Thread: Possible razor to practice honing?

So then, I recently got my first straight razor from SRD and its about that that time to send it in for its free honing. I also do have the intent to pick up some stones so I can learn how to hone my razors myself. However I do not want to go spend much on a razor that I may damage nor damage my only razor. So been looking for my second razor to use as practice/spare. Since I'm brand new and not to sure what I should be looking for but I think I found something.

So then, I'll stop my rambling now. What I really wish to know is if the razor pictured below is good enough for practicing honing and if I do well, possibly work as a second razor. The scales look a little beat but all the metal looks to be in the right places.

Certainly looks like it is good condition and a great candidate for honing practice
Should not take to much to get it right

Thanks, it looked good to me but second opinion never hurts. Lets just hope it gets here in one piece, was reading the other thread about how the razor got shipped in a envelope, so now i'm paranoid.

Anyways, not a bad deal for $30 so I won't feel to bad if there is some hidden problem or I mess it up. If I'm lucky I'll have a razor to use while my dovo is out being honed. SRD shopping list is growing, 4/8k norton, 12k nawina, soap samples, now a razor sleeve.

Only a little less then a month in and I'm starting to feel those acquisition disorders........

I agree that razor should work fine. You want a razor that will be able to take a shaveable edge and that one looks fine. Good luck.

It is a fine razor, one of the Little Valley razors that will make a fine shaver. To begin to learn to hone, select razors in the best condition that you can afford. You can find nice razors in the 20-30 range without major flaws.

What you are looking for is a hollow grind, chip free edge, straight spine, as little as possible hone wear on the spine and an even, small bevel. And NO rust, especially on the tang at the pivot and on the edge or blade.

Check that the heel is well shaped and there is not a wear spot on the stabilizer, if it has one. A razor without a stabilizer may be just a bit easier, but this razor seems fine, with a small stabilizer.

Begin with razors that the edge is parallel with the spine, no smiles or especially no frowns.

Clean this razor with fine steel wool and WD40, get between the scales with a paper towel and WD40 wrapped around a coffee stir stick. Once clean remove the WD40 with Simple Green and hot water.

Dry and polish with any good metal polish, Mothers, Turtle Wax or the like. Some 600 and 1K Wet and Dry will shine up the blade and scales. Finish with the metal polish. Polish and a tooth brush will shine the pins.

A combo stone like the Norton 4/8K and a 12K Super Stone are all you need and will last a lifetime. Pick up a 60X lighted loupe for around 3 bucks on line.

Tape the spine and set it on the 4K after lapping on 320 W&D.

Originally Posted by Euclid440

Begin with razors that the edge is parallel with the spine, no smiles or especially no frowns.

Aren't frowns bad in any case?

Originally Posted by Euclid440

Tape the bevel and set it on the 4K after lapping on 320 W&D.

Um, did you mean the spine here? Also I already have a DMT course(325 grit i think) that has seen light use and is still in pretty much new condition that I was planning to use for lapping the norton/Super stone with. Can this be used in place of 320 wet and dry paper to set an initial bevel? Was thinking of possibly getting a 220/1k norton down the line for the razors that need a little more love (if I decide to get more into restoration).

It depends on why the bevel is frowning, chances are the spine has issues, but it could be bad technique from the previous owner. Either way it is not something you want to take a chance on as a novice honer.
Yet, tape the spine, a 1K can speed thing up, but when beginning, speed is not something you should be concerned with.

Most novice honers will use too much pressure with all stones and a 1K may cause more problems than they solve, until you learn to calibrate your pressure. Until then the 4k has a better chance of keeping you out of trouble.

Yes, you can lap all your stones with the 325 DMT, just do so under water, standing or running or you can trash your diamond plate. I’m assuming that is what you meant, not setting a bevel on W&D or your DMT, you do not want to set the bevel on low grits, below 1K.

My bad, I interpreted "Tape the bevel and set it on the 4K after lapping on 320 W&D" as lapping the razor on 320 W/D then move to the 4k, not lap the 4k stone with 320 W/D. I don't mind if it takes awhile as is I'm used to spending one or two long nights a month checking/sharping various knifes/tools anyways, I don't like dull anything.

you might want to add the 1k Norton as a bevel setter a 4k takes forever. I use a 1k for bevels and then 4k bbw and 8k coti then the apache red and strata. not a bad shave at all.i have come to prefer the apache over the coti edge.

Actually no, not on that razor, a 4k will easily set the bevel on a Geneva razor of that grind, on some Sheffield’s and other hard razors, possibly but still it can be done.

That razor should take 40-80 laps depending on the condition of the edge, not a lot at all, and as said the 4k may keep the novice honer out of trouble, until one understands pressure and the mechanics of honing a razor as opposed to a knife.

One of the most difficult things to explain to knife honers is that comfort must be built into an edge, something that is of no consideration to knife sharpening. Sharp is easy…

Try it, you will be surprised at how quickly a 4k can set a bevel and you will get a finer, stronger edge.