Thread: The Finished Edge

For a long time now I have been looking at edges after coming off the hones sometimes with a final pasting and sometimes just the hones. I have kept the microscope at 40X and I continue to see the same phenomena. Quite a few of the razors under the microscope look like they have a foiling which has taken place. There are little shiny sparkelies all along the edge. I cannot feel or see any burr so to speak, but these things show up a lot. If I take the razor before stropping and try to shave with it, it will cut the whisker but is really uncomfortable.

Once I strop on leather and then look at the razor under the scope the sparklies are gone and I get a very clean crisp looking edge. Lately, I have been stropping on the poly-webbing first and then the leather so that all those little fragments don't gunk up my strops. The shave after stropping is then always nice and comfortable unless I missed something and have to do a little further honing.

So what do you guys think is going on? Anyone experiencing the same thing?

This should be a fun discussion.

That is somewhat what i was talking about in my post " stropping after honing" i dont know about the sparklies but i do know that after honing the shave was really uncomfortable but after good stropping very smooth.

I've seen the "sparklies", not a sign of the bevel not being set, but definitely something going on with the edge. I've seen it on razors
that were deeply pitted and the pits became revealed in the honing. I've also seen it appear out of nowhere on a blade that had looked
just fine. I rehoned that blade yesterday and now it's fine. I suspected at first that stropping on linen too forcefully might have caused
it, but I'm not sure. I'll do some experimenting on linen if I see them appear again. Great subject!

This may sound, and be dumb, but I read some old posts about using earth magnets to hold a razor down when buffing, etc. during restore. I thought then that it might cause a problem when honing because metal objects will take a small magnetic field when exposed to a magnet. Thus causing fine pieces of honed metal to affix to the blade. Could some of these razors be exposed to a magnet such as being stored very near the magnetic paddle strops, etc.? That would account for the sparklies and probably an abrasive shave, and would brush off during stropping Just a thought. Howard

I have noticed this at times, but have never thought it through. Certainly a good observation. One possibility is that when honing, the edge is held flat with very light pressure or just the pressure of the razor itself. Also there is usually water involved so there is no friction heat. Since the cutting edge at this point is virtually microscopic, it contracts slightly when the pressure is off and causes some
"wrinkling" of the very fine edge due to internal stresses of the steel. Could it be that the light at a microscopic level is hitting the valleys of the "wrinkles" and showing up as a sparkle. Then, once you hit the canvas and leather, it calms them through the friction, slight heat and realigning effect of the edge.

Don't know if I articulated all that right but just my thoughts.

Best Regards
Kenny

I don't know this, so I may be wrong, but I assume that honing creates a fine burr on the edge of the blade. (Such a burr could sparkle under light I suppose.) I was always taught that the purpose of stropping was to remove the burr.

I usually assume my razor is shave-ready when it starts to feel a little 'sticky' while stropping. I assume this means the burr has been removed and the edge is smooth and 'sticking' to the strop better.

BWTFDIK?

Originally Posted by Lynn

So what do you guys think is going on? Anyone experiencing the same thing?

This should be a fun discussion.

Lynn, if you don't mind, what is the final pasting you mentioned that still shows the same edge at 40x - is that stropping on an abrasive felt paddle strop?

Originally Posted by hoglahoo

Lynn, if you don't mind, what is the final pasting you mentioned that still shows the same edge at 40x - is that stropping on an abrasive felt paddle strop?

It is usually the same with chromium oxide, on poly webbing, linen or leather, or sprayed on hard felt or .5 diamond spray on felt.

Lynn. I recommend you try getting a shave ready edge off your 8k before using pastes. Maybe see if you can meet with a honemiester in your area....

Originally Posted by Slartibartfast

Lynn. I recommend you try getting a shave ready edge off your 8k before using pastes. Maybe see if you can meet with a honemiester in your area....

I almost fell off my chair after reading this