Thread: Ok I'm a Klutz, so what do I do now?

Originally Posted by Quick

but he had a benchmark before he dinged it. it's not like he doesn't know the end goal.

Yes, but that benchmark did not last long enough for him to make any use of it. Read again the part about his first two shaves.

Kris, I think you may fall in the 1%. And I disagree that setting a uniform bevel is going to be easier. I should take microscop pictures of the edge of the next razor somebody fails to get sharp and you'll see what I mean.
The problem is not the uniformity of the bevel, it's the curve of the edge. All the ones I have seen are 'wavy'. We're talking on a micron scale here, I can't see it without microscope.

Ok, I may have used the wrong words.My point is this: ( At least to me) Its easier for me to get a good edge of one of my new Dovos, then one of my vintage blades.I'm not saying this goes for all blades, my dubl duck and all of my vintage american blades takes a wicked edge quite easily.But those blades have somewhat the original blade geometry intact.
And I think that is a valid point.It is not my intention to question your honing abilities, wich I am quite sure exeeds my own with good margin.I'm just that kind of guy that when beeing told not able to do something, just gets more motivated to do it.:-)

Kristoffer

I agree with Gugi.

I always advice people to not start honing before they have gained some competence with shaving. Usually, a few days later I find myself answering their honing questions in the basic honing forum.

Most people need weeks to months of trial and error before they can consistently get a decent shaving edge on razor with a serious issue. This razor obviously needs more than a careful touch-up.
If you planned on learning how to hone, get a not to expensive razor from the Classifieds or from Ebay. I still advice you to wait till you can honestly tell it's the razor and not your technique, if a test shave goes not so well.
Get your razor fixed, so you can confidently carry on with what you planned to do in the first place: to learn how to shave with a straight razor.

Good luck,
Bart.

You ain't the only klutz james. I set my dovo on a shelf, closed of course, and if fell off and landed behind a night stand about half-way open. Apparently it hit the night stand on the way down and put a couple of nicks/chips in the blade, with a big burr on the tip.

I took a Col. Conk stone (about 1200 grit right?) and took the burr off. It would shave arm hair but pulled. Then a barber gave me a carborundum stone and I did 10 very careful passes on it. It doesn't pull when it cuts arm hair now, but under a microscope you can still see the "waves" or "dings" in the blade. And you can still really see the little chip at the toe with just your eye.

My microscope in not as good as the ones I used in college, it's only about a $40 one, but it works.

Gonna have a honemeister take out the chip and dings. I have the $3 razor I can practice on after I send it of to be reconditioned also.

Honing is way too much fun to be left to the professionals. It has taken me a year to get to where I am now, but it gives me such an enormous sense of accomplishment to finally be able to hone successfully any razor in my stable.

There is SO much great advice on this forum for shavers of all levels that, through trial and error and asking and learning, we can all get there.

My 2 cents would be: save your $20 and hop on the 'Bay. Snag yourself a bargain and use it to practice on. My first really smooth shave came a year ago with a $10 Henckels Twin from eBay (the seller had mis-spelled "Solingen" in the title, so I was the only bidder on a fantastic razor in its original box). I saved my Dovo until after I had got the blade on my Twin to optimal sharpness.

If you are anything like me, you got into this hobby not just for the smooth shaves, but for the entire ceremonial of hone, strop, prep n shave (and post-shave!). Jump in and enjoy (and maybe get yourself a courser hone for bevel setting, such as a 1000 grit)!