Thread: Amature Honing success!

After learning that the factory edge on my store bought straight wasn't truly up to snuff I endeavored to put a new edge on my razor myself. The bevel wasn't exactly perfect but it passed the shave test with flying colors. I can't believe just how long I put up with the factory edge thinking that was as good as it got, I feel silly now for being so stubborn.

How did you go about it (stones, film, grit rating, yada yada)?

I'm one of those ceramic stone kind of guys and my set doesn't have numeric measurements for grit. They just read medium, fine, and very fine.
I'm a bit lazy so if I'm going to put an edge on something I'm not going to work with the factory edge and find the angle, I just obliterate the old edge and put a new one on.
I don't use angle finders or measurements I just eye ball things, so for my angle I just placed it flat on the stone and lifted the spine a hair to get it off the stone and went with that. After that I did 40 passes total on the medium grit guaranteeing me a brand new edge, then 10 on my fine to clean off the burr, then 20 on my very fine for polishing. Before the shave I gave it a good 50 passes on my strop and all was well.
My vision is a perfect 20/20 so I didn't have any trouble seeing the bevel, which wasn't exactly perfect, but it looked good enough. I did a forearm hair test and it passed so I went to the shave next.

No you don't have to calculate angles or anything (unless it's an antique or used with some bad hone wear), just laying the spine and keeping it flat on the stone sets the bevel angle where it needs to be, just the nature of the designs. No need to lift the spine like honing knives. Glad it turned out good for ya'. Honing seems to be the boogy monster of the shaving world for alot of folks.

Ah, so I don't need to lift the spine a bit. I have a good deal of experience sharpening knives and that's just how I've always done it with my knives. Of course knives aren't often sharpened below 10 degrees so with razors it isn't exactly the same thing. I'll keep that in mind.

Yep, ya got it. That's why you come here, for advice, tips, tricks, and the like. I had a bugger of a time leaving the spine dead flat and not lifting the edge up on the stroke because of it, old habits from knife sharpening as well I guess

Another thing that is so much different from honing knives is the pressure used on the stones.
Then comes the use of slurry, circles, X strokes........... the list goes on.
Congratulations on your success so far.
We love hearing about them.

Originally Posted by Steelstubble

Ah, so I don't need to lift the spine a bit. I have a good deal of experience sharpening knives and that's just how I've always done it with my knives. Of course knives aren't often sharpened below 10 degrees so with razors it isn't exactly the same thing. I'll keep that in mind.

Hi. You may find this thread on angles interesting but yeah the guide is built into the geometry. Spine & edge flat on the hone or strop. Just a slight torque to the edge to save the spine. Not enough to flex the edge away from the stone tho.
http://straightrazorpalace.com/razor...zor-angle.html

Raising the spine a bit works just fine for me too. It's not necessary, but I like to minimize wear on the razor's spine. Unlike the "experts" claims, I find knife sharpening experience translates directly to honing razors.

That has to be a good feeling!!! Congratulations!