Thread: Need a modest setup... suggestions?

Originally Posted by Cheeks

Ok, so having dropped the ball and wasted some cash on some ebay razors

I'm wondering if you really did drop the ball. I mean are they pakistani or have cracked blades or just not properly honed? If its just a matter of getting them honed you might still have some good razors. Even if some of them are uncracked vintage blades that just have bad scales they might be salvageable. It would be nice to know what you ended up with from ebay and hopefully see that you didn't totaly waste cash, esspecialy with todays economy/inflation/recovery.

no, they are cheapies from Beauty and Barber. They weren't a total waste in the sense that I had to throw them away, I just havn't been able to shave with them. I have been using them to work on my honing skills, which is nice, because In the back of my mind I think that if I somehow totally screw em up, they were cheap anyway so not a big loss. One of them has a nice twist, and I can't do anything with it yet. The other two I am slowly working on. I spend about an hour every other night putting one or the other against the stones. they arent anywhere close to good yet, but I am making progress. I am getting a "feel for it". I had a huge AH-HA! moment last night when it dawned on me that I wasnt geting anywhere because the bevel was never set properly, and no amount of time on my 4k (even with a nice slurry) was getting me anywhere. I got out a crappy (but flat) $6 stone I had bought a while ago. I dont know the grit, but they are probably in the ballpark of 200-300 (combo stone). I must have spent a good hour WITH pressure. back and forth, back and forth. It is cutting arm hair well now, there is not a burr or wire-edge, and while the blade is not smooth, it is ALOT sharper than it was.
I was kind of scared to do this.. I guess I had it in my head that less strokes were optimal, and that a razor should hone in a few light passes, and if you had to do 500 strokes with pressure on a 200 grit stone, you would mess it up.... but it seems to be working as it is alot sharper now than it was... I guess I will just need to spend more time on the 4k now to smooth the bevel out.
I guess this is how I learn. I have just had to be more "rough" on it than I thought you were supposed to be... but results are results, and the only "right" was to hone is any way that ends in a sharp, smooth blade.
.......this is the impression I am left with anyway.

Originally Posted by Cheeks

no, they are cheapies from Beauty and Barber. They weren't a total waste in the sense that I had to throw them away, I just havn't been able to shave with them. I have been using them to work on my honing skills, which is nice, because In the back of my mind I think that if I somehow totally screw em up, they were cheap anyway so not a big loss. One of them has a nice twist, and I can't do anything with it yet. The other two I am slowly working on. I spend about an hour every other night putting one or the other against the stones. they arent anywhere close to good yet, but I am making progress. I am getting a "feel for it". I had a huge AH-HA! moment last night when it dawned on me that I wasnt geting anywhere because the bevel was never set properly, and no amount of time on my 4k (even with a nice slurry) was getting me anywhere. I got out a crappy (but flat) $6 stone I had bought a while ago. I dont know the grit, but they are probably in the ballpark of 200-300 (combo stone). I must have spent a good hour WITH pressure. back and forth, back and forth. It is cutting arm hair well now, there is not a burr or wire-edge, and while the blade is not smooth, it is ALOT sharper than it was.
I was kind of scared to do this.. I guess I had it in my head that less strokes were optimal, and that a razor should hone in a few light passes, and if you had to do 500 strokes with pressure on a 200 grit stone, you would mess it up.... but it seems to be working as it is alot sharper now than it was... I guess I will just need to spend more time on the 4k now to smooth the bevel out.
I guess this is how I learn. I have just had to be more "rough" on it than I thought you were supposed to be... but results are results, and the only "right" was to hone is any way that ends in a sharp, smooth blade.
.......this is the impression I am left with anyway.

I think...based on extremely limited first hand experience, and a great deal of reading here, that your experience is right on for a razor that's in bad shape. You have to grind away the steel with the stone until you can get the bevel set. If there's no bevel, chips, pitting, and/or it's harder stainless steel then you will take more time/pressure/elbow grease getting that bevel set. Once it is set, jumping up the ranks to higher grit stones with less pressure will help you refine/polish the bevel. Once it's really up to snuff, polishing on the strop extends the life of the edge, and an occasional touch up on a barber's hone/finishing hone will only require the lightest of pressure and a few strokes.

I think for what you're doing, pressure, coarse grit, and lots of time is what's called for. I wouldn't do that with the Wapi though...or the razor's you've got from Whipped Dog. (You probably know this, but I include it for the benefit of other readers)

Originally Posted by nickedNsliced

I'm wondering if you really did drop the ball. I mean are they pakistani or have cracked blades or just not properly honed? If its just a matter of getting them honed you might still have some good razors. Even if some of them are uncracked vintage blades that just have bad scales they might be salvageable. It would be nice to know what you ended up with from ebay and hopefully see that you didn't totaly waste cash, esspecialy with todays economy/inflation/recovery.

Yeah My whole collection is from eBay. Have never used a brand new razor to shave, there are some lovely razors out there, dont throw them away! out of 17 razors 14 are pretty damn good shavers.

get'em honed and add them to your rotation

these are not quality vintage razors from ebay, where all they require is a proper honing and they are good.
These are new, poor quality razors from ebay. My understanding is that they somehow are made from inferior steel, and either require very frequent honing to be usable, or simply will not take a fine edge to begin with, as the steel is either too brittle to hone, or too soft to keep a keen edge beyond a shave or two.
They are on the Do-not-buy list, and I have been told many times by senior members here that they are garbage.
If they were old vintage, but quality, I would have GLADLY sent them to someone to hone up properly and would have been quite content shaving away already, however, as it stands, these do not seem to be worth the time and money to send them out because they will not take or hold a keen edge. Why spend $20 to shapen something that wont stay sharp beyond a shave or two.
I believe the best use for these is exactly what I am using them for.. honing practice, and nothing more.
I do however have a very nice Wapi that I just inherited from a kind member here, and I have two more quality straights from Whipped Dog sitting in my mailbox as I type, that I am quite excited to get home and check out. These will be my "shavers" and I will glady pay a member here to re-hone if I am not yet up to the task by the time they require it.