Correct heavy toe hone wear or not?

Search does not like small words like 'toe', so I'll ask here.

I have an older 13/16ths Weltmeister that has hone wear that is much more heavy toward the toe. While I have not attempted a shave as it will need preperation, I was wondering if it is worth the effort to correct the toe heavy pattern, which is considerable, or just not worry about it.

The razor feels sharp to a damp thumb with a good edge the entire length of the blade, it is just that a previous owner was heavy handed. There is approximately 1cm difference in blade width from heel to toe.

My inclination is to go with the flow and work on correcting the problem over the long haul rather than in one setting, but it may not be worth it at all if the razor shaves well.

Any opinions on correcting the wear pattern or leaving it as is assuming it shaves well?

Not worth the time for me.

I had a DD with uneven wear. I just honed it up and it shaved great!

I leave them as is too generally. I like a smiling blade and I think that the one piece of electrical tape may help bring the spine closer to the original geometry if there is wear on the spine. One way or another like Leighton I would try it out before I did any major restoration on the edge beyond just getting it shave ready.

That confirms the way I was leaning. Thanks guys.

Damn shame really. Beautiful blade otherwise, and somewhat unique etching I think. I've not seen another. This was one I purchased early on when I was wild and vacuuming almost any straight I could lay my hands on. I'm sure no one else has ever done something so foolish. Given my age, I should have known better, but straight razor AD is a terrible thing. It warps your mind and infects judgment.

Aside from agreeing with what has already been said, I'll just point out that sometimes the smile, especially on the toe end, was done deliberately to improve the scything action of the razor. Leave it!

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Originally Posted by Hawkeye5

Search does not like small words like 'toe', so I'll ask here.

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I use google search because of this. here is a search plugin i use..

Mycroft Project: Straightrazorplace Search Engine Plugins - Firefox & IE7

Would hone wear as you describe alter the way you would have to shave with it? I can imagine that the toe would shave differently than the heel with that much of a difference, wouldn't it, if it's hollow ground? Does it force you to balance the razor on your face more?

I agree with the others. Try it out and decide from there. 1cm seems to be a large difference to make up. I've never shaved with one that severe, but many people do without complaint.

I'd like to see a picture of the etching if you have one. I'm a world master fan and won't part with the one I own, and would actually like to add more (this is that hoover action you refer to :gaah:)

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Originally Posted by crazycliff200843

Would hone wear as you describe alter the way you would have to shave with it? I can imagine that the toe would shave differently than the heel with that much of a difference, wouldn't it, if it's hollow ground? Does it force you to balance the razor on your face more?

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In my opinion, the smiling toe simply makes it shave better. If you shave with any sort of scything motion, which you should do anyway, the toe wear will make it shave better. I don't see why it would differ for a hollow ground in comparison to any other grind. Realistically, given the curves of your face, much less than the entire 3" length of the blade is actually making contact with your face at any given time anyway so I really don't think the smile on the toe alters the way you would balance the razor on your face.

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Originally Posted by Utopian

Realistically, given the curves of your face, much less than the entire 3" length of the blade is actually making contact with your face at any given time

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Good point. With the exception of my cheeks, I'm generally using 1/3 of the blade toe to heel depending on where I am shaving.

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Originally Posted by crazycliff200843

Would hone wear as you describe alter the way you would have to shave with it? I can imagine that the toe would shave differently than the heel with that much of a difference, wouldn't it, if it's hollow ground? Does it force you to balance the razor on your face more?

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To add to the smiling toe, if the blade has a straight taper, IME it shaves the same. Like I said I've had a DD and now have a WB with a tapered blade. Nothing wrong with them other than aesthetics. Shaves just as good as everything else I've got. Better than some.

Well, if at one end it acts like a full hollow, and at the other, being closer to the spine, it acts like a 1/2 hollow, it might take a different angle or pressure? There's some parts of my face, my cheeks and parts of my neck for example, that allow for more of the blade to make contact as they are flatter or larger than other parts, like along my jaw line or my upper lip. So, there's at least half of the blade in contact with my face at that point. It might not be the same difference as there is between the heel and the toe, but is it discernable at all/would it take any adjustment to make it shave like a normal razor? Maybe I have an exagerrated thought running through my head...like a really thin and long filet knife.

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Originally Posted by crazycliff200843

Well, if at one end it acts like a full hollow, and at the other, being closer to the spine, it acts like a 1/2 hollow, it might take a different angle or pressure? There's some parts of my face, my cheeks and parts of my neck for example, that allow for more of the blade to make contact as they are flatter or larger than other parts, like along my jaw line or my upper lip. So, there's at least half of the blade in contact with my face at that point. It might not be the same difference as there is between the heel and the toe, but is it discernable at all/would it take any adjustment to make it shave like a normal razor? Maybe I have an exagerrated thought running through my head...like a really thin and long filet knife.

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Well, if the taper is that bad...chuck the razor. Usually the toe only tapers to 1/16" or 1/8" shorter than the heel. Not a big difference.