Thread: Unsuccessful honing

I was in your place a few weeks ago. Practice practice practice is the best policy. I was told that 75% of honing is setting the bevel. Once the bevel is set it will cut hair, once you have the bevel done polishing the blade is easy. I go to a 12k and get a great shave. I set with the Norton 1k. Also when you watch Lynn's and gxs video's you will get it. Also use pressure and keep your arm up to get the blade flat. My two cents.

Another suggestion, beyond "keep at it":

. . . Get a 10x loupe so you can see what you're doing!

Watching the progress of an edge, as it gets smoother and sharper, is what guides your decision-making about what stroke, and what hone, to use.

"Rules" about honing have to be modified based on how a razor is behaving as you work on it. With a loupe, it's easier to find warps, frowns, and other problems -- and correct them.

If you can't see the bevel, how do you know it's been set?

. Charles

Originally Posted by cpcohen1945

If you can't see the bevel, how do you know it's been set?

By how it cuts whiskers, or how it catches on your thumb pad. You can feel it. However having a loupe can be pretty handy.

Originally Posted by cpcohen1945

If you can't see the bevel, how do you know it's been set?

. Charles

I use the thumb nail test for the bevel (initially), then a few more light passes on the hone and the arm hair test to confirm

What helped me get started was buying up some rough blades from eBay on the cheap. I used them to practice on. I set a new bevel on them and hone them to the point where they will shave. In some cases, I have destroyed the bevel by “breadknifing” it on a DMT and resetting it from scratch. And that’s the one thing that I’ve learned the most – getting the bevel set is 75% of the battle. Once done, the rest is a little easier. If you haven’t, get a few scrappy blades from eBay and go to work on them. You also get the added benefit of dealing with a few problematic blades along the way. You may encounter some micro chipped blades that need to have them worked out or a few warped blades that don’t hone evenly. If you’re lucky, in the mix of a few razors purchased, you might have a few that can actually be used. In fact if you buy well enough, they all should. Once you have them ready, give them a test and compare the edges to a razor that is professionally honed. Compare not only the shave, but the way it looks under magnification. Look at the sides of the bevel. Do they look as polished as the one you’re using to set the standard? Look at the cutting edge. Is it easier to see than that of the good one? Look up and down the blade. Are the sides of the bevel even? Once you’re done, destroy the edge and start all over. I’m just now THINKING about honing one of my good razors.

I am just now getting decent at honing, the biggest problem I had was you MUST be finished on each grit before moving on to finer grit. Don't get in a hurry and check your edge under magnification.