5/8'' so I used a double layer.
To set a new bevel, I used a wet and dry 1000 grit about 15 passes back and forth. Same on a 2000 grit, followed by 20 passes on a coticule pasted with a coticura and then 15 passes on a natural pasted japanese hone. I have found that the Japanese hone polishes best with a paste and gives a smoother edge to the coticule with water. 45 degrees at all times. Finally I stropped the honed razor on a flat bed leather hone. I'll use a hanging strop daily in future.

Josh, in the past I tried a linen flat bed strop with some Thiers Issard paste on it and then I tried an old leather hone on a flat bed with the same paste. The linen was actually the best, but that was as good as I could get the blade without some "trick". The shave I had was OK, no burn but unacceptable pulling and had to go so gentle against the grain and arround the chin that I couldn't get a close clean shave.

Lynn, you are just too skillful.

Thanks again to all of you. You have given a new lease of life to some of my treasured possessions.

Glad to hear you've found a solution. I had problems with my wedges for a long time, too, and now they're my favorites. :)

Josh

Quote:

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Originally Posted by English

I have a "Full Wedge" razor. Both sides of the blade are mirror finish and get refreshed to shiny brand new each time the razor visits a hone. The problem is I can not get the edge silky sharp.

I've gone back to a 1200 grit to ensure there are no lumps or bumps on the surfaces and then progressed up to a 12000 grit hone. Each time I move up a grit, the edge feels smoother but looses its bite. I can even get super smooth with a diamond paste on a leather flat bed strop, but the shave is only passable and the bite/hanging hair test is poor. The finer the honing medium, the more the biting edge disappears. I hone at 45 degrees as recommended but it makes no difference.

Am I missing a trick, or expecting too much from the wedge. Any ideas?

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FORTY-FIVE DEGREES?!?!!! Hold a wedge on a hone, and/or a strop at a 45 degree angle?!!!???? FORTY-FIVE?!!!
Please tell me I was delusional reading that angle measurement?

#1 -- This post is almost 10 YEARS OLD! You are a bit late to the discussion; this is what we call a necropost. "It's dead, Jim!"

#2 -- Consider the fact that they are talking X-strokes most likely that are 45 degrees off of a straight down the hone stroke. Hopefully, you are able to breathe freely again. :)

Yeah its pretty clear he is talking about the razor's angle in relation to the hone as far as which way the spine is pointing - so not spine perpendicular to the side of the hone, but rather with the spine at a 45° angle to the side of the hone, heel leading. The razor's spine and bevel would still be lying flat in contact with the hone's top surface (aside from any slight deviation due to tape).

And wow, holding the phone for 10 years?! Haha.

Thank you Gentlemen!
Well, no, I'm not holding the phone for that long...but I am just getting into another wedge. My first was sold to me by a near perfect honemeister, and I've simply kept the edge alive since, by rotating out to DEs, SEs, Injectors, and other str8s, in fear of losing the fine work he did on the edge of this blade for me. (Which, btw, was a "Real Tally-Ho"), so, you understand my trepidation for potential disaster to this blade. So, I bought myself another wedge, finally, a cheapy...@ $45 from eBay from a guy that does lots of blades. He said shave-ready, it was about ready to shave a porcupine into a gerbil, that's about it. So, I had to work on it. Taped honing, and today was the pasted stropping. When I finished the stropping, and cleaned it, stropped linen then leather, I was ready to shave again - - now, so was this wedge. I checked on the forums for any clues, and tidbits - coming across this one...so I read through- - then saw the 45degrees...and it clearly, was unclear to me, what was being written. But confidently, yes, that's exactly the angle of attack I hold my razor to stone for honing anyway. All is good. Thanks again fellas!