Thread: Wish I would have started honing sooner

I have been SR shaving for about 2 years now. I typically shave every other day and have learned that I can go about 3 months before I have to send my razor off to be honed again. By that point it gets to where I am using paste, stropping more and more but get tugging and irritation. It sneaks up on you and you don't realize how bad the blade got until you get it back freshly honed.

So I finally decided to give honing a try and maintain the blades for longer and keep up the better shaves. Last week I got a Naniwa 12K. My stainless steel razor was too far gone and the 12K did not help at all. However, my backup razor only has about 2 weeks of shaves on it. After lapping that razor the shaves are way better even after only 2 weeks of use.

Most of the time when you get a razor back from a professional hone is it almost too sharp if that makes any sense. After a couple of shaves the blade settles down and is smooth. The 12K finishes the blade like it was already on the 3rd shave. Like I said, I wish I would have done this a long time ago.

I already have a Naniwa 3/8K on the way so I can bring my main razor back to shape. With luck I will be able to keep that one smooth on the 12K with regular touch ups too.

Congratulations, it isn't usually hard, it just takes practice. And a really good fresh edge is a thing of joy.

Cheers, Steve

ericd, don't regret not having started honing your own razors sooner. By waiting you have gotten the major work of learning to shave successfully out of the way. To many newbies think they have to do it all, all at once. By doing so they don't pay attention to the details and finesse of the act of shaving itself. You are in SRP territory. Watch Lynn's videos. You might even think of contacting him for a one on one session on honing since he is in MO also.

Honing is not a natural act for many. It is as Steve56 says, "it just takes practice." But, if you can avail yourself of the honemeister himself you will be ahead of the game.

Good for you! Being able to hone your own razors will free you from having to send your razors out for refreshing. You will also find that with practice your stropping and shaving technique will improve to the point where even honing will become only a once-a-year necessity.

Yea your only 3 hours from Lynn and you can make a day out of it by stopping at Lamberts on the way back home. Tc

Actually, Lynn will be moving to St. Louis in the next 30-60 days and the door will be open.

Have fun.

The 12k Super Stone, is a great stone and capable of much more than most give it credit for. Make sure to lap it and to refresh, with some 320 wet & dry or a diamond plate. Good diamond plates are available for as low as $30.

Good lighted magnification (from $2-15), will make your honing so much easier and allow you to better understand the process and mark your progress. There are good threads on magnification, do buy lighted magnification at least 60x.

It sounds like your edges are chipping while stropping on paste, common with using too much pressure and/or paste that are not pure. A good paste should extend you edge life by a lot. You do have to be careful about pressure with paste.

What paste are you stropping on and is it razor quality?

I use the Thiers Issard strop paste. It helps for a while but eventually I get to a point where that and/or stropping do not make the shave better and there is pulling on the beard rather than cutting. I was happy with the results from the 12K on the carbon steel blade and have no problem needing to use that every couple of weeks to freshen up the blade.
The stainless steel blade I know I let get far too dull and the 12k just is not getting it any better. I think a few laps on the 8k or maybe a few on the 3k then the 8k should get it back in shape.
It is not bad, I think the bevel set is fine. I can cut some arm hair close to the arm but not off the arm. On the face I feel a resistance that shouldn't be there. I could still use the blade and would say I had shaved but it is a neutral experience not an enjoyable one. It's all part of the pursuit of a great shave, not just a shave.

edit: By the way, no joke about lapping the stone. I did not lap it the first time. Saw spaces on the stone where no honing was taking place and blade did not seem to improve. Used wet dry and the pencil X. Stone was not flat, is now and after lapping the honing worked.

So, as you have found, hair test are unreliable… mostly because the sample size is so small, one micron of a 3in edge.

Look at the edge with magnification, before you do anything, then, do what is needed to repair it. I think when you do look at the edge, you will find chipping, from too much pressure, contamination or the substrate. A pasted strop is an abrasive strop and the slightest mis-stroke is magnified. Use light pressure with paste.

Do not just jump in blind and start grinding off steel, that never ends in good result. Some have, got lucky and get a decent shave and then try to replicate that.

If you don’t know what the problem is… how can you repeat the results?

Originally Posted by ericd

I have been SR shaving for about 2 years now. I typically shave every other day and have learned that I can go about 3 months before I have to send my razor off to be honed again. By that point it gets to where I am using paste, stropping more and more but get tugging and irritation. It sneaks up on you and you don't realize how bad the blade got until you get it back freshly honed.

So I finally decided to give honing a try and maintain the blades for longer and keep up the better shaves. Last week I got a Naniwa 12K. My stainless steel razor was too far gone and the 12K did not help at all. However, my backup razor only has about 2 weeks of shaves on it. After lapping that razor the shaves are way better even after only 2 weeks of use.

Most of the time when you get a razor back from a professional hone is it almost too sharp if that makes any sense. After a couple of shaves the blade settles down and is smooth. The 12K finishes the blade like it was already on the 3rd shave. Like I said, I wish I would have done this a long time ago.

I already have a Naniwa 3/8K on the way so I can bring my main razor back to shape. With luck I will be able to keep that one smooth on the 12K with regular touch ups too.

There are other things in the house to sharpen, too. Now that you're getting kit to sharpen razors, you can have sharp scissors, sharp kitchen knives and just about anything else that doesn't come as well finished from the factory as it should.