Thread: How best to start honing with shave ready razors?

I've been buying my razors from SRD, so Lynn has honed them all. Besides needing a CrOX touch up, they're all as shave ready as I can imagine. After stropping they'll easily grab/cut hairs on my head (upside of military haircut - you don't miss a few millimeters).

As some others have said, you can't go wrong starting with a Nani 12k (or alternately, a good barber hone). And since you have known reference razors from Lynn, you know and can compare what sharp really feels like-very important when starting!

Then once you have dialed in the muscle memory on the ultra-light, smooth strokes required on a finisher, it's that much easier to go down the grits as necessary and work your way back up. eBay beaters with solid steel are great to learn on; just check the edge carefully using their zoom feature for any "Swiss-cheese" corrosion on the edge before buying!

edit: if your edges remain as shave ready as you say, don't potentially undo that with a lot of unnecessary honing. If your stropping is dialed in, you can go quite a long time just with that and 10 or so strokes onCrOx occasionally.

Originally Posted by ScoutHikerDad

edit: if your edges remain as shave ready as you say, don't potentially undo that with a lot of unnecessary honing. If your stropping is dialed in, you can go quite a long time just with that and 10 or so strokes onCrOx occasionally.

+1 on that. Resist the urge to fart around with a decent edge until it really needs it. Less chance to muck it up that way. Another lesson learned the hard way by yours truly.

Bob

@ScoutHikerDad... that's pretty much where I'm at now. With the exception of the dinging of my 5/8 on the sink and having to send it off for honing, I've not had to do anything with my 6/8 besides 10 laps of CroX when it first arrived. Been using it daily for close to a month now and it still cuts like a champ. I was thinking about something like the 12k is anticipation of down the road. It's a 2-3 week turn around for honing, so I will either need quite a few razors or learn to hone.

Proper stropping and a bit of Chrome Oxide can keep you shaving for a long, long time… indefinitely.

The trick is learning to strop… properly.

Go slow, never lift the spine from the strop, stop then flip.

+1 to previous comments.

I use the Nani 12k and two small Escher's I have to refresh a blade. Also have an old strop with some crox pasted on the back for occasional touch-ups.

This is the video I watched many times in order to learn how to refresh my razors, and usually will watch again before I refresh one. It's Lynn Abrams discussing the various ways to refresh your razors, including using the Nani 12k. Hope this helps:

Originally Posted by MajorEthanolic

@BobH... considering I have NO honing skills, thus the question. Looking to dip my toes into the water before jumping in. Having bought 3 razors over the last 3 months, my wife is going to use one of the razors on me if I spend too much more.

Get the 12k Naniwa superstone and a DMT 325 to lap it with and you'll be set for a while. That's the advice I got and darn if it doesn't work. I think I got both through SRD for about $100.

Hey Guys,

I went a slightly different route, I ordered the 1/4 hones from Whipped Dog and then the same size welsh slate with slurry stones from AJ on Ebay as finishers. After getting used to the 8K Norton and the edges I was able to produce the slate seemed like a good alturnative to costly finishers. The stones are small and take a fair while to work the edge, but I am patient and have gotten used to them. They don't take up a lot of space and all cost me just on $140 US delivered. I have bought two breadknives to shave ready on them but must admit I have been mucking around with edges since I was knee high to a grasshopper.

Good luck in your endevours whichever way you decide to go.

I took pretty much the advise everybody's been giving you. Started with crox stick on the srd webbing then the Nani 12k. Now I have a C12k and a 3 line swaty, dmt 325, a king 1k and 6k. Enroute is a 3k/8k Nani combo so now I can do restores on a dozen or so flea bay purchases. I've already used the swaty and 12k Nani to touch up my shave ready blades. (Idk if I made them better but I didn't do them any harm either )

Originally Posted by S0LITARYS0LDIER

Hi guys, if I want to learn honing would a flea market offer me a cheap avenue of picking up old straight razors that are dull and could use a hone. I have a DMT 325 as a lapping stone. I also have acquired a 600/1200 DMT for bevel setting. I have also picked up a 4/8k combo cuticle with BBW on one side and the famous COticule on the other. In theory I could bring a razor to shave ready correct? I have no experience what so ever in honing but would like to take it up to sharpen my own razor and eventually any one who needs it in my area. What are your thoughts and opinions I don't want to use it on the razor I am using now because I am learning to strop and shave with it and wouldn't benefit from over honing or damaging my edge with improper technique. Should I start out with pocket knives or anything. I don't want to rush into it but it would give me another hobby while I was waiting for my beard to grow back. Thanks guys!

This is a question best suited for it's own thread instead of hijacking this one. Start a new thread and there will be plenty of answers coming your way in short order.