Thread: Beginners Tips: Sept 2010

Yes it is the middle of the month again and time for this months Beginners Tips...
Some of the trends I noticed this last month were interesting so I will take them one at a time...

Oil stones:
Seems to be a ton of questions about these lately...

There are only a very few oil stones that are recognized as Razor Stones but the real question seems to be "What oil should I use"...
What really amazed me is not one person answered with "Honing Oil" there are a plethora of actual formulas of honing oil specifically made for HONING... These are very cheap too...
I mean cheap cheap $2 for 8oz they are available at near every hardware store on the planet too...
Keep in mind I am not saying the Grape seed oil, Olive oil, or any other exotic oil won't work, but why risk gumming up a nice stone...
Kerosene is also a good honing oil, and also cleans off residual oils from the stone...


Honing in general:

Honing is a 4 step process...

It really doesn't matter how those steps are taken, or what they are taken with, you have to climb the honing ladder in this order...

Step 1. Set the bevel, it has to be sharp from toe to heel, not sorta sharp, not pretty much there, if the bevel isn't set correctly you are just wasting time... the edge should be about 90% there before you leave this first step. You should feel an edge that is as sharp as the sharpest knife you have ever touched...

Step 2. Sharpen the razor, the edge is going to get within 98% of as sharp as it can possibly get in this step. The edge is actually shaveable at this point, all you are after past here is comfort...

Step 3. Polish the edge, the edge is going to get very smooth now and barely any sharper, but this is where most of the shaving comfort comes from.. The edge should be at 99% now and fully shave ready...

Step 4. The Finisher, could be a high grit stone, could be a paste, could be a good stropping, or a combination of all these things, but this step is all personal.. and the last 1% is right here...

If you don't take all 4 steps, in that order, you will not make it to a shave ready edge...If you try and skip a step, or rush a step you will fall right off the ladder...


Of course this is JMHO of how honing works

Testing my edge:

This one is continual, no matter how many times every single one of us that hones for other people keep saying it, I still read this statement to often... "I just got a Shave ready razor but it doesn't pass the *** Test" What is the first question that a senior member asks next???? "Did you shave it"???
The shave test should be the first test... learn what the shave test really is too.. That ole' from sideburn to jawline, as perfect as can be single pass, that is a true shave test...
The real problem is a non shaving test, failure makes you lose the mental confidence in the edge so it is that much harder for you to shave it ...
Not to mention that those tests are subjective in the first place, and designed for people that are honing the edge...
Shave test, shave test, shave test, can't say it enough, that is the one that counts...

HHT

"I honed my razor but I can't get a good HHT out of the edge"
So What !!!!
No really, So What !!!,, The HHT is the most subjective of all the tests and is pretty much useless unless you have gone through the time and trouble to quantify it...
The are SOOOOOOoooo many variables to that test, it is crazy, yet every new honer tries it like religion...Psssst hey, try turning the hair around no really just hold the other end and see what happens, and some hair really pops easy anyway... Wanna pass the HHT every time??? I'll send you some of my hair, I can pop that at 1k most times, and it doesn't make my edge shave ready.....
Try it this way around, get a razor that you have honed, and test shaved, then and only then, after you KNOW it shaves fine, strop that puppy up and try out the HHT, see how you do...

Scales:

A bit of restoration this month, on finishing wood scales...
If you start your wood finishing out with an Acetone wipe first, no matter the type of wood you are using, you will eliminate most of your finishing problems... It dies in minutes, and starts you off on a clean, oil, dust, residue free surface....
Which direction you take after that is your choice...



That is all for this month hope it helps a bit,, As always please feel free to add to this as we all see things a bit differently, especially the senior members, the more points of view the better for the New guys....

I didn't know acetone was alive in the first place...

Good tips Glen! Thanks!
Oh and FWIW, I have NEVER had a razor pass the HHT for me. That includes some honed by the best of the best.

Great Stuff, Glen. Staples of the honist life.

I have now honed 20 or so eBay razors to shave-ready and shaved often with them, and maybe 5 or 6 I had to do some work to restore the edge, maybe hone out a chip using a DMT 325 before going on to set the bevel. I'm very happy with my razors, but as you so well state,

I ALMOST NEVER SUCCEED WITH THE HHT

I think it's just my klutziness, or maybe the hair I use, but I have actually just quite trying on the HHT. My honed razors shave me very nicely and I enjoy using them, and cutting arm or leg hair from above the skin is pretty close to the HHT for in-process checks.

But really...just lathering a cheek and swiping down with the razor tells me what I really need most to know.