Originally Posted by
kevint
Yeah, Thanks for the heads up on that 30 power scope. I'm not 100% sure what higher resolution of microscopes means, but I think it has to do with a larger mirror. I mostly use mine at 60, but at 100 there are some clear views of the invisible. a major drawback of the RS MM is the small view so a larger view sounds like a nice feature.
An important question: what does a wire edge look like? I've had a few problems that sound symptomatic of over honed / wire edge but never saw it in the scope.
A wire edge is an edge that has become to thin. It is so thin that it bends when it tries to cut a whisker so it either skips over the whisker if it bends one way or digs into the skin if it flexes the other way and gives an acute angle. In a scope this will appear as a different color along some part of the very edge but not for the full length of the edge. As the edge becomes progressively thinner the edge will bend more, in spots, and appear as a rust/gold/browning color along the edge, again, in spots. Still thinner and the edge disintegrates in spots and appears as a micronick.
I would also like to submit the idea that you do not get a better edge dry. Without a little water or lather on the hone you end up going over the swarf deposited on the hone. It almost sounds like you consider its use a mark against your skill.
The jury is still deliberating on the wet/ry honing issue. Not enough of us have tried it on a sufficient number of razors to say one way or the other. Based on some of the comments here I have just begun to experiment with this.
The more I think about it I've had a similar problem with my mini geewiz. being the nearest mint razor I have, I tended to hone it a little less than it probably needed. However after considerable use on my mini-card cro strop it eventually yielded the best save I ever gave, but soon after disintegrated. Ya, it is now either rounded or over honed.
Another thought- are you holding the hone in your hand? I've never found any particular advantage to this. I certainly know how to lock my body into a solid stance, but with the hone on the bench accuracy of stroke is far superior imho. a hand held hone could certainly introduce some inconsistency allowing previous scratches to be left behind.