Thread: Newb to razor honing question

Originally Posted by Euclid440

Honing is much like sanding wood, the smaller the grit jumps, the less time you spend on higher grits and the better the final finish after shaping. Pressure, plays a big part here. 8k to 30K Chrome Ox is a big jump anything you do to lessen will pay benefits or you will be asking a lot of the Chrome Ox and likely be disappointed.

Everything after 1K bevel setting, the edge is straight and sharp is polishing. Polishing is for comfort. The higher the finish with the smallest grit jumps the straighter/smoother the edge and better the comfort.

Most new synthetic stones will produce a usable edge, it is really more about progression and technique than brand name.

Kind of agree but if we were to throw naturals into the equation the situation could change somewhat & 1 or 3 stones can be plenty. Even jumping form 5k Shapton Pro to 12k works just fine.

Very much agree here tho "it is really more about progression and technique than brand name."

One detail.... there are two common cases for honing.

* In need of a bevel set or more

* Just a tuneup, shaved with it this morning and it was just OK.

When restoring or resetting a bevel the stack of hones is quite large.
The progression commonly begins at 1k and then works it way down
to 8K or finer. Honemasters collect a progression of hones that
optimize their time and effort.

The notion of a refresh is for a blade that shaved OK yesterday and only needs a touch up.
It can be made right with a single darn fine hone... (8k to 16k) . Since I have not
played with the Shapton 30000 I am going to ignore that for now. A recently
lapped flat modern darn fine hone will have enough tooth to make an
edge right as long as the bevel is still intact. Recently I have been "refreshing"
on a Sigma 13K hone and have found that the edge improved quickly
and was a delight to shave with.

Those that "refresh" with a pasted strop will get nice shaves for a while
but eventually a darn fine hone will have trouble getting the edge right.

This distinction is valuable because sending a blade out to a honemaster
can repair and reset the bevel and quickly progress down to a finished
edge. A shaver does not need to reset the bevel in normal use and
can "refresh" the edge with a well selected single hone.

Naturals... well they are all different so what works, works.

As far as grit progression goes a lot depends on the media.
No longer available at Woodcraft the abrasive film was
a simple three grit progresson 15micron, 5micron, 0.3micron
and the jumps were not a problem. In fact the 0.3 micron
film makes for a deluxe refresh.