Thread: help me ! I must be doing something wrong

I think I have good news and possibly bad news...

First the good news: there are quite a few SRP members in Montreal, You might want to send a PM to member Badgister. Zayid is a great guy and if you can connect with him, you'll be on your way. I'll PM a link to his website too.

I'm not so optimistic about your razor unfortunately. I'm not familiar with that particular brand - and hopefully I am wrong - but *generally* speaking new razors selling around that price, particularly with a strop, tend not to be made of the greatest steel. It might turn into a decent shaver, but I wouldn't put any money on it.

I think your best bet at this point would be to get in touch with Zayid and ask him to check out the razor. When he has it in hand he'll be able to advise whether it has potential to be turned into a good shaver. Please be aware though that many honers will refuse to work on blades that they feel will not take or held a decent edge. They don't want to take your money for something that will disappoint, and they don't want their name associated with a sub-par blade.

If he reckons it's good to go, I *highly* recommend taking advantage of his honing service. Having a pro-honed razor - even if you only get it done once - will give you a benchmark to aim for if/when you hone yourself. Without that, you're chasing a target you can't see.

Kris

Originally Posted by Cangooner

Hi, and welcome to SRP! You have come to the right place to get you going.

First off, whereabouts are you? There may be someone local to you who could meet with you in person to help. If you're anywhere near Ottawa, let me know and I'd be happy to assist.

OK, lots here...

What kind of razor is it? Everything below assumes that it's a workable, usable razor and not a razor-shaped-object. Some things being marketed as razors are absolute garbage that will not take/hold an edge. See here for a list of brands to avoid:
Brands of Straight Razors to Avoid - Straight Razor Place Library

And here for a list of good brands:
Good Straight Razor Brands - Straight Razor Place Library

Now, when it comes to honing, the most important thing is to set your bevel. I.e. where the two sides of the cutting edge come together at the point. If the bevel isn't set, no amount of stropping will help, and it will take many, many more than 30 strokes at a higher grit than 4000 to set a bevel. Typically something in the neighbourhood of 1000 grit is considered a bevel setter, and the higher grits (4000, 8000, 12000, even 20000, not to mention 'natural' finishers) are used to refine the edge.

The best way (I found at least) to learn to hone in the absence of 1-on-1 mentoring is to check out some of the excellent videos out there. Look in particular for those of gssixgun and Lynn. I like this one because Glen is taking a beginner through the process.



Do yourself a favour and get a brush and proper soap or creme. You don't need anything fancy, but it will make a heck of a difference. Proraso soaps are very good and can be found at Shoppers Drug Mart, as can an inexpensive brush. Body Shop's maca root cream is very nice and not too spendy. Moving from canned cream (sorry - just realized I made an assumption that you're talking about cream from a can, so please ignore if you're using a brush etc already) to 'proper' wet shaving makes a huge difference.

As for the grip, it comes with practice. But it does require patience.

Good luck!

Hi!
he says change the tape after 1 k, i am little bit confused, if we change the tape, we wont get double edge?

What happens is you wear the tape down as you hone .Especially at 1k. Keeping it fresh helps you feel the stone/blade better and keeps it at the same angle. I change between all grits. I picked up Glen's habits and they have served me well. All but 2 of them :<0)

Originally Posted by jemmo

Hi!
he says change the tape after 1 k, i am little bit confused, if we change the tape, we wont get double edge?

If you tape when honing (not necessary, but many do) the tape will get chewed up - particularly on lower grit hones. By changing the tape between hones you ensure that you don't wear through the tape, and reduce the amount of gunk that gets onto your hone from the tape being worn away. So what he's saying here is remove that worn piece of tape and replace it with a fresh new piece.

Incidentally even if you did remove the tape entirely after bevel setting, it only take a handful of strokes to address the very slight change in angle. Glen did a video on this recently. I'll see if I can find it for you...

Edit: here you go.

Thank you! Of course I want to meet with zayaid and i will pm Badgister! When you can send me the link for his website on pm !

Originally Posted by Cangooner

If you tape when honing (not necessary, but many do) the tape will get chewed up - particularly on lower grit hones. By changing the tape between hones you ensure that you don't wear through the tape, and reduce the amount of gunk that gets onto your hone from the tape being worn away. So what he's saying here is remove that worn piece of tape and replace it with a fresh new piece.

Incidentally even if you did remove the tape entirely after bevel setting, it only take a handful of strokes to address the very slight change in angle. Glen did a video on this recently. I'll see if I can find it for you...

Edit: here you go.

exactly that you say, when u hone with lower grit the tape will get chewed, i means the tape get thin, and you make edge with this size of tape, but when u get a new tape it is will be thickened then that one you pull out, thats gonna be double edge, am i wrong

Originally Posted by jemmo

exactly that you say, when u hone with lower grit the tape will get chewed, i means the tape get thin, and you make edge with this size of tape, but when u get a new tape it is will be thickened then that one you pull out, thats gonna be double edge, am i wrong

No - the difference in angles between a new piece of tape and a partially worn piece of tape is all but nonexistant. Also, if you did not change tape when it became partially worn, it would continue to wear, creating a difference even greater than if you did change the tape.

So really it's a personal choice thing. Use tape if you want, or don't use it if you don't want to. But if you do, it is better to change the tape when it begins to wear. And changing when moving between hones is a good habit to get into as it serves as a reminder to at least check the tape for wear.

Originally Posted by Cangooner

No - the difference in angles between a new piece of tape and a partially worn piece of tape is all but nonexistant. Also, if you did not change tape when it became partially worn, it would continue to wear, creating a difference even greater than if you did change the tape.

So really it's a personal choice thing. Use tape if you want, or don't use it if you don't want to. But if you do, it is better to change the tape when it begins to wear. And changing when moving between hones is a good habit to get into as it serves as a reminder to at least check the tape for wear.

ok man, i trying to learn, i use to hone with tape, ok, my question, if i hone a razor with tape and then get dull and will refresh it, sharp it with maybe from 5 k up to natural stone then i dont need to remember if i hade tape on that or not, hope you understand me, sorry for english

Originally Posted by jemmo

ok man, i trying to learn, i use to hone with tape, ok, my question, if i hone a razor with tape and then get dull and will refresh it, sharp it with maybe from 5 k up to natural stone then i dont need to remember if i hade tape on that or not, hope you understand me, sorry for english

No need to apologize - you're perfectly clear.

No, it's really no big deal. If you watch Glen's video above from about the 6:30 mark, he does exactly what you mention. He has put an edge on a razor with one layer of tape. Killed the edge. And then gone to a 5k stone to put a new edge on it. In very little time, the edge is reset.

Originally Posted by Cangooner

No need to apologize - you're perfectly clear.

No, it's really no big deal. If you watch Glen's video above from about the 6:30 mark, he does exactly what you mention. He has put an edge on a razor with one layer of tape. Killed the edge. And then gone to a 5k stone to put a new edge on it. In very little time, the edge is reset.

i saw that but i want to be sure, because you must be a pro, just ask to be sure, thanks a lot, i learned me so much here.