Blade Refreshing

Hello everybody. My name is Max. First I'd like to thank everyone who put this forum together and everyone who shares their knowledge and experience, as I'm sure you know, this is quite an invaluable resource.

I currently use a Dovo shavette while I get my ducks in a row, so to speak. Though I can't wait to order a real piece of steel I want to be confident I have all the tools along with it.

I plan to get a Thierres Isaard special C
6/8ths shave ready. My goal is just to maintain this edge sharp and shave ready, I will be shaving about every other day. From what I've read it seems a fine grit stone would do the trick, looking to purchase a naniwa 12k for this.

My question is whether the stone will be sufficient or if I should use paste on a strop as a midpoint between the stone and bare strop?

If so what paste or combination of pastes would be suggested? By combination I mean a strop with perhaps .5 micron and another with .25 or is 12k to bare strop sufficient, or perhaps 12k to .5 or .25 to bare strop?

Also would a CrO paste work or would the diamond stuff be more effective to maintain this edge for longer before shelling out for the Norton 4k/8k stone down the road?

I apologize for the length of this thread, any and all feedback is greatly appreciated.

Thank you.

You have covered both routes to edge maintenance there Max. Pastes are cheaper but a stone is a better investment in the long run.
I have both and have used both, if you maintain your blade well and regularly you probably won't need a coarser stone for some time if ever.
The naniwa 12k is a reliable well known stone that you will be able to get plenty of advice on using. I have one along with a selection of other naniwa stones and a few other bits and bobs.

Either route will require you to know how to use the product or you will end up doing more harm than good, though the harm should be easy to fix unless you do something spectacular.

I use my hones very little, but in some ways prefer the 10k, which seems to be more widely available on eBay and therefore cheaper.

If you can the best thing you could do would be to meet up with a local member or attend a meet and get some hands on experience prior to making a decision.

We have a member called Euclid440 who is very knowledgeable with regards to pastes so hopefully he will wander along soon.

Welcome aboard, Ed covered a lot there. It's nice when someone has the exact same type of stone you want as the knowledge on its use gets pooled together. A Naniwa 12k I've heard is an excellent stone. I had the 10k and really liked it, but never a 12k.

I was so frightened my first touch up that I ruined the edge. Getting worked up about ruining the edge led to its demise. In hindsight it's nothing to be scared of, as long as you go slow.

Pasted strops are easier to use. I have used chromium oxide in the past. Easy as pie, nothing to it.

Hones have a little more learning curve to them.

Both are great options.


I'll leave you with this to mull over.


Before you're going to touch anything up you're going to need to learn how to strop a razor on an un-pasted strop. That is 100% certain. First and foremost learn how to strop and strop well. The method of touching up is irrelevant if you cannot properly strop.

It comes easily with practice and patience.

Welcome aboard,,,

Straight Razor Place - Beginners Tips: November 2014

I have only been at this for about 9 months ago take my experience with a grain of salt. I have a 12k Shapton (and some lower grit options) as well as strops pasted with .5 crox, .5 diamond, red and black Dovo pastes. I find that the 12k Shapton cuts a little slow compared to what others experience with different stones. I am still experimenting but think for most refreshing a .5 micron crox does great. A couple times now I have used the dovo red, then black, then 12k, and diamond or crox. This had served me well so far for the more extreme touch UPS.

Some good information so far. Personally if I was going to by one stone I would buy the Norton 4k/8k The 8k is a fine hone to use for refreshing the edge. As to paste
http://straightrazorpalace.com/strop...ugh-guide.html I did this post awhile ago and I find paste to be a reliable method for everything up to setting the bevel. Setting the bevel can be done with paste but is a real pain in the butt. The major benefit for a new shaver is that pasted strops use a skill that you are already developing and using everyday stropping. If you do use a pasted strop use a paddle strop it eliminates a lot of factors.

Welcome, Max...

I shave about every other day with my Dovo and use my Naniwa 12K to refresh/maintain the blade once every 3 weeks. With regular stropping, it has been working well for me so far.

I tried maintaining the blade once a month, but my coarse hair does a good job at dulling the edge.

So, a razor is maintained with a linen and leather strop, and the edge touched up with a high grit stone when more keenness is needed.

A pasted strop can do both but, a pasted strop is an abrasive strop and if the stropping skill is not mastered, one can easily do more damage than good, as said. Stropping can take time to master, but once mastered one can maintain a razor for a very long time on just linen and leather. Diamond and Chrome Oxide are on opposite ends of the spectrum, Diamonds for keenness, Chrome Oxide for comfort and any number of other pastes in between.

It is absolutely normal for a new shaver to damage the edge when first learning to strop, and to have it refreshed 2-3 times, before they get to the point where they are doing more good than damage maintaining a razor.

Yes, a 12k Super Stone is an excellent choice, lifetime purchase and will easily refresh a razor, a simple chrome oxide strop will make it more comfortable and add a bit of keenness and a good linen/ leather stropping daily, will maintain the edge. Really unless you get into collecting and restoration, the three are all you need.

The largest factor in learning to shave and maintain a razor is one on one coaching, this will dramatically reduce you learning curve. You can watch all the videos and read all the posts, but nothing can replace someone looking over your shoulder, making small corrections to your technique.

Maintaining a straight razor is not rocket science, neither is it as easy as watching a video. It’s somewhere in between.

A year after you think you have mastered stropping, your edges will improve dramatically.

Thank you for all the feedback guys, it is greatly appreciated. I have developed some follow up questions while reading these.

1. What are the pros and cons of the lower/higher grits as far as the 8k to 12k range is concerned? With respect the refreshing an edge.

2. Would it be wise to transition from a stone to an abrasive strop to a bare strop or just unnecessary to combine stone with pasted strop? Seems the feedback implies these are one or the other.

Thanks again for all the feedback guys. I will search for local vets that are open to schooling a newbie. I live in Nj, 07726

1.) preference partly. A very shave-able edge can be achieved with the 8k but it is more abrasive than 12k. You want to end your honing/stropping with the highest grit you have available. A pro might be affordability. A common hone is the Norton 4k/8k combo. Those only run about 80 bucks.

2.)I think that sounds wise. It is not a necessity, but adding the pasted strop is a more foolproof way of enhancing the keenness. Bear in mind that .5 crox is sometimes estimated as about equal to 30k grit.

Maxx, if your TI arrives truly shave ready, then you will hopefully be able to maintain it on clean linen and leather. Start practicing your stropping with a blunt knife or use your shavette without a blade fitted. My highest grit stone is a Naniwa 10k SS. I get a great edge from that. Then I use linen with CrOx, clean linen, then leather. It's then stropped every use just on the clean linen and leather. It gets a few laps on the CrOx every 5 or 6 shaves.

Obviously, YMMV!

I'd like a 12k too, but I don't think it's really worth me spending that extra money for the minor difference it would make to my 10k edges. It depends how much cash you are willing to spend. If you don't spend too much on stones, you can buy more blades!!

Good luck.

Hi Maxx, and welcome. I started learning to refresh in September, using a Chinese Guangxi hone (been working great so far for me with just that and then straight to a leather strop). A lot of good answers to my questions about refreshing and lapping hones in this thread here: http://straightrazorpalace.com/hones...se-hone-7.html

You might find the info useful. Good luck, and enjoy your new razor!

1) the higher the grit the finer the edge. The 4/8 is more versatile but the 12k leaves a finer edge. The 12k will do more than most think with a little effort.

2) All of the above. You can go from stone to crox to bare strop, stone to bare strop or crox to bare strop depending on what the blade needs. If I was only choosing 1 option it would be the stone as it is easier and quicker and capable of more. A hundred laps on linen and leather tend to take any harshness out of a stone edge if you find it.

You can also keep the stone for only when the crox seems to be loosing effectiveness and use the crox as your basic touch up method. A good crox stick/paste/ powder buy will last you a lifetime and can be used on many readily available substrates.

But, the problem is stropping, just one errant lap can ruin an edge. Once that happens, you will have to go to a stone or more aggressive strop to repair the edge.

One of the most frustrating things for new shaver to grasp is, you have to do what the edge needs. There is no formulaic/ step by step recipe for maintaince or repair. The course of action is totally dependent on the problem. Good magnification of at least 60X can be purchased for a few dollars and that will show you the extent of damage.

The difference in performance between an 8, 10 or 12K is not that great, neither is the cost. That being the case buy the highest grit available, last time I checked a 12k Super Stone was about 86 bucks.

If you use an 8K stone you will need to strop on Chrome Oxide for a bit more keenness and for comfort, if you stropping skills are good you could strop on linen and leather off a 12k Super Stone edge, but more likely you will still need some Chrome Oxide for comfort.

Do not get caught up in the Hype of inexpensive natural stone claiming to be in the 12k range, most are not anywhere close to 12K and bring with them a host of issues for the novice honer. The Super Stone is a no brainer, rock solid performer. Yes, I know some have had good results, but they are in the minority. In the end you will just buy the 12k super stone anyway. So set yourself up with success and start with the best equipment.

Awesome stuff guys, very much appreciated advice and experience. Definitely gives me a good idea of what I'll need to accompany my razor with. Thank you all for the input!