Thread: First successful honing experience; thought I'd share

I had been trying for weeks to get a brand new razor (Solingen Black Handled Straight Razor) shave-ready, to no avail. I had actually begun to think it was the quality of the razor itself, since it's not marked by any particular manufacturer. This morning I thought I'd try a different approach, and finally had a little success.

My equipment:
Norton 4k/8k combo
Thiers Issard 4-sided paddle strop
Newspaper stop
A truly shave-ready razor, purchased from the classifieds here (for reference, a must!)

First, I added a single layer of electrical tape to the spine. Since I had been honing this thing for a while, I knew there was a chance it was way over-honed, so I started with 10 laps back-honing on the 4k. After that, single layer of tape still on, I did a full pyramid, as suggested here Norton Pyramid Honing Guide - Straight Razor Place Wiki

Next, I added a second micro-bevel. I'm in no place to argue its merits just yet, since I'm just starting out. I will say, however, that it was simple to try out, and it seems to have worked for me. I added 3 more layers of tape (total of 4), and since I don't have a finishing stone yet, I brought it back to the Norton (3 - 4k, 5 - 8k, 1 - 4k, 5 - 8k; total of 4 on the 4k and 10 on the 8k).

From there, I did 600 laps on newspaper. That's right, 600 laps. I read that the paper/ink will get worn after about 200 laps (even though not visibly), so I ended up using 3 sheets in all.

Lastly, 100 laps on leather. It passed an HHT, so I lathered up a cheek and gave it a test shave. Here's where it gets interesting; I made a single pass, but since it didn't make a sound or cause any sensation on my skin, I didn't believe it worked until I touched my face.

This was the first time I made it though my chin and neck without changing razors. I can't even begin to describe how pleased I am; now I'm sure that this is a sustainable practice for me, and I look forward to getting better and better at this as I go.

The best advice I can give to someone just starting out like me, is that you're not going to "get it" right away. Your first couple of shaves, and probably the first few times you try to hone a razor, are going to suck. Listen to the advice from the senior members of this forum, and try to come up with an amusing story as to why your face looks like hamburger. I told my girlfriend I picked her a rose with my teeth...

first congratulations.
second - it sounds like underhoned to me not overhoned. your razor was dull and lacking proper bevel. the tape changed the angle and made it easy to remove with the norton enough metal on the edge to get it sharp i.e. going from a profile like this \_/ to \/
with the previous angle the norton was making extremely slow progress.

that's my theory of what happened anyways.

Good post, thanks for sharing with us. It takes a while tuning into some of the nuances. It’s neat when someone obviously read first and comprehended the resources here.

great post keep it up

Thats great Jason,

My first honing experience didnt work out that well either but my second was great.. the third not so great so I expect my fouth will be awesome
I'm still working on any consistency here so I'll just keep practicing and having fun honing..(it is a very relaxing task)

Maarten

Sounds cool! I would have done 60 laps on the 8K and 100 on the newspaper to save time, but your story has a happy ending!

Well done.

I'm curious, does your bevel reflect light now?

@gugi - Thanks, I hadn't thought of that. The edge was popping arm hair after the initial pyramid, but wouldn't give a smooth shave until I added the 2nd bevel, so it's entirely possible that the bevel was never set right in the first place. As I progress I'll see about resetting the bevel, but for now I'm gonna see how long I can make this hone last me.

@AFDavis11 - I'm not sure I completely understand the question. The bevel does reflect light, and almost seems to reflect more light than the rest of the blade, but this may be because the sides of the blade are convex, so they need to get light from more different angles to reflect. Also, the bevel doesn't have what I'd call a "mirror" finish. There are visible (to me) scratches in it, though they're much smaller than even the polish lines in the grind of the blade itself, from when it was manufactured.

Here's something I've always been curious about: when one uses newspaper in a honing process, is one supposed to lead with the edge (like on a honing stone) or the spine (like when stropping)?

Originally Posted by theworldover

Here's something I've always been curious about: when one uses newspaper in a honing process, is one supposed to lead with the edge (like on a honing stone) or the spine (like when stropping)?

spine leading, i can't imagine edge leading could even be done on flexible surface.