Advice on Hones

Hello Everybody,

I am extremely new to straight razor shaving. In fact I haven't even tried it yet. I am currently in the Marine Corps and obviously I have to shave everyday. No matter what I try with the plastic razors you buy in the store my neck seems to always break out in razor burn. A Marine that just left the duty station I am currently at recommended that I try to start using a straight razor. He said that he used to have the same problem and that after he got used to using a straight razor he never had razor burn/bumps again. I just recently ordered a DOVO 5/8 set that come with the strop, shave soap, bowl, boar hair brush. I also just ordered a norton 4000/8000 grit waterstone, as my research has shown me that as a beginner I may need to hone my blade more often that a someone who has been doing this for a while. I noticed (after I had already ordered the stone) that a few reviews on it said that it would need to be flattened before the first use. This is where my question comes to play. I am currently stationed in Okinawa, Japan and it takes forever for my mail to get here. Is there any way that I can flatten the stone without one of those flattening stones? I have already spent about $300 on everything so far and for whatever reason the flattening stone will take longer to get here than the razor or even the waterstone. Your help is greatly appreciated and I am looking forward to absorbing all the information that you veterans of straight razor shaving have to offer. Thanks in advance for all your advice and help.

You can use 3-400 grit wet/dry on a piece of glass to flatten the 4/8. I use a dmt 325. But the wet/dry will work. It may lap fast or slow, all depends on how they are when you get them. My Norton combo 4k side was pretty good, the 8k side took a while. Good Luck and thanks for your service to our country! I learned everything from forums like his. Take advantage of it.

an addition to the above message lay the sandpaper on a flat surface and put a few markers with permanent marker on the stone. if the stripes are gone he should be flat.(e.g. a cross and a pair of straight lines.)
Good luck.

First off, Welcome Aboard! And thank you for your service.

You can use a flat surface and wet/dry sandpaper, or invest in a 325 DMT. I have the norton flattening stone, it came with the set and got a DMT soon thereafter. The Norton stone is collecting dust.

Get friendly with the Local Nationals and you might end up with a jnat!

Semper Fidelis devildog. Wish I would have gotten in to straight shaving in the corps, but you can't beat those $5 packs of Gillette's you can buy at the recruit store on MCRD.

DAHE4,

Welcome to SRP, glad to have you on board!! First, I wouldn't burn any money on the Norton lapping stone. It will also need lapped a some point. Second, a lot of the synthetic hones come from Japan. If you're stationed at Camp Hansen, you might try asking at one of the barber shops in Kin Village and see if they know of a place you might find these type of items, probably in Naha. My favorite lapping plate is a 400 Atoma diamond plate, from Japan. They're a little more pricey, but who knows what you might find in Naha. If at one of the other camps, you know where to ask.

Haven't been to Okinawa since 1971. Went through 7 or 8 times, and stationed there twice. That was all before the repatriation back to Japan. I suspect it's a nicer place now!!

:gl: in your hunt!!

Best Regards,
Howard :)
Semper Fi

Thanks for the advice everybody. I will actually be around Kin Town later this month. I will definitely try to find a diamond plate while I am in the area. If I can't find one, I will do the wet/dry sandpaper. How do I tell if the sandpaper is wet/dry? Or is all sandpaper that way? Kalerolf thanks for the tip on the lines. That's sounds like a really good idea. I will definitely do that. Thanks again everybody for the help!

Wet dry sandpaper is usually associated with automotive painting, etc.. Check around the automotive stores, if you can find one, or paint shops and paint dealers.

:gl:

Howard :)

I had to lap my Norton with wet dry, depending how 'not' flat it is you might want to start with some lower grit paper & then finish with something like a 600 grit. The yellow 8K side should end up feeling almost glasslike. I just soaked the norton for a while & then drew a grid on the side I was lapping with pencil. Lay the wet sandpaper face up (obviously) on a completely flat surface & just did circles with the norton using just the weight of the stone itself until the pencil marks went. Redraw the pencil grid & went at it some more. You'll know when it's flat when the pencil marks dissapear evenly. Mine was a pain because the 2 opposing corners on both sides of the stone were higher than the rest so it took a good while to lap, hence resorting to lower grit paper. Also remember to round off the edges slightly with the sandpaper/dmt - stops any chance of catching the blade when honing.

I've only been using the 8K side for touch ups so far, but I'm quite new to honing myself...it seems to be working. If you receive your razor shave ready & only have normal wear (ie you don't ding the edge on your sink/taps etc) that's all you may have to use. My edge lasted me 2 months from new before I had to take it to the hone.

Good luck & enjoy.

The 325 plate makes life easier. Sooner or later most of us purchase one :)

Been in Japan, I would get an Atoma 400 or 1200 diamond plate, they are flatter than the DMT325 and both can be used for lapping. The cost is a little more, but you would save on shipping! Double O

Here is a more detailed description for lapping with sand paper: Hone Lapping 101 - Straight Razor Place Wiki

Just incase you go that way. :)

Here's a tip: Assuming your new razor is honed and shave-ready when you get it, try shaving with it before you do anything to it. This way you will know how a "sharp" razor feels on your face, and when you do hone it you can judge what kind of a job you did. It's not uncommon for a newbie to strop or hone a blade dull. :gl:

BTW, thanks for your service.

The razor I bought is a dovo 5/8. It comes with a kit and says it is shave ready. When it finally arrives in the mail should I just wipe the oil off of it and try to shave my cheeks? Or should I try to strop it first? Being in okinawa I probably have a week before it arrives, maybe even 2 weeks. I am just trying to gain as much knowledge as possible before I even do my first shave.

Shave ready means it is ready to go. No stropping before. By not stropping you experience a shave ready edge and if the shave doesn't go well you'll know it wasn't the razor. You try to eliminate as many variables as possible in the beginning so that you can hopefully find what needs practice. Just wipe the oil off, or you can rinse with hot tap water to help remove it. Always try to keep water, lather and other rust causing things out of the pivot pin area of the razor. :D

Who did you get your set from?

:gl:

Howard :)

Edit: Here's some good info also. This is Lynn's stropping video and will help a lot I think.

Straight Razor Stropping for Beginners - YouTube

I bought the razor set from amazon. I'm not sure how to post a link from my phone, but it was the only dovo set that amazon had. I ordered from amazon due to the fact I knew for a fact that they ship USPS to fpo addresses. Thanks for the video. I think that will help a lot when it comes time for me to strop for the first time.

Just a heads up. It may very well be that your razor is coming with the factory edge. There are a few vendors, and, I'm not sure about Amazon, but probably they too are calling the factory edge "Shave Ready". The factory edge is not really shave ready. One way to tell if its the factory edge is if the razor coffin, tin, or however it was packaged at Dovo is still sealed when you get it...then it's their edge. If it needs honed and you can't find someone there that truly knows how to hone a razor, I'd be glad to do it for you and return it via USPS and I'll pay the return shipping.

If you decide to try honing it yourself, use one layer of electrical tape on the spine so you don't get uneven hone wear on the spine.

I'll edit this post in a few minutes with a link to gssixgun's honing videos. He'll have one using your set of hones and they should help a lot.

Howard :)

Here's the link: http://m.youtube.com/#/results?deskt...l=1&sa=X&gl=US

If it turns out that you do need some help, or would like to have me hone it, you can PM (private message) me by clicking on my user name and then private messages.

I appreciate the offer and may even take you up on it, if it does not come shave ready. After looking at it on amazon, I found that I am only purchasing it through amazon. It is actually coming from vintage straight razor. Is this a reputable company? I will also pay attention to how the blade is packaged to see if it came straight from the factory or not. Thanks again for all the help!

Ok, now I am confused. I looked on amazon again after I saw on here that people didn't have much good to say about the vintage razor company. It says sold by fgp, but under the discriptiin it talks about vintage straight razors. Below is the link to the razor I bought on amazon. Please let me know what you think. DOVO 504B 5/8 Col Conk Straight Razor with Full Shaving Set:Amazon:Health & Personal Care

Yeah, it's confusing! The razor pictured is a Dovo Best Quality, but the Col Conk concerns me. Read this thread. http://straightrazorpalace.com/razor...-col-conk.html

Here's a search, Col Conk Dovo. http://straightrazorpalace.com/googl...j1202310699j14

You'll just have to see what shows up. :( I hope it's the Dovo Best Quality, but I wouldn't bet on it.

Ok, so best outcome is that it is an actual dovo best quality. Mid outcome is that it is a rebranded dovo and may need to be honed, and worst outcome is that it may just be a complete pos. guess I will wait until it comes in and see. Any suggestions on how to test if it is shave ready before I try to shave with it?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by kalerolf

an addition to the above message lay the sandpaper on a flat surface and put a few markers with permanent marker on the stone. if the stripes are gone he should be flat.(e.g. a cross and a pair of straight lines.)
Good luck.

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I've always used a pencil to mark the stone. Pencil lead stays on the surface. Marker dye might sink into the stone, and give false readings.

But 400-grit wet-or-dry sandpaper on a _flat_ surface (e.g., a piece of glass, or marble or granite tile), under running water, will do the job.

. charles

My norton 4000/8000 grit waterstone came in the mail today. It came with 2 little chips near the edge, and a little uneven. I expected this, so I will be going out in town this weekend to see if I can find the correct sandpaper to lap it with. My razor hasn't even gotten here and I am already getting a little excited to try my first straight razor shave!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by DAHE4

Any suggestions on how to test if it is shave ready before I try to shave with it?

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That's something that comes with the experience that all of us acquire over time. Right now, I can't think of one test not based on that experience. I suggest trying the razor straight out of the box. No stropping, or any thing except maybe wiping any oil off the blade being careful to not touch the edge, except in a light stropping action, on a clean dry soft cloth. Don't pull your thumb across the blade like a knife, it'll damage the edge, they're very fragile. And don't let anybody else either, no paper cutting etc. These are just things we hear from time to time.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by DAHE4

My razor hasn't even gotten here and I am already getting a little excited to try my first straight razor shave!

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It's really beneficial to read this help item First straight razor shave - Straight Razor Place Wiki before you make that first attempt. Don't expect too much in the beginning. It's as much art as skill. Slow and easy to start and you'll really cut down on frustration. Also, I would pick a day off for the first attempt. You'll take a lot more time in the beginning than you think. There's a learning curve with straights, but when it all comes together, it's well worth all the time and effort, and, it's just a lot of fun!!! :D

:gl:

Howard :)

I went out in town yesterday and found some wet dry sandpaper. It was challenging to say the least. lol. Language barriers and all. I decided to sit down today and try to lap my norton 4k/8k. I am 4 hours into it and still haven't got the thing flat. The 4k side is flat, but seems to have lines in it like something was digging into it. Not deep but noticeable. I don't understand as I finished it with a 600 grit. The 8k side is about 75% done, and is turning out nice. Most of it is extrememly smooth to the touch, I still have to flatten it more to get the edges correctly. Oh, and I am still waiting on my razor to come in. Hopefully it will be sometime this week. Don't worry though, I plan on trying to shave with it before I try to hone it. I'm just hoping that I didn't get screwed over on it. If I did, I know for a fact that my next straight razor purchase will be from here!