Success!!!

[BullDaddy]

Well I just got my 4k/8k Norton in the mail today and just couldn't resist trying it out. Now my razor was still pretty much shave ready but I just had to. I did the unthinkable, and did a few bread slices on a coarse grit diamond stone I had lying around and dulled a perfectly good edge.

Now I've always considered myself as being somewhat of a knife sharpening expert, but this was my first attempt on a razor. So after lapping both sides of the stone, I proceeded in resetting the bevel on the 4k side. This took a bit longer than I expected, but I finally got the edge back according to the black marker test. I then flipped the stone over and went to town on the 8k side. After numerous passes, it just seemed like it wasn't getting any sharper, and the thumb pad test just wasn't feeling all that sharp. So now I'm starting to worry. Then I remembered reading a post about applying a little soap or lather on the stone for the final finishing steps, so I added a little soap and gave it a few more passes. The TPT was a little better, but still not what I was used to before I destroyed my blade.

So there I was, thinking why oh why did I slice the bread. Then I decided to pull out my balsa paddle I was in the process of making. Well it still wasn't finished yet, I wanted to stain it and make it look pretty and all. Applied some Chromium Oxide to one side and gave it about 15-20 passes. Followed that up with about 100 passes on the leather side of my hanging strop, and WOW!!!! This sucker is sharp. Passes the horizontal hair test with ease, before it would somewhat pass with an audible ping when the hair cut. Now it cuts them almost silently.

Of coarse the true test will be tomorrow morning when I shave with it, hopefully all goes well. Wish me luck. Anyways I just wanted to share my experience with y'all and figured this would be a good first post. Now if I only could only master shaving with this thing.

[netsplit]

Hey,

Depending how it goes, my advice would be, once you set your bevel (ideally i'd probably use something less than 4k to do this) then use the norton pyramid

Here's the wiki link, helped me out a lot

http://straightrazorpalace.com/srpwiki/index.php/Norton_Pyramid_Honing_Guide

[Yannis]

Hey,

Depending how it goes, my advice would be, once you set your bevel (ideally i'd probably use something less than 4k to do this) then use the norton pyramid

Here's the wiki link, helped me out a lot

Norton Pyramid Honing Guide - Straight Razor Place Wiki

Seting a bevel with 4000 is OK!
There is no need for something less than 4000!

[mlangstr]

welcome to SRP Bulldady,

I admire your courage admitting you breadknived a perfectly good razor.. .I'm a newb myself and I sure wouldnt dare anything like that...

Maarten

[BullDaddy]

Thankfully everything turned out well. I probally got my best shave to date after my honing attempt. I do agree a 1k stone for setting the bevel would probally made things go easier/faster but didn't have one. All and all the 4k did just fine for the task at hand. One thing that did worry me was the jump from 8k to the CrOx paste. Is this jump okay, or should I start looking for another stone?

[JimmyHAD]

Generally rather then mess with a professionaly honed shave ready razor what I like to do is find an ebay or antique store razor or two or three. Something in decent shape but dull. I use a 30x eye loupe or a microscope and check the edge for any chips or pits and what have you.

You can set a bevel on a 4k but since I have them I usually set a bevel with a 1k stone or a 1200 diamond plate. When the razor passes the thumbnail test I look at it under magnification again and see how even and consistent my bevel is. When it is an even scratch pattern from the edge to the top of the bevel and the same color reflecting light under magnification I know I have a single bevel. Then I go to the 4k and 8k and do pyramids using the TPT every so often.

I don't breadknife them unless the chips are so deep that it will take forever to flat hone them. Kind of a pay me now or pay me later situation. Either way it is a job to get that bevel back. Chrom ox is good stuff. A lot of guys like the 12k Chinese stone Woodcraft sells for a reasonable price and some like the Shapton 16k which is quite a stone but a lot more money.

Like netsplit said, check out the SRP Wiki at the toolbar above for tutorials on honing and all things straight razor related.