Thread: Honing my blade

Originally Posted by Sergeant

Another aspect is, obviously we are here for the hobby we appreciate the process while other ppl might see us a bunch of crazy/Un practical folks. So I think honing my own blade will add to the experience. What the worse could happen. .. ruin the blade, I'll send it then to a pro to fix and sell my stone here or ebay.

So true,Thats exactley what I did

two schools on this one , I think honing your own blades could be cool, I dont restore and sell dozens of razors, I have 10 that I shave with, most are shave ready when I got them shaving every day for 9 months so far I haven't needed but one to go back to the hone 20 dollars, so barring any accidents I have quite a few shaves left and hardly any money spent . possibly years with just a refresh and leather. so spending a few hundred on stones in my case seems wasteful, and I know the edges I get are the best that can be had on my razors, for the price of the stones I can buy another custom razor or very nice vintage and shave with it for a long time. since honing is not a daily thing unless doing it for a living , the stones would sit around a long time , now on the other hand the strop gets used everyday ,so I can just go and buy Neils,Tonys, or a couple Kanayamas but that's just me , oh and I own the stones, I leave the finishers with my honer , Works for me YMMV TC

Originally Posted by Sergeant

Another aspect is, obviously we are here for the hobby we appreciate the process while other ppl might see us a bunch of crazy/Un practical folks. So I think honing my own blade will add to the experience. What the worse could happen. .. ruin the blade, I'll send it then to a pro to fix and sell my stone here or ebay.

Yea, go for it because in most cases any screw ups can be rectified. Enjoy the new aspect of the hobby and the frustrations that go along with it.

Bob

Honing looks easy on video, just like golf and the guitar. The proof is on your face.

I suggest first becoming confident stropping and shaving so that you can be sure that any improvements needed on the edge are needed on the hones and are not related to stropping or shaving technique.

I also recommend first learning to refresh an edge on a pasted strop or finishing hone.

It may be best to start learning to hone on a blade that was shave ready without significant issues. Working on blades with issues may better wait until after being successful on edges without significant issues.

Hones need to be flat and have a fresh clean surface. Razor edges are very thin and easy to flex back and forth while honing. Weight of the blade pressure evenly distributed along an edge helps prevent issues.

While anyone is free to get a full set of hones and start learning on blades having bad issues, success may come faster learning in steps. The only thing that ultimately matters is whether you are happy with your shave and are having fun.

I have a TI carbon steel no issues with the blade or the bevel, it's just not sharp enough! I used the 0.5 diamond spry but I don't think its working! I don't mind shaving with not a very sharp razor, simply cuz I'm still in learning phase! and a very sharp razor on my face can make things a lil bit harder and a lot more painful!
but I get what u guys are saying, and you make a whole lot of damn sense! I think what is bugging me is maybe I don't know what a sharp razor feels like to compare it to what I got and the idea I have to send it away for god knows how long to be honed! so, if u knw someone in fort knox area please let me know, or is there is a sub forum here for locations?

I feel a bit differently. I WANT the sharpest and smootheat edge possible. You seem to not cut yourself as bad with a sharp blade.

Was the TI pro honed to start with if not it may not have been shave ready to start with. Honing isn't hard but will take practice and you will probably have to hone a razor fairly heavily before you get it right consistently. If you do want to learn by a couple cheap antique razors off ebay. +1 to finding a mentor if possible. Good luck

I agree with RezDog. I have never had a blade pro honed and most likely never will. But I have been sharpening anything that takes an edge since my first swiss army knife when I was 8(24 now). That's 16 years. But I will say this. Take any preconceived notions and toss them. You will have a hard time at first. Its a given. But pay close attention to any and every post that comes up about honing. Every single detail matters. Think about it, youre using a rock and your hands to shape a piece of metal to a width that's a quarter the size of the average bacteria. Sub micron. So that little twitch in your hand or bump in your stone = no bueno edge.

However I vote for the reckless abandon and jump in with both feet. You will get it and I think honing helps with the shaving learning curve. Teaches you the true meaning of a light touch!!

Originally Posted by MajorEthanolic

For me it comes down to cost. Lynn Abrams will do honing for $20 (and one free honing with purchase), meaning I can pay for around 10 honings for the same price as buying the equipment myself. Considering that you should only need to hone every 3 months or so, that's a year of honing on 2 razors for the same price and picking up the gear.

you right, with those money i have spent on stone, old razor, and now wood LOL, i could buy at least 10 expensive razor, but it is like a hobby, i think .......

Oh yeah. Go to the community button, members list, search members and type in the areas around you for members that are close.