Thread: Newbie Questions and Hello

Hello! I recently got bit by the sharp bug and have been making knives and a few straight razors for fun. Everything up to this point was kinda having fun, but id like to graduate to having fun and making quality+usable tools. I started doing the SR's to accommodate the size of my forge for heat treating, as the stock needs to be much less than 2" - the more i read about straight razors and kamisoris the more i fell down the rabbit hole and its really sparked my interest.

I designed a few SR last night and was going to get some time today to cut and rough grind but started reading about blade geometry and opened a can of worms. Compound that with poor math skills and now my head is spinning.

I watched Lewis Razors video "Some thoughts on razor design". Seemed pretty straight forward with thicker pieces of steel (1", 1/4" ect). I'll be using 5/32" 1084 steel, after doing the math it seemed the height of the blade would be rather small. Trying to compare that to the "standard" 5/8, 6/8, 7/8, 8/8 has confused me further.

Is this right?: 3.5 x (5/32) inch = 0.546875 (13.8mm)

13.8mm seems a bit small for the blade

Any tips or tricks here would be appreciated and I apologize in advance if this is already on the site somewhere, the search wasnt providing clear answers. I also appreciate and look forward to responses and more lurking on SRP.

TL/DR
Could a 5/32" thick steel be used for straight razors?
Could i make a 5/8,6/8,7/8 etc razor with this thickness of steel?
Will razors work if the 3.5 to 1 geometry isn't used?

Originally Posted by NevadaAK

Could a 5/32" thick steel be used for straight razors?
Could i make a 5/8,6/8,7/8 etc razor with this thickness of steel?
Will razors work if the 3.5 to 1 geometry isnt used?

You could make a 5/8 razor with 5/32" steel, just don't bring your grind all the way to the top of the spine. Leave a mm or so. Another option would be to upset the steel a bit to get a thicker spine. Generally a 4/1 ratio works well if leave a small land at the spine. Beyond 4/1 the razor edge gets very delicate and will feel too acute to most people. 3.5/1 will still work OK (a bit too obtuse for my taste) but that means for a given width the spine has to be thicker and it seems that your available stock is already thickness challenged.

If you want to make razors, you need to understand them. Buy a variety of them and figure out their differences and similarities. You really cannot make them well unless you understand them well, and you cannot understand them well unless you actually use them.

Really appreciate you taking the time to explain here Bluesman!

@Utopian, I agree. Cant get my feet wet without having seen the water. I picked up an old razor at the antique shop as kind of a template, will just have to get more and get a better feel for sizes, shapes, and builds. Thanks for the input.
- Outside of first hand experience with razors themselves, are there any online materials I should seek out as a new user? Heck, i'm still interested in all of this stuff without having to make a razor.

Welcome. If your looking for general info about shaving with a straight check out the library on the site (top toolbar).
There's a lot of great info in there. I'd google Glen and Lynn's videos as well.
Just make sure you've got a "shave ready" edge before you even think of placing thing on your face.
I always recommend finding a member in your area that could mentor you. If you add an area/city to your location I imagine someone will reach out (that goes for razor production not just shaving).

One last thing if you do start using a straight. Other than finding a mentor remeber to be mindful of your angle and shave the lather (not your face).

Cheers,

Jer

Go here and buy some thicker steel:

High Carbon Steel | Product Categories | NJ Steel Baron

Have fun!

Good advice above but the best is from Tim Zowada ..... get some thicker steel. Trust me, been there done that.
The proper ratio's to use are 3.75 -4.0 . with nothing greater that 4.0 because the edge/ bevel gets so thin it can easily microchip at the higher grits while honing.

Also keep in mind that it is much easier to properly grind a 7/8 razor than a 4/8 razor.
While you could make a very small razor, that would be significantly more difficult to pull off.
As Tim said: get thicker steel. 1/4 thick is ideal for making 7/8 to 8/8 razors.