Thread: I’m not getting straight edge.

I’ve spent many hours watching your videos when I first wanted to make razors. But it was an extremely slow start and I’ve forgotten most of what I watched. Going back through them now. I do have yet another question. How much if any difference in thickness do you allow before heat treat?. I practice on scrap I have lying around to get my skills up and I’ve got about .2mm difference from the heel to toe. I don’t have the luxury of variable speed on my grinder at the moment and on final passes I just turn it off and use it as it slows down and repeat until I feel it’s done or I overhear and throw it out.

I find freehand difficult to maintain edge thickness exactly. I’ve usually got .2-.3mm different and I’m not happy with it. Any tips ?

Originally Posted by spazola

I have used the forum name of spazola since 2006 , it would feel weird to change it. I should have choose better years ago.

+1

I feel the same about mine.

We could have made worse choices!

Originally Posted by LukeAugustini

I find freehand difficult to maintain edge thickness exactly. I’ve usually got .2-.3mm different and I’m not happy with it. Any tips ?

When you are close to the finished edge, take it to the hones. That will quickly show you where you need to remove more metal.
Also use fresh belts that still cut right.
Sharp belts -> less heat.

Bruno. Notice that the OP is asking about thickness before heat treat .

I think that a .2mm difference before heat treat is not very significant as far as the heat treating is concerned, though I don't see why you can't correct this. You are going to need to get an even thickness after heat treat, why can't you do it before when it is easier.

Oh. I hadn't noticed.
I don't think the thickness before HT matters greatly. I never measure mine, and some of them have some thickness variance that I can see clear as day.
The difference shouldn't be extreme, but as long as it is more or less thicknes of a dime, give or take, it shouldn't matter at all.

It is possible to correct this. But at this stage I always opt for a 'good enough' approach.

I tend to leave mine a bit chunky before heat treat, maybe .030 to .050 of an inch thick, I do not measure before heat treat, I just eyeball it.

You will get better every blade you grind. I am still learning and trying new things, watch a lot of people and see what works for you and your brain.

Also since we're on this subject:
After HT, as you approach the final thickness, just put the razor on a flat surface as if you were going to hone it. If it wobbles, you can very easily see where you need to remove metal to make it sit flat.
And if you have a smiling blade, the same thing works: just roll the razor as if you are going to do a rolling X stroke on the hone. And if you notice a wobble in the roll that is not supposed to be there, just remove metal to correct. The important thing is to do this while you still have thickness to work with. If you grind all the way until the edge is near final thickness, and then you notice that the geometry doesn't work, there is no material to work with anymore.

Nice looking work so far. Must be really enjoyable turning an idea into something tangible like that.

Originally Posted by spazola

The curve of the blade matches the spine, like Bruno said.

The way that I think of it, as I rotate the blade on the wheel going back and forth, I try to keep the edge of the blade perpendicular to the wheel.

I have used the forum name of spazola since 2006 , it would feel weird to change it. I should have choose better years ago.

You could always put your name in your title or signature line if you wanted newer members to know who are. I recently found out from a newer member JP5 is a type of jet fuel!

Originally Posted by JP5

I recently found out from a newer member JP5 is a type of jet fuel!

I thought it probably had something to do with your work.

Maybe that is what you smell like when you come home at the end of the day.......